10/13/2026
Let’s discuss reactivity...
Looking at these two photos I wonder how many of you would guess that both of these dogs are reactive...and that’s exactly why I think this conversation is so important. We can’t judge a book by its cover, and we certainly can’t judge a dog by what we see on the surface.
The first picture is of my pup Riku who passed over the rainbow bridge in 2021 👼 He was both dog selective and people selective. Over the years, he showed signs of aggression and it was something we had to learn to navigate and work through together.
Sometimes it made me sad. Not because I loved him any less, but because I knew how incredible of a dog he was. Yet, I sometimes felt like I was the only one who got to see that side of him. Others might see the fear, the barking, or the reactions and assume that was who he was as a whole.
But he was SO much more than that.
I think anyone who has loved a reactive dog understands that feeling. You see the goofy, loving, beautiful soul underneath the behaviours, even when the rest of the world might not.
Fast-forward to bringing Billie into my life in 2024. I had so many fears about getting another dog. I told myself that this time, I had to do everything “right.” I wanted to learn from my experiences with Riku and give my new puppy the best possible start.
And while my sweet Billie doesn’t display the same behaviours Riku did, he is still a reactive dog.
Billie wants to meet EVERY dog. He’ll lie down when he spots one he wants to greet, fixate on them, and, in certain situations, bark at particular dogs. He is incredibly friendly and LOVES people more than anything, but his excitement and difficulty navigating certain situations is still a form of reactivity.
This is something I really want people to understand: reactivity doesn’t look the same in every dog.
For some dogs, it can look like fear, barking, lunging, or trying to create distance. For others, it can look like overexcitement, frustration, fixation, or desperately wanting to say hello.
(The rest of my caption is in my comments as it was too long lol)