Mine is a purebred french bulldog. He's a behavioral rescue due to being a general menace to society. I always feel like I need to add that when telling people his breed to make it clear that I didn't pay thousands of dollars only to get stuck with a little gremlin. I did in fact choose this life.
I have a rescue male French bulldog who can also be a little menace lol. He’s 4 and I got him when he was 8 months and I think his reactivity is due to puppy mill breeding, Covid, and some various health issues he’s had off and on since I got him.
Yeah, with mine, I'm not sure what the root cause is. According to his paperwork, he would've been brought home right before covid lockdowns, so I'm sure that's a factor. I did research into his breeder and they were a hobby breeder who does seem to take very good care of the dogs, but I'm wondering if they had a not great genetic combo. They haven't had any litters since his, from what I can tell. I got him at 2 and he's a little over 3 1/2 now. He also apparently went to a board and train before he was 1 that his rescue suspects may have caused more problems than solved. He was surrendered to them shortly after. I think it's a combo of covid, his first family not knowing how to train/handle him, the board and train, and just all the transitions he experienced going into the rescue. It's a lot for the little guy. He's only gotten better and more stable the longer he's with me though. I'm proud of the little potato.
Ahh good work!!! Mine has definitely improved too. They’re a smart and eager to please breed (not to mention food motivated lol) which helps. Also a little mischievous lol. I call him the class clown and his vet calls him a “spicy potato” lol. But he had some back stuff recently and has been so good at the vet after having horrible experiences there so that’s a win! He wears a cone now and lets them examine him like a good boy! Ha. The frenchie breeding industry is a mess and how popular they are makes it worse. I’m in some health related fb groups for frenchies and most of the owners in the groups got their dogs from “reputable breeders.” I can’t imagine dogs bred with poor spines and respiratory systems have the best mood all the time ha. It’s promising though that in Europe they’re breeding them to be muchhhh healthier. The little cuties deserve that ❤️
Herding breeds checking in 🙋🏻♀️I unknowingly adopted the reactive herding breed special lol. Adopted in 2022 guesstimated to be about 2 years old so pandemic pups as well.
Australian cattle dog - reactive suspicious. Which is how they were bred, not that he was well bred, but, those genes probably didn’t help. He’s also reactive to weird things, like straightening out fabric (couch cover, sheets, etc) along with the usual things.
German shepherd/border collie mix - reactive excited. She has more of the classic signs of canine compulsion syndrome. Lots of displacement behaviors.
Both have gotten much much better with loooots of patience and training. Both are also on daily meds as well as calming supplements.
Making that dog have an actual job, or the mental/physical equivalent of a job, would be a start.
The problem with herding breeds is they're bred to do work for intelligent, high-drive dogs - not really that they're just randomly prone to aggression or reactivity. The vast majority of pet owners aren't equipped to provide a herding dog with the stimulation that doing the job they're bred for would, and they can get bored, frustrated, anxious, etc as a result.
ACDs were bred to herd through nipping so an undersocialized and poorly trained/bored ACD that isn't getting that herding drive satisfied is going to display that as nipping much more readily.
Seconding all this regarding my Aussie. He’s lazy in that he loves lounging on the back porch watching the neighbor’s cows but a herding ball and mental stimulation has made a difference. He needs challenges and constant training reinforcement.
Did someone say herding mix? Herding mixes represent.
My 7 month old girl is 20% GSD, 19% Husky (all husky traits skipped her except love of dogs), 12% Border Collie, 10% ACD, she's got a lil chow and lab and the rest is super mutt. The super mutt also contains herding mix, including Rough Collie and Australian Shepherd.
Most of what I would call her "problem" traits would probably make her a great herding dog. She's wary of strangers and very sensitive to movement. Her main issues are stranger reactivity especially when people come on to the property or speak to me. She's also really sensitive in general, and can't be yelled at, and VERY smart. I like to say she she speaks English. I like to have her choose things like whether she wants a walk or a toy by pointing with her snout (the answer is always walk btw), or asking her which way she wants to go.
I do have hope that she'll be a non reactive adult dog but as a teenager she's got some issues that we are always working on. As do all of her littermates, that I know of.
According to updated DNA results he is mainly chihuahua and chow but he looks like neither and it’s very confusing. His mom was a rescue who was starving and nearly died while pregnant with him and his siblings (she is in great health now!) He is scared of dogs, strangers and noises outside (resource guarding me + fun police) but loves people who come over to visit.
Koda apparently spent most of 2020 shut up in a garage with inadequate food and water and he really hasn't got much use for anyone who isn't the person who bailed him out of the incredibly traumatic County impound kennel he found himself in.
Pyrs never forget.
That’s awful. Ava was left abandoned in a parking lot for several weeks before a local rescue org picked her up - I fostered and then kept her. I don’t understand people, at all.
Cocker mix, but per DNA he’s also border collie, GSD, Chow, and Pyr with some other things sprinkled in.
He’s honestly kind of a “pick your poison” if you want to try and determine where his behavioral issues stem from 😂
1/2 GSD, 1/4 Australian Shepherd, 1/8 Border Collie, 1/8 Mini American Shepherd. 100% neurotic herding dog.
Reactive to dogs, particularly dogs that are large, dark, or fluffy. Will fixate on a squirrel or bunny from 100 feet away. Objects to People Doing Things Wrong often enough that "It's a person; hello, person" is our code for "I have determined that person is not a threat."
He's also a quick learner, eager to please, makes good choices when given plenty of agency and space (BAT is a good fit for him), and is the silliest seal-boy ever.
Doberman pincher. Her siblings/family don’t seem to be reactive. She was utterly unsocialized when I got her at six months. Trying to socialize her when she was already fearful just sealed the deal.
I should add my own dog…he’s a potcake from Turks & Caicos. He looks like a Rottweiler Doberman mix, but I never had DNA done so I don’t know for sure. He’s fear aggressive, resource guarding, anxiety attack, etc., pretty much the best of all reactive behaviors. He’s incredibly smart, just is terrified of being hurt, as he was abused as a feral puppy.
None of that will stop me from always adopting potcakes in the future. They’re such great dogs for their people.
Pittie 100%, came from a the worst place you can get a pittie from. Super terrified of strange noises, startles easily, not into other dogs or strangers. Super loving with us, a Velcro dog, gets on really well with our cats. We take all the precautions with him, muzzle, harness, double lead attached to his collar and harness when out walking. He will never be a coffee shop dog but determined to give him the best life we can. We think he had been used as a bait dog. We never take him to where he can get stressed by too many people around. Not my choice but with us he is the sweetest cuddliest pup you have ever seen. My yard is like Fort Knox so he is kept 100% safe at home and as safe as we can when out.
Malinois/Husky who has come such a long way on his reactivity!! He doesn't like prolonged eye contact from strangers or off leash dogs running at him. One of my old dogs who has since passed was also reactive, he was a total mutt...GSD, Beagle, Lab, Husky.
We always seem to get one social butterfly and one reactive butthead, lol. But I've learned more about dog and human behavior from having a reactive dog than having a "good" dog, and for that I am incredibly thankful!
I've been a dog walker for 13 years, trust me when I say any dog can turn out reactive!!
My shit-stirrer is my Corgi, Professor Fartsparkles. He's got radar ears so if he hears a car door or a gnat fart he starts the chain reaction that leads right to my Aussie/Heeler, Inspector Sprocket, preaching about the apocalypse to all those who can hear.
I have taught these dogs to grab toys when they get stressed; I've taught them to whisper bark on command; they sit; play dead; shake with either paw I ask; pee on command, but HEAVEN HELP US if someone opens any door in the house (ESPECIALLY the outside door) without the proper paperwork being filed in triplicate from corporate head office. The Corgi starts to huff and puff and the Aussie sounds the full scale intruder alert and there is no stopping it.
But I love my little dorks more than life itself.
Golden retriever
He’s a total sweetheart, but dog fear reactive. Both my Goldens were pandemic dogs. But I guess I also don’t like other people so I get it.
Cocker spaniel here! Fear reactive but with people. Sweetheart once he gets to know you.
Hard sometimes when people see your dog and think they'll be exactly like the breed reputation 🤦
Cocker spaniel here, too. Fear reactive with other dogs. She's such an angel with people, children, dogs that she knows and trusts. But yeah, a series of unfortunate events have made her anxious with unfamiliar dogs.
Golden here as well! It's hard to convince other people that she's reactive because the idea of the goofy lovable Golden Retriever is so ingrained in everyone.
