Look at That Game for Reactive Dogs: LAT Protocol

Last updated: May 6, 2026

What the Look at That Game Actually Does

The Look at That game, often abbreviated LAT, is a behavior modification protocol developed by trainer Leslie McDevitt and published in her book Control Unleashed. The Look at That for reactive dogs approach takes the very thing your dog usually finds upsetting, another dog, a person, a bicycle, a child on a scooter, and turns the act of noticing it into a cued, rewarded behavior. Instead of suppressing the noticing or punishing the reaction, you teach the dog that calmly looking at the trigger predicts something wonderful from you.

That sounds counterintuitive. Most owners want their dog to ignore triggers, not stare at them. The reason LAT works is that reactive dogs are usually scanning for triggers anyway, and the moment they spot one their nervous system is already firing. Trying to redirect attention away from a trigger that the dog has already locked onto rarely succeeds because the trigger is more interesting than anything you brought in your treat pouch. LAT works with the dog’s natural attention pattern rather than against it.

The end result, after weeks or months of consistent practice, is a dog who sees a trigger, briefly looks, then turns back to you for the predicted reward. You have replaced the lunge-bark-spin chain reaction with a calm look-and-check-in pattern. Many handlers describe it as their dog becoming a “trigger spotter” who proudly points out distant dogs because pointing them out has become the most rewarding game in their life.

Why Suppression and Correction Make Reactivity Worse

Before the protocol itself, it helps to understand why force-based approaches fail with reactive dogs. Reactivity is almost always rooted in fear, frustration, or over-arousal. The barking and lunging are emotional responses, not strategic choices. Punishing the outburst with a leash pop, a verbal correction, or aversive equipment may suppress the visible behavior in the short term, but it does nothing to change the underlying emotion and often adds a new layer of stress: now triggers predict pain or fear from the handler too.

Studies on dogs trained with aversive methods consistently show higher cortisol levels, more pessimistic cognitive bias, and worse owner-reported behavior outcomes compared to dogs trained with positive reinforcement. For reactive dogs specifically, suppression methods often produce a dog who looks calm in the moment of correction but explodes more violently when the suppression fails, sometimes redirecting onto the handler. LAT and related protocols build a new emotional response to triggers rather than papering over the old one.

The Step-by-Step LAT Setup

You will need a clicker or a clean verbal marker word like “yes,” a generous supply of high-value treats your dog rarely gets otherwise, a comfortable harness and standard leash, and a quiet starting environment with very mild triggers. Before introducing real triggers, charge the marker by clicking and immediately delivering a treat ten to fifteen times so the click reliably predicts food.

The basic loop has four parts. First, your dog notices a trigger at a distance where they can perceive it without reacting, the threshold distance. Second, the moment they look, you mark with the click or “yes.” Third, you deliver the treat at your hand near your leg or toss it slightly behind you. Fourth, the dog turns back to you, the trigger appears or moves again, and you repeat. The marker captures the calm look. The treat reinforces both the look and the disengagement that follows.

The first sessions should feel almost too easy. If your dog is taking treats and looking willingly, your distance is right. If your dog stares fixedly at the trigger, will not take food, or starts lunging, you are too close. Simply walk further away and try again. The single biggest mistake handlers make is starting too close because they assume their dog can handle more than they actually can on a given day.

Distance, Duration, and Distractions

LAT progress follows the same three-D framework as most dog training. Distance is the most important variable for reactive dogs. You start at whatever distance lets your dog notice and reorient calmly. As that distance shrinks, the difficulty increases. You will likely shrink working distance very gradually over weeks, not minutes. Honor your dog’s threshold rather than pushing closer because the trigger has not blown up yet.

Duration refers to how long the trigger is present. A brief glimpse of a dog crossing a side street is easier than another dog walking parallel to you for thirty seconds. Build up duration only after distance is solid. Distractions include weather, surface, time of day, and unrelated environmental noise. A neighborhood with multiple triggers stacking on top of one another is much harder than the same dog appearing at the same distance in a quiet park.

Many handlers find that pairing LAT with structured threshold training for reactive dogs accelerates progress because both protocols use the same underlying logic of working under threshold and rewarding calm noticing. Adding planned setups with a known helper dog at a known distance lets you control variables that real walks cannot offer.

Common Mistakes Handlers Make

The most common LAT failure is rushing the marker. The click or “yes” should happen the instant the dog’s eyes move toward the trigger, before any escalation. Marking after the bark has started will reinforce the bark, not the look. Watch your dog’s head and ears more than the trigger itself; you should be marking based on your dog, not based on the trigger’s behavior.

Another frequent mistake is treat quality. Reactive dogs need their absolute highest value reinforcer for trigger work. Plain kibble or dry biscuits rarely compete with the emotional weight of a passing dog. Use small pieces of cooked chicken, freeze-dried liver, hot dog, or cheese. Save these foods exclusively for trigger-related training so they retain their power.

Handlers also tend to abandon LAT too soon when results plateau. Reactivity rehab is measured in months and seasons, not days. Plan for at least eight to twelve weeks of consistent practice before evaluating whether the protocol is helping. Keep a brief journal of working distances, trigger types, and recovery times so you have objective data rather than relying on memory and mood.

