It was one of the loudest and most spectacular thunderstorms that I have ever witnessed. At one point all three dogs (I was boarding a dog) looked at me as if wanting an explanation as they leaped to get next to me on the sofa. So, we ended all piled up on the couch.
Rioja and Scout apparently were mildly uncomfortable with the loud thunderclap, but Deuce… he always comes over to me whenever there is a storm. Ah, I feel sorry for the guy, but so happy to have some physical interaction with him. I was doing some TTouches on him, which he is very willing to receive when he is afraid. The storm continued and at some point I decided to stop the TTouch™ session and began pulling out tug-toys - Deuce’s favorite. So this is why at 11pm instead of being in bed, we were engaging in a furious game of tug with Deuce being my focus of attention. He clearly began to relax as we concentrated on tugging, dropping the tug and starting the game one more time.
I decided to write about thunderstorms (or any loud noise or fear-producing trigger for that matter) and dogs because I have read plenty of times about the importance of not reinforcing fear in our dogs.
Owners are told not to soothe their dogs in any way because this will in turn make the dog act more fearful since the traditional advice given is to ignore the dog… figure it out buddy, you are kind of on your own…
The reality is that we cannot reinforce fear in our dogs because fear is a cluster of physiological and emotional responses, which are observable in our dog’s behavior.
Think about it. Have you ever been fearful and have been able to consider someone else’s take on the event? Have you ever been able to joke during a truly scary event? Have you been able to stop your accelerated heart rate, sweaty palms, and shortness of breath just because someone suggested you shouldn’t be afraid?
It is the same with our dogs. We might be able to comfort them when they are feeling afraid or even put them at ease with a fun game, like in the case of Deuce and the game of tug, but what we cannot do is exercise any control over their physiological and emotional state of fear.
Also the thing about our dogs is that they do not “fake” being afraid to elicit sympathy. Either they are fearful or they are not. Period. So the lesson here is to believe your dog when he shakes out of fear, tugs its tail, flattens his ears to the head, pants and perhaps drools – these are just some of the symptoms of fear in our dogs.
What I find fascinating is the scientific fact that fear produces fearful behavior (as described above) BUT get this… the “rehearsal” or engagement in fearful behaviors feeds the emotion of fear! In other words, if our dog assumes a position of fear (because remember he is feeling afraid for real) that body posture creates a sort of information loop, which will contribute to the dog’s emotional
state.
Besides this, being super interesting to me, I find it very valuable because it gives us a road map as to how we can help our dogs better cope when they are feeling afraid, no matter what the reason for their fear.
So the next time you observe your dog being afraid, engage your dog in non-fearful behaviors. For example, you could ask your dog to do something that he has done many times in the past; he is successful at and enjoys doing. Tricks and even silly ones are great ways of getting the dog focused on something else instead of the scary event. Play is such a powerful “antidote” to fear. Did you know that when an animal is afraid he won’t play? So the opposite is also true. The activity of play, which is registered in a different part of the brain than fear, will allow the dog to keep fear at bay.
Another thing to consider is that our dogs are social animals and we are lucky enough to be considered part of their family or their group. No, we are not a “pack” because we do not hunt together - which in essence defines a “pack” and no, dogs know that we are not dogs…but they do consider us part of their close, social network. And as such we can influence their outlook to the extent as much as they can sometimes do the same for us.
There lays the reason why we are told that when our pet acts fearfully for us to put on a cheerful face. Or to just continue acting in a matter-of-fact way. I second that, but why not do both? Act confident and carefree and engage your dog in some party time so that he learns (with oodles and oodles of repetitions of classical pairings) that the scary thing is not so bad at all.
Rioja and Scout apparently were mildly uncomfortable with the loud thunderclap, but Deuce… he always comes over to me whenever there is a storm. Ah, I feel sorry for the guy, but so happy to have some physical interaction with him. I was doing some TTouches on him, which he is very willing to receive when he is afraid. The storm continued and at some point I decided to stop the TTouch™ session and began pulling out tug-toys - Deuce’s favorite. So this is why at 11pm instead of being in bed, we were engaging in a furious game of tug with Deuce being my focus of attention. He clearly began to relax as we concentrated on tugging, dropping the tug and starting the game one more time.
I decided to write about thunderstorms (or any loud noise or fear-producing trigger for that matter) and dogs because I have read plenty of times about the importance of not reinforcing fear in our dogs.
Owners are told not to soothe their dogs in any way because this will in turn make the dog act more fearful since the traditional advice given is to ignore the dog… figure it out buddy, you are kind of on your own…
The reality is that we cannot reinforce fear in our dogs because fear is a cluster of physiological and emotional responses, which are observable in our dog’s behavior.
Think about it. Have you ever been fearful and have been able to consider someone else’s take on the event? Have you ever been able to joke during a truly scary event? Have you been able to stop your accelerated heart rate, sweaty palms, and shortness of breath just because someone suggested you shouldn’t be afraid?
It is the same with our dogs. We might be able to comfort them when they are feeling afraid or even put them at ease with a fun game, like in the case of Deuce and the game of tug, but what we cannot do is exercise any control over their physiological and emotional state of fear.
Also the thing about our dogs is that they do not “fake” being afraid to elicit sympathy. Either they are fearful or they are not. Period. So the lesson here is to believe your dog when he shakes out of fear, tugs its tail, flattens his ears to the head, pants and perhaps drools – these are just some of the symptoms of fear in our dogs.
What I find fascinating is the scientific fact that fear produces fearful behavior (as described above) BUT get this… the “rehearsal” or engagement in fearful behaviors feeds the emotion of fear! In other words, if our dog assumes a position of fear (because remember he is feeling afraid for real) that body posture creates a sort of information loop, which will contribute to the dog’s emotional
state.
Besides this, being super interesting to me, I find it very valuable because it gives us a road map as to how we can help our dogs better cope when they are feeling afraid, no matter what the reason for their fear.
So the next time you observe your dog being afraid, engage your dog in non-fearful behaviors. For example, you could ask your dog to do something that he has done many times in the past; he is successful at and enjoys doing. Tricks and even silly ones are great ways of getting the dog focused on something else instead of the scary event. Play is such a powerful “antidote” to fear. Did you know that when an animal is afraid he won’t play? So the opposite is also true. The activity of play, which is registered in a different part of the brain than fear, will allow the dog to keep fear at bay.
Another thing to consider is that our dogs are social animals and we are lucky enough to be considered part of their family or their group. No, we are not a “pack” because we do not hunt together - which in essence defines a “pack” and no, dogs know that we are not dogs…but they do consider us part of their close, social network. And as such we can influence their outlook to the extent as much as they can sometimes do the same for us.
There lays the reason why we are told that when our pet acts fearfully for us to put on a cheerful face. Or to just continue acting in a matter-of-fact way. I second that, but why not do both? Act confident and carefree and engage your dog in some party time so that he learns (with oodles and oodles of repetitions of classical pairings) that the scary thing is not so bad at all.
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