As a dog trainer who helps many families support their dog suffering from anxiety related behaviors, I am a believer in using anti-anxiety medication when appropriate to benefit their dog and our behavior modification plan. However, this adolescent dog is not suffering from anxiety in this moment.
The video at the bottom of this post could easily be mistaken for a dog experiencing separation anxiety. But there’s a lot more to the story…
This adolescent Vizsla’s dog dad, my client, sent me this video because he was feeling frustrated. He had finally gotten her to come inside after she’d spent a lot of time in their large backyard running near the fence line and trees, barking at squirrels, and getting herself VERY worked up.
By the time she came inside, she was so highly aroused that she couldn’t settle. She was whining, pacing, and frantically wanting to get back outside.
Here’s something I want more people to understand about adolescent dogs, especially sporting dog breeds:
They can have a really difficult time regulating their own arousal and knowing when it’s time to turn off.
These dogs LOVE to do things! Running, chasing, sniffing, investigating, hunting, and exploring are incredibly reinforcing activities. And we absolutely want to give them opportunities to engage in behaviors that meet their biological needs.
But here’s the catch: Too much of a good thing can be too much.
Adolescent dogs, in particular, can have difficulty recognizing when they’ve had enough.
They can get themselves increasingly worked up without knowing how to bring themselves back down.
So what did we change?
🐾 We managed access to the fence line. I suggested using a long line in the backyard so she couldn’t repeatedly run the fence, chase moving animals, and rehearse that highly arousing behavior. She still gets to enjoy her backyard, but without getting herself into that same frenzy.
🐾 We created more appropriate opportunities to use her nose. Her family has a wonderful, large fenced backyard with lots of shrubs. There are great opportunities to hide food, encourage sniffing, and do fun training activities that engage her brain.
🐾 We added sniffing walks and other enrichment. Meeting her needs doesn’t have to mean constantly increasing physical exercise. Mental enrichment and opportunities to explore are important, too. Nature sniffing walks are a regular part of her routine.
🐾 We help her decompress. Just as important as providing opportunities for activity is helping her transition to calmer activities and get the downtime she needs.
And the good news? Since making these changes, she still loves being outside, but she’s no longer obsessed about going right back out the moment she comes inside.
This is such an important part of raising an adolescent dog, particularly one with a lot of drive and enthusiasm for the world.
Our job isn’t just to provide opportunities for activity. It’s also to help dogs learn how to regulate, settle, and enjoy downtime.
Sometimes the kindest thing we can do for a dog is not give them MORE activity, but help them find a better balance.
❤️ Understand the dog. Meet their needs. Teach them how to succeed.
That’s a kind approach to pet training.
