🐾 Why Regressions Happen in Dog Training — and Why They’re Not Failure

Your dog was improving.
Listening better.
Calmer.
More reliable.

Then seemingly out of nowhere, old behaviors resurface. Pulling returns. Reactivity spikes. Focus drops. Owners often panic and assume something went wrong.

Here’s the truth most trainers don’t explain clearly enough:

👉 Regression is a normal, expected part of behavior change — not a sign that training failed.

Understanding why regressions happen is the key to pushing through them instead of starting over.

🧠 Learning Is Not a Straight Line

Behavior change doesn’t progress smoothly from “bad” to “fixed.” Dogs learn in waves — periods of improvement followed by plateaus or temporary setbacks.

The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB) explains that behavior is influenced by learning history, emotional conditioning, and environment. When any of those variables shift, behavior can temporarily destabilize.

Regression doesn’t mean the dog forgot.
It means the learning is still stabilizing.

🔁 Regression Often Means the Brain Is Reorganizing

When a dog begins to change behavior, new neural pathways are forming. The old behavior patterns don’t disappear instantly — they weaken gradually.

During this transition, dogs may “test” old behaviors again. This isn’t defiance. It’s part of how learning consolidates.

In learning theory, this is similar to extinction bursts — a brief return or increase of an old behavior before it fully fades.

Dogs revert to what worked in the past before fully committing to the new behavior.

🌡️ Emotional Load Can Trigger Setbacks

Emotional behaviors regress more easily than simple obedience skills.

Fear, anxiety, frustration, and over-arousal are not erased by a few successful repetitions. They’re conditioned over time.

According to AVSAB, emotional learning requires repeated exposure under controlled conditions. When stress increases — new environments, changes in routine, illness, lack of sleep — emotional regulation weakens.

When emotion rises, behavior follows.

This is why dogs may regress:
• in new places
• around new people or dogs
• after disruptions to routine
• during developmental phases
• when expectations change

🔄 Inconsistent Reinforcement Slows Stabilization

Behavior stabilizes through consistency. When reinforcement becomes unpredictable, dogs struggle to maintain new habits.

Karen Pryor Clicker Training emphasizes that learning accelerates when consequences are clear and consistent. When owners relax rules too early, behavior becomes unstable.

Common causes include:
• allowing “just this once” exceptions
• correcting inconsistently
• reinforcing excitement unintentionally
• changing criteria too quickly

To the dog, mixed signals mean mixed results.

🧩 Generalization Takes Time

A dog performing well at home does not automatically perform well everywhere.

Generalization — applying learned behavior across environments — is one of the slowest stages of training.

A dog may understand:
✔ sit in the living room
but not
✔ sit near traffic, dogs, or strangers

Regression often appears when expectations jump faster than the dog’s ability to generalize.

This is not backsliding — it’s incomplete learning.

🐕 Developmental Phases Matter

Puppies and adolescent dogs experience neurological and hormonal changes that temporarily affect impulse control and emotional regulation.

Regression during adolescence is especially common. Behaviors appear forgotten because the brain is reorganizing.

This phase requires more structure, not frustration.

⚠️ Why Regression Is Often Misinterpreted

Owners often respond to regression by:
• increasing pressure too fast
• abandoning structure
• switching methods
• blaming the dog
• stopping training altogether

Ironically, these reactions often extend the regression.

Regression isn’t a signal to quit.
It’s a signal to reinforce foundations.

🧠 What Progress Actually Looks Like

True progress isn’t the absence of mistakes — it’s how quickly a dog recovers.

Signs training is working, even during regression:
✔ faster recovery after mistakes
✔ fewer repetitions of old behavior
✔ better responsiveness after interruption
✔ shorter duration of unwanted behavior
✔ improved emotional regulation overall

Progress is measured in trends, not perfection.

💛 The Alan’s K9 Academy Perspective

At Alan’s K9 Academy, we expect regressions. We plan for them.

Behavior change requires:
• repetition
• consistency
• patience
• emotional stability
• realistic expectations

Regression doesn’t mean your dog is failing.
It means learning is still in motion.

And learning in motion is learning that lasts.

🔥 Final Thought

If behavior change were permanent after one success, training wouldn’t be difficult.

Regression happens because dogs are learning — not because they’re broken.

Stay consistent. Reinforce structure. Trust the process.

That’s how behavior stabilizes for good.

📚 Formal References (In-Text Citation Style)

American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB)
AVSAB emphasizes that behavior change is influenced by learning history, emotional conditioning, genetics, and environment, and that setbacks are a normal part of behavioral modification.
Reference:
American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior. (n.d.). Position statements on behavior modification and humane training. https://avsab.org

Karen Pryor Clicker Training
Karen Pryor Clicker Training highlights the role of consistency, reinforcement history, extinction bursts, and generalization in learning, noting that regression is a predictable stage in skill stabilization.Reference:Pryor, K. (2009). Reaching the animal mind: Clicker training and what it teaches us about all animals. Scribner.Karen Pryor Clicker Training. (n.d.). Learning theory and behavior in practice. https://karenpryoracademy.com