5 Private sessions of 45 minutes each € 450

Does this sound familiar?
Walking your dog should be a relaxing experience — yet for many owners of reactive dogs, it’s often a source of stress. Perhaps your dog suddenly barks, lunges at another dog, or reacts strongly when someone walks past. Those moments can feel overwhelming, especially when you sense others’ stares or don’t understand why your dog is reacting that way.

You’re not alone. Reactivity is more common than you might think, and it has nothing to do with unwillingness or having a “difficult” dog. It’s an emotional response — often rooted in fear, anxiety, or frustration — to situations that seem ordinary to other dogs. In the Social Skills Course, you’ll learn to understand what drives this behaviour and how to help your dog develop more calm, control, and confidence.

What is reactive behaviour in dogs?

Some dogs react strongly in situations where others remain calm. They may feel overwhelmed, frightened, frustrated, or overly excited. Reactivity is an exaggerated response to everyday stimuli such as other dogs, people, bicycles, or cars. It’s not about being “stubborn” or “difficult” — it’s an emotional response, not a conscious choice.

The emotional core and learned strategies

Reactive dogs are not angry — they are usually afraid or overstimulated. Their behaviour is a way to regain control over a situation. Once they discover that reacting helps to create distance, it becomes a fixed coping strategy.

What reactivity looks like

A reactive dog may bark, lunge, growl, pull, freeze, or spin in circles when faced with certain triggers. This behaviour stems from emotions such as fear or anxiety. Often, the dog learns that this behaviour creates distance or makes the source of discomfort go away — a self-reinforcing pattern that can repeat and intensify over time.

Why does it occur?

Reactivity can have many causes: limited socialisation, genetic predispositions, pain, or stressful experiences. Every dog is unique, but the common denominator is that the behaviour is emotionally driven.

How can you change this

The good news is that reactivity can be effectively managed. By teaching a new Conditioned Emotional Response (CER), dogs learn to stay calm and respond less intensely to their triggers. You can help your dog build safer behavioural patterns, teach appropriate alternatives, and better understand what their body language is communicating.

In the Social Skills Course, you’ll learn:

• Why does your dog react this way to everyday stimuli?
• How to read your dog’s body language, so you can spot and prevent tension early.
• Tailored strategies for guiding your dog through challenging moments.
• Step-by-step methods to encourage calmer, more confident behaviour.
• The course includes 5 one-to-one sessions of 45 minutes each, with the option to extend.
• Through the online platform/app, you’ll gain access to theory, explanations about canine emotions, and practice exercises with video instructions — so you can work at your own pace from home.