Nervous with barking dogs

wildrivers · 10-31-2011, 11:04 AM

I have a 11 week old female who gets nervous when she hears a dog barking. Her threshold is very low. She wont take treats and wants to leave the area of the barking. Any suggestions to heal this?

4TheDawgies · 10-31-2011, 11:08 AM

exposure to let her see nothing is wrong. For such a young puppy to be sensitive to adult dogs barking is completely normal. Puppies should be very aware of when adults are barking because it could mean danger is coming and they need to take cover.

Sitting with her in an area where dogs are barking in a distance will help her to relax and when she does give her affection or treats. Be careful not to do it too soon or you will reward insecurity.
Slowly work your way closer and closer to barking dogs until eventually not much bothers her. At this age I wouldn't expect her to ever completely ignore barking dogs. she will probably always look around to make sure the coast is clear or no one is coming to get her.

As an adult you can desensitize and train her so that she doesn't respond to it at all more than a glance. Don't worry about it too much now though. If you worry that will pass right on down to the leash and the puppy will be convinced there is something to worry about at that point. Just relax and set a good example for her. show confidence for her so she can feel better because you aren't worried.

wildrivers · 10-31-2011, 09:21 PM

tHANKS FOR THE HELP. I WILL TRY TO CONTINUE THE INTRODUCTION TRAINING SLOWLY, CONFIDENTLY AND CALMLY.

Emoore · 10-31-2011, 09:26 PM

Yup, it's very normal.

10-31-2011, 11:04 AM	#1 (permalink)
wildrivers Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Top of Cali Posts: 64	Nervous with barking dogs I have a 11 week old female who gets nervous when she hears a dog barking. Her threshold is very low. She wont take treats and wants to leave the area of the barking. Any suggestions to heal this?

10-31-2011, 11:08 AM	#2 (permalink)
4TheDawgies Master Member Join Date: Apr 2011 Location: KS Posts: 746	exposure to let her see nothing is wrong. For such a young puppy to be sensitive to adult dogs barking is completely normal. Puppies should be very aware of when adults are barking because it could mean danger is coming and they need to take cover. Sitting with her in an area where dogs are barking in a distance will help her to relax and when she does give her affection or treats. Be careful not to do it too soon or you will reward insecurity. Slowly work your way closer and closer to barking dogs until eventually not much bothers her. At this age I wouldn't expect her to ever completely ignore barking dogs. she will probably always look around to make sure the coast is clear or no one is coming to get her. As an adult you can desensitize and train her so that she doesn't respond to it at all more than a glance. Don't worry about it too much now though. If you worry that will pass right on down to the leash and the puppy will be convinced there is something to worry about at that point. Just relax and set a good example for her. show confidence for her so she can feel better because you aren't worried. __________________ "For the animal shall not be measured by man. In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear."

10-31-2011, 09:26 PM	#4 (permalink)
Emoore Crowned Member Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: North DFW, TX Posts: 9,215	Yup, it's very normal. __________________ Rocky vom Backyard- 10 years young Kopper vom Felssclucht Bach - 17 months At the Bridge: Cash van der Animal Shelter 2006-2010

10-31-2011, 09:21 PM	#3 (permalink)
wildrivers Member Join Date: Sep 2011 Location: Top of Cali Posts: 64	tHANKS FOR THE HELP. I WILL TRY TO CONTINUE THE INTRODUCTION TRAINING SLOWLY, CONFIDENTLY AND CALMLY.

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