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Mikayla Moore

Calm Exits: Well-placed Food is your Friend!

A shelter worker leashes a husky-type dog as they exit their kennel with head down, all four paws on the ground.

This piece first appeared in the March 4, 2024 edition of our newsletter.


Managing arousal from the very beginning of a dog’s out of kennel session can vastly impact their stress levels and ability to learn in new environments. Every interaction is a learning opportunity. Starting their session with arousal management and reinforcing four paws on the floor can only set them up for success.


How do we achieve the ideal calm kennel exit? Using food! Starting with a high rate of reinforcement at the front of the kennel, toss down small scatters near their paws. This should be food the dog wants to engage in and eat. If the dog is unable to eat these scatters, then look to the context. Are they already too aroused just by you standing at the front of their kennel? Start smaller by walking up, dropping a scatter at the front then moving away. Alternatively, you can increase the value of the food you’re offering by switching to something smellier, or switching to wet food that can be smeared at the front for them to lick. Once you have a calm kennel approach, work on continuing that head down eating behavior while you offer the leash at the kennel door. Baiting your leash loop with food can reinforce the head down approach through the leash loop as well as reinforce the calm kennel exit.


Now your dog has already started their out of kennel session in a learning state of mind (under threshold) instead of a jumping tornado that needs assistance to come out of a high-arousal tailspin.


A shelter hallway with several colorful pads on the ground.

Building the initial calm exit, we should also be looking for ways to manage calm behaviors moving through the kennel area. Finding convenient pit stop areas for treat scatters or asking for known behaviors from experienced learners can vastly prevent problem behaviors from arising. Popular pit stops are typically doors, gates, thresholds, benches, stations, stair landings, etc. Dogs who are used to stopping at these pitstops are less likely to thrash and pull their way through the kennel area as they know reinforcement is just one more stop away.



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