Impulse Control Dog Training: 5 Exercises to Help Your Reactive Dog Pause Before They React
Are you struggling with a reactive dog who seems to act before they think? Lunging at other dogs, leaping on guests, bolting out the door — it’s exhausting, unpredictable, and often feels like you’re constantly on edge. That’s where impulse control training comes in.
Impulse control is the skill that helps your dog pause, breathe, and choose a better response — instead of reacting on autopilot. But for sensitive, easily dysregulated dogs, that pause doesn’t come naturally. It needs to be nurtured. Practiced. Built from the inside out.
In this post, you’ll learn what impulse control really means, why it’s so hard for reactive dogs, and how to start strengthening this crucial skill through regulation-based strategies that make daily life feel a whole lot more doable.
What Exactly Is Impulse Control, and Why Does It Matter?
Impulse control is your dog’s ability to pause and think before reacting. The ability to avoid that intrusive thought that they know would be reinforcing. It’s the difference between a dog who barks the second they see another dog and a dog who takes a breath, checks in with you, realises there is no need to react, and keeps walking.
Imagine impulses like intrusive thoughts. We get impulsive thoughts all throughout the day (or is that just me?), but we refrain from acting on them. It wasn't always like this, though. Think of babies; sometimes, they get the intrusive thoughts to fling food halfway across the room. Over time, we had to teach them that food (and other objects) are not for flinging around.
For reactive dogs, this is basically the same. When your dog is constantly flooded with excitement, frustration, or stress, their ability to make good decisions disappears. They act on instinct and impulse — lunging, barking, jumping, chasing — because they don’t yet have the ability to stop that thought in the moment and choose something different.
But the good news?
Impulse control isn’t something your dog either has or doesn’t have. It’s a skill. One that can be built slowly through consistent practice.
Why Reactive Dogs Struggle With Impulse Control
Although it might seem like it a lot of the time, reactive dogs aren’t actually being difficult on purpose. For many dogs who struggle with reactivity, their nervous system is just on high alert, and when this is a common occurrence, for an elongated period of time, dogs become less able to handle the world around them.
Dogs who constantly scan the environment, anticipate triggers, struggle to relax and enjoy the walk, end up slowly stacking up that stress, and it becomes incredibly hard for them to pause and think clearly.
Add in frustration, like being held back on a leash when they want to move forward, or not being able to reach something they’re focused on, and the ability to regulate goes out the window. It’s not about disobedience. It’s about emotional overwhelm, without the chance for regulation.
Many reactive dogs live in a near-constant state of stress or frustration, and when those feelings build, impulse control is the first thing to go. That’s why helping your dog build this skill isn’t just about training — it’s about resetting their emotional baseline so they are regulated enough to make better choices in the first place.
For many reactive dogs, the anticipation created by structured commands can increase stress rather than reduce it. These dogs need regulation first — not more cues, expectations, or overstimulating setups. If you’re not seeing progress with impulse control training, take a step back and assess their stress levels, arousal curve, and nervous system state.
Check out the picture below...it shows how a stressed out brain responds vs a rested and regulated brain. Which side does your dog live on? Can you see why this is so important now?
How Impulse Control Can Improve Daily Life With Your Dog
When your dog starts building a better foundation of impulse control and regulation, you should begin to see small but meaningful shifts in daily life…
They wait instead of bolting through the door.
They pause before barking at a noise.
They check in with you instead of charging toward a trigger.
They start to think before acting.
These little moments may seem small to us, but they help your dog feel more in control of themselves and they help you feel less like you’re managing a ticking time bomb. Going on walks feels less tense. Having guests over becomes less stressful. Everyday situations feel more doable, because your dog starts learning how to regulate instead of react.
For me and Jasper, this is where it started to feel like we were finally part of the same team.
Impulse Control Builds Itself
Here’s the magic of true impulse control: once it clicks, your dog doesn’t need to be told to “leave it” — they start choosing to. Not because you barked a command at the right time, but because they’ve learned that not acting on impulse can also feel good. It can be reinforcing in and of itself.