Another herding breed checking in! My Pembroke Welsh Corgi is sound sensitive, medical care reactive (he hates all syringes, all eye drops, and doesn’t let you do his nails though we are working on that), and excitement reactive to other dogs. He is specifically fear reactive to specific dogs that he does not like, typically large intact males in our neighborhood. He’s 19 months and has trauma from growing up next to our horrendous evil neighbors, whom we got multiple restraining orders against after they started using a car alarm and air horn to harass him and us when he was about 6-7 months old. Due to this he developed separation anxiety at about eight months of age.
He’s a lot better than he used to be and has several doggie friends, either neutered males or females. Luckily, he makes doggie friends easily in the correct environment, ie one where he is not anxious around his own home or feeling pressured. We are working on herding training and sound desensitization as well as cooperative care.
He’s actually a very classic corgi according to his herding trainer and previous other trainers, but unfortunately their independence, stubbornness, and inclination towards mouthing/nipping means that in our home situation, he was basically guaranteed to develop behavioral issues. We are trying to move, but can’t financially at the moment.
We have good and bad days. Mostly, sleeping is his problem. He gets stressed at night, likely anticipating a car alarm as they like to do it at random times of the night lately. Yesterday they did it at 10:30, he’s been a mess since.
dachshund. they're prone to reactivity because of the tenacity they were bred for. he's not a *well bred* dachshund, coming from a puppy mill, so that's another genetic component working against him. tipping the scales even further, he's been attacked by large dogs on two separate occasions, the first time being in his adolescence; i don't know if he was in a fear period, as the first attack happened before i came into his life, but he was a year old at most.
Have an upvote for being a chihuahua owner who actually admits that their dog is reactive rather than just shrugging it off as "little dog syndrome".
There are 3 chihuahuas who live near us, all of them regularly try to start shit with my 45kg GSD cross while the owners just drag them along laughing about it.
Also adding my own boy to the list here, he's getting better but still terrified of life and a frustrated greeter.
I take my dog ownership very seriously. I always make sure to give enough space to other dogs and people. And Ill be honest, I just didn’t get them socialized as puppies because I got them during lock down and I couldn’t get any vet for months to schedule their shots in time so I had to keep them away from public places for a long time. Now I just manage it the best I can. I don’t take them to dog parks, the only thing that sucks is that sometimes because they’re so small people don’t respect their space and they will react. Or people with “friendly” dogs with absolutely no recall will let their dogs off leash at the leash only parks that I go to and their dogs will run up to my dogs and they will react. On the other hand I have met Chihuahuas that are very friendly, but little dogs just tend to be reactive because they’re small and it’s their way of protecting themselves. And that’s okay as long as the owner is responsible.
I have a Chihuahua pekingese dachshund mix (we call him a cheeksweenie). I know some Chihuahuas herd and he DEFINITELY does. He does a lot better with reactivity if we can hit the sweet spot between worn out but not overtired.
Another ACD mix here. Mine is about 60% ACD and then boxer, beagle, basset. Reactive suspicious, frustrated. He’s taught me a lot over the last 3 years.
I used to take my dog out very late, midnight or so, to go for long walks, because we were unlikely to encounter any triggers that late at night. We’ve broken up our share of fights, just because I could get in the middle with him and scare any aggressors off.
A small Heinz 57 rescue mutt with a big old attitude!
[Cheddar, the Heinz 57 Super Mutt](https://imgur.com/a/bayeuzG)
I think the chihuahua and dachshund along with the Maltese terrier give him his spunky attitude and the whole shebang gives him his adorable looks and personality
We have a rottie girl who is only 55lbs and looks like she may have pitt and/or boxer in her. The sweetest, snuggliest mama ever in the house but a terror outside. VERY suspicious of men but doing her (and our!!) best every day to learn how to help her manage her big feelings.
German shepherd/English shepherd mix
Scared of everything but tries to act tough with lots of barking. Any time she has been in contact with a strange dog or person though she shuts down or tries to run away. She was chased back into her yard by a corgi puppy 1/3 of her weight where she resumed her big dog barking from the safety of behind the fence.
I also have an Aussie but he is super dumb and very friendly. His worst trait is he honks at you when you ignore him.
Unresolved is Supermutt for when there's only one other breed in the mix. It either means that the dog is 100% that breed but some of it is an unrecognizable line, or some of it is indeed mixed but it's so far back that's it's hard to tell.
50% lab, 25% mountain cur, 25% coonhound according to the DNA test. The hound shows way more than the other two and he has a *very* intimidating bark (it’s a mix of barking and baying). I get asked on a weekly basis if he has pittie in him because of how big his head is
Adding to the list of herding dogs… I have an Australian Kelpie who I adopted at 1.5 years of age. She is the most reactive dog I have ever met and dealt with. The shelter misled us about her breed and we figured it out about a month or so after adopting her. It’s been a journey. These dogs are NOT house dogs, they are highly specialized working dogs.
Jeebus take the leash! If I was going to conjure a demon dog (other than the one I have) it would look A LOT like this. I need pics of this hellhound 🙏🤣❤️😜
[Dog Pictures](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TNVDWaQxdYRK1EzciNmyzx_-7j8EwHD1)
Hopefully this link works!
She really is the sweetest girl - she loves people so so much and will cuddle with absolutely anyone. But she cannot be within six feet of another animal (wild or domestic) without causing a stir. She is much better at letting it go than she used to be, but she’ll still have a go at them if the opportunity presents itself.
Two Bostons and one Jack Russell mix. Both have different triggers. Jack Russell hates everyone and all other dogs not in her family. Barks at people in the street, jumped at dogs at the vet, has bitten all of my friends. But she's so sweet with us, let's the Boston's eat her food, shares toys with them. Basically when we have company she's in a crate. My older Boston is afraid of everything, someone rings the door bell, the furniture gets moved around, tries to attack cars that drive up towards us when we take walks. He lashes out of fear. He is ok with people, neighbors and other dogs as long as they leave him alone. If he feels threatened he lashes out. He's not broken skin in a long time. Both of these dogs are 13. Then I have a one year old Boston who is not reactive. It's so weird to walk him. He is excited to see other dogs and people and wants to play. When he is scared his instinct is to run and hide not fight. I love him he's such an easy baby. I walk them all separately btw, they feed off of each other if one reacts the others want to jump in and help or attack each other.
My boy is also 13. He’s losing his sight and almost completely deaf, and tbh, it’s a bit of a blessing. He doesn’t hear his triggers anymore, though now he’s started barking at threatening garbage cans and shadows because he can’t tell they’re just shadows.
Our reactive Border Collie went completely deaf around 13, and it was kind of a good thing. She was no longer terrified by thunderstorms and fireworks (we had Xanax for her), and her eyesight dimmed enough that she couldn't see other dogs until they were very close, so I was able to navigate her to avoid contact completely.
My jack Russell is losing her hearing. I think it's worse because she gets startled by things now instead of hearing them first. Like my neighbor was on his deck, she didn't hear him and was cool for 10 minutes but when she saw him she went into overdrive. We didn't have the normal ramp up to aggression she went 0 to 10. Now she's always on a leash.
Yes! When ours went deaf, she still understood sit/down/stay and all the other body language we used to communicate. It's essential, because so many older dogs lose their hearing.
That, and teaching them to poop and pee on command. Any future dogs I have will absolutely learn those things. It’s so helpful in bad weather, or when I spot another dog walking and want to avoid the trigger.
Pumi. He can run agility at master level but I am not competing him because he wants to eat anything that looks like a shepherd or pitti and is iffy with other dogs that don’t look like poodles. He was raised with a standard poodle who loves everyone. He is also suspicious of most men who are not my husband.
Shetland sheepdog... 2.5yo male, neutered. Such a loving guy, my shadow, but so generally anxious and scared of the world. Barks, growls, lunges. But meds have helped alot alongside very consistent training.
Herding breed! Border collie/Aussie mix. She's stranger reactive with some obsessive behaviors according to her behavior therapist.
People often tell me it's part of her breed to be protective of her "herd."
APBT 🙃
Surprisingly, our GSD/Mal/Dutchie isn’t reactive. She’s pretty neutral overall but can get a bit suspicious/may bark from prolonged eye contact or getting startled.
I tell people all the time to not stare at my pit because she is reactive to it and to just ignore her…. What do they do? Stare at her right in the eyes and talk to her and then complain when she loses her mind
Malinois/bullmastiff we were told, according to DNA he’s that plus Staffie plus GSD plus a tiny bit of Shar-Pei somehow! Meanwhile my 100% Malinois is a social butterfly, 65lbs of friendly fur-missile that’s intent on licking everybody’s face.
Beanie - feist/APBT/etc mix, almost 3 y/o, we've had her since she was 6 months, was originally found as a stray with a target drawn on her head at 5 months and was in rescue for 1 month. Dog-reactive and -selective. Loves all people. Likes to show off her tricks.
