Hard Truth: Exercise Does Not Fix Poor Behaviour

Too many people treat exercise as a replacement for training when it should be an opportunity to train. Your dog absolutely needs physical exercise but they also need engagement, impulse control, obedience, an off switch, structure, problem solving skills and reinforcement expectation. You can’t walk or run the reactivity and behaviour problems out of your dog. The only thing you’re doing is creating a fitter dog with more stamina to rehearse the same unwanted behaviours.

Physical exercise can become completely counterproductive when there is no engagement, relationship or impulse control. If every walk involves your dog dragging you down the street, ignoring you, rehearsing reactivity, fixating on triggers or making all of the associations themselves then they aren’t learning anything productive. They are learning that the environment is more valuable than you are and those are the skills you are exercising and teaching your dog.

You don’t have to choose between exercise, training and addressing your dogs behaviour either. Go to a park or field, hike a trail and explore different environments. Practice recalls, engagement games, obedience, impulse control and play throughout the outing. Let your dog sniff and explore without pulling and be a dog but also create moments where they have to think, make good choices, regulate themselves and respond to you for reinforcement.

Taking your dog to different environments to practice these foundations provides physical exercise while also teaching valuable life skills. Play builds motivation, impulse control and one way engagement. Exploration builds confidence and resilience. Structured obedience and engagement games strengthen the reinforcement expectation and relationship with your dog.

When you prioritize your dogs needs instead of your wants and teach appropriate behaviours in different environments, something interesting happens. Walks become enjoyable for both you and your dog. They learn to check in, regulate themselves and navigate the world with you. Most importantly they learn that being active with you is more reinforcing than being reactive with the environment.

Loose lead walking is not just a skill that exists on its own or one someone should focus on. It’s often the by product of engagement, history of reinforcement and the relationship you’ve built with your dog. Dogs that want to be with you, expect value from interacting with you and understand how to succeed in the environment are far more likely to choose to walk with you rather than pull you around. When those foundations are in place, both you and your dog can actually enjoy walks together instead of resenting them.

Build your relationship, train your dogs mind, exercise your dogs body, address the behaviour. You can do all four at the same time. The goal isn’t a tired dog, it’s a dog that chooses to respond, engage, behave and live successfully with you. There is a huge difference in a tired dog and a trained dog.