Puppy Timidity

[Kira9]

Hi everyone I am a new member with a new puppy.
Kira is 11 weeks old and apart from a little nipping is great with myself and family.
She is however very nervous when outside and hears other dogs barking or cars passing.
Is this normal for her age or should I be concerned.
Thank you all in advance and the site is great .

[Riccosmama12]

Im no expert by any means but think it seems pretty normal being that she is still a baby and the outside world I would imagine is so big and unfamiliar to her. I'm sure over time she will become more accustomed and once socialized more as she gets older with different people, places, and things they wont all seem so scary. Congrats on your new pup and welcome! :-)

[Kira9]

Thank you for the advice it is most appreciated

[Lucy Dog]

A puppy should not be very nervous over anything at that age. If anything, they should want to conquer the world.

Where did you get her from and at what age? What kind of socialization has she had before you got her? How were the parents if you got to meet them?

[Vikki]

My GSD was also very scared of everything. He would bark or cower from tree stumps, potted plants and even a balloon. He was my first dog, I had no idea if this was normal or not. I took him to the local dog park and he became much more comfortable with everything. He is now 7 yrs old and is a fabulous dog.

[ZAYDA]

Keep taking your puppy for brisk walks and don't allow her time to get scared. I know she is young and you can't go far but start now and keep her focused on you . I did this with my daughters puppy and in about 2-3 weeks she didn't care about garbage trucks or concrete workers at all.

[studio1one]

Originally Posted by Lucy Dog

A puppy should not be very nervous over anything at that age. If anything, they should want to conquer the world.

Where did you get her from and at what age? What kind of socialization has she had before you got her? How were the parents if you got to meet them?

I know this is a popular thing to say but honestly, it is incredibly rare to have a puppy that isn't scared of 'anything'. Nearly all pups will have things that make them jump or start.

I remember having a pup years ago that was incredibly bold but one night I took him out to potty at night. The wind was high and it had blown a metal dustbin just outside of the door, which was rolling around making a loud clanking noise. No way on earth would he walk out past it that night, not for anything in the world, he was terrified of it.

Dogs are living beings, not robots and in my experience all will react to something fearfully at any age, some more things than others obviously.

[Razzle J.Dazzle]

Razzle went through this stage. Bring treats with you on your walk for encouragement...worked wonders for us.

[FynnGSD]

Originally Posted by Kira9

Hi everyone I am a new member with a new puppy.
Kira is 11 weeks old and apart from a little nipping is great with myself and family.
She is however very nervous when outside and hears other dogs barking or cars passing.
Is this normal for her age or should I be concerned.
Thank you all in advance and the site is great .

Normal behaviour! Keep walking her and ignore her when she becomes afraid - when she sees that you are not reacting to other dogs barking/cars etc it will teach her there is nothing to be afraid of and not to react. Do not comfort or reward her with treats because the dog will see this as you telling her that she was right to be afraid.

My puppy was the same for a few weeks at this age - i just carried on walking and ignored him when he became startled - they see their ' leader' is not afraid and confident and they become confident themselves.

Do not comfort or reward!!!!!! Good luck.

[JoMichelle]

I posted something similar recently. My pup is 11 weeks too and was also nervous of outside. We actually live on one of the busiest roads in the city, right near a hospital so we get sirens day and night and constant, heavy traffic.

Before she had her injections I carried her about a few times, which helped alot. Now she walks and is always nervous when we first leave the house, especially if it's rush hour. But once we get going she settles more, although I'd still say she is nervous. We haven't been on lots of walks however. But I find that if I say "comon then" excitedly when she seems nervous, she wags her tail and follows next to me.

I'm sure that with twice daily walks she will overcome it. I've just booked puppy classes as she is fearful of dogs. I don't think she is ever going to be a "people" dog. No matter how many people she meets and how excited they are to see her, she's never very interested in them. It's like, "meh, human. Boring."