Field Guide · Glossary
Hypervigilance
Reactivity and fearA state in which a dog keeps scanning their surroundings for possible threats and is unable to settle.
How it works
The term is borrowed from human clinical psychology. In dogs it describes what can be seen: the head turning and the eyes sweeping, ears swiveling toward small sounds, startling at noises other dogs ignore, and trouble lying down or staying down. A hypervigilant dog notices possible triggers early and often, so they spend more of the day close to the point where they can no longer think clearly. Rest suffers, and a tired dog generally copes less well, so the pattern can feed itself. It is often seen in newly adopted dogs, in dogs with a window onto a busy street, and in dogs dealing with pain.
What it looks like
A dog stands at the living room window most of the afternoon. Every passing car or person brings a head snap, a huff or a bark. When the dog does lie down, their head stays up, and they are back on their feet at the next sound.
Commonly confused with
- Fixating
- Fixating is locking onto one thing and being unable to look away from it. Hypervigilance spreads the other way: attention keeps moving across everything, searching for the next thing to respond to.
Related terms
Gear that helps
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Window privacy film
If your dog rehearses barking at everyone who passes, take away the view. A static-cling film blocks the sightline to the street without darkening the room, so there's less to set them off all day. Frosted or decorative both work: the point is they can't see out.
White noise machine
Covers the outside sounds that set a reactive dog off at home: the hallway, the street, the neighbor's dog. Steady sound gives them less to react to.
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