Episode #174 - How to Calm Down a Hyper Dog

Have you tried just asking them to calm down?

July 6, 2026

TLDL (Too Long, Didn’t Listen):

1ļøāƒ£ Down-regulation is a skill – Skills can be taught through repetition, in the right conditions, with the right feedback.

2ļøāƒ£ Rest and relaxation aren’t the same thing – A dog can rest while totally wound up, and be completely relaxed while wide awake. Conflating the two sends us chasing the wrong metric.Ā 

3ļøāƒ£ It’s not wrong, just incomplete – There’s a kernel of truth in the common advice, but there’s also a lot missing. If it hasn’t worked, it doesn’t mean it won’t; it means we need to tweak.

Episode Overview:

Y’all, we gotta give a little warning with this one, it may get a little spicy. To prep for this episode, we turned to the internet to see what advice pet parents are likely to find, and boy, oh, boy… We don’t even know how to end this sentence.Ā 

In this episode, Emily and Tiffany are getting into why the things that come up when you search ā€œHow to calm down a hyper dogā€ aren’t bad, just… You know, overly simplistic, prescriptive management techniques that aren’t actually addressing the issue. We’re breaking down the small kernels of truth we can take away from this advice, why it isn’t working for you, and what it actually means to teach a lifelong skill, not shift the blame onto pet parents for not being ā€œchillā€ enough.Ā 

Calm isn’t a personality trait. It’s not breed destiny. It’s a skill that can be built through repetition, in the right conditions, with the right feedback. We promise, and if you don’t believe us, you can ask our clients.

Links & Resources from the Episode​

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Meet the Hosts

Allie pic with Oso

Allie Bender, CDBC, CPDT-KA, SBA

Allie Bender is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, Certified Professional Dog Trainer- Knowledge Assessed, and a Shelter Behavior Affiliate. She has been in the animal welfare industry since 2006 and professionally training since 2012. She is the founder and co-owner of Pet Harmony, co-author of Canine Enrichment for the Real World, and a national speaker.

While in the animal sheltering industry, Allie realized that her passion lied in helping pets with maladaptive behaviors. Today she spends most of her time teaching other trainers and behavior professionals the skills they need to have their most fulfilling, sustainable careers.

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EMIly strong

Emily Strong has been in the animal welfare industry since 1990 and has been a behavior consultant since 2008. She is the co-owner of Pet Harmony, co-author of Canine Enrichment for the Real World, and a national speaker.Ā 

Emily started working with animals at a young age and struggled with the notion that you have to hurt, scare, or intimidate animals to help them. Emily loves helping current and prospective behavior professionals and working with pet parents through our in-depth services. She enjoys working with all species.

Team Members in the Episode

A woman in a brightly colored knit hat in the woods with her dog. Tiffany Holmes, CPDT-KA.

Tiffany Holmes, CPDT-KA, FFCP

Tiffany is a trainer and behavior consultant with Pet Harmony. She is also a mentor in the PETPro mentorship program.

Tiffany is a “recovering technical writer” who gets to put her first career writing instructions to good use for her clients and mentees. She taught group classes for dogs (training) and people (yoga) before joining the original Pet Harmony Mentorship program and landing a job with us.

Check out more from Tiffany on the blog!

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