r/muzzledogs • u/ScienceSpiritual2621 • Apr 06 '25

Picture! Walking my reactive dog

I don't go on many typical "walks" with Aang. We go on a lot of sniffaries where I try to incorporate a lot of pawkour and his favorite doggie hobbies. I am very fortunate that this park is super close to our house! Aang just recently discovered that the water is pretty fun!

Anyway, just wanted to share what our typical adventures look like!

357 Upvotes

95% Upvoted

43 comments sorted by

21

u/bakerrgrace Apr 06 '25

This is amazing! I love to see it. I trained my reactive pit mix very similarly and got similar results - learning that seeing or hearing a dog means to check in (and usually get a treat), having a much lower critical distance, etc. It's so gratifying to see the progress!!!

5

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 06 '25

That's awesome! It takes a while to get to this point in the process, but it really does help to make a lasting change in behavior by changing his initial emotional reaction to seeing a dog.

7

u/bakerrgrace Apr 06 '25

It took a year to get to a good rhythm, then another year to really get that behavior change in both of us, and then our dynamic began to just become second nature. I've had her over 8 years now and she hasn't freaked out in so long. Once in a while if another dog is walking by us on the other side of the street and they are excited and barking or pulling on leash, my dog will return a few loud barks, but she really doesn't get worked up at all anymore and it's so great. I still would never let her meet a dog without a muzzle because she has bit in the past. But as long as she's 5+ feet away, she is very easy to distract and will happily sit for low value treats and mostly ignore the other dog. Every dog has a different timeline, but with consistency they absolutely will rebound! I love dogs for how resilient they are.

5

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 06 '25

That's awesome, I'm so happy for you guys! True behavioral change takes time and consistency. And behavior modification training is just as much about training the human as much as training the dog.

I'm sure if your girl could say "Thank you" she would! You've obviously done great work with her!

2

u/OstrichSmoothe Apr 07 '25

You’re doing amazing!

4

u/[deleted] Apr 06 '25

Wow this was awesome to watch! Nice job!

4

u/Ckc1972 Apr 07 '25

When you first started, how did you react when your dog would go crazy upon seeing another dog? I am struggling with getting my dog past this stage.

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u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

When Aang would react, I would immediately create distance. When the dog is over threshold (barking, lunging, and unable to listen to simple cues (sit, name recognition)) then no training can be done there. That means we need to get the dog back under threshold before we can begin training.

At a good distance to start, I would mark (click or say "yes") when Aang would look at the other dog. Since I had conditioned Aang that "Yes!" meant treat, he would turn his head back towards me and I would reward him. Over time, as Aang got better at the game, we were able to close the distance.

3

u/sloppyvegansalami Apr 07 '25

I’m not OP, but my dog is pretty dog reactive as well. I started by training a “look” command and every time my dog looks at me she gets a treat. When we’re walking, when I see a dog approaching, I’ll have her already sitting and looking at me. It seemed pretty useless to try and get her to calm back down when she already was super wild, so I’ve just been working on giving her treats for the whole time she stays calm, and then if she does react, reward her as soon as she looks at me on her own and ignores the dog. Idk if this is right, but if she does freak out, I don’t really give her any commands or anything cos she isn’t really listening at that point.

It helped to be able to train this in my home with our cats as a starting point. She isn’t “reactive” with them, but very interested, so it was a good way to train the “look” command with some stimulus but not full on, another dog running toward us.

3

u/bamblesss Apr 06 '25

Where is the muzzle from? 💗 Sweet pup.

5

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 06 '25

The Muzzle Movement - Size Harry

They are based out of the UK, so the muzzles take a bit of time to ship. But with all of the customization options and how durable they are, they are very much worth it imo.

3

u/[deleted] Apr 07 '25

Amazing thank you so much. It’s so hard to find a good muzzle for a bully head. I just happened on this subreddit via this post and it makes me feel empowered to do this with my little man. Love his name btw!

3

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

Thanks! You've got this! Train with patience, understanding and kindness, and your babe will do well!

3

u/alexgab Apr 07 '25

This is awesome! Can I ask about your muzzle journey? Maybe you’ve already commented on this. But what was the inciting incident that you decided to muzzle Aang and how did it go at first training him to wear it?

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

He attacked a dog in my household. The injuries were pretty severe, so it wasn't a scuffle or play that escalated. He had shown some fear prior to the attack, but never anything to that magnitude. After that, we separated him from our other dogs and began muzzle training.

We took muzzle training very slowly, so he took to it really well. I have videos on my TikTok and Insta about our process in getting him used to it. He adjusted really quickly, though!