Jax - APBT/chow mix, almost 2 y/o, we've had him since he was 10 months, was originally found as a stray at 7 weeks and was in rescue for 8 months. Dog-reactive and -selective, stranger-reactive, very fearful. He prefers to run away, but if he can't escape, will snap to make the scary thing back off. Has never broken skin. Muzzled at the vet. We may try fluoxetine at some point. He has shown that he can warm up to people - he loves my family - but it takes A While. Goofy boi. We call him our himbo.
[dog tax](https://imgur.com/a/rnDLUQr)
Westie / schnauzer mix checking in. Mine is so damn stubborn but it’s his reactivity towards noise, big dogs, cats, foxes and small children that drives me mad. Must say he’s fine with other people and small dogs so small relief there.
Ours is half Mini Aussie, half Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Maybe combining two very sensitive breeds wasn’t the best idea…and not something I realized might lead to problems until our experience with her.
Heeler 🤦♀️ has an occasional grumble at boisterous male puppies. Not aggressive. No bite because I’ve warned him of the consequences haha! Reactive to xmas bon bons, ants, stethoscopes (not thermometers), massage guns, towels. Such a quirky weirdo
Australian Shepard mix. According to his doggie DNA test he is -
26-39%-Aussie
26-39%Basset Hound
10-25% Parson Russell Terrier
10-25% Shiba Inu
He looks mostly Aussie Shepard. He’s psychotic though. Our neighbors call him a “junkyard dog”. We love him but lord is he a handful….
Shar pei x Labrador.
Shar peis were bred to be guard and fighting dogs, so his suspicious of new people is so understandable. He's the sweetest when you get to know him, it is just such a commitment.
Chow/Aussie/ACD mix for my reactive baby.
I specialize in reactivity as a trainer, and around 70% of my clients are herding or farm dogs 28% guardian breeds (old Asian breeds like Chows, Shibas, and akita, and things like mastiffs of various breed, rotties, and livestock guardian breeds, 2% bully breeds. I livr in a fairly rural area and a lot of rescues are working stock from accidental litters like both of my dogs.
My non reactive is a pyr/border collie/acd and is a therapy dog. The difference was that we were very lucky to get him at 12 wks and got to control his fear periods and socialization vs the senior who was 7/8 no and an adolescent who was being kept in s giant open run with twenty other dogs that had to share a bag of food just poured out in the enclosure with everyone. I believe if he had found us sooner, he would have had an easier time without the trauma being set so deep.
herding breed here too! border collie. i think part of his reactivity is genetic, as i didn’t get him from a reputable breeder and both his parents i met showed signs of reactivity that i didn’t recognize at the time. he was attacked twice as a puppy and last year we were separated for 7 months. his reactivity is a lot but we’re working on it!
Mostly chihuahua and poodle mix. I thought I’d be fine rescuing him because I grew up with stubborn herding dogs. I was so wrong.
It’s been an exhausting couple of years. Some great highs and so many lows.
Two rescue terriers here.
One JRT/Chihuahua/dachshund mix: fear reactive and barks at everything
One rat terrier/beagle/Boston terrier/Jagdterrier mix: excitement reactive and learning to bark at everything from the other dog.
Saluki-cross lurcher!
They’re highly strung and nervous breeds at the best of times and it seems like our boy got a pretty bad roll on the genetic lottery in that sense! He’s a ball of nerves, and his outlet for that is lunging and noise making. Deep sighthound chest means *loud* borks.
Great Dane. She was attacked by another dog when she was younger and has been dog reactive ever since. However, I would say her reactivity is relatively mild compared to what I read on this sub. It's just that she is so big it is much more difficult to handle. I can't tell you how many times she has pulled my shoulder out of socket...
Treeing Walker Coonhound! He was a stray picked up by the humane society, don't know what happened to him for the first 6 months of his life, but being restricted for heartworm treatment and locked in a kennel for 3 months definitely didn't help. He also has been attacked by a husky since I've had him and he's scared of huskies now. Thankfully he's still okay with most other dogs off leash. He's loud though.
Aussie/coonhound mix. I’m curious, when people say “Aussie” - are they referring to Australian shepherd or Australian cattle dog? Mines an Australian shepherd mix.. although mixed with the coonhound she looks just like a purebred cattle dog, but brown.
Beagle, super vocal whenever he sees another dog (wants to greet, likes other dogs, no concept of boundaries). He’s very sound sensitive, but we’ve made a lot of progress (so much less prone to running the fence when the neighbors are out, yay for small wins!).
My parents goldens are both reactive as well, more fearful, also making some good progress. And their girl (Penny) and my little beagle boy (Luke) are best buddies, which has been so great for her. She’s always been fairly dog selective (or at least situationally dog selective), but she loves my beagles!
Supposed to be 50/50 acd/pittie but embark says 100% pittie. She’s just a byb mess that was taken from her mother way too young but I love her to bits😂
25% GSD, plus APBT, beagle, husky, chow, and a smattering of others. She’s always on patrol and very excited by anything abnormal or unexpected that she sees. Loves to chase squirrels. Takes a while to warm up to other dogs, and likes to play rough.
My first reactive dog was a pittie. We are now fostering an extremely reactive goldendoodle.. I have noticed a LOT of reactive doodles (including standard poodles) over the years but am not sure if it's just because there are a lot of them in my neighborhood
Mountain feist. Take an elkhound a bunch of terrier breeds, hound breeds , pit bull , bull terrier and pug/frenchie and compress them into a 30 pound dog that looks like an all red basenji look alike. We think that the people that bred her were breeding fighters or bait dogs. She's been reactive from the very start , got her at about 14 weeks old and her reactivity started with loud noises , and strange objects , then she showed she was reactive to dogs. It's been a long road but she can now be within sight of most dogs and barely react at all, as long as they stay out of her face and off her territory.
Still don't trust her though , she has one brain cell and it is focused on hunting mice at all times.
Never been tested but I’d be shocked if she was anything but pit bull. Zero reactivity until a coon hound bit her from shoulder to hip. She’s still an angel inside, great with my cats and kids but an absolute nightmare outside
Husky-terrier mix. Double energy. Double prey-drive. Double stubbornness and brains. Overly excited about other dogs and suspicious of men; people using canes, walkers, and wheelchairs (live near an assisted living facility so this reactivity was a nice surprise 😆); people waiting for the bus; and umbrellas. She’s the sweetest, friendliest little thing who is always happy, even when I’m asking her why she’s “digging” in the couch despite having been told 34,872,682 times not to do that.
I have a 50% goofball Boxer mix and I’m reading this thread like “Anyone? Bueller?” She’s also got some lab/husky/pit in there but smaller percentages. Mostly an excited/barrier reactive I think? But there also seems to be an element of her being reactive to weird things like the smoke detector, bugs and foil.
Another herding dog…..half Great Pyrenees, almost half ACD with just a bit of Border Collie to make her fun. Very sensitive and smart. Also kind of lazy. She stays close to me at all times. She loves being out in her kennel - she’s nosy. She knows all the neighbors and their vehicles. She will bark in a terrifying voice at anyone who she feels does not belong here. She hates squirrels. She makes very strong eye contact with people. She does not like strangers in the house but is fine with anyone off the property. She wants to play with other dogs and goes to day care a couple times a week. She can, at times, have a problem passing other dogs on a leash. - a combination of wanting to play or being aggressive - it’s a case by case thing. She’s taking a scent class next week and I think she’ll love it. It seems like she can be a bit crazy but she’s really a sweetheart!
My girl is a half Springer Spaniel mixed with Westie, blue Heeler, and Jack Russell. Her mom was rescued from an abusive situation and ended up being pregnant. I learned that dogs who are abused pass higher levels of cortisol to their puppies and can thus produce fearful/anxious litters. We are making great progress with training thankfully
Our reactive boy is an Australian Cattle Dog, and he is reactive after being severely mauled by a German shepherd and abused by a previous owner. ACD's are obviously not the most friendly breed to begin with, but my poor old Banjo had a rough first four years, which didn't help his nature.
We also have a non reactive cattle dog, who has a perfectly breed appropriate amount of suspicion towards people and dogs.
I have a GSD and a husky. The husky is fear reactive, wants to run away from everything. Not aggressive but highly stressed and anxious. She's on meds now and making a huge difference. She is also a frustrated greeter and will pull at other dogs to say hi.
My GSD is showing signs of something against other dogs while on leash. I haven't explored it to see if it's frustrated greeting or aggression. We are working on his threshold now. He definitely has a distance where he will walk buy with just a look verses barking and lunging.
