Why won’t my dog relax after I tell them it’s ok?
“Why won’t my dog relax? Why does he/she continue to be afraid once I’ve shown that we’re ok?”
Today I’d like to address these concerns, and provide some information that will help you better understand your dog’s anxiety- after all, you can’t help what you don’t understand. As always, my goal is to provide you with all of the knowledge and tools you need to truly solve your dog’s anxiety.
Dog anxiety is all about perceived threat. Maybe your guest, Aunt Joan, wouldn’t hurt a fly- but your dog isn’t going to take any chances. Your dog believes that barking, running away, or hiding will give it greater chances of avoiding the potential threat. So, at least in your dog’s mind, why would he/she wait to find out if there’s any actual danger? Might as well just panic!
The good news is, perception is often easier to change than reality. If the entire world were really as dangerous as your dog thought, you’d have a much bigger problem to deal with! But what we actually have to change is the way our dog sees the world around it.
That is something we can fix. I’ve taken many dogs from shaking in a corner to proudly waltzing around a bustling home improvement store, accepting treats and chin scratches from friendly strangers. I’ve seen dogs go from barking at every tiny noise to giving just a single alert bark when someone's at the door, then happily greeting the guest. And I’ve helped dogs transform from deathly afraid of their owner leaving the house (pooping on the floor and destroying the couch in the process) to happily snoozing away on a dog bed completely alone in the house.
The fact of the matter is, your dog’s perception of the scary world around it can change, and surprisingly quickly. Who’s going to change it?
You guessed it! You!!
I’ve done all of the heavy lifting already- I know exactly what it takes to change an anxious dog’s perception, and I can teach you how to do it.
Please reach out via the contact page of this site if you’d like to know more about options for working with me on your dog’s anxiety!
