TRAINING - BEHAVIOR: Helping Shy Fearful or Timid Dogs
Most greyhounds race happily ahead to meet the world and all that it offers. However, a few are frightened to the point of terror by the most ordinary things. If you have a shy or timid dog, don’t despair--there definitely is hope. And when, with your help, a shy dog learns not to be fearful, his newfound joy in his surroundings and companions is a wonderful thing to share.
Understanding the shy dog
Types of shyness
Dogs exhibit several different types of shyness and timidity. Some are frightened by only one situation, while others respond fearfully to different types of stimuli. The most common kinds of shyness in dogs are:
Social shyness: fear of unfamiliar people or certain kinds of people. Examples are dogs afraid of all men, just big men, or perhaps men wearing baseball caps.
Context fears: fear of certain situations. Some dogs fear going to the vet, a certain door in the house, car rides, or new places.
Sound sensitivities: fear of sudden loud noises. These dogs flatten and try to escape when a car backfires, or pace, salivate and shake during thunderstorms or fireworks.
The fear reaction
Some dogs make it very clear when a situation frightens them: they run away, shake, whine, hide or curl up on the floor. Other dogs are more subtle about expressing their fear. These dogs may try to avoid people or things that frighten them or they may seem depressed or disinterested.
Causes of shyness or fear
When you have a shy greyhound, you can’t help wondering why this dog has all of these fears. Don’t assume immediately that the dog has suffered abuse or a bad experience. Fear is very common in all animals; in fact, it helps them survive.
Usually a dog’s fears result from a combination of a genetic predisposition and a lack of experience, especially in the first months of life. For example, a dog may not have been exposed to children when he was a puppy, so that now their size, energy, and noise levels make him uncertain about how to respond.
Some just get over it
When your dog is exposed to “unknowns” in his new home, he might decide after a time that “the terrible, scary, gonna-get-me thing” isn’t really so scary after all. Familiarity and time is all it takes for some dogs to overcome a fear; for others, there would never be a change without help from his loving family.Responding to the shy dog
The key is praise, not coddling
An important thing to remember when you are working with your shy dog is that a coddling, “poor-doggy” approach will only reinforce his fears. He needs a positive, approving, encouraging environment that rewards him for taking a step beyond his fear, no matter how tiny the step might be. Exhibit confidence about the fearful situation and he will learn from you over time.
First trust, then confidence
With time and patience, most fearful dogs can be helped and gradually improve. This is a slow process that requires you to be very patient and very, very consistent. For this reason shy dogs are not for everybody.
The first goal is to gain your dog's trust. Next, help him build his confidence. Then, to encourage desired behaviors, reward those behaviors, and any incremental progress, with gentle, happy, verbal praise and small treats. The shy or fearful dog can be frightened and even traumatized by forceful training methods. So focus on gentle, positive methods.
Try ignoring behaviors that you want to eliminate in the shy dog or, at most, issue a clear but gentle "no" or "ah-ah-ah." One of the great things about dogs is that they truly want to please us. If our correction doesn’t change their behavior, it’s almost always because we haven’t done something right—that is, we haven’t communicated what we want clearly, or we’ve sent inconsistent messages or mixed messages.
When the fearful dog comes home
Settling into his new home
The best possible strategy is to let the dog go at his own pace for the first several days. Any kind of pressure or coercion to make contact usually makes things worse. At first let the dog hide if he needs to, investigate his new surroundings, and come to you when he feels ready. Avoid as many negative experiences as possible early on. This procedure can be difficult with a dog that’s learning housetraining since you don’t want him out of your sight. The best solution is to keep him in a room with you that he can’t leave or attach his leash to you, but to basically ignore him until and unless he comes to you.
Find out what triggers his fear
While most greyhounds are very sensitive to tone of voice, some shy dogs take that sensitivity a step beyond. They may respond fearfully to a raised tone of voice, even if there is no anger in the tone and the words are not addressed to them. Caution your family members about this before the dog arrives.
Observe your dog in different situations to try to determine what triggers his shyness. Maybe it isn’t men in general but just men wearing baseball caps. Perhaps he’s fine with children who are quietly playing, but afraid of children who try to play with or touch him. One foster dog exhibited great fear when left in his crate for short periods of time while his family was gone. They tried leaving him in different rooms with no improvement. Finally, they realized that the overhead fans (switched on in every room, since it was summer time) freaked him out and he felt trapped in the crate. Turning off the fan above him immediately cured the problem.
