Does your dogs behaviour appear random? Sporadic? No obvious trigger?
As many of you are aware, there can be many factors that can contribute to change in behaviour, and often there is more than one contributing factor at play.
The most commonly recognised or understood contributing factors or causes for change in behaviour maybe any of the following:
Change in lifestyle or routine.
Bad experiences.
Lack of the dogs needs being met.
Learned behaviour from others.
Lack of socialisation or inappropriate socialisation.
inappropriate or out dated training methods.
Then their are factors that are not so obvious or recognised among dog owners:
Diet
Gut Biome imbalance
Skin or ear irritations
Intolerances or allergies
Genetics
Breed traits
Even fewer are aware of or know about the one thing that has a HUGE link to behaviour, and is often the mystery behind those unpredictable personalities. Dogs which are described as "stubborn", "jackal and hide", "grumpy", "unpredictable", "untrainable".
Before I tell you what it is, I want you to look at the following behaviours listed, does your dog display any of them?
Spinning on the spot- tail chasing.
Noise sensitivity.
Barking incessantly for no apparent reason.
Reactive to dogs, people, or both.
Reluctant to have walking equipment put on, but 'happy' once on there walk.
Tolerant of you putting harness and lead on the one day but not the next.
Refuses to walk intermitanlty when on lead.
Bites the lead.
Herds your legs when walking on lead.
Runs tracks in the garden - repetitive running of the fence line.
Asks for contact, but is often unpredictable, and can sometimes snarl or snap.
Guards their own space.
Doesn't sit on cue despite being taught it.
Zoomies during or after exercise.
Drinks out off the bird table in the garden but refuses to drink from there own water bowl on the kitchen floor.
Ball obsessed.
Won't settle, always on the go, hyperactive.
Loves to dig.
Many of the above behaviours can easily be misinterpreted as the dog being stubborn or unruly or a breed traits. Take ball obsession for example - a common behaviour linked with Collies.
LOVES digging - well if you have a terrier, then that's just what terriers do isn't it?
However these behaviours maybe red flags that your dog is in some form of discomfort. It is important to note here that alongside the behaviours mentioned above there of course maybe other things going for the dog. As a behaviourist and Dynamic Dog practitioner it is my job to help you get the bottom of the WHY? Why is your dogs behaviour so random? So unpredictable? If there are not obvious signs or reasons, then it just may be that your dog is in some form of discomfort.
The link between pain and behaviour is HUGE. It isn't until you start looking into the effects of pain on our dogs that you start to understand just how much of a problem it is. I dogs do not show pain in obvious ways, hey are also excellent at masking pain. We need to be aware of behaviour other than limping and or yelping as indicators of discomfort.
If you have previously worked with a trainer or behaviourist and hit brick walls with progress, or have always questioned whether your dog maybe in pain, then let's talk.
Discovery call: https://calendly.com/canine-reactive/discovery-call