Visitor reactivity is definitely not a joke. It’s a common behavioural issue that has a huge impact on daily life. The most common scenarios I see are based on a general fear of people but it is essential to work with a qualified professional to determine the underlying cause.
There are a few things to consider when living with a dog with fear-based reactivity to visitors.
1. Vet Consultation: Never underestimate the value of a vet consultation, especially if this is a new behaviour. It’s important to rule out pain before you start any behaviour change strategies. This can be difficult if your dog has a fear of new people but do speak to your vet and ask their advice.
2. Entries and Exits: Changes to the entrance and exit routine can be a massive help. Imagine you’re standing in a narrow hallway and the thing you fear most starts walking towards you? You’re stuck. This face-to-face approach can be confrontational and make your dog feel trapped. Their only option is to try to make the scary thing go away in the best way they know how. Human behaviour during entries and exits is animated and unpredictable, therefore worrying for an anxious dog. Having your dog in another room during entrances and exits will minimise stress on your dog.
3. Movement: Everything can be fine until someone moves - standing up, reaching out for a handbag or to pick up a coffee. Again, it’s important to remember that this unpredictability of movement can be worrying for a nervous dog.
4. Arousal Levels:Â Consider what happens before your visitor arrives. If your dog's emotional state before the visitor arrives is already heightened then you are more likely to see reactive behaviours.
Dogs and humans have a stress limit, and if we go over it, we over-react. Think of a time that you over-reacted to a seemingly innocent comment from a family member, something that normally wouldn’t have bothered you. It’s likely you over-reacted because the stresses of the day had built up; heavy traffic enroute to work, a tough day in the office, an unexpected bill in the post, general tiredness, a sore back. All of these things add up, until we reach our stress-limit, then ‘BAM’ we over-react to a seemingly innocent comment.Â
Think about your dog’s day before your visitor arrives. Has it been as stress-free as possible? Are they in the best emotional state to help them react well to visitors? For some dogs, the doorbell can be a huge trigger for a negative emotional response. If your dog over reacts to the doorbell, their stress levels are likely to be very high just at the moment you allow a visitor into your home. The easiest thing to do is ask your visitor to text or call you when they arrive rather than ring the bell. We want to set everything up for success, so remove any obvious stress triggers.
5. Body Language and Interactions: It’s important to be aware of early stress signs. We can all see and hear the growl, the lip curl, the air snap, or the bite but what about the signs before that? If we can spot the early signs we can intervene before they escalate.
Subtle signs of stress can include behaviours such as yawning, scratching, turning the body or head away, lifting a front paw. Check out this page for more useful information:
Dogs investigate the world using their sense of smell. Unfortunately, a lot of humans equate a dog sniffing them as an invitation to interact. Sniffing is an information-gathering exercise. A nervous dog may sniff towards you while keeping their whole body as far away from you as possible to ensure a quick get-away. Reach in at this point and you will likely scare the dog. Think of sniffing as the dog having a mooch about your Facebook profile rather than sending you a friend request.
6. Practise makes Permanent – seek professional help as soon as possible: The more we practice something, the more likely it is to become a habit. It’s important to enlist the help of a professional as soon as possible. In the meantime, keep your dog and visitors safe. Using baby gates or simply separating your dog from visitors will likely be your best option. A behaviourist will then help you find the best protocols for your unique situation. There is no ‘one size fits all’ approach. Your behaviourist should always be setting your dog up for success. They should aim to keep your dog under their stress-limit and show you how to help them begin to build positive experiences.