A dog owner lately asked this question: "My dog is fearful of strange noises like thunder or fireworks, how am I able to help him?" The answer is just that there are a number of ways in which you can help a fearful dog but it's also worth knowing what not to do when your dog is afraid as our intention to help could make it worse!
Where Does the Fear Come From?
The base of your dog's fear could relate back to an awful experience or a absense of socialization and exposure to noise when they were young. However sometimes dog fears aren't down to anything we know about, but do not worry if you can't find a cause because understanding where the fear comes from isn't as significant as what you do about it.
Dogs can be terrified of just about anything that they do not understand - and the truth is that our dogs live principally in a world that they do not understand. It's a world chock full of alien, noisy gizmos that beep and whirr, start up, make a large amount of noise and then stop without rhyme or reason. Dog owners report that their dogs are scared of everything from doorbells to machine washers, vacuum cleaners to fireworks including lots of other noises we might consider utterly innocuous.
The correct way to Affect Your Dog
The way you react when your dog is fearful can have an effect on the level of the fear. The nicest thing you can do for your dog is to remain calm yourself. Your dog is exceedingly sensitive and will know if you are anxious too , which will confirm to them that they were right to be afraid first of all. This may actually escalate the fearfulness in your dog and confirm their response, making it rather more likely that they will react in a similar way next time.
The calmer you are , the likelier that your dog's levels of fear will come down as often they are going to look to find out how you are reacting when faced with a frightening situation.
What Not to Do
Do not make a dog face their fears as it won't help and it could backfire on you. Dogs live by their instincts and when they're scared it is because they see the noise as potentially dangerous or threatening to their safety. A dog has 3 reactions to danger which are flight, freeze and fight and they will use them in that exact order.
So that means the first reaction is probably going to be to get away - that is the reason why a dog will run and hide from the sound of Thunder. The second reaction is to remain very still to see if the danger will go away without them taking any other action and the third is to use aggression. If you are making your dog face their fears they could turn their aggression on you and you risk getting bitten.
A highly fearful dog will panic when brought face to face with something that they fear and we all know how difficult it is to reason with someone that is panicking!
It isn't a good idea to try and comfort your dog either as you are again making something of the event or could again be confirming in the dogs mind that there truly is something that should be scared of. Ironically you could also end up strengthening the behaviour, if your dog interprets the attention as a reward for their fearful behavior.
What Else Should I Do to Help My Dog?
Learn how to be the pack leader. Many dogs presume that they are the pack leader, but struggle because this position makes them responsible for keeping you safe and that is tricky when they live in a world stuffed with things they do not understand.
When you take on the role of pack leader, your dog should relax and be convinced that they can trust you to make decisions. This means a fearful dog will look to you to determine if something is a threat when faced with something that they do not understand or are terrified of and if you're not terrified your dog will be convinced that they don't have to worry either.
Where Does the Fear Come From?
The base of your dog's fear could relate back to an awful experience or a absense of socialization and exposure to noise when they were young. However sometimes dog fears aren't down to anything we know about, but do not worry if you can't find a cause because understanding where the fear comes from isn't as significant as what you do about it.
Dogs can be terrified of just about anything that they do not understand - and the truth is that our dogs live principally in a world that they do not understand. It's a world chock full of alien, noisy gizmos that beep and whirr, start up, make a large amount of noise and then stop without rhyme or reason. Dog owners report that their dogs are scared of everything from doorbells to machine washers, vacuum cleaners to fireworks including lots of other noises we might consider utterly innocuous.
The correct way to Affect Your Dog
The way you react when your dog is fearful can have an effect on the level of the fear. The nicest thing you can do for your dog is to remain calm yourself. Your dog is exceedingly sensitive and will know if you are anxious too , which will confirm to them that they were right to be afraid first of all. This may actually escalate the fearfulness in your dog and confirm their response, making it rather more likely that they will react in a similar way next time.
The calmer you are , the likelier that your dog's levels of fear will come down as often they are going to look to find out how you are reacting when faced with a frightening situation.
What Not to Do
Do not make a dog face their fears as it won't help and it could backfire on you. Dogs live by their instincts and when they're scared it is because they see the noise as potentially dangerous or threatening to their safety. A dog has 3 reactions to danger which are flight, freeze and fight and they will use them in that exact order.
So that means the first reaction is probably going to be to get away - that is the reason why a dog will run and hide from the sound of Thunder. The second reaction is to remain very still to see if the danger will go away without them taking any other action and the third is to use aggression. If you are making your dog face their fears they could turn their aggression on you and you risk getting bitten.
A highly fearful dog will panic when brought face to face with something that they fear and we all know how difficult it is to reason with someone that is panicking!
It isn't a good idea to try and comfort your dog either as you are again making something of the event or could again be confirming in the dogs mind that there truly is something that should be scared of. Ironically you could also end up strengthening the behaviour, if your dog interprets the attention as a reward for their fearful behavior.
What Else Should I Do to Help My Dog?
Learn how to be the pack leader. Many dogs presume that they are the pack leader, but struggle because this position makes them responsible for keeping you safe and that is tricky when they live in a world stuffed with things they do not understand.
When you take on the role of pack leader, your dog should relax and be convinced that they can trust you to make decisions. This means a fearful dog will look to you to determine if something is a threat when faced with something that they do not understand or are terrified of and if you're not terrified your dog will be convinced that they don't have to worry either.
About the Author:
The Author Venice Marriott learned about dog stress the difficult way with her own rescue dog and has researched the easiest way to reduce it for the last 2 years. You will get loads more helpful info from her blog, plus free video training from an internationally famous dog training expert, that could help you if you have a fearful dog.
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