How LAT Pairs With Other Reactivity Protocols

LAT is rarely used in isolation. Most behavior plans combine it with related protocols depending on the dog’s specific pattern. The engage-disengage game shares much of LAT’s logic but adds an explicit reward layer for the moment the dog turns away from the trigger, which can help dogs who lock on. BAT training for reactive dogs uses functional rewards like distance from the trigger rather than food, which suits some dogs better.

For underlying classical conditioning work, layered counter conditioning for dogs and a structured desensitization protocol for dogs form the foundation that LAT operates on top of. Think of desensitization and counter conditioning as building the new emotional baseline, and LAT as giving the dog a learned operant skill they can perform when triggers appear.

When to Add Veterinary Behavior Support

Some reactive dogs make slow or no progress on training alone because their baseline arousal is too high for new learning to consolidate. Signs that you may need a veterinary behaviorist consultation include very small thresholds (the dog reacts to triggers blocks away), inability to recover within minutes of a trigger exposure, sleep disturbance, or generalized anxiety in the home apart from triggers. In these cases, medications such as fluoxetine, clomipramine, or situational drugs like trazodone can lower the baseline enough that LAT and other protocols start working.

Medication is not a shortcut or a replacement for training, and a thoughtful behavior veterinarian will always recommend a parallel behavior modification plan. The combination of medication and protocols like LAT often produces results that neither approach achieves alone. Talk to your regular vet about referral options, or ask a certified separation anxiety trainer or veterinary behaviorist about telemedicine consultations.

Real Walks Versus Setup Sessions

Beginners often try to practice LAT on regular neighborhood walks where triggers appear unpredictably. This is much harder than it sounds because triggers in the wild often appear suddenly, at close distance, and stack on one another. Until your dog has a solid LAT response in controlled setups, treat real walks as decompression and management rather than training opportunities.

For management on real walks, carry treats anyway and use the marker if you spot a trigger early enough to work under threshold. If a trigger appears too close, simply turn around, cross the street, or duck behind a parked car and wait for the trigger to pass. This is not failure, it is intelligent management that prevents your dog from rehearsing the reactive pattern, which is what you most want to avoid.

Plan dedicated setup sessions in low-traffic areas where you can predict trigger appearance. A friend with a calm helper dog walking back and forth at a known distance is gold for LAT practice. Twenty minutes of structured setup work twice a week often produces faster results than daily attempts on chaotic walks.

Tracking Progress Over Months

Reactive dog training success rarely looks like a clean upward line. Expect plateaus, regressions during stressful weeks, and seasonal patterns. A simple journal tracking the type of trigger, the working distance, the dog’s response score on a one-to-five scale, and any environmental factors will give you a much clearer picture than memory alone.

Real progress markers include shrinking threshold distance, faster recovery time after a trigger exposure, the dog offering check-ins without prompting, and more relaxed body language at baseline. The bark itself may be the last thing to change. Many dogs who have completed months of LAT still bark occasionally but recover in seconds rather than minutes. That is a successful outcome, not a failure.

When to Get Professional Help

Working with a certified trainer is recommended for any dog who has bitten, caused property damage, or whose reactivity is escalating despite consistent home practice. Look for trainers credentialed by the Karen Pryor Academy, the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, or the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants. Avoid any trainer who recommends prong collars, e-collars, or alpha rolls for reactivity, as these methods consistently worsen the underlying emotional state.

A good trainer can spot subtle threshold signals you may be missing, set up custom sessions with helper dogs, and adjust the protocol when standard LAT is not landing. Many trainers also offer virtual coaching where you film a session and they review and adjust your mechanics. This is often more affordable than in-person sessions and works well for the LAT-style protocols that depend mostly on handler timing and trigger management.

Frequently Asked Questions

How long does it take for the Look at That game to work?

Most reactive dogs need eight to twelve weeks of consistent practice before the LAT response generalizes to real walks. Severe cases may take six months or longer. The timeline depends on trigger intensity, training frequency, and whether underlying anxiety is being addressed.

Can I use a verbal cue instead of a clicker?

Yes. A clean, distinct word like “yes” delivered in the same tone every time works well. Clickers offer slightly better timing precision and consistency, but verbal markers are more practical for outdoor work and for handlers who already have a leash, treats, and sometimes a poop bag in their hands.

What if my dog will not take treats during sessions?

Refusing food is a sign that your dog is over threshold. Move further from the trigger until they can eat comfortably. If your dog refuses high-value food in a quiet environment with no triggers present, consider a vet check to rule out pain or illness.

Will LAT work for leash reactivity caused by frustration rather than fear?

Yes, with adjustment. Frustration-reactive dogs often want to greet the trigger, not avoid it. The marker still rewards calm noticing, but you may pair it with structured greetings or parallel walks at a controlled distance to address the underlying frustration over time.

Can I practice LAT off-leash in a fenced yard?

Yes, and it can be helpful for handler mechanics, but most real-world reactivity happens on leash, so eventually all training should transfer to leash work. Use a long line in safe areas to bridge the gap between yard practice and street walks.

Is LAT appropriate for dogs with bite history?

LAT can be part of a behavior plan for dogs with bite history, but those cases require a credentialed professional, often combined with comprehensive support, basket muzzle conditioning, and frequently a veterinary behaviorist. Do not attempt to manage a dog with bite history through DIY training alone.