Anxiety Dr Phil McBeagle

The doorways at the Dog Training/Foster Shack are not nearly
this scary looking. It seems this may be how Dr. Phil McBeagle
sees them.

Our newest foster boy, Dr. Phil McBeagle, seems to have some anxiety issues. I suspect that his fears are the result of some previous trauma.

Even your macho dog trainer friend would be apprehensive
of crossing this particular doorway!

The most concerning phobia that he seems to have involves interior doorways. He is really scared to cross doorways inside the shack. He does not seem to have as big of an issue going inside or outside the structure. In fact he is house trained and has not had any accidents since he got here.

He just appears to be terribly frightened of crossing doorways from one room to the next. Once he is in the room he is okay.

He also cowers if you try to pet him on the head. I suspect that this is also the result of past trauma, Perhaps someone hit him on the head in an attempt to discipline the poor little guy.

It thought it may be helpful to some of you if I write about this problem and how we are going to address it here at the shack.

It is very important that the dog not be forced into a situation that he fears. It will not help to try to force him through the doorway. In fact, in Dr. Phils case, it is almost impossible to force him short of physically carrying him through.

In Dr. Phils case, The Lovely Shane and I are using techniques that involve what us dog trainers, just to sound cool, sometimes call desensitization and rehabilitation. Basically, the objective is to help the dog to become less sensitive to what we call, the stimuli (doesnt that sound cool). In Dr. Phils case the stimuli is the interior doorways. This seems to be what stimulates his fearful behavior. So, our objective is to make him less sensitive to the stimuli or to the doorways. We do this by using a motivator that is desirable to him. In his case, and with most beagles, tasty treats make a very good motivator. So, we have to make him associate the treats and the praise that he gets from us with walking through the doorway. It is not as fast and easy as it sounds. There are certain techniques to learn and the timing is really important. But, with persistence and patience, this method can be very successful in addressing this type of anxiety.


We have already begun this technique and it is beginning to work a little. But, I can not stress enough, this is a slow process. We do not know what sort of trauma the little guy has been through. Nor do we know how long this phobia of doorways has been an issue for him. As with all dog training, patience and routine is essential.

Dr. Phil McBeagle (I still think that is a cool name)

For the critics of my approach, I will state that the treats are only used to give the dog an immediate motivation. The treats will not have to be used permanently. I think that eventually Dr. Phil will not show any outward signs of being afraid of doorways. It is not that he will be going through the doorway to get the treat, it is that he will associate the doorways with good things rather than traumatic things.

I have successfully used this sort of approach for various other anxiety problems in the past. This is the sort of approach that I would use for a dog who is afraid of the veterinarian or a dog who is afraid of the clippers a groomer uses.

It is difficult to state with precise accuracy how this approach, or any other approach for that matter, will work for a particular dog. Each dog, like each person, responds differently to a particular treatment or approach. What is effective for an individual dog may not necessarily be effective for another. However I am very optimistic that this approach will be very effective with Dr. Phil McBeagle!

Veterinarians are not evil aliens.... not sure
about lawyers though :) 

If you have a dog that seems to have a phobia or anxiety, please do not give up! The intent of this post is to inform you that there is hope! Many people get frustrated and give up when dogs have anxiety issues. From our prospective, as humans, it can be very frustrating. This is particularly true if we do not understand the proper techniques. It is important that your dog does not sense your frustration. This is something that you can effectively address!

If you have a dog with anxiety issues, please contact me at anytime! I will be more than happy to help you develop and execute a training plan to address the issue. This is precisely why I am in this business!

Till next time

-William

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Anxiety

Prevention is Worth a Pound of Cure:

Please remember: It is a GOOD THING that a dog shows you that he is anxious or uncomfortable, rather than going straight to a bite. Never punish a dog for showing that he wants to be left alone by growling, leaving the situation or demonstrating more subtle signs. If you punish a dog for growling or breaking a stay to get way from a situation you might suppress the warning or avoidance behavior and he might just bite without warning first the next time. The dog still feels exactly the same way about the thing that is bothering him, but now he has no way to show it and no way out of the situation.

Be glad if your dog gives a warning to person that make it anxious and take steps to modify the behavior of the individuals, condition the dog to enjoy the interaction and create safe spaces for both dog and human.

Signs of Anxiety:
These signs indicate that your dog is uncomfortable with the current situation and there is a need for intervention to prevent pushing the dog to the point of biting, and to make sure your canine friend is happy and not feeling anxious.


One Paw Raised:
This is very cute but the dog is not happy and does not want to be petted or bothered.


Half Moon Eye:
The dog just wants to be left alone. Watch for this one when kids are mauling the dog. This is a common expression in dogs that being hugged. If you see the half moon eye when the people approach the dog or are interacting with the dog, its time to intervene and give them all something else to do.


Displacement Behaviors:
Displacement behaviors are normal behaviors displayed out of context. They indicate conflict and anxiety. The dog wants to do something, but he is suppressing the urge to do it. He displaces the suppressed behavior with something else such as a lick or a yawn. For example, you are getting ready to go out and the dog hopes to go too. He is not sure what will happen next. He wants to jump on you or run out the door, but instead he yawns. The uncertainty of the situation causes conflict for the dog and the displacement behaviors are a manifestation of that conflict.

Some examples of displacement behaviors include:
yawning when not tired
licking chops without the presence of food
sudden scratching when not itchy
sudden biting at paws or other body part
sudden sniffing the ground or other object
wet dog shake when not wet or dirty

These are all things that dogs do anyway. It is important to look at the context to determine whether the dog is feeling anxious. For example: if it is bedtime and the dog gets up, stretches, yawns and goes to her bed, then that yawn was not a displacement behavior. If the kids are hugging the dog or lying on him and he yawns or starts licking at them over and over then this is displacement. He wants to get up and leave or even to bite, but he displaces that with yawning or licking them or himself. In this context the licking or yawning behavior tells you that the dog is uncomfortable with whatever the kids are doing and it is time for you to intervene. You must then either prevent the kids from doing this in the future or use positive training techniques to teach the dog to enjoy (not just tolerate) these actions from the kids.

Avoidance Behaviors:
Sometimes dogs are more overt when they feel anxious and want to remove themselves from a situation. Please dont force a dog to stay in situation in which he feels anxious, especially if children are the source of his anxiety. Here are some examples:

the dog gets up and leaves an uncomfortable situation (he may bite rather than leaving one of these days)
turning head away
hiding behind person or object
barking and retreating
the dog rolls over on back in submissive way (please dont hurt me!)

Other Body Language Signs of Anxiety:
tail between legs
tail low and only the end is wagging
tail between legs and wagging
tail down or straight for curly-tailed dog (husky, malamute, pug, chow chow, spitz-type dogs etc.)
ears sideways for erect eared dog
ears back and very rapid panting
dog goes into another room away from you and urinates or defecates

Note: All dogs should have a safe place, such as a crate or mat that they can go to when they want to be left alone.

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