Success in Helping A Very Fearful Dog

Last week I received a testimonial from a client that came to meet with me because of her severely fearful dog named Che. I met with Haley and Che. Che was so concerned with my presence that most of the work I did was at a distance – for this reason, we met outside and with Haley doing the bulk of the work per my directions.

Thereafter, Haley and I exchanged a few emails after my visit. Below is an account of Haley and her family's work with Che, and his improvement - nothing short of impressive!

Her account and her sharing of it is so rewarding for me because, for the most part, we trainers almost exclusively hear about the problems, and sad experiences of dogs and their people, and very seldom do people share the good news or the progress their dog has made.

 

"Hello Almudena, I don’t know if you remember me but we met once with my dog Che. After meeting once so much changed for me personally that I could not continue meeting, however, meeting with you just once offered so much support that I had renewed my work with Che. We created ABC charts, and worked at home at first each night baby steps through the spaces in the house he showed the most resistance such as the kitchen/ bedroom/ bathroom we did baby steps each night. It took many many months of not pushing past his threshold but offering a positive association. I cannot tell you how much reading, observing, and being patient paid off.

Little by little Che became less and less afraid. To the point that he became engaged in smelling his house/playing tug-a-war and ball. Occasionally he would get stuck in a place (like the bedroom) and start crying and we would help him patiently to move forward but I have not seen him do that in three months. Tonight, he is lying by the washer and dryer as they both are going -he did not even move when I opened the dryer door.

He is like the other dogs around the house, no longer showing fear of the house environment and goes about the house naturally, definitely a different dog from last year.

On our walks now he is weary of people and will bark, but he also is curious and smells the air, compared to last year when he would want to bolt and run from the slightest presence of a human. Though we only met once you sent me in a direction with Che that proved to be a positive direction. Although I understand we would have benefited from many lessons I cannot tell you how thankful I am for your insight direction and support that one meeting provided. It would be great to meet again. Thank you.

Here is a picture of Che with my youngest when she made him peanut butter cookies and had a tea party with her, willingly. This was very huge, but he tends to feel confident around her, we say Che is her dog. This was after aprox. 7 months of daily gentle experiences." - Haley Tucker - Los Lunas, NM

As Haley correctly attests, working with a dog that has so many fears  (her dog is afraid of people,
noises, new scenarios) requires tremendous amounts of dedication and know-how.

Dogs are always learning and we can indeed make their lives better if we care enough to understand
them and commit ourselves to teach them along the way. Stories like this one not only fill my heart
with joy, but they also confirm that with patience, perseverance and know-how we can help in
rehabilitating dogs and to alleviate their suffering. Living in constant fear and anxiety is no picnic and
no living being should have to experience that.

Using Drugs to Help Dogs Learn

I have been working with a small dog and his “parents” to help this little one be more comfortable with anyone approaching him or picking him up. He is also concerned about riding in the car. He will shake like a leaf on a regular basis especially when one walks in his direction, and will shake throughout the process of being handled and picked up. He is also very overwhelmed when my dogs, which he feels comfortable with, play with their large orange ball. In this instance I think it has to do with erratic movement since I also witnessed him shake in fear when I was stretching on the floor with Deuce and Rio playing with me and their toys.


It is hard to know exactly why this pup has such fears. Most likely he was never properly exposed to being picked up or even handled in general. My guess is that this poor fellow was kept in a place where he was not exposed to gentle and ongoing handling or even no handling at all. It is also possible that the environment was a stale environment where he was not appropriately exposed to noise and erratic movements or changes in the environment that would teach him resilience to “bounce back" from change.

Stories like this one are abound. There is unfortunately no shortage of dogs that lacked the proper socialization when it mattered most: from birth to 18 weeks of age. Whatever the dog has not been exposed to in a positive way he will be potentially concerned or plain afraid of. And for the rest of this dog's life, the people in their care will be playing catch up.

I have worked with a fair amount of dogs that have generalized fear or anxiety. I think my current board & train is one of them. One of the things I noticed besides the triggers I described above is that he has a difficult time learning. This is one of the hallmarks of dogs that, in essence, are too concerned to learn. In cases extreme as these I recommend my clients look into medicating their dogs.

I have had very good success in helping dogs learn new skills that they can employ when in the presence of what concerns them by combining psychotropic medication and behavior modification. The right medication will help the dog learn. Once the dog’s confidence has improved and now with new ways to respond to what concerns him the chances for a better quality of life for the dog and its people increases. Sure, one can argue that medications have side effects, but we must also keep in mind that living in constant fear or anxiety also compromises one’s quality of life.

I am not a vet nor do I choose to “practice” medicine so I will not give particular advice on which “med” is the correct one to use. The best approach here is to discuss with the veterinarian as to possible medication.

However, not all vets are up to speed with medications for emotional issues such as fear and anxiety. When this is the case it is best to consult with a behavioral veterinarian. These vets have special training and can prescribe the right medication and dosage. A word of caution: in my experience many veterinarians are still taught to understand behavior issues from the outdated dominance/alpha leader perspective. A perspective I do not subscribe to or endorse.

 

What Dogs Really Want for Xmas (and beyond)…

If you are like me, you take the Christmas holiday as an opportunity to gift your favorite canine pal. I bought some stuffed animals for Rio and Deuce in Ikea when I was in the Bay area. Ikea has some great kid’s toys that are perfect for dogs. They are cheaper than your average dog toy, better made (no parts that the dog can eat) and they are super cute. Yes, my dogs also got some comfy beds for the holidays. Myself like almost everyone I know that has pets buys them stuff because they love them but also because it makes them feel good. Nothing wrong with that I say!

Beds and toys make great gifts for our dogs because a comfortable and safe place to sleep and the opportunity to engage in natural dog behaviors such as dissecting to such unrecognizable pieces that cute toy they just got for Xmas is part of what makes dog’s “happy”.

I don’t know about you and your household routine, but in my household I follow certain “protocols” to ensure my dogs not only sleep in comfort, but that they also have a “crack” in life as dogs in our human world.

So for instance: everyday in the AM our dogs get an opportunity for mental stimulation (either an individual training session - and believe me there is always something we can work on) or engagement with a food-dispensing toy. Secondly they have something that addresses physical stimulation be it sheep-herding for Deuce with Rio either playing with a favorite pal or coming along with Deuce and me for a “country outing”.

Other days we play soccer and tug in a very structured way doubling up the play session with some basic obedience and impulse control routine.

My goal for my dogs and those of my client’s is to make their training as imbedded in everyday life activity as possible. Everyone wins!

So… besides creature comfort, opportunities for new learning and burning some mental  and physical steam, what do dogs really want?

• Dogs need to feel safe.
• Have the choice to escape unnecessary pain, discomfort and threats (yes we do need to trim their nails and brush their teeth – and indeed there are humane ways of doing this BTW).
• Daily opportunities to engage in gratifying social contact with other dogs as well as daily opportunity to engage in social contact with their humans.
• Daily opportunities for play and exercises (both mental and physical).
• Some control over their environment (where they sleep, to meet guests, to get petted or not at a given moment, etc.)
• The right set of circumstances to engage in species-specific behaviors such as chewing, digging, barking, chasing, eliminating, etc.

It goes without saying that dogs, just like us, are individuals with preferences and dislikes.

For an under-socialized fearful dog the idea of meeting people is at least an aversive and at worst very scary. It is also our job to acknowledge our dog’s temperament, age and physical condition so that we can best provide for them the above opportunities.