Your dog can look “fine” while their nervous system is working overtime, and that mismatch is where so many training plans go off the rails. I sit down with Kristina Spaulding, PhD, CAAB, to get precise about canine stress, resilience, and what the science says about how dogs cope with change. We talk through the sympathetic nervous system, the HPA axis, and the difference between stress (the internal response) and stressors (the external triggers) so your next decision is based on biology, not buzzwords.

We also tackle the messy middle: good stress, tolerable stress, and toxic stress. You’ll hear why “stress inoculation” is not a free pass to flood dogs with scary experiences, and how agency and coping skills change the outcome. We break down what to watch for beyond single body language cues like yawns or lip licks, including approach vs avoid behavior, recovery time, and the early signs of chronic stress such as emotional dysregulation, shutdown, and escalating reactivity that can spill into aggression.

Then we shift gears into responsible research literacy for the dog training industry. Dr. Spaulding explains scientific consensus, why a handful of papers can’t carry that label, how bias shows up in both writing and reading studies, and why replication and broader evidence across species often matter when dog-specific research is thin.

Learn more about options for help for dogs with aggression here:
AggressiveDog.com

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The Truth About Stress with Dr. Kristina Spaulding

The Bitey End of the Dog

The Truth About Stress with Dr. Kristina Spaulding