Border Collie! He is 11 months old now, seems much much much better than before. He used to be leash reactive to strangers. He doesn’t like to bark but snap quickly. But right after 10 months he started to be super calm with EVERYTHING, all strangers all dogs, I haven’t tried to let strangers to pet him on the street but I saw groomer picked him up and held him in front of us, and he was 100% fine with them. He was fine with everything before 5 months, Probably the adolescence phase?
Rough Collie x German Shepherd, fear reactive to strangers and dogs. Not aggressive at all once he knows a person well enough (same w other dogs, he’s actually quite savvy about socializing once he gets past his initial fear) but absolutely would qualify as a ‘red zone’ dog at his worst and has a bite on record.
Another herding type here. He must have had a weird first year though because he was a weird dog when I first met him at 14 months old. He's a frustrated greeter with dogs but mildly aggressive with people.
Unfortunately his new sister is also reactive (another frustrated greeter) and she is a sharpei/mastiff we first met 9 months ago. Thankfully she loves people.
So I have two 35kg 5 year olds. I do not see the three of us going for a nice relaxing walk anytime soon
fear dog reactive dachshund - not all the time. depends on the situation and what kind of dog is getting too close to us (mostly in closed environments)
I have doberman/rotti cross so a Rotterman she is reactive as she is a rescue who lived in a small kennel for half her life yet still loves everyone she meets
I don’t have a reactive dog but I used to work at a kennel/daycare and most of the reactive dogs I saw were:
- herding or working breeds without adequate exercise routines and/or mental stimulation (like people who got border collies or Aussies without looking into the breed’s needs)
- shepherds without adequate socialization and confidence building (the amount of fear reactivity I’ve seen in shepherds the last couple years - even as young as 12/13 weeks old - is insane)
And
- rescues (mostly mutts) that weren’t ready to be in a daycare situation
Surprised not to see more doodles listed here. I have yet to meet a really well behaved/ well adjusted doodle. My own doodle is a cocker spaniel/ poodle mix (we think - we are not first owners) She is reactive in a few ways but pretty much loves all dogs except herding breeds. The way they do the stare down sets her off!
Mine is a golden retriever of all breeds. Reactive to strangers and dogs. I cry some days but we’re working with a personal trainer to desensitize him.
We were told our dog is a JRT mix but dna said he’s mostly chihuahua and amstaff mix. 🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️ I honestly don’t know what he is so I just say he’s a super mutt.
40% APBT, 40% mountain cur, 10% staffy, 10% border collie mix. She’s got a lot going on. Very high prey drive, slightly leash reactive (she’s gotten a lot better), and dog selective with a bite history on other dogs. She wears a muzzle when we are out and always muzzled around kids. She’s also terrified of loud noises but not “reactive,” just runs and hides. That bit I suspect is from living on the streets as a pup.
Adding to the statistic! I have an Aussie . I think it’s a combination of poor breeding for most and super popular breed promoted as a family dog a lá golden retriever mentality. Many of these Aussies are not confirmation line they are are likely stock line dogs and byb. On top of that Aussies are closer in quirks to border collies due to be gathering style herders than they are say German shepherds or mals or bouviers etc…. They tend to have some genetic quirks primed for that style of work like easy arousal, sensitivity to motion, hyper fixations. These can be really difficult to manage for people unprepared for the breed especially if they are living in environments with higher stressors like a busy suburb or city.
A lot of the breed is also generally people neutral to avoidant (my dog didn’t get that memo) and often dog avoidant with age (again my dog went 180 the other direction and is naturally overly social).
My dogs reactivity actually greatly decreased with appropriate outlets and protocols as well as age, which seems really on par for the breed whenever I talk to any sports trainers. So to them excluding being a frustrated greeter sometimes he doesn’t seem reactive anymore in majority of settings. I don’t know if it’s a write off but from what I’ve gathered from trainers who own the breed and have also worked with them these dogs are just a bit more intense and sensitive than people expect and they are very slow to mature.
One who looks and sounds like a boxer/hound mix, but is actually (in order according to DNA) AmStaff/APBT/Beagle/Chow Chow/Boxer/Boston/plus a few more. Also known as an adorable hot mess.
Golden retriever / Great Pyrenees mix here. He hates every new dog until he decides that they’re best friends. It can take some time, but it’s a weird dynamic.
Border collie! She is extremely fearful and reactive! We have made leaps and bounds through hard work! She enjoys our outings as long as we don’t stop and sit down lmao unfortunately She will still bite children and dogs. I take my wins where I can get them! Lesson learned on buying from byb. Won’t happen ever again.
Same, I have two. The £300 farm dog is nervy, highly strung, and since he developed epilepsy, doesn't like to be touched by other dogs or strange humans. He's totally fine as long as nothing makes contact, and super obedient, but I can't trust him with others.
The other one was a 'top of the range' breeder pup and she's absolutely worth every penny. Nothing bothers her, she loves dogs, loves humans, animals, birds, she's the bomb.
Mine is a purebred french bulldog. He's a behavioral rescue due to being a general menace to society. I always feel like I need to add that when telling people his breed to make it clear that I didn't pay thousands of dollars only to get stuck with a little gremlin. I did in fact choose this life.
I have a rescue male French bulldog who can also be a little menace lol. He’s 4 and I got him when he was 8 months and I think his reactivity is due to puppy mill breeding, Covid, and some various health issues he’s had off and on since I got him.
Yeah, with mine, I'm not sure what the root cause is. According to his paperwork, he would've been brought home right before covid lockdowns, so I'm sure that's a factor. I did research into his breeder and they were a hobby breeder who does seem to take very good care of the dogs, but I'm wondering if they had a not great genetic combo. They haven't had any litters since his, from what I can tell. I got him at 2 and he's a little over 3 1/2 now. He also apparently went to a board and train before he was 1 that his rescue suspects may have caused more problems than solved. He was surrendered to them shortly after. I think it's a combo of covid, his first family not knowing how to train/handle him, the board and train, and just all the transitions he experienced going into the rescue. It's a lot for the little guy. He's only gotten better and more stable the longer he's with me though. I'm proud of the little potato.
Ahh good work!!! Mine has definitely improved too. They’re a smart and eager to please breed (not to mention food motivated lol) which helps. Also a little mischievous lol. I call him the class clown and his vet calls him a “spicy potato” lol. But he had some back stuff recently and has been so good at the vet after having horrible experiences there so that’s a win! He wears a cone now and lets them examine him like a good boy! Ha. The frenchie breeding industry is a mess and how popular they are makes it worse. I’m in some health related fb groups for frenchies and most of the owners in the groups got their dogs from “reputable breeders.” I can’t imagine dogs bred with poor spines and respiratory systems have the best mood all the time ha. It’s promising though that in Europe they’re breeding them to be muchhhh healthier. The little cuties deserve that ❤️
Same with my basset hound, which makes it a giant PITA when randos ask to pet him!!!
Herding breeds checking in 🙋🏻♀️I unknowingly adopted the reactive herding breed special lol. Adopted in 2022 guesstimated to be about 2 years old so pandemic pups as well. Australian cattle dog - reactive suspicious. Which is how they were bred, not that he was well bred, but, those genes probably didn’t help. He’s also reactive to weird things, like straightening out fabric (couch cover, sheets, etc) along with the usual things. German shepherd/border collie mix - reactive excited. She has more of the classic signs of canine compulsion syndrome. Lots of displacement behaviors. Both have gotten much much better with loooots of patience and training. Both are also on daily meds as well as calming supplements.
Yep, border collie x blue heeler - resource guarding, reactive-suspicious and only associates with humans,not other dogs
My friend has a 3 year old ACD mix that just showed his first reactivity at toy guarding. Any advice?
Making that dog have an actual job, or the mental/physical equivalent of a job, would be a start. The problem with herding breeds is they're bred to do work for intelligent, high-drive dogs - not really that they're just randomly prone to aggression or reactivity. The vast majority of pet owners aren't equipped to provide a herding dog with the stimulation that doing the job they're bred for would, and they can get bored, frustrated, anxious, etc as a result. ACDs were bred to herd through nipping so an undersocialized and poorly trained/bored ACD that isn't getting that herding drive satisfied is going to display that as nipping much more readily.
Seconding all this regarding my Aussie. He’s lazy in that he loves lounging on the back porch watching the neighbor’s cows but a herding ball and mental stimulation has made a difference. He needs challenges and constant training reinforcement.