Establish a safe den in your home for the dog where he is “hands off” to family and visitors. While this is particularly important for the shy dog, even the most confident and interactive dog appreciates a private place to which he can occasionally retreat. And there will be times when you want your dog to be separated from the action.
Teach your dog basic commands and skills
Obedience training and agility training are excellent ways to help a dog feel more comfortable and confident in public, as well as with other dogs and people. Just as it works with people, learning new skills improves the dog's outlook on life as well as self-confidence. For many dogs, as with people, problems result when brains and energy are underutilized.
A dog that can follow commands is a more confident dog – there’s no question in his mind about what behavior is expected. Remember that he wants to please you, so what better way to allow for this than to teach him behaviors that you can then praise whenever he does them? Practice the basic commands: come, sit, down and stay. Praise him when he exhibits any confident behavior.
Exercise for body and mind
All dogs need exercise every day. Among other benefits, exercise helps reduce canine stress and makes dogs happier, which is particularly important for the shy dog. If he is fearful of other dogs or people, try to walk him in an area where your chances of meeting other dogs, walkers or runners are minimal. However, don’t avoid all contact, instead help your dog learn new ways to react when afraid.
The “watch me” command is useful here. Use treats to teach your dog to look at you when you say, “watch me.” Then use that command in situations when your dog is unsure and reward him for looking at you. This teaches the dog to look at you for confidence rather than withdrawing or bolting.
Actions speak louder than words
Dogs, like small children, can’t understand most of our words. But they are extremely good at reading our body language and facial expressions. We’re sending signals to our dogs all of the time, for good or ill. They’re reading and responding to our emotional state constantly. That’s why we love them! When a dog senses that you’re down, and gives you affection, as much as anything he’s telling us that he’s feeling unsettled because his pack leader is off-kilter emotionally.
So be aware of the messages you’re sending to your dog. Shy and timid dogs will pick up on your lack of confidence immediately. If you get nervous at an oncoming dog or tottering child, you will communicate that nervousness right down the leash to your dog. You’ll also, by the way, be sending lack-of-confidence vibes to the oncoming dog, which is a good way to provoke confrontation. Project calm confidence for your dog and any other animal. If it helps you stay confident to switch the direction you’re walking, do so.
Think ahead about what you’ll do if a loose dog continues to approach, so that you don’t freak out. You might plan to throw a treat or stick to get the other dog to run off, or you might carry an umbrella that you can open to protect yourself and send the dog away. By staying calm and in control, you won’t be reinforcing your dog’s fears.
To see this in action, try an experiment. The idea may seem silly, but it really works! Yawn. Yawning is a calming signal for dogs. Whenever you feel that your dog is becoming stressed, such as during a training session, start yawning--repeatedly. You should notice your dog relaxing the more you yawn. Give it a try!
Don’t show affection when your dog is scared
When your dog is frightened, your first reaction may be to comfort him and say, "it's OK.” What you’re telling him is that it’s fine and appropriate that he’s scared—exactly the message you DON’T want to send. You’re just reinforcing his skittish behavior. Only praise your dog when he acts confidently or responds to a command that you have given him, and over time he will learn to be confident.
Don’t force interactions
You want to expose your dog to things that are out of his comfort zone, but remember, it is important that you do not force a dog to interact with a person or other canine. Let the dog decide when he is ready to venture closer. If the dog chooses not to engage with the person or dog, that's OK. The dog will find his comfort zones over time.
Conditioning fear away
Once you understand what makes your dog fearful, you can over time recondition him not to fear it. The basic approach is to 1) expose him to his fear in as non-stressful a manner as possible, 2) expose him to it repeatedly, and 3) combine the exposure with a fun or positive association. Here are some examples of this approach in action:
Fear of children
A dog that is afraid of children might start to feel more comfortable if he regularly sees children, but at a distance where he doesn’t feel worried that they might approach. If his guardian praises, pets him and gives him treats after the dog has noticed the kids, the dog might start to see the kids as “good news!” since great things happen to him when kids are around!
Fear of traffic
A dog that is afraid of traffic would benefit from audiotapes of traffic sounds and time spent near quieter streets combined with games, treats and happy talk from his guardian. As the dog improves, time can be spent on busier and busier streets. Dogs learn strongly from association.
Fear of getting into a car
A dog that is afraid of getting into a car would benefit from being allowed to investigate the car with all the doors wide open and a few tasty treats in various places. Let him get in and out at his leisure – let him associate the car with treats.
When your dog begins displaying more trust and staying calm during such close encounters, happily praise the dog and offer a treat. Be careful not to startle your shy or fearful dog with overly exuberant praise.
