When
a fearful dog leads your walk, by pulling on the leash in front of you — instead of following on a loose leash behind you — he is in the natural position of the «pack leader» — literally, physically and geometrically the leader of your little social pack.
Not exact matches
For instance, should a
dog be scared of water, this would translate into throwing the
dog into the water, or in the case of a
dog fearful of gunshots, this would
lead to tying him up right next to a shooting range.
Some
dogs may be
fearful of car rides if they only
lead to vet visits.
a.) a considerable amount of exercise, including the use of treadmills and backpacks, as a way of relaxing
dogs to prepare them for counter-conditioning exercises; b.) packs of
dogs to rehabilitate unstable,
fearful or aggressive
dogs; c.) Leashes and chain collars to block jumping, whining, possessiveness, biting, aggressiveness, excessive barking, mounting, fighting, active dominance challenges; d.) Redirection to get
dogs doing alternative behaviors in play areas, obstacle courses, a pool, a feeding area, a sleeping area, and an eating / drinking area; e.) calming techniques using hand feeding; f.) a limited amount of obedience training, such as teaching the
dogs to heel on a loose
lead at the handler's side; g.) a «claw» technique, his own version of the «alpha rollover», and a pursuit technique to deal with
dogs that don't show submission to other
dogs or people; h.) «flooding» for phobias; i.) «calm / assertive» handler techniques; j.) touch and sound techniques to interrupt, correct and / or redirect behaviors; k.) a variety of traditional manners rules, which are implemented with the «no free lunch» type of approach; l.) a variety of games and other «mental challenges»; m.) human intervention; and n.) electric collars (not mentioned, as I recall, in the book)
I David Baron at Superdog, because of his credentials and National Recognition as a
leading expert in Aggressive and
fearful dogs,
dogs with Severe... I mean Severe Behavior Problems.
a.) a considerable amount of exercise, including the use of treadmills and backpacks, as a way of relaxing
dogs to prepare them for counter-conditioning exercises b.) packs of
dogs to rehabilitate unstable,
fearful or aggressive
dogs; c.) Leashes and chain collars to block jumping, whining, possessiveness, biting, aggressiveness, excessive barking, mounting, fighting, active dominance challenges; d.) Redirection to get
dogs doing alternative behaviors in play areas, obstacle courses, a pool, a feeding area, a sleeping area, and an eating / drinking area; e.) calming techniques using hand feeding; f.) a limited amount of obedience training, such as teaching the
dogs to heel on a loose
lead at the handler's side; g.) a «claw» technique, his own version of the «alpha rollover», and a pursuit technique to deal with
dogs that don't show submission to other
dogs or people; h.) «flooding» for phobias; i.) «calm / assertive» handler techniques; j.) touch and sound techniques to interrupt, correct and / or redirect behaviors; k.) a variety of traditional manners rules, which are implemented with the «no free lunch» type of approach; l.) a variety of games and other «mental challenges»; m.) human intervention; and n.) electric collars (usually not mentioned in their marketing materials or websites)
Your
dog also may associate the painful shock with people or other experiences,
leading to
fearful or aggressive behavior.
The Scottish Terrier's small size could also
lead it to be easily intimidated by other
dogs so that it barks to defend itself, attempting to appear brave despite actually being
fearful.
This type of behavior should not be cooed at or encouraged in any way because it also encourages fear that can
lead to a
fearful adult
dog.
Keep the
leads loose, since tension on the leash might communicate to the
dogs that you are
fearful or anxious about their meeting, which will in turn make them more
fearful and anxious.
Bicycles coming up fast from behind, whizzing traffic, horns honking, sirens wailing, trains, skateboards, tons of other
dogs, kids running and shouting, all are experiences that could cause a
dog with no early formative exposures to go down a path that
leads to
fearful aggression.
Owners need to know that a
dog bite can
lead to the euthanizing of their
dog, as well as it can traumatize the child for the rest of their life, making them
fearful of all
dogs, and not knowing how to overcome their anxiety around them.
Let me repeat:
leading puppies or shy or
fearful dogs up to strangers to have the stranger give them a treat is a really bad idea that unfortunately has made its way into the cultural mythology about «how to introduce
dogs to people.»
This could
lead to generalized anxiety and / or to the
dog being
fearful of the owner.
This can result in a
fearful situation for the
dog that
leads to aggression.
Isolating a puppy away from other
dogs and new people can
lead to a
fearful, poorly socialized adult
dog.
Failure to socialize can
lead to boredom, and a bored
dog is more likely to act out, become
fearful or aggressive, or develop other serious behavioral problems.
BTW, I wager that «shock collars»
lead to a
fearful dog with a profound mistrust of, and negative reaction to humans.
A breed like the Shih Tzu is a toy breed that needs to be socialized with
dogs of similar size and energy levels or they could become
fearful of other
dogs, especially those larger than themselves, which could
lead to «
dog aggression».
If you are anticipating fireworks and you know your
dog is
fearful, it will only help your
dog if you provide her with additional exercise the week
leading up to the fireworks.