Overcoming Fear OF

[PaddyD]

Originally Posted by Lucy Dog

The "throw him in" option really isn't the worst idea, but it really depends on the dog.

For example, my Lucy was scared to death of the treadmill at one point. She hated the noise and would never get near it even when the thing was off. So one day I just picked her up and plopped her right on it at a slow speed and held her collar while she walked.

She actually picked it up right away and loves it on rainy days. Sometimes I'll just see her standing on it while it's off waiting for me to turn the thing on.

Same problem here, gonna try this.
To the OP: make a 'little deal' out of it. Just proceed without all the hullaballoo.

[Liesje]

Francis, I've had a nervous/timid dog in the past and sort of use the "throw him in" approach for many things. I don't literally force a dog, but I've found that generally if I don't make a big deal out of something, it's just not that big of a deal to the dog. Elevators, weird stairs, loud construction equipment...I just get on/up/past without any hesitation and the dog follows my lead. If they show no reaction, I do give praise. However I do not pause and try to coax a dog to do something, I find that just draws even more attention to whatever might make them nervous and just makes it worse.

[ShatteringGlass]

I agree with Lies. When I first brought Sydney home, she was TERRIFIED of going into large open buildings like Petco or some indoor shows. She would shake and cower, with her ears pinned back and her tail up so far inbetween her legs people thought she was a male. So what I did at least once a week (I also worked at Petco at the time, so I would bring her to work as well) was just walk in the store and walk around with her. I didnt stop, pause, or say anything to her. Just walked around constantly for 5-10 minutes at a time and then left. It took a few months, but she got over it on her own. Now her usual behavior is to drag me into the store and then proceed to the dog cookie bar where she steals treats. Then when we are done shopping, she hounds the cashier for more cookies.