Help for Your Fearful Dog

Habituation
Although habituation is not included in the programs that follow, as the owner of a fearful dog it is something of which you should be aware. Through habituation, a dog becomes more comfortable with a trigger simply through repeated exposures. Let’s say a dog is nervous around unfamiliar people because she is confined to the back yard and the family does not get many visitors. If the fear is mild, it might be overcome by nothing more than taking the dog on daily walks. The frequent, consistent exposure would allow the dog to habituate to the presence of unfamiliar people and, eventually, she would no longer fear them.

where something frightens your dog, you will call his name. Once his attention is focused on you, you will ask for another behavior that will either give him something to focus on, allow you to move him out of the area safely, or do whatever is appropriate at the time. With practice and patience, something wonderful will happen: Rather than becoming reactive or running away when your dog feels threatened, he will anticipate your request for attention, and will begin to look to you automatically.
Attention means communication, and communication means successful behavior modification!

Teaching Touch
Stand facing your dog. She should be sitting, facing you. If she does not yet know how to sit when asked, she may lie down or stand instead. Hold a few treats in one hand behind your back. With a small motion, extend the empty hand, flat with palm-down, toward your dog. Stop approximately two inches below and slightly to the side of her nose; keep the hand still (see Figure 1). Due to the innate canine need to investigate, most dogs will immediately sniff an offered hand. If your dog does not, rub a bit of strong-smelling treat on the back of your fingers and try again.
At the exact moment your dog’s nose touches your hand, say, “Yes!” and reward her with a treat and praise (see Figures 2 and 3). Just make sure your dog is moving her nose to touch your hand and not the other way around!

Emotions versus Cognition
If you were sitting on your porch doing the Sunday crossword puzzle and a horde of killer bees suddenly swarmed around your head, chances are that “57 across” would remain unsolved as you dashed for safety. Emotions 1: Cognition 0. When you are in a state of extreme fear, it is nearly impossible to think clearly.
When a dog is in a state of absolute panic, the only thing that will help at the time is to remove her from the vicinity of whatever is causing the fear (or vice-versa). In cases of mild to moderate fear, however, targeting can help. Asking your dog to touch your hand in the presence of something that frightens her redirects her attention, thereby short-circuiting the escalating cycle of anxiety.

If your dog has been free-fed, wait until she is on scheduled feedings to begin hand-feeding. Once she is eating regularly, at each feeding, ask her to sit, then feed her a few bits of kibble. If you feed a wet-dry mixture, use a spoon. Repeat after each mouthful, asking for other familiar behaviors such as shake or down as well, until the meal is finished. If at any point your dog does not comply, wait 30 seconds. If she still has not complied, say, “You must not be hungry!” and put the food away. Return in two minutes and try again. Most dogs will do as asked on the second try in record time. I cannot emphasize strongly enough the psychological impact that hand feeding for two weeks will have on your relationship with your dog. You should notice a change in your dog’s willingness to cooperate during training sessions and in her deference to you in general.

Permission Please?
Consider all the wonderful things your dog experiences in an average day. She is given food and treats, is taken for walks, gets to chase a ball, and receives attention and affection. Does she have to earn those things, or does she get them all for free? A basic tenet of good leadership is that your dog must earn the things she values. If your dog has even the most basic of obedience skills—sit—Permission Please is easy to apply.
Take a moment to jot down all the things your dog finds valuable; they should be incorporated into your Permission Please program. For example, ask your dog to sit before you put down her food bowl, before a ball is thrown, and before you pet her. If she does not comply after one request, say, “Oh, well!” The food disappears; the ball disappears; she does not get petted. Your dog will soon learn that refusing to cooperate has a consequence. When you try again a short time later, chances are your dog will comply immediately.

Anxiety deals with what could happen, not what is happening at the time. Words such as nervous or apprehensive may be used in place of “anxious.” Treatment for anxious dogs includes teaching relaxation skills, providing strong leadership and a stable home environment, and teaching behaviors that build confidence.

Using positive, gentle methods should be the norm when training any dog, but it is mandatory when training a sensitive or anxious dog. Fortunately, training methods have evolved considerably in the last few decades. Traditional training included “correcting” a dog by delivering jerks or “pops” on a choke chain, along with other forms of physical coercion

Just because reward-based training is gentle does not mean it is permissive. In fact, one of the main tenets is that “every behavior has a consequence.” A consequence can be positive or negative. If you ask your dog to sit before the door opens for a walk but he does not comply, a negative consequence would be to say, “Oh, well,” unclip the leash and walk away, the opportunity for a walk ended. Rather than incurring a physical punishment, your dog loses something of value. If your dog complies and sits, he gets to go for a walk—a positive consequence.

love the Take a Bow Wow series—it teaches a variety of tricks in a fun and easy way using clicker training. (For videos, DVDs, and other instructional sources on trick training, see Resources.)