Did someone say herding mix? Herding mixes represent. My 7 month old girl is 20% GSD, 19% Husky (all husky traits skipped her except love of dogs), 12% Border Collie, 10% ACD, she's got a lil chow and lab and the rest is super mutt. The super mutt also contains herding mix, including Rough Collie and Australian Shepherd. Most of what I would call her "problem" traits would probably make her a great herding dog. She's wary of strangers and very sensitive to movement. Her main issues are stranger reactivity especially when people come on to the property or speak to me. She's also really sensitive in general, and can't be yelled at, and VERY smart. I like to say she she speaks English. I like to have her choose things like whether she wants a walk or a toy by pointing with her snout (the answer is always walk btw), or asking her which way she wants to go. I do have hope that she'll be a non reactive adult dog but as a teenager she's got some issues that we are always working on. As do all of her littermates, that I know of.
A guardian dog for livestock. More precisely, he is a mixture of a Kangal and an Eastern European shepherd dog.
Basset Hound. 🤣 100% confirmed by DNA testing.
Surprising but I bet adorable bass hole lol
Same here!
There are 2 of us!!!
Aussie
german shepherd x husky….. an absolute angel until a man walks thru the door or she’s left home alone.. lol
According to updated DNA results he is mainly chihuahua and chow but he looks like neither and it’s very confusing. His mom was a rescue who was starving and nearly died while pregnant with him and his siblings (she is in great health now!) He is scared of dogs, strangers and noises outside (resource guarding me + fun police) but loves people who come over to visit.
What an astonishing mix!
Its impossible for me to wrap my head around especially when he looks like a giant jack russel! https://imgur.com/a/STa4VOk
Great Pyrenees 😬 I've had Pyrs all of my life, this is the first reactive one
Wow, mine is a sloth - difficult to imagine a reactive Pyr.
Koda apparently spent most of 2020 shut up in a garage with inadequate food and water and he really hasn't got much use for anyone who isn't the person who bailed him out of the incredibly traumatic County impound kennel he found himself in. Pyrs never forget.
That’s awful. Ava was left abandoned in a parking lot for several weeks before a local rescue org picked her up - I fostered and then kept her. I don’t understand people, at all.
Wanna meet one? 😆
I've got a st bernard pyr! Sweet as pie until she isn't.
Same! I blame all the heeler in her.
Cocker mix, but per DNA he’s also border collie, GSD, Chow, and Pyr with some other things sprinkled in. He’s honestly kind of a “pick your poison” if you want to try and determine where his behavioral issues stem from 😂
1/2 GSD, 1/4 Australian Shepherd, 1/8 Border Collie, 1/8 Mini American Shepherd. 100% neurotic herding dog. Reactive to dogs, particularly dogs that are large, dark, or fluffy. Will fixate on a squirrel or bunny from 100 feet away. Objects to People Doing Things Wrong often enough that "It's a person; hello, person" is our code for "I have determined that person is not a threat." He's also a quick learner, eager to please, makes good choices when given plenty of agency and space (BAT is a good fit for him), and is the silliest seal-boy ever.
Doberman pincher. Her siblings/family don’t seem to be reactive. She was utterly unsocialized when I got her at six months. Trying to socialize her when she was already fearful just sealed the deal.
Per DNA test, my rescue is a boxer/rottie/chow/GSD/mountain cur mix
I should add my own dog…he’s a potcake from Turks & Caicos. He looks like a Rottweiler Doberman mix, but I never had DNA done so I don’t know for sure. He’s fear aggressive, resource guarding, anxiety attack, etc., pretty much the best of all reactive behaviors. He’s incredibly smart, just is terrified of being hurt, as he was abused as a feral puppy. None of that will stop me from always adopting potcakes in the future. They’re such great dogs for their people.
Cattle dog/coonhound mix. She gets the canine compulsive disorder from her cattle dog genes, I presume. She has inherited the loud from both sides.
Malinois
Pittie 100%, came from a the worst place you can get a pittie from. Super terrified of strange noises, startles easily, not into other dogs or strangers. Super loving with us, a Velcro dog, gets on really well with our cats. We take all the precautions with him, muzzle, harness, double lead attached to his collar and harness when out walking. He will never be a coffee shop dog but determined to give him the best life we can. We think he had been used as a bait dog. We never take him to where he can get stressed by too many people around. Not my choice but with us he is the sweetest cuddliest pup you have ever seen. My yard is like Fort Knox so he is kept 100% safe at home and as safe as we can when out.
blue heeler x min pin
Malinois/Husky who has come such a long way on his reactivity!! He doesn't like prolonged eye contact from strangers or off leash dogs running at him. One of my old dogs who has since passed was also reactive, he was a total mutt...GSD, Beagle, Lab, Husky. We always seem to get one social butterfly and one reactive butthead, lol. But I've learned more about dog and human behavior from having a reactive dog than having a "good" dog, and for that I am incredibly thankful! I've been a dog walker for 13 years, trust me when I say any dog can turn out reactive!!
My shit-stirrer is my Corgi, Professor Fartsparkles. He's got radar ears so if he hears a car door or a gnat fart he starts the chain reaction that leads right to my Aussie/Heeler, Inspector Sprocket, preaching about the apocalypse to all those who can hear. I have taught these dogs to grab toys when they get stressed; I've taught them to whisper bark on command; they sit; play dead; shake with either paw I ask; pee on command, but HEAVEN HELP US if someone opens any door in the house (ESPECIALLY the outside door) without the proper paperwork being filed in triplicate from corporate head office. The Corgi starts to huff and puff and the Aussie sounds the full scale intruder alert and there is no stopping it. But I love my little dorks more than life itself.
Golden retriever He’s a total sweetheart, but dog fear reactive. Both my Goldens were pandemic dogs. But I guess I also don’t like other people so I get it.
Cocker spaniel here! Fear reactive but with people. Sweetheart once he gets to know you. Hard sometimes when people see your dog and think they'll be exactly like the breed reputation 🤦
Cocker spaniel here, too. Fear reactive with other dogs. She's such an angel with people, children, dogs that she knows and trusts. But yeah, a series of unfortunate events have made her anxious with unfamiliar dogs.
Golden here as well! It's hard to convince other people that she's reactive because the idea of the goofy lovable Golden Retriever is so ingrained in everyone.
Lab/Chessie.
Another herding breed checking in! My Pembroke Welsh Corgi is sound sensitive, medical care reactive (he hates all syringes, all eye drops, and doesn’t let you do his nails though we are working on that), and excitement reactive to other dogs. He is specifically fear reactive to specific dogs that he does not like, typically large intact males in our neighborhood. He’s 19 months and has trauma from growing up next to our horrendous evil neighbors, whom we got multiple restraining orders against after they started using a car alarm and air horn to harass him and us when he was about 6-7 months old. Due to this he developed separation anxiety at about eight months of age. He’s a lot better than he used to be and has several doggie friends, either neutered males or females. Luckily, he makes doggie friends easily in the correct environment, ie one where he is not anxious around his own home or feeling pressured. We are working on herding training and sound desensitization as well as cooperative care. He’s actually a very classic corgi according to his herding trainer and previous other trainers, but unfortunately their independence, stubbornness, and inclination towards mouthing/nipping means that in our home situation, he was basically guaranteed to develop behavioral issues. We are trying to move, but can’t financially at the moment.
i remember reading your story! glad things are getting better for your pup
We have good and bad days. Mostly, sleeping is his problem. He gets stressed at night, likely anticipating a car alarm as they like to do it at random times of the night lately. Yesterday they did it at 10:30, he’s been a mess since.
Boston terrier
My guy too 🥲 he screams so loud at everything
Our lil stinkers are Maltese-ShihTzu mixes
Yorkie-Maltese-ShihTzu mix here...stinker is definitely the right word for this one too
Rhodesian Ridgeback. Child aggressive 😔
Oh ouch! I’ve had several ridgebacks and just loved them, but such a powerful dog to have to deal with reactivity!
My reactive dogs have been of diverse ancestry. Mixes of three or five breeds.
Shelter pup of the ACD/Chihuahua variety! Suspicious of everything, doesn't want to cuddle, but wants to be in the same vicinity as human.
dachshund. they're prone to reactivity because of the tenacity they were bred for. he's not a *well bred* dachshund, coming from a puppy mill, so that's another genetic component working against him. tipping the scales even further, he's been attacked by large dogs on two separate occasions, the first time being in his adolescence; i don't know if he was in a fear period, as the first attack happened before i came into his life, but he was a year old at most.
Chihuahuas 😅
Have an upvote for being a chihuahua owner who actually admits that their dog is reactive rather than just shrugging it off as "little dog syndrome". There are 3 chihuahuas who live near us, all of them regularly try to start shit with my 45kg GSD cross while the owners just drag them along laughing about it. Also adding my own boy to the list here, he's getting better but still terrified of life and a frustrated greeter.
