Are Lasers Bad for Dogs? Why Trainers Skip Them

For years, laser points were all the rage with cat parents. That tiny, bright red dot was an incredibly attractive tool for playing with cats. It's something easy to move and impossible to break.

What about for dogs, though? You can't exactly play fetch with a laser, but what about other kinds of play, or as a training aid?

The fact is, lasers are terrible for dogs. Trainers warn against them, and you should avoid them. Why? The reason is deeper than you might suspect.

Why Lasers are Bad for Dogs

First, let's go through the reasons why lasers are a bad idea for playing with or training a dog. There are a few different reasons, some of which are physical, while others are psychological.

The Risk of Eye Damage

First is probably the most obvious of the risks. Lasers are really dangerous! Even those tiny, low-powered lasers you can find at grocery store check lanes and children's toy aisles are potent enough to permanently damage a retina. It's much worse if the laser isn't a "toy-grade" laser and instead a more powerful tool. In the worst case, a high-power laser can even burn.

The last thing you want is to cause your poor fur baby (or yourself!) a permanent vision issue!

The Risk of Physical Injury

The other kind of physical issue that can crop up from a laser pointer is basic physical injury.

Cats are liquid, and are flexible enough to perform all manner of acrobatics. Dogs are different; they're often distressingly fragile, as anyone who has ever had their pup injure themselves while playing can attest to.

Lasers are able to move extremely fast, and that means your dog has to move very quickly to try to chase it. They might run at high speed and slam into a wall or a corner; they can leap onto or off of furniture in dangerous ways; and they can get claws caught in carpet when they sprint. Even just trying to take a turn too quickly or stop suddenly can wrench muscles, sprain joints, or tear ligaments.

A friend of mine had a dog that was far too prone to these issues, to the extent that we called her Handy, as in "Handle With Care". That poor pup got so excited at the prospect of playtime that she would hurt herself at least once a year, whether it was tweaking a leg trying to run, taking a corner too fast and banging into a wall, or just not watching where she was going.

That wasn't related to laser points, but it just goes to show that dogs don't know how to control themselves sometimes, and they can get hurt doing what they love.

Broken Prey Sequencing

One of the arguments against laser points for cats is that part of the hunting sequence is the satisfaction of catching prey, even if it then "gets away" later. With a laser, there's nothing to catch, and it's deeply unsatisfying to hunt with nothing to show for it.

Dogs are kind of the same way. The natural hunting cycle for dogs has five steps.

• Eye, where they watch their prey and keep their eyes on it.

• Stalk, where they hunker down and slowly approach their prey.

• Chase, where they burst into action to chase their prey.

• Grab, where they catch up to and grab onto their prey.

• Kill, where they… you know.

This cycle differs when you use toys with your dog. They don't do as much stalking a ball you throw, and the kill phase isn't as pronounced for most dogs when the thing they'd kill is a flirt pole. But it's still a cycle ingrained in their canine craniums.

With a laser, most of this is disrupted. Eyeing a laser isn't as satisfying, and it can be painful if the laser is bright enough. They can stalk and chase it, but they can't grab it, and there's nothing to kill. All of this leaves them frustrated. That frustration can then turn into behavioral issues later.

Laser Pointer Syndrome

LPS is an extension of the broken hunting cycle. Dogs that are taught to hunt and chase a laser pointer start to get obsessive about one day catching it. Not only do they get very fixated on chasing the laser, but they can also start chasing other lights.

A customer of mine once related a story of their dog with behavioral issues. The pup was constantly on the lookout, but not in a guardian dog kind of way. Instead, he triggered at lights. A stray bit of light reflected off a cell phone screen, the light of a passing car bouncing through a window; these transient glares became prey he tried to hunt. More than once, he tried to attack a wall because of a stray flash of light.

As it turns out, this is almost a form of OCD, developed out of the frustration of always hunting and never catching. I've even heard stories of a dog biting their parent because a glare landed on a wrist, or something of the sort.

The biggest risk is using a laser pointer to play with them when they're puppies. When they're young and impressionable, you end up teaching them about lights as prey, and that causes a lot of problems as they get older and larger.

Can Laser Pointer Syndrome be Treated?

Fortunately, yes, but you need to be very engaged with them until you get it down. Since a dog with this condition can be triggered at any time by any stray flash of light, you need to be ready to redirect their behavior at a moment's notice.

First, stop using laser pointers entirely. There's no weaning them off of them. If you already stopped, such as if you played with them using a laser when they were a puppy but stopped when they got older, you've already gotten this part down.

