Worried About Your Dog’s Behaviour, Not Sure Where to Start?

When we talk about “behaviour problems”, we are usually describing behaviour that has become difficult for the humans living with it, not behaviour that is wrong in the dog. For the dog, the behaviour makes sense. It works, and it helps them cope with situations they find challenging.

When that happens, the question usually becomes where to begin.

Many guardians recognise that something isn’t quite right long before they know what to do about it. There is often a long period of noticing, worrying, adapting, and quietly reshaping daily life in an attempt to cope.

Behaviour may show up as barking and lunging on walks, growling around unfamiliar people or during body contact, difficulty settling at home, or responses that feel quicker, more intense, or harder to recover from than they used to be.

Over time, everyday life can begin to feel constrained. Walks require planning. Visitors feel stressful. Home can start to feel like a place where behaviour is constantly being managed rather than somewhere you can relax together.

1. Is this a new behaviour, or something that has changed?

A useful early question is whether the behaviour is genuinely new, or whether it has been present before but has become more frequent, more intense, or more challenging for you both.

Some behaviours appear suddenly. Others develop gradually. Some have always existed at a lower level but, over time, begin to take up more space in daily life.

Changes like this are often linked to physical discomfort or pain, changes in routine or environment, cumulative stress, developmental stages, or repeated exposure to situations the dog finds difficult.

Observing whether behaviour is new or escalating helps clarify what may be influencing it and what kind of support may be needed.

2. Start by making things easier, not by trying to solve everything

When behaviour feels challenging to live with, it is natural to search for training techniques or solutions. However, behaviour change depends far more on the conditions a dog is living in than on any single strategy.

Dogs who are anxious, fearful, or frustrated often show reduced behavioural flexibility. Responses can become quicker, louder, or more intense, and recovery can take longer. At the same time, guardians under pressure often experience decision fatigue and a sense of constantly reacting rather than choosing.

Making things easier creates breathing space for both you and your dog. That space makes it easier to spot patterns and reduce pressure before attempting change.

This might involve fewer challenging outings for a little while, shorter or quieter walks, more predictable routines, or temporarily easing what everyday life is asking of your dog at home. It is not about ignoring behaviour. It is about creating conditions where support can land.

3. Reduce pressure before expecting change

Behaviour rarely changes while everything still feels challenging for the dog. Repeated exposure to difficult situations is more likely to strengthen existing responses than support change.

This may involve fewer exposures to situations your dog currently struggles with, changes around visitors or handling, or increased predictability in daily routines.

This is not about avoidance or giving in. It is about changing what the situation is asking of the dog while their capacity to cope is limited.

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4. Management and safety are appropriate early steps

Management plays an important role in behaviour support, particularly when behaviour feels unpredictable, concerning, or raises safety worries.

Management helps reduce the likelihood of incidents, prevents repeated rehearsal of behaviour that is challenging for the dog, protects everyone involved, and creates space to observe what is actually happening.

Adjusting environments or routines is not avoidance. It is often a necessary and responsible part of behaviour support.

Physical and emotional safety provide the foundation that behaviour change is built on. Without that foundation, progress is much harder to achieve.

5. Health should always be prioritised

Any new behaviour, or behaviour that has become more noticeable, should prompt consideration of the dog’s physical experience.

Pain and physical discomfort influence how dogs move, rest, respond, and interact with the world. A dog who is uncomfortable is more likely to react quickly, recover more slowly, and show less behavioural flexibility. Behaviour that appears sudden or out of proportion is often a dog responding to how their body feels, rather than a change in intent or personality.

Gut health can also be relevant. Ongoing gastrointestinal discomfort, inflammation, food sensitivities, or disrupted digestion can affect arousal, tolerance, and emotional regulation. When the body is under strain, behaviour is often affected, even when physical signs are subtle.

A veterinary health check helps rule out pain and ensures behaviour support is not built on top of an unresolved medical issue.

Behaviour and health are closely linked. What a dog is physically experiencing affects how they cope, learn, and respond to everyday situations.

6. Keep a simple behaviour diary

When behaviour feels confusing or relentless, a simple diary can be a useful place to start.

This does not need to be detailed. Short notes are enough.

You might notice when the behaviour occurs, what was happening just before, where it took place, and how the dog recovered afterwards.

Over time, patterns often emerge. Behaviour begins to feel more understandable and less unpredictable. This information is also extremely helpful if you later seek professional support.

This is about observing what’s happening, rather than trying to make sense of it straight away.

Taking a curious, observational approach

When behaviour feels difficult or confusing, it’s easy to move straight into problem-solving mode. Curiosity offers a different starting point.

Curiosity here doesn’t mean analysing everything or searching for the “right” answer. It means slowing down enough to observe what is actually happening, without judgement and without rushing to intervene.

A curious approach might sound like:

When does this behaviour tend to happen?
When does it not happen?
What seems to make it more challenging?
What seems to help, even slightly?
How quickly does my dog recover afterwards?

Curiosity shifts behaviour from feeling personal or unpredictable to something that can be observed and understood in context. Instead of asking how to stop the behaviour, the question becomes what the behaviour might be responding to.

This kind of observation often forms the bridge between feeling stuck and being able to take the next step.

Asking different questions

When behaviour feels hard to live with, it is easy to ask how to stop it.

More helpful questions are often what the behaviour is helping the dog cope with, what is making daily life harder right now, what would help things feel calmer or more predictable, and what support you might need.

These questions shift the focus away from control and towards understanding.

When to seek one-to-one behaviour support

If your dog’s behaviour feels distressing, unsafe, or beyond what you can comfortably manage alone, seeking support from a Certified Canine Behaviourist can be an important step.

A behaviourist looks beyond the behaviour itself, considering learning history, emotional experience, health and welfare, environment, safety, and what is realistic for the guardian.

If you would like one-to-one support, I offer behavioural consultations where we can look carefully at what is happening for your dog, what might be influencing the behaviour, and how to support change in a way that feels ethical and manageable.

You don’t have to address everything at once

Behaviour rarely changes through pressure or rushing. It changes when support is paced, grounded, and realistic.

You don’t need to change everything immediately.
You don’t need a perfect plan.
And you don’t need to do this alone.

Starting with safety, management, a vet check, observation, and curiosity is often the most responsible place to begin.

If you are worried about your dog’s behaviour and would like support thinking this through, you can find more information about my behavioural consultations here - Confident Canine Behavioural Consultations