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Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

Behavior Is Communication: Decode Your Dog By Understanding Their 5 Core Needs #309

Shaped by Dog with Susan Garrett

DogsThat

Education, Puppy, Recallers, Animalbehaviour, Dogs, Kids & Family, Pets, Dogtraining, Dogsthat, Petmanners, Susangarrett, Pets & Animals

4.8679 Ratings

🗓️ 25 July 2025

⏱️ 18 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

Visit us at shapedbydog.com 

 

What if every time your dog misbehaves, pulls on the leash, barks excessively, or completely ignores you, they're actually trying to communicate something important? Our dog's behavior is communication, and we can decode what they are telling us through understanding their 5 core needs. When we are able to truly listen to what our dogs are showing us, it opens the door to better understanding, stronger connection, and a well-behaved dog who can thrive.

 

In this episode, you’ll hear:

 

• The answer to ‘What is the biggest dog training challenge I've ever faced?’
• A list of 20 common struggles dog owners face and what they may really mean.
• The five core needs of dogs: emotional, physical, social, mental, and daily thrive.
• How unmet emotional needs can show up in ways we don’t expect.
• Why psychological safety matters just as much as physical safety.
• The impact of nutrition, sleep, exercise, and wellness on behavior.
• How to recognize and support your dog’s social and mental needs.
• What dogs need to truly flourish in daily life.
• A simple way to shift from frustration to understanding with your dog.

 

Resources:

 

1. Podcast Episode 62: 12 Keys to Helping My Dogs Live a Long and Happy Life - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/62/
2. Podcast Episode 8: Get Your Dog in the Belief Loop of Awesome - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/8/
3. YouTube Playlist: Emotional Regulation in Dogs: Dysregulation, Coping Strategies, Co-Regulation, Self-Regulation, and Habituation with Susan Garrett - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy0ZnXC_lczh942HhB0Vdo5v&si=lwTruZ9mxqccXDn6
4. YouTube Playlist: Feeding Dogs, Training Treats, Dog Food, Nutrition and Canine Behavior, Raw Diets with Susan Garrett  - https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLphRRSxcMHy0ylVCv0BiSj27AeIdObb_q&si=QJ5eQTnQEvWlbf6w
5. Podcast Episode 26: Pro Dog Training Tips to Get Your Puppy to Sleep All Night - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/26/
6. YouTube Video: Susan Garrett's 5 Games for Puppies - https://youtu.be/Hxd1sVEQp2Y?si=hAt3ZmUFhiv0c2Qo
7. YouTube Video: Puppy's First Training with Susan Garrett: Shaping, Targeting and Collar Conditioning  - https://youtu.be/ticB_1Twx6E?si=JZnq1QQAaPg_zGcs
8. Podcast Episode 32: 20 Easy Ways to Exercise Your Dog at Home - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/32/
9. Podcast Episode 246: Susan Garrett’s Puppy Socialization Strategies For Raising Confident, Happy Dogs - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/246/
10. Podcast Episode 106: Consent In Dog Training: The Misuse, Misunderstanding And Misapplication - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/106/
11. Podcast Episode 286: Frustrated Puppy, Frustrated Human! Strategies For Wins With Puppy Raising - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/286/ 
12. Podcast Episode 147: Teach Your Dog To Listen Off Leash And Far Away - https://dogsthat.com/podcast/147/
13. Watch this Episode of Shaped by Dog on YouTube - https://youtu.be/yKYNshk7Vng

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0

Think of your dog behaving at its absolute worst.

0:04.4

What are the thoughts that come to your mind?

0:07.9

Is it he knows better?

0:09.9

He's being stubborn.

0:11.1

He's ticking me off.

0:13.2

He's frustrating the heck out of me.

0:15.2

I had a question on social media recently.

0:17.4

What is the biggest dog training challenge I've ever faced? And it got me thinking about

0:22.9

dog training challenges in general and approaches that I used to have to overcoming dog training

0:29.8

challenges and why I would never do some of the things I did in the past. I'm going to share

0:35.1

with you, one in particular, and give you a list

0:38.6

of what really might be happening with your dog.

0:41.7

Hi, I'm Susan Garrett. Welcome to Shape by Dog. Many years ago, I taught at a obedience school.

0:58.9

And the way we taught owners to deal with puppy nipping, for example, was to grab the puppy's

1:05.9

collar and give them a quick clip under the chin, like two or three times if they came back and bit again.

1:14.4

I want you to sit on that for a little bit.

1:17.2

Now, if you are somebody like me who believes behavior is just communication and also believes

1:23.4

that all solutions should be found in reinforcement, that solution might be a little triggering

1:28.3

to you. As I've got to admit, it is to me because I did it to dogs 35 years ago.

1:35.9

So think about, I asked chat GPT, what are the biggest challenges people face with their pet

1:41.9

dogs today? Here's a list I can just go whip through.

1:45.1

I want you to think about what are the solutions to these challenges. Pulling on leash,

...

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