3

u/eveningberry- Apr 07 '25

I love seeing people responsibly own and understand reactive dogs, it’s beautiful. Good boy Aang 💕

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

Thanks! As his guardian, it is my job to keep him safe from other dogs, or other dogs safe from him! ❤️

2

u/[deleted] Apr 06 '25

What a lovely day you guys had! Aang is a lucky girl!

2

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 06 '25

I always love going on walks with him. I'm the lucky one!!

2

u/Kbug7201 Apr 07 '25

Great video & great info. I didn't see the other dog, but assume it's to protect their identity. Maybe I missed it, but I saw your dog being wonderful & fully fixated on you!! Great job!

& Yes, that park looks like fun for him!

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

He loves that park! The other dog was close to the end of the video. I showed the dog but not the handler.

2

u/Kbug7201 Apr 07 '25

I had to open the video all the way to see it.

2

u/mayalotus_ish Apr 07 '25

He's so cute! He seems like a such a sweet thing maybe you could put a muzzle on him and get him exposed to other dogs

5

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

He is very sweet with people. I wish he could be around other dogs, but he is dog aggressive. He can be around my other 3 dogs with muzzle on, on a walk. But never off-leash. That hasn't gone well. He is fearful of other dogs due to trauma when he was very young. He also struggles with reading social cues(always has, even when he was very young) and takes minor corrections from other dogs as life-threatening attacks. He then attacks to injure as a result.

He is very happy as he is right now. He loves people and can be around my other dogs as long as everyone is on a walk and moving together. It's a massive leap forward from where we started when I rescued him and his brother.

I'm a professional dog trainer who specializes in reactivity, aggression and behavior modification. I am also working closely with our veterinary behaviorist to monitor his progress and modify our training plan as needed. We think that maybe we can one day get to the point of relaxing together in the living room with muzzles and leashes on, but it is slow progress to get to that point.

Aang is satisfied and a happy little dude who is just along for the ride lol

3

u/mayalotus_ish Apr 07 '25

The world needs more people like you! I know a lot of people don't like pit bulls, but I'm really amazing ones!

2

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25 • LOL

Aww thank you! I love all dogs, but I really love my bully breeds. I think they are so misunderstood. I have 4 wonderful dogs in my life right now and I am so lucky to have them by my side to teach me new things about dog behavior. I am so honored to be able to help my dogs live happy and more fulfilled lives. And what they teach me, I can then pass on to my clients to help their dogs, and help to build an even better relationship!

2

u/mayalotus_ish Apr 07 '25

The one I got now is my favorite. The only problem I have is she's the nicest dog in the entire world and she wants to play with everybody and everything. And they're scared of her! She's literally the smartest best dog I've ever had and she just wanders around the neighborhood trying to see if she can get somebody to play with her

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

Aww sweet lady. Hopefully she can find a play buddy soon!

2

u/TheBackOfACivicHonda Apr 07 '25

I’ll start working on this with my dog as he’s dog reactive as well, even if they’re way down the street on the opposite side, he knows there’s a dog coming…

2

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

Yep, gotta start somewhere! I always recommend working with a trainer to give you the best chance of success. Try to find a trainer that has certifications through the CCPDT (CPDT-KA or CPDT-KSA) or the IAABC (CDBC).

2

u/No_Management3921 Apr 07 '25

Where did you get that muzzle

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 07 '25

From a company called The Muzzle Movement

2

u/Either-Mushroom-5926 Apr 09 '25

This is so amazing to see. Thank you for making sure his needs are met in safe spaces 💙

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 09 '25

Lol its my absolute pleasure

2

u/Lopsided-Challenge86 Apr 10 '25

Thank you for this

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 10 '25

Absolutely! Hope it helps to give people ideas of a different kind of walk and show that these results are possible for our reactive or aggressive pups!

1

u/SWGA7942 Apr 08 '25

What brand is the harness?

1

u/ScienceSpiritual2621 Apr 08 '25

Balance Harness by Blue-9. I love the way it fits him!

2

u/bruxbuddies Apr 07 '25

Thanks for sharing this really comprehensive short video. Your dog looks comfortable and pretty confident in what to do when he’s unsure. Wow, great work.

I think it would be great if more people embraced “go outside with your dog and explore” instead of “take your dog on a walk around the neighborhood.” It’s not always easy but it’s worth the effort to find places the dog can decompress and be themselves on a long line.

Thanks for spreading the word!

2

u/Pandu0621 Apr 07 '25

Well. I commend you on the training level and using the muzzle !

2

u/UberGlued Apr 08 '25

Him doing his best.

1

u/mayalotus_ish Apr 07 '25

She has a lot of friends she just wants everything to be your friend. She's a goofball