# Fearful 5 month old



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

Keep calm, keep socialising him, don't force him to face anything that scares him, and wait for him to grow out of it!


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## partial2poodles (Feb 11, 2010)

Keep taking him places and get him to thepoint where he has almost zero reaction to new stuff. He will outgrow it but you want him to come out on the o-with-the-flow type of dog.ther side as a positive, sure, go-with-the-flow type of dog.


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## JE-UK (Mar 10, 2010)

These fear periods do seem to come and go in puppies ... I always just tried to walk a line between a bit of acknowledgement and soothing of the fear, while merrily marching into whatever was frightening mine as if it were the most fascinating thing in the world. They seem to look for examples, and both you and other calm dogs can be good guides into the big scary world!


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## Locket (Jun 21, 2009)

You can also help condition him by introducing the scary things and rewarding him for being brave. For example, at home, take a plastic bag and rustle it. Then put it on the ground and let him approach it. If he approaches the bag, give him lots of praise and a treat.


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## caboodles (Jan 7, 2011)

Locket said:


> You can also help condition him by introducing the scary things and rewarding him for being brave. For example, at home, take a plastic bag and rustle it. Then put it on the ground and let him approach it. If he approaches the bag, give him lots of praise and a treat.


I agree with this...

ALSO, try and show him that because YOU think these things are harmless and OK, he should trust you and feel the same. Like, for example.. maybe lead him to the objects he's scared of. That way, he'll think "OHH, well if THEY approach that weird thing, it must be harmless!"

Let him "smell" the situation.. dogs use their noses more than we think. 

Another thing is to raise his tail yourself and scratch/massage his hip area. When a dog is scared.. his tail is between his legs, but if you raise his tail FOR him, it helps to kind of trick his brain into thinking the situation is OK, which it is, and gives him a boost of confidence.


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## CT Girl (Nov 17, 2010)

Swizzle is 5 months and is going through the same phase. He seems to that ceramic and metal animals are threatening. I don't know why - you would think he would realize by his sense of smell that they are not alive. Perhaps it is because the vet has ceramic and metal animals and everytime he goes he gets a shot. I just walk up to the object and pet it. He comes up for a quick sniff. I keep petting the object then he comes up and really examines it and after that he is fine. It is odd. He is brave with other things. He likes to play tug of war with a friends lab - with his tail! He will also walk on a wobble board, climb up and down ladders but show him a plastic statue of a cat - Oh no.


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## Feathersprings (Jul 15, 2010)

Hoolie is 14 months old and when we went to training this week there was a plywood cutout of a husky dog in the next yard that freaked him out! He has not been afraid of much for a long time


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## Jessie's Mom (Mar 23, 2010)

i don't agree with not reacting to it. jessie is fearful due to poor socialization as a pup. she's outgrown a lot. her trainer helped me to understand the different situations and how to help her through them. confronting and treating is a good way to go. however, i also encourage her when i know it is just her sensitivity to maybe new sounds, or new scents that is making her fearful. i tell her it's ok and she's learned to trust me. using this approach with the examples that you cited are fine. 

i think the important thing is to remember how in-tune and how extra perceptive poodles are and that, sometimes, when they rear away from a particular person or situation it is for good reason. we have to be able to "read" our dogs.


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## Purley (May 21, 2010)

Lucy is a year old and she barks at things. I wouldn't say though that she is scared of them - its just that she notices things more than some other dogs. The other day she was barking at my Wellies (rubber boots for the non Brits) - I put them out by the front door to put them in the closet and they were the other side of the step over gate so she barked as she couldn't really investigate them close up. Actually, she could easily jump over the gate, but she knows she is not supposed to!

She is a bit of a yapper outside too. Anyone having the audacity to talk in another garden - she has to let them know that according to her, this isn't allowed. We are working on "no noise". I am positive she is not scared of the thinks she barks at. 

I cannot stand dogs yapping outside. My friend used a shock collar on a yappy Coton, but I want to see if I can stop Lucy with "no noise" and "good girl" when she stops, before I resort to borrowing the shock collar.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

It is important not to soothe your dog for a fearful reaction. This will reinforce that reaction. Soothing a dog who is acting with fear is possibly the worst thing an owner could do. (Not saying you are doing this. Just pointing it out because I cringe when I see people do this. ) Instead, you should ignore the behavior and act as if everything is A-OK. Your dog will be looking to you for guidance and if you act brave he will feel more confident. 

Millie was scared of runners and bikers as a pup and this was a problem during our walks. One thing that *really* worked well for us was to give her a command to follow when I knew something she feared was approaching. For example, I saw a biker coming so I asked her to "down". She had to lay down and stay as the biker passed. She watched the biker pass. As soon as it passed, she got a treat and I said "free!" to release her. Within several days her fear response drastically was reduced. Notice how I did not soothe her. Instead, I forced her to face her fear in a "safe" way. The reason she was facing her fears in a "safe" was is because she was following a command of mine, someone she trusts, and her focus was on me, not the object she feared. She is no longer afraid of bikers or runners.


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## PoodlePowerBC (Feb 25, 2011)

I definitely do not believe in saying "It's OK" CM, this is what you mean by soothing, right? And I have been getting him to focus on a sit before most situations. He is improving


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## Jessie's Mom (Mar 23, 2010)

PoodlePowerBC said:


> I definitely do not believe in saying "It's OK" CM, this is what you mean by soothing, right? And I have been getting him to focus on a sit before most situations. He is improving


everyone has to see what works best for their dog. i use the words "it's ok", maybe CM uses "down & free". i do not coddle her - maybe that is the impression you got. when jessie gets scared she immediately sits. me telliing her "down" or "sit" wouldn't make much sense. as soon as i say to her "it's ok" she gets up and then i say "let's go" and she continues to walk passed whatever was spooking her.


it's about building confidence in the dog - i'm sure we are all in agreement with that part.


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## CharismaticMillie (Jun 16, 2010)

PoodlePowerBC said:


> I definitely do not believe in saying "It's OK" CM, this is what you mean by soothing, right? And I have been getting him to focus on a sit before most situations. He is improving


Yes, this is exactly what I mean.


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## PoodlePowerBC (Feb 25, 2011)

I think it also has a lot to to with my personality  When i say "Sit", I say it with more of a command tone. When I say "It's OK" ... it's more like I would say to my son's when they were young and upset about something. It's a habit that I can't break. So the words mean nothing! It is totally about building confidence in the dog!


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