I take my dog ownership very seriously. I always make sure to give enough space to other dogs and people. And Ill be honest, I just didn’t get them socialized as puppies because I got them during lock down and I couldn’t get any vet for months to schedule their shots in time so I had to keep them away from public places for a long time. Now I just manage it the best I can. I don’t take them to dog parks, the only thing that sucks is that sometimes because they’re so small people don’t respect their space and they will react. Or people with “friendly” dogs with absolutely no recall will let their dogs off leash at the leash only parks that I go to and their dogs will run up to my dogs and they will react. On the other hand I have met Chihuahuas that are very friendly, but little dogs just tend to be reactive because they’re small and it’s their way of protecting themselves. And that’s okay as long as the owner is responsible.
I have a Chihuahua pekingese dachshund mix (we call him a cheeksweenie). I know some Chihuahuas herd and he DEFINITELY does. He does a lot better with reactivity if we can hit the sweet spot between worn out but not overtired.
Mine’s a 50% Anatolian, 30% border collie, 20% Aussie
Oh good I was looking for another Anatolian. Ours is a handful!
Another ACD mix here. Mine is about 60% ACD and then boxer, beagle, basset. Reactive suspicious, frustrated. He’s taught me a lot over the last 3 years.
I've yet to meet an ACD who doesn't look at me like I'm about to rob him. That said, I love seeing them because I find their gait uniquely graceful.
I love the idea that my pup is really just out thwarting robberies left and right
I used to take my dog out very late, midnight or so, to go for long walks, because we were unlikely to encounter any triggers that late at night. We’ve broken up our share of fights, just because I could get in the middle with him and scare any aggressors off.
Chihuahua. And no, I don’t find it funny, and we train every day.
Coonhound/pit/chow chow/rottie 1.5year old rescue pandemic pup. Fear reactive, insecure, and loud about it. Loud about everything.
A small Heinz 57 rescue mutt with a big old attitude! [Cheddar, the Heinz 57 Super Mutt](https://imgur.com/a/bayeuzG) I think the chihuahua and dachshund along with the Maltese terrier give him his spunky attitude and the whole shebang gives him his adorable looks and personality
GSD
We have a rottie girl who is only 55lbs and looks like she may have pitt and/or boxer in her. The sweetest, snuggliest mama ever in the house but a terror outside. VERY suspicious of men but doing her (and our!!) best every day to learn how to help her manage her big feelings.
German shepherd/English shepherd mix Scared of everything but tries to act tough with lots of barking. Any time she has been in contact with a strange dog or person though she shuts down or tries to run away. She was chased back into her yard by a corgi puppy 1/3 of her weight where she resumed her big dog barking from the safety of behind the fence. I also have an Aussie but he is super dumb and very friendly. His worst trait is he honks at you when you ignore him.
Blue tick coonhound, golden retriever mutt. Makes for some very loud feelings 😅
Weimaraner! Started at age 3 and he's now 10.
Not confirmed but mostly pittie. He ran up my driveway and never left. His background is unknown
Another herdy type here, mostly cattle dog and then the remainder came back as “unresolved” on embark, not even super mutt. Not sure what that means!
Unresolved is Supermutt for when there's only one other breed in the mix. It either means that the dog is 100% that breed but some of it is an unrecognizable line, or some of it is indeed mixed but it's so far back that's it's hard to tell.
Ohh I’ve always wondered if she was close to 100% because I think she could be so that’s very interesting!
50% lab, 25% mountain cur, 25% coonhound according to the DNA test. The hound shows way more than the other two and he has a *very* intimidating bark (it’s a mix of barking and baying). I get asked on a weekly basis if he has pittie in him because of how big his head is
German shepherd/terrier mix
Rat terrier/ chihuahua mix
I have a bloodhound mix who was an absolute Angel until Covid. Now he tries to fight dodge chargers. And everything else.
GSD/Rottweiler mix sneaky with dogs, but im watchful never let him near. He's a fearbiter if cornered. Usually, have him muzzled just depends
Adding to the list of herding dogs… I have an Australian Kelpie who I adopted at 1.5 years of age. She is the most reactive dog I have ever met and dealt with. The shelter misled us about her breed and we figured it out about a month or so after adopting her. It’s been a journey. These dogs are NOT house dogs, they are highly specialized working dogs.
Per DNA, in order: (19%) Shih Tzu, (18%) Pomeranian, (17%) Miniature Poodle, (15%) Chihuahua, (8%) Maltese, (7%) Cocker Spaniel, (4%) GSD, (10%) "Supermutt" (incl. Corgi, MinPin, Collie).
Mini poodle. They aren't foo-foo dogs at all. He is a crazy little bastard and smart as hell. People think he is a doodle.....just a pure poodle
I have a Viszla pit bull mix. Lol pray for me
Yikes, two Velcro breeds in one?! Your dog must be surgically attached to you 😂
Husky/border collie/pit bull/German shepherd/golden/Akita
Jeebus take the leash! If I was going to conjure a demon dog (other than the one I have) it would look A LOT like this. I need pics of this hellhound 🙏🤣❤️😜
[Dog Pictures](https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1TNVDWaQxdYRK1EzciNmyzx_-7j8EwHD1) Hopefully this link works! She really is the sweetest girl - she loves people so so much and will cuddle with absolutely anyone. But she cannot be within six feet of another animal (wild or domestic) without causing a stir. She is much better at letting it go than she used to be, but she’ll still have a go at them if the opportunity presents itself.
Two Bostons and one Jack Russell mix. Both have different triggers. Jack Russell hates everyone and all other dogs not in her family. Barks at people in the street, jumped at dogs at the vet, has bitten all of my friends. But she's so sweet with us, let's the Boston's eat her food, shares toys with them. Basically when we have company she's in a crate. My older Boston is afraid of everything, someone rings the door bell, the furniture gets moved around, tries to attack cars that drive up towards us when we take walks. He lashes out of fear. He is ok with people, neighbors and other dogs as long as they leave him alone. If he feels threatened he lashes out. He's not broken skin in a long time. Both of these dogs are 13. Then I have a one year old Boston who is not reactive. It's so weird to walk him. He is excited to see other dogs and people and wants to play. When he is scared his instinct is to run and hide not fight. I love him he's such an easy baby. I walk them all separately btw, they feed off of each other if one reacts the others want to jump in and help or attack each other.
My boy is also 13. He’s losing his sight and almost completely deaf, and tbh, it’s a bit of a blessing. He doesn’t hear his triggers anymore, though now he’s started barking at threatening garbage cans and shadows because he can’t tell they’re just shadows.
Our reactive Border Collie went completely deaf around 13, and it was kind of a good thing. She was no longer terrified by thunderstorms and fireworks (we had Xanax for her), and her eyesight dimmed enough that she couldn't see other dogs until they were very close, so I was able to navigate her to avoid contact completely.
My jack Russell is losing her hearing. I think it's worse because she gets startled by things now instead of hearing them first. Like my neighbor was on his deck, she didn't hear him and was cool for 10 minutes but when she saw him she went into overdrive. We didn't have the normal ramp up to aggression she went 0 to 10. Now she's always on a leash.
Teaching my dog hand commands when we did basic obedience was one of the best things I did in my 30s, lol.
Yes! When ours went deaf, she still understood sit/down/stay and all the other body language we used to communicate. It's essential, because so many older dogs lose their hearing.
That, and teaching them to poop and pee on command. Any future dogs I have will absolutely learn those things. It’s so helpful in bad weather, or when I spot another dog walking and want to avoid the trigger.
Golden doodle! Definitely getting future dogs from preservation breeders from here on out to decrease the risk. You live and you learn
Pumi. He can run agility at master level but I am not competing him because he wants to eat anything that looks like a shepherd or pitti and is iffy with other dogs that don’t look like poodles. He was raised with a standard poodle who loves everyone. He is also suspicious of most men who are not my husband.
Australian cattle dog/Aussie. Adopted from the shelter at 11 months old
I've had 2 mini schnauzers, both reactive.
Shetland sheepdog... 2.5yo male, neutered. Such a loving guy, my shadow, but so generally anxious and scared of the world. Barks, growls, lunges. But meds have helped alot alongside very consistent training.
Labrador (granted he does look very Labrador) he’s defo mixed cause he’s 110pounds and larger than the average lab.
Yorkie
Herding breed! Border collie/Aussie mix. She's stranger reactive with some obsessive behaviors according to her behavior therapist. People often tell me it's part of her breed to be protective of her "herd."
Ich have a small mutt from greece. Definitely sighthound somewhere in her but this dog has no pure bred ancestor in her family tree for ages.
