Is your dog's behaviour caused by pain?Bunny hopping, a shortened stride, refusing food near a trigger, broken sleep. The physical signs behind behaviour that looks like fear or reactivity.

A significant proportion of the behaviour cases I see have a physical component. Not always the whole story, but part of it — and the part that has to be dealt with first, because training laid on top of untreated pain does not hold.

Dogs are very good at hiding discomfort. In the wild, showing weakness is dangerous, and that instinct has not gone anywhere. So pain rarely announces itself as a limp. It usually arrives as behaviour.

What pain looks like when it looks like behaviour

• Reactivity that has appeared or worsened without an obvious trigger
• Reluctance to be touched, particularly around the hindquarters or lower back
• Irritability with dogs in the same household, especially over lap space or beds
• Refusing food near something worrying — a dog in discomfort often cannot eat
• Broken or restless sleep, or a change in where they choose to lie
• Reluctance on stairs, on slippery floors, or getting into the car
• A sudden increase in chewing, which is self-soothing as well as enjoyable

Any one of these on its own means little. Several together are worth investigating.

Signs in how they move

These are the ones owners almost never spot, because you see your dog move every day and the change is gradual.

• Bunny hopping — both back legs moving together rather than alternating
• A shortened stride at the front, as though the dog is taking smaller steps than their size suggests
• Paws placed narrowly, closer to the midline than under the shoulder
• A hip that swings wide as the leg comes forward
• Weight shifted off one side when standing still
• Reduced knee extension coming up out of a sit

I have seen every one of these in dogs whose owners came to me about barking.

Why I film your dog

Watching a dog move in real time tells you surprisingly little. Slowed down and watched by someone trained to see it, the same footage shows a great deal.

At every first consultation I record short clips: walking towards and away from me, getting up out of a sit, and moving over different surfaces. It takes a couple of minutes and looks like nothing much at the time.

That footage goes to a canine physiotherapist, who reviews it and writes back with what she sees in clinical terms — flexion, weight-bearing, rotation. Her findings go into your written plan as their own section, in her words, so you can hand it straight to your vet.

Why that matters with a vet

A vet can act on the hindlimbs lack flexion, particularly on the left, and she offloads weight away from that side when standing. They cannot do much with he seems uncomfortable sometimes.

That is the whole point of the exercise: making sure the right person is looking at the right evidence. If it helps, I will come to the appointment with you, and I will not charge you for it.

What happens if something is found

Then the veterinary work leads and behaviour work follows. That usually means a period of management and rest rather than training — lowering the pressure on your dog while the medical picture is sorted out.

It can be a frustrating stage because it does not feel like progress. It usually is. Most of the early relief in these cases comes from taking things away, not adding them.

If your dog's behaviour has changed and nobody has been able to tell you why, this is where I would start.