*Just so you know: Arrow is already fully off-leash trained and enjoying life, this was recorded months ago for students inside our online school.*
At this point, it's time to PROOF Arrow's obedience, get him 100% reliable, and DESENSITIZE him towards other dogs!
Arrow's dog reactivity is rooted in arousal. He gets super intense and excited around other dogs and has difficulty controlling himself when he's in that state of mind - he acts impulsively, ignores commands, breaks obedience, etc.
His brain is like a little hamster wheel spiraling out of control.
I took him through the reactivity training process, and he learned that reacting at dogs is no longer option. But even though he's no longer reactive (behavioral response), he still gets aroused and excited by other dogs (emotional response).
To decrease his emotional response towards dogs, I must DESENSITIZE him towards dogs in the environment.
Since Arrow gets super aroused and excited by the environment, I did lots of slow-paced obedience with static rewards, intentionally trying to keep his arousal low throughout the session. When he starts to get overstimulated, I would give him a command, and if he failed to hit the position, I would negatively reinforce it at a very aversive level. Doing this forces him to focus. He must regulate his own emotions. He must control his behavior. He must control his impulses.
Arrow is learning to control his little hamster wheel brain - an incredibly important skill.