Teaching impulse control is like planting seeds. The more consistent practice your dog gets the more it becomes second nature. You're teaching them how to pause, not just in training sessions, but in life.
Great times to practice impulse control...
At mealtimes
When leaving the crate
Walking past another dog
Pausing at thresholds
Waiting for a toy to be thrown
But not every dog is ready to jump into this work right away…
If your dog is constantly frustrated, hyper, or acting like an unpredictable psychopath — starting with traditional impulse control games might backfire. As mentioned, for many reactive dogs, the anticipation created by structured commands can increase stress rather than reduce it.
5 Impulse Control Exercises For Reactive Dogs
#1 - Structured Play (Flirt Pole)
Personally, I love this method of using structured play as a form of training impulse control.
Structured play simply means adding rules and structure to the game. You can only go when asked. Drop it when asked. You might even stop, ask for a bit of obedience and restart again.
The point with structured play is you are teaching your dog that even when they are in that crazy state of mind, they can switch back to a more calmer state and make the right choices.
My favourite activity for structured play is the flirt pole (Jaspers as well). Along with being great for teaching control, it's also a perfect outlet for many dogs, allowing you to not only meet their needs but build up impulse control as well.
#2 - It's Yer Choice!
This is a super simple game you can play with just a handful of treats.
The idea is to teach your dog that they don’t get the treat or reward by grabbing for it — they get it by not grabbing and showing patience. That choice to wait is what gets rewarded.
Hold a few treats in your hand, palm open. If your dog dives in, simply close your hand. When they stop trying or pull back, say “yes!” and give them a treat with your other hand.
Eventually, they’ll learn that waiting politely is what works. Once they start understanding this concept, you can start making it slightly harder or start bringing it into other scenaris.
You can use this with the food bowl, treats, toys, guests etc.
#3 - Look At That (LAT)
This game teaches your dog how to stay calm when they see something in the environment that would usually set them off, like another dog, a bike, or a person.
Start at a safe distance from the trigger (if your dog has issues with dogs, take them to somewhere they'll be able to see them but still be below threshold).
When your dog looks at the trigger (without reacting), say “yes!” and reward. Repeat this a few times, keeping things relaxed and rewarding for calm observation.
Here, you are slowly changing how your dog feels about a trigger. Before, they used to act on impulse, but from this distance, with reinforcement, dogs start to realise they don't have to actually react like they normally do.
With time, they’ll learn that spotting something doesn't mean losing their shit, it means checking in with you and the possibility of being rewarded.
Warning: Keep your dog under threshold for this. When I did this with Jasper, there was never enough distance. He wouldn't react, but looking back now, his body language was giving off the signs that he was uncomfortable.
After a few sessions of this, any time I said "look at that", his body would be expecting a trigger in his space.
So, make sure you give your dog that distance first!
#4 - Threshold Training!
Threshold training means teaching your dog to pause before moving through a doorway, but this can be used for other things as well, like exiting the car or the crate.
Threshold training helps stop that rush of energy that often happens right at the edge of a new environment. For example, dogs get excited about going on walks, right? If your dog just charges the threshold in a frantic state of mind, chances are that's exactly how the rest of your walk is going to be.
Start by approaching the doorway and asking your dog to wait. If they try to barge through, gently stop them with the leash or body blocking and try again.
Only let them through once they’re calm and looking at you. This teaches your dog to slow down and check in before entering a new space, instead of reacting to what’s ahead.
This is also super beneficial if you have a dog that is constantly overstimulated on walks. By adding calmness at this threshold, you are making sure your dog is in a better state of mind to head out with you.
#5 - Place Training
Place training is about teaching your dog to relax on a designated spot, like a raised cot, mat, bed, or towel. It gives them a clear job: go to your spot and chill until told otherwise. For reactive dogs, this creates a sense of structure and safety when things feel chaotic.
This is something that I recommend building up indoors before taking it outside.
