I'm always a big fan of nose games - whether that's actual training for a scent-based sport (nosework, tracking, barn hunt, scent ID work, etc) or just playing fun games like 'find the treats hidden around this room'. They're naturally calming and confidence-building, very accessible (you don't need lots of fancy equipment to get started), and typically very fun for most dogs. It works out their brain while letting them participate in a soothing behavior, and often leads to a calmer dog.
We also use a lot of pattern games with our older dog. These are repetitive, predictable 'mini-games' that always result in rewards. Our oldest has arousal issues and struggles to settle and feel in control while outside the home, and also reacts with intense frustration and energy to strange dogs. These games have helped give him something routine and predictability to fall back on when he's feeling out of control of the environment and his own emotional responses, and we've seen that he's starting to turn to us for the pattern games instead of escalating his negative reactions. Our favorites with him are a counting game (we count "one, two, three" and he always gets a treat on "three") and a 'look at me' game, where he gets a treat tossed down to find every time he looks at us, but there's a lot more out there for different situations, dogs, and training styles. Leslie McDevitt is the name to search for if you want to learn more - other trainers use similar techniques, but she's the one who coined the phrase 'pattern games,' so using her name makes them a lot easier to find videos and articles about how to use them.
Good luck! Recognizing this and working on it early is a great start.
We also use a lot of pattern games with our older dog. These are repetitive, predictable 'mini-games' that always result in rewards. Our oldest has arousal issues and struggles to settle and feel in control while outside the home, and also reacts with intense frustration and energy to strange dogs. These games have helped give him something routine and predictability to fall back on when he's feeling out of control of the environment and his own emotional responses, and we've seen that he's starting to turn to us for the pattern games instead of escalating his negative reactions. Our favorites with him are a counting game (we count "one, two, three" and he always gets a treat on "three") and a 'look at me' game, where he gets a treat tossed down to find every time he looks at us, but there's a lot more out there for different situations, dogs, and training styles. Leslie McDevitt is the name to search for if you want to learn more - other trainers use similar techniques, but she's the one who coined the phrase 'pattern games,' so using her name makes them a lot easier to find videos and articles about how to use them.
Good luck! Recognizing this and working on it early is a great start.
