If you welcomed a dog into your life between March 2020 and now, you may be experiencing some pandemic pet partner burnout. Perhaps your puppy is in full on land shark mode. A mouth full of razor sharp teeth on skin is painful! Perhaps your pandemic pup is now in adolescence. Ooof, that can be the most difficult time to live with a dog. Serenity now! Perhaps having spent so much time with your dog, you have noticed behavior issues such as separation anxiety, stranger danger, fear of new experiences, reactivity, and aggression towards dogs and/or people. 

Living with pets can be an exhausting emotional roller coaster experience. While we always love them, there are times when we don’t like them all that much. So what do we do? Get that mutt mojo back with new activities. 

Dog sports are a great way to reset your relationship with your dog. You don’t have to be on a competition track to participate in dog sports. Take classes for fun! Find local or online classes for agility, barn hunt, dock diving, fly ball, freestyle, frisbee, heeling to music, lure coursing, nose work, obedience, parkour, rally, sheep herding, triball, and trick training. These are fabulous ways to harness your dog’s natural talent. Dog sports are a great outlet for dogs to be dogs.  

If your dog has the right personality, look into therapy dog work! Your dog will likely need to pass the Canine Good Citizen exam or other prerequisites before doing such work. Find local organizations where you and your dog can volunteer at libraries, schools, nursing homes, or hospitals. 

Take an online class! Let’s face it, dogs can be expensive — especially those with behavior challenges. Online classes are an affordable, effective option. Save money on gas, save time staying out of traffic, and gain new skills! Many online classes include intro to dog sports, trick training, obedience training, and more! Behavior United is offering live online and on demand experiences. Best Behavior level one lays the training foundation for a dog who pays attention to you, no matter the distraction! Training Takeout gives you fifteen fun, creative skills ranging from entertaining party tricks to useful tasks (not your standard obedience drills)!

Take the road less traveled. Find a new hiking path, rent a sniff spot, or rent a private dog-friendly pool through Swimply for quiet new adventures. Fresh air therapy can be just what the dogtor ordered. Read my previous blog post, A Safe Space Getaway, for more dog-friendly destinations. 

Even though you are living with your dog’s behavior challenges every day, it’s OK to take training breaks and have fun! It’s important to balance behavior modification with fun activities appropriate for your dog. By avoiding pandemic pet partner burnout, we’re able to joyfully escort our dogs through life.