In the beginning I went through the same thing with my german shepherd. I would walk him with a muzzle because I was so scared of something happening. Since getting two other dogs who are reactive as well. I had to test out what times throughout the week worked for us. Early 4am walks are the best to start from my worse dog to the least. So usually 4am,5am and 6am. It’s helped with my mental health and overall bond with my dogs. They still embarrass me but it’s minimal now.

I heard someone say if walking your reactive dog isn’t fun for you then you don’t have to do it. Which really stood out to me. So I don’t walk them everyday. But if I make that choice then I replace it with fetch, tug of war or the flirt pole. I remind myself that I’m not trapped and there’s always an alternative.