Check-Ins & LAT: Teaching Your Dog to Notice, Process & Come Back to You

One of the biggest misconceptions in reactive dog training is that we need to stop our dogs looking at things.

We don’t.

Looking gives your dog information. What matters is what happens next.

In this lesson, we’re introducing two incredibly useful skills: voluntary check-ins and Look At That (LAT).

You’ll learn how to reinforce your dog for noticing what’s happening around them without becoming completely consumed by it, while building their ability to voluntarily disengage and reconnect with you.

Rather than constantly asking for attention, we’re beginning to create a different pattern:

Notice → process → disengage → reconnect.

For now, keep this training easy. Practice at home, in the garden, or around low-level distractions where your dog is comfortable and able to think.

Don’t rush to test it around their biggest triggers.

We’re building the skill first. We’ll worry about making it harder later.