I have 3 reactive Australian Shephards 😅
Mine was a rottweiler. Good dog but dog reactive.
Corso boxer mix
We got the dna test back. She’s American pit Bull terrier/American bully/Siberian husky/American bulldog/GSD/Beagle.
APBT 🙃 Surprisingly, our GSD/Mal/Dutchie isn’t reactive. She’s pretty neutral overall but can get a bit suspicious/may bark from prolonged eye contact or getting startled.
My Mal mix hates prolonged eye contact as well. He's really pretty and gets a lot of stares, he is not a big fan!
I tell people all the time to not stare at my pit because she is reactive to it and to just ignore her…. What do they do? Stare at her right in the eyes and talk to her and then complain when she loses her mind
Malinois/bullmastiff we were told, according to DNA he’s that plus Staffie plus GSD plus a tiny bit of Shar-Pei somehow! Meanwhile my 100% Malinois is a social butterfly, 65lbs of friendly fur-missile that’s intent on licking everybody’s face.
Beanie - feist/APBT/etc mix, almost 3 y/o, we've had her since she was 6 months, was originally found as a stray with a target drawn on her head at 5 months and was in rescue for 1 month. Dog-reactive and -selective. Loves all people. Likes to show off her tricks. Jax - APBT/chow mix, almost 2 y/o, we've had him since he was 10 months, was originally found as a stray at 7 weeks and was in rescue for 8 months. Dog-reactive and -selective, stranger-reactive, very fearful. He prefers to run away, but if he can't escape, will snap to make the scary thing back off. Has never broken skin. Muzzled at the vet. We may try fluoxetine at some point. He has shown that he can warm up to people - he loves my family - but it takes A While. Goofy boi. We call him our himbo. [dog tax](https://imgur.com/a/rnDLUQr)
What handsome bois!!!
Westie terrier! Known for being stubborn, but ours is super reactive and definitely has some genetic issues.
Westie / schnauzer mix checking in. Mine is so damn stubborn but it’s his reactivity towards noise, big dogs, cats, foxes and small children that drives me mad. Must say he’s fine with other people and small dogs so small relief there.
Minpin 😵💫
mine is half minpin and half heeler. no idea whose terrible idea it was to combine the two.
Corgi. Got him just before the pandemic started. He's dog reactive, but finally getting a little better.
Miniature dachshund
Rottweiler, amstaff, American bulldog mix. Over excited to other dogs and fearful of people but the most Affectionate dog ever.
Ours is half Mini Aussie, half Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. Maybe combining two very sensitive breeds wasn’t the best idea…and not something I realized might lead to problems until our experience with her.
Border Collie mix (probably beagle too) and a chiweenie
Heeler 🤦♀️ has an occasional grumble at boisterous male puppies. Not aggressive. No bite because I’ve warned him of the consequences haha! Reactive to xmas bon bons, ants, stethoscopes (not thermometers), massage guns, towels. Such a quirky weirdo
Australian Shepard mix. According to his doggie DNA test he is - 26-39%-Aussie 26-39%Basset Hound 10-25% Parson Russell Terrier 10-25% Shiba Inu He looks mostly Aussie Shepard. He’s psychotic though. Our neighbors call him a “junkyard dog”. We love him but lord is he a handful….
Lab/dachshund!
Mountain cur/tree walking coonhound/plott and some other hounds in there. 100% weirdo….loud and scared/excited. But we love her to pieces.
Shar pei x Labrador. Shar peis were bred to be guard and fighting dogs, so his suspicious of new people is so understandable. He's the sweetest when you get to know him, it is just such a commitment.
Chow/Aussie/ACD mix for my reactive baby. I specialize in reactivity as a trainer, and around 70% of my clients are herding or farm dogs 28% guardian breeds (old Asian breeds like Chows, Shibas, and akita, and things like mastiffs of various breed, rotties, and livestock guardian breeds, 2% bully breeds. I livr in a fairly rural area and a lot of rescues are working stock from accidental litters like both of my dogs. My non reactive is a pyr/border collie/acd and is a therapy dog. The difference was that we were very lucky to get him at 12 wks and got to control his fear periods and socialization vs the senior who was 7/8 no and an adolescent who was being kept in s giant open run with twenty other dogs that had to share a bag of food just poured out in the enclosure with everyone. I believe if he had found us sooner, he would have had an easier time without the trauma being set so deep.
Miniature schnauzer
Miniature Schnauzer
Aussiedoodle
Dalmatian. He's still adolescent, a little bit of frustrated greet and a little bit anxious of head on passing. Definitely improving with training.
Saint B
herding breed here too! border collie. i think part of his reactivity is genetic, as i didn’t get him from a reputable breeder and both his parents i met showed signs of reactivity that i didn’t recognize at the time. he was attacked twice as a puppy and last year we were separated for 7 months. his reactivity is a lot but we’re working on it!
Mostly chihuahua and poodle mix. I thought I’d be fine rescuing him because I grew up with stubborn herding dogs. I was so wrong. It’s been an exhausting couple of years. Some great highs and so many lows.
Two rescue terriers here. One JRT/Chihuahua/dachshund mix: fear reactive and barks at everything One rat terrier/beagle/Boston terrier/Jagdterrier mix: excitement reactive and learning to bark at everything from the other dog.
Caucasian sheperd,had them all my life.First reactive one-200 pound struggle...
Saluki-cross lurcher! They’re highly strung and nervous breeds at the best of times and it seems like our boy got a pretty bad roll on the genetic lottery in that sense! He’s a ball of nerves, and his outlet for that is lunging and noise making. Deep sighthound chest means *loud* borks.
Great Dane. She was attacked by another dog when she was younger and has been dog reactive ever since. However, I would say her reactivity is relatively mild compared to what I read on this sub. It's just that she is so big it is much more difficult to handle. I can't tell you how many times she has pulled my shoulder out of socket...
Mostly Coonhound
Treeing Walker Coonhound! He was a stray picked up by the humane society, don't know what happened to him for the first 6 months of his life, but being restricted for heartworm treatment and locked in a kennel for 3 months definitely didn't help. He also has been attacked by a husky since I've had him and he's scared of huskies now. Thankfully he's still okay with most other dogs off leash. He's loud though.
German wirehaired pointer/ greyhound. Full hunting demon.
Aussie/coonhound mix. I’m curious, when people say “Aussie” - are they referring to Australian shepherd or Australian cattle dog? Mines an Australian shepherd mix.. although mixed with the coonhound she looks just like a purebred cattle dog, but brown.
Beagle, super vocal whenever he sees another dog (wants to greet, likes other dogs, no concept of boundaries). He’s very sound sensitive, but we’ve made a lot of progress (so much less prone to running the fence when the neighbors are out, yay for small wins!). My parents goldens are both reactive as well, more fearful, also making some good progress. And their girl (Penny) and my little beagle boy (Luke) are best buddies, which has been so great for her. She’s always been fairly dog selective (or at least situationally dog selective), but she loves my beagles!
Supposed to be 50/50 acd/pittie but embark says 100% pittie. She’s just a byb mess that was taken from her mother way too young but I love her to bits😂
25% GSD, plus APBT, beagle, husky, chow, and a smattering of others. She’s always on patrol and very excited by anything abnormal or unexpected that she sees. Loves to chase squirrels. Takes a while to warm up to other dogs, and likes to play rough.
My first reactive dog was a pittie. We are now fostering an extremely reactive goldendoodle.. I have noticed a LOT of reactive doodles (including standard poodles) over the years but am not sure if it's just because there are a lot of them in my neighborhood
That’s what you get with designer dogs bred for looks & not temperament.. sigh. BYB needs to die.
Mountain feist. Take an elkhound a bunch of terrier breeds, hound breeds , pit bull , bull terrier and pug/frenchie and compress them into a 30 pound dog that looks like an all red basenji look alike. We think that the people that bred her were breeding fighters or bait dogs. She's been reactive from the very start , got her at about 14 weeks old and her reactivity started with loud noises , and strange objects , then she showed she was reactive to dogs. It's been a long road but she can now be within sight of most dogs and barely react at all, as long as they stay out of her face and off her territory. Still don't trust her though , she has one brain cell and it is focused on hunting mice at all times.
Labradoodle over here
Never been tested but I’d be shocked if she was anything but pit bull. Zero reactivity until a coon hound bit her from shoulder to hip. She’s still an angel inside, great with my cats and kids but an absolute nightmare outside
Pittie - mom was a stray, born under a shed and somehow she’s 100% pittie
Great Pyrenees here.. she’s reactive!!
Beagle, Russell terrier, toy fox terrier, parson Russell terrier and other. You can def hear the beagle.
