07/17/2026
Okay, so now that we know how to do it wrong and how to create walks of misery and struggle (and yes, this is how most owners with reactive dogs do things), let’s try it without the inversion, and see if we can’t turn things around.
1/ Absolutely transform how you think about the crate. You think you’re just letting your happy, excited dog blast out of the crate, but you’re actually training them that pushiness, zero-impulse control, and a total disregard for you is 100% acceptable. This is typically the first interaction of the day between you and your dog—you can either make it profoundly beneficial, or profoundly counterproductive. What to do? Slam that crate door (firm and fast!) on the hyped-up dog trying to exit. Rinse and repeat until your dog will sit and wait patiently with the door fully open. And I promise you won’t hurt your dog or your relationship—in fact you’ll do the opposite.
2/ I’d personally recommend you leash your dog while still in the crate to maintain maximum control and minimum chaos. But, if you’d prefer to let them out of the crate sans leash, fair enough. But when you’re ready to leash them up, if you get jumping, barking, and chaotic carrying on, simply bonk your dog firmly. (A bonker is a rolled up terrier cloth towel with rubber bands on the end.) A bonker is a great tool for when you don’t have a leash or training collar on your dog. Bonk the dog over the back of the head firmly. (More firmly than you think you should.) Once again, I promise you won’t hurt your dog or damage your relationship—you will do the opposite. And few tools deescalate overly aroused dogs like a well delivered bonker. Once your dog is polite and patient, leash them up.
3/ The front door is the gateway to all that is exciting to your dog. Treat it as the incredibly valuable location and interaction that it is. Don’t ask for a sit, and don’t block your dog from rushing out—simply let them make their move, and then share a nice sharp leash pop (sharp pressure, and instantaneous release). Bring them back inside, shut the door, and try again. Rinse and repeat until your dog will wait patiently with the open and enticing door beckoning. And up the leash pop pressure until it’s valuable to your dog—you’ll know when it’s valuable because your dog’s behavior will change.
4/ Teach your dog to walk in a very specific position, and do not allow them to cha-cha-cha in and out of it. Hold them to the position—every time they nudge forward, share a firm leash pop, and if that seems unimpressive, try a solid 180. Repeat the 180’s until you can see your dog has relaxed and is tuned-in to you. Now go back to the leash pops. Make holding that position an absolutely critical focus for your walk—because it’s the barometer for where your dog’s mind, attitude, and focus is. This of course excludes any zig-zagging, marking (unless you’ve relaxed then to do so), and they will be obviously walking at your pace. And remember, it’s your pace—do not speed up or slow down to accommodate your dog’s pace… that’s you heeling to your dog, rather than your dog heeling to you. If you can’t get a consistent, polite, deferential heel, you shouldn’t expect reactivity… because you haven’t moved your dog’s mindset, attitude, and focus into a healthy space.
5/ If your dog starts to focus and fixate (not just an innocent, and brief glance), on a dog, person, or any other trigger, say “No” and pop the leash firmly to let your dog know that fixating isn’t allowed—because we know where it leads. Many will tell you that correcting your dog for fixating on a trigger will make things worse, creating a negative association—I promise you they know not what they say or believe. The trigger’s presence doesn’t control the consequence occurring, it’s only your dog’s behavior towards the trigger that controls the consequence… remember that. Lastly, the walk isn’t about allowing your dog to mad dog all the other dogs or people, and it’s not about meeting everyone in the neighborhood, and there’s no better way to create a reactive, and often aggressive dog than to allow on-leash meetings… because it’s inevitable that they will eventually become ugly, friction-filled interactions, and a fight will ensue.
6/ For the love of God, don’t use a freaking harness. It’s the perfect tool to give your dog as much control and leverage as possible, and you the least. They encourage pulling, zig-zagging, and tuning out the handler. And forget about sharing corrections with a harness… it’s impossible. Pick up a $35 dollar Herm Sprenger prong collar and a 4’ leash, watch a week’s worth of quality instructional videos (I have tons of free ones on my YouTube channel: the good dog training), practice your butt off, and then go make an awesome walk happen.
Unlike the first bit of advice, this actually is hard. It will take practice, focus, effort, and skill acquisition. Of course if you really want a lovely, non-reactive walk that you and your dog can both enjoy, then it’s a small price to pay. 🙂
