What are you afraid of?

A question I tend to ask people who need help understanding their fearful dog's perspective is the title of this blog.  There are many folks out there who have little to no regard to how an animal experiences fear even when they themselves are afraid of certain things.  Common human fears like heights, bugs (spiders/roaches), flying and snakes are like dog fears of new environments, new people, sounds and other dogs.  Regardless of why they have that fear both species are entitled to those fears.  Both species should also be given the respect to work through those fears at their own pace and without force.

For example, pretend you are afraid of snakes.  Would it be okay with you for me to find a large non-poisonous snake and sit it on the floor about a foot from you?  What about if we go to the local zoo and go into the snake house while I hold your hand?  If you were really fearful of snakes neither of these options would be welcomed.  You might have already changed your phone number, moved 2 states away and gone into witness protection.  

The shocking part is that we do this to dogs on a regular basis.  They shouldn't be afraid of new people so we make them hang out with new people, get pet by them and even take food from them.  That's like asking you to hold a snake, pet it and then feed it.  Ack!  Crazy, right?

So how can you really help them?  A fantastic resource to really understand what CAN be done to help fearful dogs is a newly released DVD by Suzanne Clothier.  The DVD offers a unique perspective into how our fearful dogs may feel about scary things in their life.  It will also give you techniques and tools to help them, but also help you set better expectations as to what the dog is capable of overcoming.

Website

My biggest take home was a phrase used over and over again.  "How is this for you?"  That simple question will be something I ask over and over again of each individual (humans and all animals) I come in contact with to ensure they are comfortable in that moment.