@madlove My reactive girl is only 50lbs, but she’s all black, which adds to the menacing look of her. I got her a white muzzle for contrast so that people can see it for exactly the reasons stated here.
Unfortunately she’s still adorable because she’s got some floof, and she’s generally pretty bouncy as long as you keep your distance.
The other day I took my two non-reactive dogs to a park to hike on leash. There were these three VERY large dogs walking off leas like they were stalking something and licking their lips like my little dog was gonna be lunch. One dog was headed right towards us. I body blocked my dog with my back to the strangers but watching over my shoulder. Since turning your back to a newcomer is a calming signal that translates to “I’m not a threat. See, my teeth are as far from you as I can get them.”. I also recognized the lip licking as a calming signal from the other dog, and his stalking pace was actually proceeding through a perceived corridor with caution.
I found out after they had passed that my husband had picked up his dog.
We’re talking about how well trained our reactive dogs are due to all the extra they need, but let’s not forget that we too have been very well trained. The difference between what I did and what my husband did is that I’m the one who works with our reactive dog and has learned about what to watch for, he was just doing what any average dog owner would do.
BTW our two non-reactive dogs are both total jerks compared to our reactive dog.