Understanding Dog Behaviour 🧠🐶

If your dog is barking, lunging, pulling, jumping, reacting on walks, or struggling to settle at home, it can feel confusing and exhausting. The good news is:👉 Your dog isn’t being difficult — behaviour is not random. Dogs behave the way they do for a reason, and once you understand what is driving the behaviour, you can start to change it. Behaviour is communication. At Good Boy Olly, I provide positive reinforcement dog behaviour in person training in Perth and online training globally to help owners understand their dogs, reduce stress, and build calmer, more confident behaviour in real life.
Positive reinforcement training helps dogs learn with clarity, confidence, and trust.

Does this sound familiar? 🤔

  • “My dog is great at home, but loses it outside”
  • “They just don’t listen when it matters”
  • “It feels like the behaviour is getting worse”
  • “I’ve tried things, but nothing sticks”
👉 You’re not alone — and this is all explainable behaviour, not a broken dog.

What is behaviour? 👀

Behaviour is how your dog responds to the world around them. It’s influenced by:
  • internal states (hunger, discomfort, fatigue, pain)
  • emotions (Confidence, curiosity, fear, anxiety, stress, excitement or arousal, frustration)
  • the environment (smells, sounds, sights, movement, people, dogs, other animals)
  • past experiences (Trauma, learning history, early socialisation)
  • breed (different breeds come ingrained with different instincts or programming)
  • generalisation (this worked there or for them may be it will work here or for me as well)
👉 Behaviour is your dog’s way of solving a problem.
ILLUSTRATION BY PAUL BOSTON, retrieved from Harvard Magazine. Please click the image or the link below to learn more.

Why behaviour matters 🎯

Behaviour is not random. Dogs behave in ways that help them:
So instead of asking: ❌ “How do I stop this?” Ask: ✅ “What is my dog trying to achieve, avoid, or communicate? ✅ "What actions or behaviours would I like my dog to do instead"

How behaviour is learned 🔄

Behaviour doesn’t just happen — it follows a pattern.
A simple way to understand this is to look at the behaviour chain.
  • Root Cause – internal states (hunger, discomfort, fatigue, pain) or emotion (fear, anxiety, frustration)
  • Antecedent – trigger appears
  • Behaviour – dog reacts
  • Consequence – something happens
  • Escalation – behaviour strengthens over time
👉 If the behaviour “works,” it will be repeated.
This infographic shows how behaviour develops through emotion, triggers, actions, outcomes, and repetition over time.

❌How behaviour gets worse

When a dog repeatedly experiences fear, frustration, or stress around a trigger, behaviour can escalate over time.
A dog may begin by reacting only occasionally, then start reacting sooner, more intensely, and in more situations. This is one reason early support matters. The more a behaviour is rehearsed, the more established it can become.

✅ How behaviour improves

With the right training, dogs can learn calmer, safer, and more useful ways to respond. That may include learning to disengage from triggers, check in with the handler, settle, move away calmly, or build a more positive emotional response to the situation.
Positive reinforcement helps make those new behaviours valuable and repeatable, while also building confidence and trust.
👉 This is exactly what we work on in training.

Types of behaviour ⚖️

Adaptive behaviour ✅
Behaviour that serve a purpose and help the dog cope.
Example: A dog barking at the door may:
  • Alert you to an intruder
  • Create distance if they are anxious of new people
  • Get attention and show excitement if they like the visitors
If the need is met → behaviour stops.
Maladaptive behaviour ❌
Maladaptive behaviour is behaviour that may once have served a purpose, but has become excessive, unhelpful, or problematic. Example: A dog barking at the door may:
  • Become hyper alert and bark at every sound outside or at people passing by
  • Generalise to more situations and bark at people on walks or in the car.
  • Bark more intensely, jump, and nip to get attention.
The dog may no longer be coping effectively. Instead, the behaviour may be reinforcing stress and making daily life harder.
The goal is not simply to suppress behaviour. The goal is to give the dog a better way to cope and respond.

Why dogs repeat behaviour 🔁

Dogs repeat behaviours that work for them.
If a behaviour helps them feel safer, gain distance, get attention, access something they want, or release stress, it is more likely to happen again.
This is not stubbornness. It is learning.
That is why effective dog behaviour training focuses on both preventing rehearsal of the unwanted behaviour and reinforcing a better alternative.

How behaviour changes 🛠️

Behaviour change is not just about stopping behaviour. It is about understanding what drives it, reducing overwhelm, preventing repeated rehearsal, and teaching the dog what to do instead.
This often includes:
  • management
  • calmer setups
  • teaching replacement behaviours
  • reinforcement of desired choices
  • changing emotional associations
  • gradual practice in real-life situations
A strong behaviour plan does not just remove the old option. It builds a better one.

The stages of behaviour change 📈

1. Awareness
Identify the behaviour, triggers, patterns, and likely cause.
2. Management
Reduce exposure to situations the dog cannot yet cope with. Put practises in play to prevent the old behaviour from being possible.
3. Teaching new behaviour
Give the dog a better option, such as checking in, disengaging, settling, or moving away calmly.
4. Reinforcement
Reward the behaviour you want repeated.
5. Generalisation
Practice in different environments, around different triggers, and at different difficulty levels.
6. Maintenance
Build reliability in everyday life.

What is an extinction burst? ⚠️

  • An extinction burst happens when a behaviour that used to work stops working.
  • The dog will often:
  • try harder
  • try again
  • try in different ways
before giving up or changing strategy. Think of an extinction burst a bit like when a TV remote stops working properly. People often press the buttons harder, more often, or from different angles before realising the old method is no longer effective. Dogs can do something similar. If a behaviour has worked before, they may briefly try it more intensely before that behaviour starts to fade. This can make it look like training is failing, when in some cases it is a temporary part of the learning process.
Important note:
Extinction alone is not enough for many behaviour problems, especially when fear, anxiety, or frustration are involved. extra support, and management, is necessary.

Dog behaviour training in Perth: how I can help

  • I help dogs and owners across Perth with behaviour issues such as:

  • barking
  • reactivity towards dogs or people
  • jumping
  • pulling on walks
  • overexcitement
  • difficulty settling
  • anxious behaviour
  • confidence building
  • calm behaviour at home and outdoors
My approach uses positive reinforcement methods, practical one-to-one coaching, and real-life training tailored to your dog, your home, and your goals.

Ready to change your dog’s behaviour? 🐾

Get Personalised Support
Positive reinforcement dog behaviour training in Perth for calmer, more confident dogs.

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FAQS

Can dog behaviour really change?- Yes, many behaviour issues can improve significantly with the right plan, the right environment, and consistent positive reinforcement training. Can you change an old dog? - Yes older dogs can still learn since through our training plan we teach them a better way to cope and help them feel relaxed. Do you help with reactive dogs in Perth?- Yes. I help owners work through barking, lunging, overwhelm, and reactivity using practical, positive methods.
Do you use positive reinforcement?- Yes. I use positive reinforcement and force-free methods.
Do you only work in Perth?- I am based in Perth however online dog training is available worldwide.