Training Scenarios
The training scenarios below are intended as a guide for developing your own methods for helping your dog overcome shyness or fears.
Remember: take it slowly, reward any positive action, and be patient, very patient. The training scenarios below will work, given time. No one can predict how long it will take to train a particular dog, so try to keep your expectations low at first. Also, realize that dogs often make progress in spurts. You can go a long time with no apparent progress and then see a quick breakthrough.
Scenario #1: Working to build your dog’s confidence
Most shy dogs can become friendly. The training requires positive human interaction to replace a bad experience with a good one or to create a positive experience in a situation new to the dog. Usually these dogs must learn to trust individuals before accepting a friendship.
Don’t set up training exercises when you or your helper are stressed, short on time, not in the mood, or frustrated with prior attempts! You’ll communicate your attitude to your dog.
Find a patient, low-key dog lover to help with these exercises. Have the helper stand, crouch down, or sit on the floor (probably the least threatening position). He or she should not look directly at the dog, and should maintain a non-threatening, sideways stance a bit apart from the dog. Your helper should have some small, tasty, “high-value” treats, which may mean something really strong like liver cookies or little bits of hot dog. Note that treats that are very small will do the job just as well as large ones. How good they smell to your dog is what counts.
1. Have the helper extend a hand in the direction of the dog and drop a treat on the floor. The dog will spot the treat immediately and eventually approach it. Let the dog initiate contact and approach when he feels ready. Most likely the dog will take the treat and retreat a bit to eat it. Repeat this exercise a few times until the dog doesn’t hesitate to move in and grab the treat.
2. Next, have the helper keep the treat in her extended hand. Ideally, the dog will touch the helper's hand while taking the treat. Whether contact is made or the treat is just carefully removed from the helper’s hand, the helper should softly say, "Good dog."
3. When the dog seems somewhat secure about taking a treat, the helper can gently stroke the dog under the chin or on the neck or chest as the dog removes the tasty bite (without making eye contact). Be aware that shy and fearful dogs are often frightened when people attempt to touch their face or head. Be patient to avoid undoing all the progress you’ve made.
As the dog gains confidence, repeat the practice sessions in other rooms and then outside of the home, and with different helpers of varying ages, sizes, and both sexes. Gradually expose the dog to these new experiences. Whenever he shows the slightest sign of relaxing or sociability, reward him on the spot with praise and very tasty special treats (carry them in a baggie in your pocket).
The owner’s role in this exercise is to assure that your dog understands that, during the training, the helper is the only source for the “good things” (be they treats, positive interaction or petting). The owner needs to project a happy, relaxed body posture and tone of voice, making it clear that the helper's presence is welcomed. Minimize your chatter with your helper to avoid distracting your dog. Ignore your dog if he tries to cling to you or beg for attention. Don’t comfort the dog, verbally or physically, if the dog displays timidity or fear, since you don’t want to reinforce these undesirable behaviors.
Scenario #2: Working on fear of family members
If the dog is fearful of someone in the family, consider the possible reasons. Perhaps that person is doing something to evoke the dog’s fear, even if the person is unaware of it. Does he or she speak in a booming voice, makes lots of noise or sudden movements, invade the personal space of the dog, or grab at the dog in play or to pet it? Any of these behaviors could be frightening to your dog. Make the person aware of your concerns and ask him to tone down his behaviors.
You may not be able to identify any specific action that seems to be the cause of the dog’s fear, however. It may be the result of something that happened long before the dog joined your family.
One technique for building a bond between the dog and a person he fears in the household is to let that person be the one to feed, walk and eventually play with the dog. The objective is for the dog to learn that people can be trusted and to interact with all family members in a positive way.
Remember to praise and give rewards (yummy treats, a very favorite toy or praise) for even the tiniest signs of progress. Small signs can be anything from a tentative approach to not ducking behind the couch when the other person enters the room.
Scenario #3: Working on fear of types of individuals
Sometimes a dog's fear relates to the size, sex, or physical traits of the person. In such cases, work daily help the dog become familiar with this person “type”, and on giving him positive experiences (treats, praise, and petting) to associate with that type (men, big people, people in wheelchairs, etc). If your dog is shy around men, for example, have a man feed the dog.
The exercise in Scenario #1 can be easily adapted to address Scenario #3 by using as helper the type of person that causes fear in the dog. Just remember to move slowly and praise and reward any positive action, no matter how small.