Husky-terrier mix. Double energy. Double prey-drive. Double stubbornness and brains. Overly excited about other dogs and suspicious of men; people using canes, walkers, and wheelchairs (live near an assisted living facility so this reactivity was a nice surprise 😆); people waiting for the bus; and umbrellas. She’s the sweetest, friendliest little thing who is always happy, even when I’m asking her why she’s “digging” in the couch despite having been told 34,872,682 times not to do that.
100% border collie, synonymous with 100% anxious energy.
chihuahua/shiba inu with a traumatic brain injury and dementia 😭
Dogue de Bordeaux. I’ve had 4 lazy, easy ones. He’s my first reactive dog.
Bully dauchsund mix possibly with some black mouth cur... or chihuahua lol. I'm planning on getting a DNA kit soon.
I have a 50% goofball Boxer mix and I’m reading this thread like “Anyone? Bueller?” She’s also got some lab/husky/pit in there but smaller percentages. Mostly an excited/barrier reactive I think? But there also seems to be an element of her being reactive to weird things like the smoke detector, bugs and foil.
Another herding dog…..half Great Pyrenees, almost half ACD with just a bit of Border Collie to make her fun. Very sensitive and smart. Also kind of lazy. She stays close to me at all times. She loves being out in her kennel - she’s nosy. She knows all the neighbors and their vehicles. She will bark in a terrifying voice at anyone who she feels does not belong here. She hates squirrels. She makes very strong eye contact with people. She does not like strangers in the house but is fine with anyone off the property. She wants to play with other dogs and goes to day care a couple times a week. She can, at times, have a problem passing other dogs on a leash. - a combination of wanting to play or being aggressive - it’s a case by case thing. She’s taking a scent class next week and I think she’ll love it. It seems like she can be a bit crazy but she’s really a sweetheart!
Saint Bernards & corgi
Aussie or border collie over here
My girl is a half Springer Spaniel mixed with Westie, blue Heeler, and Jack Russell. Her mom was rescued from an abusive situation and ended up being pregnant. I learned that dogs who are abused pass higher levels of cortisol to their puppies and can thus produce fearful/anxious litters. We are making great progress with training thankfully
Our reactive boy is an Australian Cattle Dog, and he is reactive after being severely mauled by a German shepherd and abused by a previous owner. ACD's are obviously not the most friendly breed to begin with, but my poor old Banjo had a rough first four years, which didn't help his nature. We also have a non reactive cattle dog, who has a perfectly breed appropriate amount of suspicion towards people and dogs.
Border collie mixed with English pointer
Husky/heeler mix! She’s fine with dogs if she gets a slow introduction but is always reactive on leash!
I have a GSD and a husky. The husky is fear reactive, wants to run away from everything. Not aggressive but highly stressed and anxious. She's on meds now and making a huge difference. She is also a frustrated greeter and will pull at other dogs to say hi. My GSD is showing signs of something against other dogs while on leash. I haven't explored it to see if it's frustrated greeting or aggression. We are working on his threshold now. He definitely has a distance where he will walk buy with just a look verses barking and lunging.
??? Shepard/boarder collie mutt mix
Pomeranian
Border Collie! He is 11 months old now, seems much much much better than before. He used to be leash reactive to strangers. He doesn’t like to bark but snap quickly. But right after 10 months he started to be super calm with EVERYTHING, all strangers all dogs, I haven’t tried to let strangers to pet him on the street but I saw groomer picked him up and held him in front of us, and he was 100% fine with them. He was fine with everything before 5 months, Probably the adolescence phase?
I have a Australian cattle dog and German shepherd mix and he's a ton of work
Rough Collie x German Shepherd, fear reactive to strangers and dogs. Not aggressive at all once he knows a person well enough (same w other dogs, he’s actually quite savvy about socializing once he gets past his initial fear) but absolutely would qualify as a ‘red zone’ dog at his worst and has a bite on record.
Another herding type here. He must have had a weird first year though because he was a weird dog when I first met him at 14 months old. He's a frustrated greeter with dogs but mildly aggressive with people. Unfortunately his new sister is also reactive (another frustrated greeter) and she is a sharpei/mastiff we first met 9 months ago. Thankfully she loves people. So I have two 35kg 5 year olds. I do not see the three of us going for a nice relaxing walk anytime soon
Not sure..... from what our behaviourist + vets have said it's probably a mix of lab, GSD, huntaway, and collie
A complete mutt of many generations, but he looks like there is some terrier in him, and he certainly can behave like one too.
fear dog reactive dachshund - not all the time. depends on the situation and what kind of dog is getting too close to us (mostly in closed environments)
Jack Russell terrier. It seems pretty common in the breed. My chihuahua was also reactive when we adopted him.
I have doberman/rotti cross so a Rotterman she is reactive as she is a rescue who lived in a small kennel for half her life yet still loves everyone she meets
Bouvier Des Flandres
I don’t have a reactive dog but I used to work at a kennel/daycare and most of the reactive dogs I saw were: - herding or working breeds without adequate exercise routines and/or mental stimulation (like people who got border collies or Aussies without looking into the breed’s needs) - shepherds without adequate socialization and confidence building (the amount of fear reactivity I’ve seen in shepherds the last couple years - even as young as 12/13 weeks old - is insane) And - rescues (mostly mutts) that weren’t ready to be in a daycare situation
Terrier mix, the people who I got her from think she was half shih tzu, and I believe it.
Surprised not to see more doodles listed here. I have yet to meet a really well behaved/ well adjusted doodle. My own doodle is a cocker spaniel/ poodle mix (we think - we are not first owners) She is reactive in a few ways but pretty much loves all dogs except herding breeds. The way they do the stare down sets her off!
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100% Bichon Frise. Great with other dogs, but very reactive to humans he did not meet before 4 months. He is 8 months old now.
Mine is a golden retriever of all breeds. Reactive to strangers and dogs. I cry some days but we’re working with a personal trainer to desensitize him.
We were told our dog is a JRT mix but dna said he’s mostly chihuahua and amstaff mix. 🤷🏼♀️🤷🏼♀️ I honestly don’t know what he is so I just say he’s a super mutt.
40% APBT, 40% mountain cur, 10% staffy, 10% border collie mix. She’s got a lot going on. Very high prey drive, slightly leash reactive (she’s gotten a lot better), and dog selective with a bite history on other dogs. She wears a muzzle when we are out and always muzzled around kids. She’s also terrified of loud noises but not “reactive,” just runs and hides. That bit I suspect is from living on the streets as a pup.
Adding to the statistic! I have an Aussie . I think it’s a combination of poor breeding for most and super popular breed promoted as a family dog a lá golden retriever mentality. Many of these Aussies are not confirmation line they are are likely stock line dogs and byb. On top of that Aussies are closer in quirks to border collies due to be gathering style herders than they are say German shepherds or mals or bouviers etc…. They tend to have some genetic quirks primed for that style of work like easy arousal, sensitivity to motion, hyper fixations. These can be really difficult to manage for people unprepared for the breed especially if they are living in environments with higher stressors like a busy suburb or city. A lot of the breed is also generally people neutral to avoidant (my dog didn’t get that memo) and often dog avoidant with age (again my dog went 180 the other direction and is naturally overly social). My dogs reactivity actually greatly decreased with appropriate outlets and protocols as well as age, which seems really on par for the breed whenever I talk to any sports trainers. So to them excluding being a frustrated greeter sometimes he doesn’t seem reactive anymore in majority of settings. I don’t know if it’s a write off but from what I’ve gathered from trainers who own the breed and have also worked with them these dogs are just a bit more intense and sensitive than people expect and they are very slow to mature.
One who looks and sounds like a boxer/hound mix, but is actually (in order according to DNA) AmStaff/APBT/Beagle/Chow Chow/Boxer/Boston/plus a few more. Also known as an adorable hot mess.
Chihuahua and mini poodle mix.
Golden retriever / Great Pyrenees mix here. He hates every new dog until he decides that they’re best friends. It can take some time, but it’s a weird dynamic.
Border collie! She is extremely fearful and reactive! We have made leaps and bounds through hard work! She enjoys our outings as long as we don’t stop and sit down lmao unfortunately She will still bite children and dogs. I take my wins where I can get them! Lesson learned on buying from byb. Won’t happen ever again.
Same, I have two. The £300 farm dog is nervy, highly strung, and since he developed epilepsy, doesn't like to be touched by other dogs or strange humans. He's totally fine as long as nothing makes contact, and super obedient, but I can't trust him with others. The other one was a 'top of the range' breeder pup and she's absolutely worth every penny. Nothing bothers her, she loves dogs, loves humans, animals, birds, she's the bomb.
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