Training Your Dog to Ignore Other Dogs: Why It Matters
Training your dog to ignore other dogs isn’t just about strict obedience — it’s about compromise, creating calmer, more enjoyable walks while still helping your dog feel safe and in control. Whether your dog reacts out of excitement, fear, or frustration, learning how to train your dog not to bark at other dogs or lunge on walks can make a huge difference to both of your stress levels.
In this post, I’ll explore why neutrality matters, how poor socialisation plays a role in excitement and reactivity, and five actionable methods you can start using today. From engagement training and decompression to obedience skills and meeting your dog’s needs, you’ll find the tools and insights to help your dog feel less overwhelmed and more focused so you can finally start enjoying walks again.
Training Your Dog to Ignore Other Dogs Isn’t About “More Socialisation” — It’s About the Right Kind of Exposure
When people search how to train a dog not to bark at other dogs or how to stop a dog reacting to other dogs, the common advice is often to "socialise" more. Now this is right, but socialisation is one of the most misunderstood words in terms of dog training and most owners end up making the same mistake because of this.
When most people hear socialisation, they think socialising — meet-ups, playdates, dog parks, cafes and brunches. But socialisation isn’t actually about interaction. It’s about controlled and positive exposure that helps your dog feel safe in their environement and around other dogs without the pressure to engage.
Standing at a distance where your dog can see other dogs, but remain calm and curious, is socialisation. Taking them to chaotic dog park environments? That’s flooding, and for many reactive, anxious, or frustrated dogs, this just adds more fuel to the fire.
This is why I actually prefer the term neutrality, because what we want isn't just "getting along" — it’s being able to exist calmly (and without a meltdown).
If your dog is constantly reacting, lunging, barking, or struggling to keep it together around other dogs, more socialising won’t fix the problem. In fact, it could be making things worse.
👉🏾 Want to understand how stress, triggers, and reactivity all connect, and how to actually socialise your dog? [Download my FREE Socialisation Guide] with included socialisation plan!
Why Should You Focus on Training Your Dog To Ignore Other Dogs?
If you're working with a reactive dog — whether it's fear-based, frustration, or just sheer overexcitement — you probably already know why training your dog to ignore other dogs is so important. But here’s the thing: it’s not just reactive dogs that benefit from this skill. Even those happy-go-lucky, social butterfly types can end up struggling without it.
Right now, your dog might seem fine — eager to meet other dogs, pulling on the lead to say hello. It feels harmless… maybe even like you’d be holding them back by not letting them “be social.” But what often feels like harmless fun in the moment can actually create long-term behaviour issues down the line.
Letting your dog constantly interact with other dogs, especially on walks, can lead to:
- Pulling and lunging to reach other dogs
- Increased frustration and arousal when they can’t get to what they want
- More impulsive behaviour
- Reactivity — barking, jumping, or over-the-top behaviour when they see dogs from a distance
I've been there myself. Jasper absolutely loves people, and in the early days, I made the mistake of letting him interact with everyone and anyone, what was the worst that could happen? What I didn’t realise was that I was feeding into his overarousal and making our walks worse. He wasn’t interested in sniffing, exploring, or decompressing — he was only focused on the next interaction. It put him in the wrong mindset before the walk even began.
The result? Walks became frustrating for both of us and it took far longer to undo that cycle than it would have to avoid it in the first place.
This is why learning how to train your dog not to bark at other dogs, how to stop your dog reacting to other dogs, and how to build calm, neutral behaviours around other dogs is such an important piece of the puzzle — not just for reactive dogs, but for any of those who struggle to regulate their excitement or emotions.
5 Essential Strategies to Help Your Dog Ignore Other Dogs (Without Chaos or Overwhelm)
#1 - Prioritise Engagement First
Before we ask our dogs to ignore others, we need to make sure they want to and can engage with us. Engagement isn’t just about getting eye contact past a trigger, it's about building a real world partnership.
If your dog is constantly scanning, pulling, or zoning out on walks, it usually means the world is more exciting or overwhelming than you are in that moment.
Engagement training helps shift your dog’s focus and trust onto you.
Start small. Use fun movement, games, treats, and tone changes. Reward any moment they check in with you (even if it’s just a glance). Over time, these micro-moments build into a strong foundation.
#2 - Teaching Calm Through Neutrality (Socialisation Done Right)
As mentioned, many owners think socialisation means their dog should meet everyone and everything, which can be problematic, even further down the line.
Neutrality on the other hand involves exposing your dog to triggers at a safe distance where they can observe without reacting. It teaches them that they don’t need to respond to every trigger, situation and stimulus. They don’t need to pull, lunge, or even say hello. They can just…be.
This is one of the most empowering skills you can give a dog. It builds confidence and resilience, reduces stress, teaches regulation, and gives you both space to just breathe.