If you still actively use the laser, I've read that cold turkey is the best option for quitting. If you absolutely must wean them off gradually, try to use the laser to guide them to a physical toy they can catch, so there's a reward there.

Next, you'll want to work on self-control training. The big issue with laser pointer syndrome is that your dog barks at or attacks stray lights. You'll want to work on obedience, so that if they start up, you can get them to stop and calm down with just a command or two.

Impulse control training uses rewards to treat your pup when they resist the urge to engage with a distraction. You can do this in a controlled environment, and graduate into a less controlled environment over time.

Watch your dog throughout the day, and if you see them alert to glares and lights, redirect them. You'll need to be persistent with this, but it will work eventually. The easiest way to do this is with a "treat scatter" method; when you see your dog alert to a stray light, toss a treat or two in the opposite direction. It gives them something to do that distracts them, and the reward is built-in.

You still want to make sure you're playing with your dog a lot, of course. Use tangible toys, things they can really bite and catch and chew on or swing around. The next section of this post has some recommendations for you.

I've heard of some dogs being "cured" of laser pointer syndrome after a few months of dedicated work. But then, I've also heard of some where it's a years-long battle. No wonder we recommend not using those toys, right?

What to Do Instead of Using a Laser

Instead of a laser pointer, what should you use to play with your dog?

Well, it really depends on the dog!

Some dogs love nothing more than to challenge you to tug-of-war, and all you need to engage them is a knotted rope. You want a rope that won't hurt their teeth, with fibers that won't shred or get caught in their digestive system if they happen to ingest some of it, and of course something sized appropriately.

Another option is a flirt pole. A flirt pole is kind of like a fishing pole; it's a stick with a line on the end, and a toy on the end of the line. These can be a great way to fling a toy around in a way your dog will find very compelling to chase, but still gives them something tangible to catch. It also limits the distance, speed, and change in velocity that it's capable of moving, which helps minimize the risk of your dog hurting themselves.

I have a whole resource guide to flirt poles, which you can find here, if you're interested in learning more about them. I think they're one of the better dog toys you can get.

If your dog likes to run a lot, of course, there's also always fetch. Who doesn't love tossing a ball over and over?

For some dogs, you might also consider agility training. This is great for dogs that love to be active and have a ton of energy, but aren't really satisfied with basic fetch and similar play. Agility is a lot more cognitively demanding, since it requires specific tricks in sequence. It's also really fun!

The truth is, there are a million different ways to play with a dog, so there's no reason you'd need to use a laser to do it.

Questions About Dogs and Lasers

You know the drill; here are some of the questions I didn't fit in up above.

Are there ever valid reasons to use a laser for training?

Yes, but I'll be up-front: it's not for us. Lasers are specifically used for extreme levels of precision training. Specifically, they're used for training K9s for the police force, or training dogs for search and rescue or military operations. These are times when you need a high degree of precision for training, and where you might need the distance as part of the training.

Critically, this is a very different kind of activity than something like play. There are already layers of commands in place, and the laser is an indicator, not a toy. Even then, there are some good reasons not to use them.

My dog isn't responding to training to stop reacting to light! Help!

I'm going to be honest; depending on how much your dog engaged with a laser pointer before, and depending on their breed and other proclivities, it might not be entirely possible to get them to stop.

Some dogs are just keenly aware of everything going on around them. I've even known dogs to alert at stray lights even when they had never seen a laser before in their lives.

Your biggest concern is getting your dog to be as calm about these things as possible. Impulse-control training that gets them to stop barking at the wall or trying to dig into it is good enough. Even if they still watch it and follow it, as long as they aren't doing anything destructive, you're in a decent place.

What's the difference between a vigilant dog and laser pointer syndrome?

Some dogs are just hyper-aware or vigilant, and that's in their nature! The key to laser pointer syndrome is that it's accompanied by harmful behaviors. In particular, they can develop anxiety and aggression over time, all based on the levels of frustration they build up out of unresolved hunting instincts.

Lasers also aren't the only things that can trigger this kind of frustration; they're just the most common and hardest to avoid. They're also easy to just not use, which is why vets and other resources recommend just leaving the laser aside.

Do you have any other questions? I'm always happy to hear your stories and do my best to answer the questions you have. So, if you don't see the answer you're looking for on my blog already, drop me a line and ask directly! Maybe you'll be the inspiration for my next blog post, who knows?