Recommended Reading:
Deborah Wood, Help for Your Shy Dog
Patricia McConnell, Cautious Canine
Understanding the shy dog
Types of shyness
Dogs exhibit several different types of shyness and timidity. Some are frightened by only one situation, while others respond fearfully to different types of stimuli. The most common kinds of shyness in dogs are:
Social shyness: fear of unfamiliar people or certain kinds of people. Examples are dogs afraid of all men, just big men, or perhaps men wearing baseball caps.
Context fears: fear of certain situations. Some dogs fear going to the vet, a certain door in the house, car rides, or new places.
Sound sensitivities: fear of sudden loud noises. These dogs flatten and try to escape when a car backfires, or pace, salivate and shake during thunderstorms or fireworks.
The fear reaction
Some dogs make it very clear when a situation frightens them: they run away, shake, whine, hide or curl up on the floor. Other dogs are more subtle about expressing their fear. These dogs may try to avoid people or things that frighten them or they may seem depressed or disinterested.
Causes of shyness or fear
When you have a shy greyhound, you can’t help wondering why this dog has all of these fears. Don’t assume immediately that the dog has suffered abuse or a bad experience. Fear is very common in all animals; in fact, it helps them survive.
Usually a dog’s fears result from a combination of a genetic predisposition and a lack of experience, especially in the first months of life. For example, a dog may not have been exposed to children when he was a puppy, so that now their size, energy, and noise levels make him uncertain about how to respond.
Some just get over it
When your dog is exposed to “unknowns” in his new home, he might decide after a time that “the terrible, scary, gonna-get-me thing” isn’t really so scary after all. Familiarity and time is all it takes for some dogs to overcome a fear; for others, there would never be a change without help from his loving family.Responding to the shy dog
The key is praise, not coddling
An important thing to remember when you are working with your shy dog is that a coddling, “poor-doggy” approach will only reinforce his fears. He needs a positive, approving, encouraging environment that rewards him for taking a step beyond his fear, no matter how tiny the step might be. Exhibit confidence about the fearful situation and he will learn from you over time.
First trust, then confidence
With time and patience, most fearful dogs can be helped and gradually improve. This is a slow process that requires you to be very patient and very, very consistent. For this reason shy dogs are not for everybody.
The first goal is to gain your dog's trust. Next, help him build his confidence. Then, to encourage desired behaviors, reward those behaviors, and any incremental progress, with gentle, happy, verbal praise and small treats. The shy or fearful dog can be frightened and even traumatized by forceful training methods. So focus on gentle, positive methods.
Try ignoring behaviors that you want to eliminate in the shy dog or, at most, issue a clear but gentle "no" or "ah-ah-ah." One of the great things about dogs is that they truly want to please us. If our correction doesn’t change their behavior, it’s almost always because we haven’t done something right—that is, we haven’t communicated what we want clearly, or we’ve sent inconsistent messages or mixed messages.
When the fearful dog comes home
Settling into his new home
The best possible strategy is to let the dog go at his own pace for the first several days. Any kind of pressure or coercion to make contact usually makes things worse. At first let the dog hide if he needs to, investigate his new surroundings, and come to you when he feels ready. Avoid as many negative experiences as possible early on. This procedure can be difficult with a dog that’s learning housetraining since you don’t want him out of your sight. The best solution is to keep him in a room with you that he can’t leave or attach his leash to you, but to basically ignore him until and unless he comes to you.
Find out what triggers his fear
While most greyhounds are very sensitive to tone of voice, some shy dogs take that sensitivity a step beyond. They may respond fearfully to a raised tone of voice, even if there is no anger in the tone and the words are not addressed to them. Caution your family members about this before the dog arrives.
Observe your dog in different situations to try to determine what triggers his shyness. Maybe it isn’t men in general but just men wearing baseball caps. Perhaps he’s fine with children who are quietly playing, but afraid of children who try to play with or touch him. One foster dog exhibited great fear when left in his crate for short periods of time while his family was gone. They tried leaving him in different rooms with no improvement. Finally, they realized that the overhead fans (switched on in every room, since it was summer time) freaked him out and he felt trapped in the crate. Turning off the fan above him immediately cured the problem.
Establish a safe den in your home for the dog where he is “hands off” to family and visitors. While this is particularly important for the shy dog, even the most confident and interactive dog appreciates a private place to which he can occasionally retreat. And there will be times when you want your dog to be separated from the action.
