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I’m definitely inclined to agree that stopping to sniff can really be a “moment of mindfulness” for dogs. I know anecdotes are not scientific evidence (lol!) but I can think of several dog clients with reactivity issues who definitely benefitted from a “stop and smell the roses” moment in their behavior modification training.
Stopping to sniff is a strategy I’ve used a lot when working with reactive dogs; I’m employing it currently with Mini, a miniature border collie who is severely reactive to bikes. Whenever we see a bike approaching, her owner and I try to get Mini to a safe distance and try to engage her in sniffing the environment – we utilize this technique a lot! I also encourage my client to allow Mini to sniff around after her reactive episodes as a way to bring her “back to baseline.”