You guide your dog to their mat, reward them for staying, and slowly add in distractions like walking away, knocking on a table, or pretending someone’s at the door. If they get up, calmly reset and try again. Over time, “go to your place” becomes a cue for calm — even when the world around them feels exciting or overwhelming.
I use this with Jasper so much out in public!
On a walk if there was a trigger or I had to speak to someone, I'd put him in a place on a bench, table, wall etc. And then on a few occasions, I'd take him to a cafe and pop him in a place while I had a coffee and did some work.
Teaching your reactive dog to settle on a place is one of the best ways to teach them to settle in public.
Common Mistakes to Avoid When Building Impulse Control
Expecting too much too soon
It’s easy to jump ahead, especially when you’re desperate for change, but if your dog is overwhelmed or overstimulated, they’re not in the right place to learn or succeed. Start small and build gradually.
Training in high-stress environments
Trying to work on impulse control right next to a trigger (like a busy path or barking dog) often backfires. Your dog needs to practice calm in calm spaces first, then slowly work toward distractions.
Make sure you learn what your dog's threshold levels are to help prevent unnecessary reactions.
Repeating exercises too many times in a row
It might feel productive, but too much repetition can lead to frustration, and once frustration starts creeping in, training starts to become harder.
Keep sessions short and sweet — a few successful reps are more powerful than drilling it 15 times.
Not giving enough breaks
Believe it or not, impulse control is tiring for dogs, especially reactive ones. Be sure to include play, rest, or decompression breaks between exercises to help your dog reset and stay regulated.
Don't be afraid to cut things early to go home to focus on decompression.
Missing the small wins
If your dog hesitates before reacting, checks in with you on the walk, stops at a threshold or pauses before grabbing something, that is progress. Celebrate it!
Struggling To Track Progress or Stay Consistent?
Building impulse control takes time, and it’s easy to forget what’s working.
That’s why I created the Dog Training Journal — so you can keep track of wins, setbacks, and everything in between.
It’s the perfect companion for these exercises, reactive and challenging dogs, and helps you see progress more clearly over time!
How to Know When It’s Working
The changes that happen to start with are very small and are easily missed if you aren't keeping your eyes open, but the signs are there if you know what to look for.
You might notice your dog pausing before reacting, hesitating at a doorway, or checking in with you instead of fixating on a distraction. These are small moments, but they’re huge steps forward.
Over time, you may notice shifts in their overall energy. Maybe they settle faster after play, bounce back quicker from excitement, or start showing a bit more thought before they act. That’s impulse control in action.
For some dogs, especially those who are chronically dysregulated, these changes take longer — and that’s okay. Stick with it. Regulation has to come first, and when it does, you’ll start to see everything else click into place, not just impulse control!
Final Thoughts
Impulse control is a skill. And like any skill, it takes time, patience, and the right kind of support to build.
Impulse control isn’t about demanding more from your dog — it’s about helping them find the capacity to pause, think, and choose differently.
That capacity doesn’t come from drilling obedience. It starts with regulation. Once you have built that regulation you can start working on foundational behaviours like impulse control.
If your dog is constantly on edge, scanning the world, or flipping into chaos without warning, they likely need a reset before anything else. That’s where my FREE 5-Day Detox Protocol comes in.
It’s the first step in the Regulation Roadmap — and the best way to help your dog (and you) get out of survival mode and into a calmer, more connected rhythm.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs): Building Impulse Control In Dogs
Impulse control builds gradually, especially in reactive dogs. You may see small changes in a few weeks, but long term growth often takes months of consistency and regulation.
Not quite. Obedience is about following cues. Impulse control is about your dog choosing the right behaviour on their own — without being told. It’s one thing to ask your dog to “leave it,” but in that moment, they still want the thing…they’re just being told no. Now imagine a life where your dog sees that same thing and chooses to leave it all on their own. That’s impulse control.
Yes — and they actually support each other and go paw-in-paw (sorry). Many reactivity issues come from poor regulation, so building impulse control makes it easier to handle triggers more calmly.
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