We recently participated in a class with Hobbit and Ella for reactive dogs at Courteous Canine. It's taught based on the book "Control Unleashed" by Leslie McDevitt. The book focuses on helping dogs who are easily aroused or distracted, anxious or shut down, and unable to work off leash. The goal is to teach those dogs how to relax and focus and work reliably in situations that normally stress them.The book teaches you to look closely at your dog's behavior and learn how to read the signs of stress. Each dog has a "thermostat" with indicators for the level of stress they're experiencing. Ella ranges from mild apprehension when her tail is slightly tucked and her eyes unblinking, to complete shut down, when the whites of her eyes are showing, her ears back and her body curled in a ball. She has acute fear issues and is easily stressed by loud noises, flashing lights, new environments and new people. Ella is now two years old and has started exhibiting signs of aggression towards people and animals who approach on walks , while she's in the car or house. Hobbit, like many Jack Russell Terriers, is easily aroused and has anxiety issues. He startles easily, becomes anxious when there are changes in his environment or his routine is disrupted. He reacts aggressively when other animals approach on walks, in the car, or walking by the house when he looks out the window. So, when we heard of the Control Unleashed class, we jumped at the chance to work on these problem behaviors, or better stated, the reason for the behaviors.
A major part of the class is focused on developing the skills to teach your dog to relax. You wouldn't think a class that requires your dog to lay quietly on a mat for a good part of an hour would be difficult, but it's intense. While you try to relax your dog, the instructor is adding stressors, such as walking up to your dog with another dog and having dogs work through agility obstacles near your dog. Each dog is required to relax, then get up and work, so that they are constantly practicing coming down from arousal. The first few weeks, Ella was unable to stay still on the mat for more than a couple minutes. She was uneasy about people coming up to her and didn't walk willingly up to anyone. Week three a male instructor approached her and she reacted aggressively. He worked with her the rest of the hour, gaining her trust. The following week, she allowed him to approach without incident. By the fifth week, she was gaining confidence and at the end of the class, she was a different dog. She approached the other class members without fear and allowed them to approach her without reacting. Hobbit started out the class by lunging to the end of the leash barking and growling at a boxer that was too near for his comfort. He was fidgety on the mat the first few weeks and easily distracted. Week three, he figured out what was expected and started to relax. He enjoyed all the agility work in the class. By week six, he was so relaxed, he totally ignored the other dogs and Scott had a hard time getting him off the mat. He was really getting into this relaxation stuff!
The new skills we've learned have really helped on walks. We practice them when we see people or dogs approaching. The CU work has even held up when we come across wildlife. In the car, we begin focusing the dogs as soon as we see something that would arouse them and it defuses a potential reaction. Our new projects with the CU work are quieting the dogs in the backyard when they hear the dogs in yards beside and behind us and when they see animals outside the front windows. It's provided us a whole new way to communicate with our dogs. I highly recommend the class. It requires instructor approval and the dog to know basic obedience.