Best of all—it’s simple. Find a quiet spot, let your dog watch the world, and reward calm choices. That's it!
#3 - Meet Their Needs First (Before You Even Step Outside)
You can’t expect calmness on a walk (or in general) if your dog’s needs aren’t being met. So many dogs are labelled as "reactive" or "frustrated", or "hyperactive" simply because they’re carrying too much frustration and energy.
Before any training session or walk, ask yourself:
- Has my dog had time to decompress recently?
- Have I given them a chance to use their brain or body today?
- Are they calm enough to focus on me?
- Will this make things beter or worse for my dog right now?
Outlets like sniffing, chasing, bitework, tracking, ball games, scentwork, etc are gold!
They tap into your dog’s natural drives and give them the mental and emotional release they crave. Once those needs are satisfied, your dog is far more likely to act on impulse and listen to direction.
👉🏾 Discover more about outlets and meeting your dog's needs in my FREE Breed Specific Outlets Guide
#4 - Avoid Piling on Pressure (Trigger Stacking)
No one thrives under constant pressure—especially not dogs. If your walks are constantly filled with triggers, your dog isn’t going to be learning; they’re surviving, slowly becoming more and more overwhelmed.
Reducing exposure doesn’t mean hiding from the world. It means being intentional. Choosing the routes with fewer dogs. Creating distance when needed. Walking at quieter times. Taking a break from walks and meeting needs another way. These aren’t shortcuts...they’re smart training decisions.
Think of it as setting your dog up for success. Once they’re confident in low-pressure environments, then you can slowly add challenges. Not before.
#5 - Focus on Decompression and Recovery
Decompression is the missing piece in many training and behaviour modification plans. Without enough rest, your dog stays on edge, alert, their nervous system constantly activated. You may be doing everything “right” and still seeing no progress but this could be because stress hasn’t been addressed.
Decompression means rest days, slow sniffy walks, quiet time at home, more structure, and reducing the number of stress an triggers your dog is exposed to.
It’s not a luxury—it’s a requirement.
Dogs need space to recover, process, and regulate. Once you prioritise decompression, you’ll likely see faster progress, fewer meltdowns, and a dog who can actually learn and make the right decisions instead of just reacting.
Quick Recap: Which Approach Will You Start With?
If you're feeling overwhelmed, don’t worry. You don’t have to do everything at once, that's how you get burned out. Start with one method that feels most doable and build from there...
- Need more focus on walks? Start with Engagement Training.
- Struggling with chaos around dogs? Try Neutrality/Socialisation Work.
- Is your dog overstimulated before the walk even starts? Meet Their Needs First.
- Constant reactions or blow-ups? Manage Exposure and Avoid Triggers.
- Want lasting results? Prioritise Rest, Structure & Good Habits
Final Thoughts
When you start to focus on meeting their needs, reducing stress, and teaching the skill of neutrality, everything else becomes that little bit easier wen training a dog to ignore other dogs. The lunging, barking, pulling — it all starts to fade when your dog feels regulated enough to think clearly and choose not to react.
Progress might feel slow at times. But remember that every step you take is building trust, resilience, and a calmer life together.
You’ve got this. And your dog does too!
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Training Your Dog to Ignore Other Dogs
Start by building engagement and focus in low distraction environments such as at home or your back garden. Teach your dog to check in with you regularly. The start building your foundation in quiet environments and slowly increase the difficulty by adding distance exposure to other dogs. Consistency, structure, and neutral experiences are key.
Use a leash. That is literally what it's there for. A leash can help manage distance and teach impulse control. If your dog constantly runs up to other dogs they are reinforcing the behaviour. You want to reinforce calm behaviour and redirect your dog’s attention to you before they fixate. Practice structured walks, and avoid areas with high off leash dog traffic while you’re training.
Gradually expose your dog to other dogs from a safe distance that they can cope with and remain calm. Reward relaxed behaviour and slowly decrease the distance over time. This approach, known as desensitisation and counter-conditioning, helps your dog feel more neutral.
Focus on engagement, decompression, and neutrality. If your dog is over threshold then you need to increase distance from triggers. Train in calm environments first, and slowly build up your dog’s confidence and coping skills through repetition, good experiences, and positive reinforcement.
Your dog may be reacting out of excitement, frustration, fear, or stress. This usually stems from poor social experiences, lack of boundaries, or unmet needs. Understanding the why behind your dog’s behaviour is the first step to changing it.
Related Reading
Join the list you didn’t know you needed
Real talk. Weekly tips and motivation. Dog pics. Challenges. Unnecessary oversharing. Freebies you won’t find anywhere else + be the first to know when new resources drop.
No spam, one-click unsubscribe
