Telltail Dog - Episodes Tagged with “Reactivity”

Episode 51: "He Definitely Has Some Big Feelings": Small Dogs and Reactivity with Bernadette Tow of Hershey the Weenie

Elizabeth Silverstein — Tue, 17 Oct 2023 11:00:00 -0400

Bernadette Tow had always wanted a dachshund but didn't grow up with dogs. Her husband surprised her about five years ago with the option of bringing home a puppy, and raising Hershey inspired her to learn more about dog training and behavior. After a career switch, she earned a Diploma in Canine Behaviour Science and Technology (Dip. CBST) from CASI (Companion Animal Sciences Institute), and is studying with the Academy for Dog Trainers. She is a co-trainer with Raintown Dog Training in Vancouver, BC, Canada and teaches puppy, basic manners, and tricks classes. She also works part-time at Petite Paws Playcare, which is a small dog daycare. We discussed how she ended up with Hershey, handling reactivity in an apartment, and why she switched careers.

Follow Bernadette and Hershey
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/Hersheytheweenie

Telltail Dog Training is a positive reinforcement dog training business based in Little Rock, Arkansas, offering private lessons, group classes, and training walks.

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Website: https://telltaildogtraining.com/

Special Guest: Bernadette Tow.

Episode 11: Embarrassed: We Got a Handful

Elizabeth Silverstein — Tue, 27 Oct 2020 10:00:00 -0400

Join Elizabeth of Telltail Dog and Dawn of Odin_Pup (https://www.instagram.com/odin_pup/) for a look into the handful that is Odin. Dawn's familiar with being severely embarrassed by her dog -- and she's a dog trainer. Tools and methods mentioned in the podcast are linked below through the blog post.

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Excerpt:
Odin's personality continued to emerge, and Dawn and Mark weren’t sure they’d be able to keep him. “I would say that there’s probably a lot of reactive dog owners who feel that they have the wrong dog,” Dawn said. “And I would say that they probably don’t, they just haven’t figured out the language yet, but at the same time, I’ve been there. I felt the same way. We were worried that if we couldn’t figure it out, we’d have to find Odin a new home because we weren’t the right home for him."

Then Odin scared Mark, who had been bitten by a dog the year before. Odin latched onto his arm, tugging. “We thought it was aggression,” Dawn said. “I was like, ‘Oh my god, we have to go put this dog down because he just bit my husband.’ Turns out, he had literally no idea what to do with his mouth. He was so overstimulated and he’s a reactive dog who was like, ‘Oh we’re playing tug now? Let’s play tug REALLY HARD.’"

They had some hard discussions and then reached out to Dana Falsetta, a close friend of Mark’s and a dog trainer and then a manager with Philly Unleashed. “She fielded a lot of phone calls from us at 10, 11 o’clock at night in tears, because we just didn’t know what to do,” Dawn shared. “I wasn’t a trainer yet. I had no idea. I was reading all of the books, reading all of the articles. It was a very intense year.”

Special Guest: Dawn Heiderscheidt.

Episode 9: Embarrassed: The Only Reactive Pitbull in Atlanta

Elizabeth Silverstein — Tue, 01 Sep 2020 04:30:00 -0400

Join Elizabeth of Telltail Dog and Lauren of Empath_N_Drake (https://www.instagram.com/empath_n_drake/) for a candid discussion on reactivity, repression, and training methods. Lauren tried everything after her pitbull Drake developed reactive behaviors when he was seven months old.

Empath_N_Drake: https://www.instagram.com/empath_n_drake/
Odin_Pup: https://www.instagram.com/odin_pup/
John Is For the Dogs: https://www.instagram.com/john.is.for.the.dogs/

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Instagram: instagram.com/telltaildog/
Facebook: facebook.com/telltaildog/
Twitter: twitter.com/telltaildog

Excerpt:
Previously, when he looked at another dog, he’d get a correction because a look would lead to a reaction. If he was tense walking down the hallway, he was supposed to get a correction. If he was on edge at all, he’d get a correction. “He was constantly being stimmed,” Lauren shared. “It was so unfair. … It felt like we were constantly in conflict.”

Now, she tries to honor him and work on building him up. When he looks at another dog, she can tell if it’s curiosity or about to lead to a reaction. By inviting him to look at her instead, she can let him know he’s safe.

Lauren also manages Drake’s behavior by:

Giving him as much space as possible. If anyone is walking towards them, she uses space to manage his reactions and reward him for eye contact.
Knowing his thresholds. (https://www.whole-dog-journal.com/behavior/5-things-to-know-about-a-dogs-threshold/) A threshold is just the point where a dog has engaged in fight, freeze, or flight, and may struggle to think or process his surroundings. This is where a dog won’t take treats or can’t focus.
Avoiding trigger stacking. (https://pawsandreward.com/trigger-stacking-your-dogs-threshold/). Trigger stacking just means a dog is unable to recover from the stress of reacting to a trigger before facing a new trigger. This means reactions get more and more intense as the dog gets overwhelmed.
Utilizing decompression walks. (https://www.dogmindedboston.com/blog/2019/5/27/the-life-changing-power-of-decompression-walks) These sorts of walks allow for freedom of movement and engagement for dogs, allowing them to use their nose and mind and thus ultimately recover from any triggers. As a result, they’re much more mentally able to face any new challenges or triggers.

Special Guest: Lauren.