Teach your dog basic commands and skills
Obedience training and agility training are excellent ways to help a dog feel more comfortable and confident in public, as well as with other dogs and people. Just as it works with people, learning new skills improves the dog's outlook on life as well as self-confidence. For many dogs, as with people, problems result when brains and energy are underutilized.
A dog that can follow commands is a more confident dog – there’s no question in his mind about what behavior is expected. Remember that he wants to please you, so what better way to allow for this than to teach him behaviors that you can then praise whenever he does them? Practice the basic commands: come, sit, down and stay. Praise him when he exhibits any confident behavior.
Exercise for body and mind
All dogs need exercise every day. Among other benefits, exercise helps reduce canine stress and makes dogs happier, which is particularly important for the shy dog. If he is fearful of other dogs or people, try to walk him in an area where your chances of meeting other dogs, walkers or runners are minimal. However, don’t avoid all contact, instead help your dog learn new ways to react when afraid.
The “watch me” command is useful here. Use treats to teach your dog to look at you when you say, “watch me.” Then use that command in situations when your dog is unsure and reward him for looking at you. This teaches the dog to look at you for confidence rather than withdrawing or bolting.
Actions speak louder than words
Dogs, like small children, can’t understand most of our words. But they are extremely good at reading our body language and facial expressions. We’re sending signals to our dogs all of the time, for good or ill. They’re reading and responding to our emotional state constantly. That’s why we love them! When a dog senses that you’re down, and gives you affection, as much as anything he’s telling us that he’s feeling unsettled because his pack leader is off-kilter emotionally.
So be aware of the messages you’re sending to your dog. Shy and timid dogs will pick up on your lack of confidence immediately. If you get nervous at an oncoming dog or tottering child, you will communicate that nervousness right down the leash to your dog. You’ll also, by the way, be sending lack-of-confidence vibes to the oncoming dog, which is a good way to provoke confrontation. Project calm confidence for your dog and any other animal. If it helps you stay confident to switch the direction you’re walking, do so.
Think ahead about what you’ll do if a loose dog continues to approach, so that you don’t freak out. You might plan to throw a treat or stick to get the other dog to run off, or you might carry an umbrella that you can open to protect yourself and send the dog away. By staying calm and in control, you won’t be reinforcing your dog’s fears.
To see this in action, try an experiment. The idea may seem silly, but it really works! Yawn. Yawning is a calming signal for dogs. Whenever you feel that your dog is becoming stressed, such as during a training session, start yawning--repeatedly. You should notice your dog relaxing the more you yawn. Give it a try!
Don’t show affection when your dog is scared
When your dog is frightened, your first reaction may be to comfort him and say, "it's OK.” What you’re telling him is that it’s fine and appropriate that he’s scared—exactly the message you DON’T want to send. You’re just reinforcing his skittish behavior. Only praise your dog when he acts confidently or responds to a command that you have given him, and over time he will learn to be confident.
Don’t force interactions
You want to expose your dog to things that are out of his comfort zone, but remember, it is important that you do not force a dog to interact with a person or other canine. Let the dog decide when he is ready to venture closer. If the dog chooses not to engage with the person or dog, that's OK. The dog will find his comfort zones over time.
Conditioning fear away
Once you understand what makes your dog fearful, you can over time recondition him not to fear it. The basic approach is to 1) expose him to his fear in as non-stressful a manner as possible, 2) expose him to it repeatedly, and 3) combine the exposure with a fun or positive association. Here are some examples of this approach in action:
Fear of children
A dog that is afraid of children might start to feel more comfortable if he regularly sees children, but at a distance where he doesn’t feel worried that they might approach. If his guardian praises, pets him and gives him treats after the dog has noticed the kids, the dog might start to see the kids as “good news!” since great things happen to him when kids are around!
Fear of traffic
A dog that is afraid of traffic would benefit from audiotapes of traffic sounds and time spent near quieter streets combined with games, treats and happy talk from his guardian. As the dog improves, time can be spent on busier and busier streets. Dogs learn strongly from association.
Fear of getting into a car
A dog that is afraid of getting into a car would benefit from being allowed to investigate the car with all the doors wide open and a few tasty treats in various places. Let him get in and out at his leisure – let him associate the car with treats.
When your dog begins displaying more trust and staying calm during such close encounters, happily praise the dog and offer a treat. Be careful not to startle your shy or fearful dog with overly exuberant praise.
Training Scenarios
The training scenarios below are intended as a guide for developing your own methods for helping your dog overcome shyness or fears.
