04/24/2023
Trainer tip: comparison and understanding of a fearful dogs reaction vs humans with a stranger.
Scenario- Human: you are sitting on your couch relaxing, a stranger walks in. You jump up and yell "who are you?! get out of my house!". The stranger continues to walk toward you. You continue to yell, threaten to call the police, back away while looking around for an escape or weapon, you pick up a lamp. The stranger continues to advance, reaching out towards you, you lunge forward while swinging the lamp, threatening to hurt them. The stranger still advances saying "it ok I won't hurt you" and tries to touch you. At that point you either run away or you hit them with lamp until they stop.... Very scary situation right?
Now put that in a fearful dogs prospective.
A stranger walks into the house, they get up, growl and bark. The stranger continues forward, the dogs hackles go up they snarl ,growl and bark, they frantically look around for an escape route (the only weapon they have are teeth). The stranger still advances, reaching out toward the dog. The dog barks, snarls,lunges and air snaps at the stranger. The stranger still advances, saying" it's ok I won't hurt you" and tries to touch the dog. At this point the dog will either try to run away or will use the only weapon they have and bite the stranger until they stop.
Guess what, to a fearful dog, EVERY new person you bring home is that SCARY STRANGER.
This is why It is vital, you properly train your fearful dog, so when you bring in a new "stranger" they know how to respond. The "look" and "greet" method is a wonderful tool to use.
*New puppy owners; a great way to avoid raising a fearful dog, is to properly socialize and desensitize them.
