“Oh no! What if this happens?”

Let’s talk about “anticipatory dread” and how it affects your animals.

This is a very common animal parent condition. It is worrying in advance of something happening . For Example: you are calmly walking your dog and see another person with their dog a block away. You start getting nervous wondering how that exchange will be, picturing the worse case scenario in your mind.

Your dog picks up your energy and senses your anxiety. But your dog doesn’t think in anticipation of events. So to your dog, there is something NOW and REAL that is making you anxious. They respond to your anxiety and boom! Your fear is realized, but mostly because of your anticipatory dread thinking.

Some important training words and phrases:

Ignore

Keep going

Leave it

Be friendly

Be gentle

These are just a few words that give your dog a specific behavior to adapt. There is no guessing (No! - no what? What is no? Them? Me? Walking? Barking? What?)

Practice these words and desired behavior with every person you pass and always reward (good job!; good girl! Good boy!) to emphasize they did what you needed them to do.

Your dog is not the only one who needs training! Practice staying in the moment. Don’t anticipate behavior. Thinking about it can actually translate to them to do it. They pick up your thoughts and images but don’t know you want the opposite behavior. Animals are more literal and specific. If you want to think ahead of schedule, think positive thoughts! Imagine a friendly encounter and picture them happy and calm. ☺️

I hope you enjoy these tips ! Let me know what else you want to hear about!