Remember: take it slowly, reward any positive action, and be patient, very patient. The training scenarios below will work, given time. No one can predict how long it will take to train a particular dog, so try to keep your expectations low at first. Also, realize that dogs often make progress in spurts. You can go a long time with no apparent progress and then see a quick breakthrough.
Scenario #1: Working to build your dog’s confidence
Most shy dogs can become friendly. The training requires positive human interaction to replace a bad experience with a good one or to create a positive experience in a situation new to the dog. Usually these dogs must learn to trust individuals before accepting a friendship.
Don’t set up training exercises when you or your helper are stressed, short on time, not in the mood, or frustrated with prior attempts! You’ll communicate your attitude to your dog.
Find a patient, low-key dog lover to help with these exercises. Have the helper stand, crouch down, or sit on the floor (probably the least threatening position). He or she should not look directly at the dog, and should maintain a non-threatening, sideways stance a bit apart from the dog. Your helper should have some small, tasty, “high-value” treats, which may mean something really strong like liver cookies or little bits of hot dog. Note that treats that are very small will do the job just as well as large ones. How good they smell to your dog is what counts.
1. Have the helper extend a hand in the direction of the dog and drop a treat on the floor. The dog will spot the treat immediately and eventually approach it. Let the dog initiate contact and approach when he feels ready. Most likely the dog will take the treat and retreat a bit to eat it. Repeat this exercise a few times until the dog doesn’t hesitate to move in and grab the treat.
2. Next, have the helper keep the treat in her extended hand. Ideally, the dog will touch the helper's hand while taking the treat. Whether contact is made or the treat is just carefully removed from the helper’s hand, the helper should softly say, "Good dog."
3. When the dog seems somewhat secure about taking a treat, the helper can gently stroke the dog under the chin or on the neck or chest as the dog removes the tasty bite (without making eye contact). Be aware that shy and fearful dogs are often frightened when people attempt to touch their face or head. Be patient to avoid undoing all the progress you’ve made.
As the dog gains confidence, repeat the practice sessions in other rooms and then outside of the home, and with different helpers of varying ages, sizes, and both sexes. Gradually expose the dog to these new experiences. Whenever he shows the slightest sign of relaxing or sociability, reward him on the spot with praise and very tasty special treats (carry them in a baggie in your pocket).
The owner’s role in this exercise is to assure that your dog understands that, during the training, the helper is the only source for the “good things” (be they treats, positive interaction or petting). The owner needs to project a happy, relaxed body posture and tone of voice, making it clear that the helper's presence is welcomed. Minimize your chatter with your helper to avoid distracting your dog. Ignore your dog if he tries to cling to you or beg for attention. Don’t comfort the dog, verbally or physically, if the dog displays timidity or fear, since you don’t want to reinforce these undesirable behaviors.
Scenario #2: Working on fear of family members
If the dog is fearful of someone in the family, consider the possible reasons. Perhaps that person is doing something to evoke the dog’s fear, even if the person is unaware of it. Does he or she speak in a booming voice, makes lots of noise or sudden movements, invade the personal space of the dog, or grab at the dog in play or to pet it? Any of these behaviors could be frightening to your dog. Make the person aware of your concerns and ask him to tone down his behaviors.
You may not be able to identify any specific action that seems to be the cause of the dog’s fear, however. It may be the result of something that happened long before the dog joined your family.
One technique for building a bond between the dog and a person he fears in the household is to let that person be the one to feed, walk and eventually play with the dog. The objective is for the dog to learn that people can be trusted and to interact with all family members in a positive way.
Remember to praise and give rewards (yummy treats, a very favorite toy or praise) for even the tiniest signs of progress. Small signs can be anything from a tentative approach to not ducking behind the couch when the other person enters the room.
Scenario #3: Working on fear of types of individuals
Sometimes a dog's fear relates to the size, sex, or physical traits of the person. In such cases, work daily help the dog become familiar with this person “type”, and on giving him positive experiences (treats, praise, and petting) to associate with that type (men, big people, people in wheelchairs, etc). If your dog is shy around men, for example, have a man feed the dog.
The exercise in Scenario #1 can be easily adapted to address Scenario #3 by using as helper the type of person that causes fear in the dog. Just remember to move slowly and praise and reward any positive action, no matter how small.
Recommended Reading:
Deborah Wood, Help for Your Shy Dog
Patricia McConnell, Cautious Canine
Training Basics
|
Week 1 In Your Home
|
Housetraining
|
Separation Anxiety
|
Crate Training
|
Leash Training
|
Teaching "Sit"
|
Destruction & Chewing
|
Children & Greys
|
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