Fear, Stress, and Frustration

Thunderstorm phobia? Separation anxiety? Fear, stress and frustration exacerbate your dog's genetic stress manifestations.  Some dogs are oral (chewing, licking)l, some are vocal (howling, barking), some are physical (pacing, digging) and/or some have an internal response, (urinating, defecating).  Some dogs have several stress reactions.  You can't change what stress reactions your dogs has because that part is genetic.  You can, however, change the amount of stress your dog feels. And, when he isn't stressed  all the behaviors go away.

Some dogs are actively defensive when they're afraid  .They may want to flee or fight. You can't change what they do when they're defensive.  But, you can change whether or not your dog is defensive.

Punishing stress manifestations or defensiveness leads to more stress, more defensiveness and more acting out. We can help you correct fear- and stress- induced behavior problems through 1) establishing a leadership relationship with your dog 2) meeting your dog’s needs for stimulation and/or 3) desensitizing and counter-conditioning. To learn what you may be doing unwittingly with regard to thunderstorms you might want to read the article Putting a damper on Mr. Goodpuppy's Spring.