Puppy Afraid of Reflection

[ckwsteury]

We have an approximately 5-month old standard poodle who has just recently become afraid of his reflection during the day and his (and other’s) shadows at night. This new challenge is resulting in difficulty on walks, as he stops to growl, bark and attempt to bite his reflection and often tries to run from his shadow at night. We have read/heard from a couple of sources that this is a “normal” or at least not unusual stage of puppy development. However, we were curious if there is anything we should/should not do to help him navigate this latest phase. Many thanks in advance for your feedback and assistance!

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hello, and welcome to the forums!

To some extent, it is normal for puppies to go through certain times where they are particularly skittish and these stages are referred to as "fear periods." However, it sounds like your pup is going through something that is impacting his life to the extent of making walks difficult, when walks should be a time for pups to enjoy.

 

You are correct, it is important to avoid doing certain things to prevent this fear from getting worse and kudos to you for seeking help on this issue so to nip it in the bud before it becomes too established. Hopefully, this is a fairly new behavior that can be worked on.

In my next post, I will provide some in-depth information. Please stand by as I work on the next post with some feedback and assistance.

[Adrienne Farricelli]

OK, so you have described to me a 5-month old standard poodle who acts afraid of reflections during the day and shadows at night and who during walks growls, attempts to bite shadows or runs away from them. These seem a bit conflicting reactions because, on one hand, he seems to be acting fearful of shadows (running away) , but then on other occasions, he seems to want to attack them and bite them. However, fearful dogs can certainly chase things especially when they cannot remove themselves from certain situations by escaping as it may happen when they are on leash or some dogs just get a bit bolder when they are around their owners.

 

Knowing the exact emotions going on in his head are though very important (actually crucial!) as it impacts the course of action needed. For example, if he is truly fearful, we want to work on creating positive associations with the shadows so that his underlying emotions are changed. If for instance, every time he sees a shadow from a distance where he isn't overly concerned, we feed him a tasty treat or play a fun game if he is toy-motivated (a behavior modification process known as desensitization and counterconditioning), chances are good that, if we do this consistently, he may start looking forward to spotting shadows as they have started to predict great things. In this case, rep after rep, we should start seeing a reduction in fearful behavior and an increase of anticipation with him looking up to you for treats/games.

 

However, if he is instead chasing shadows out of under-stimulation or prey drive (a natural desire to chase seen in many dog breeds- and poodles are one of them), we need a totally different approach. If he chasing shadows out of prey drive and we present a treat every time he sees one, we risk reinforcing the behavior, which can become very problematic in the long run considering that some forms of shadow chasing can even turn into compulsive, obsessive disorders. So knowing what is really going on in his mind is very important here. Is he really fearful? Is he ever acting out of prey drive? Or can he be fearful sometimes, and bolder in others? Is the leash making him act differently? Lots of things to consider there.

 

When we see behaviors as such and can't really make out of what may triggering it or why a dog may act in a certain way, a visit to the vet can be an important starting point. The reason being that, sometimes, chasing shadows may stem from some underlying medical problem. Some dogs may have eye problems which causes them to act in peculiar ways and some repetitive behavior shave even been found to be linked to seizures (fly catching behavior is one of them). It is also possible for a dog to have felt pain one day and spotted a shadow coincidentally at the same time, causing the dog to next act fearful of shadows. Not saying a medical cause is necessarily at play, but it's always important to point out this possibility to play it safe.

 

As for what to do, in general, these kinds of behaviors require a multi-faceted approach, here are a few tips that come to mind:

 

-As already mentioned, I would suggest starting by having your dog see the veterinarian. It is important to exclude medical causes that may trigger behavior abnormalities in dogs.

-Carefully evaluate why your dog may be chasing shadows once medical causes have been ruled out. Is he ever stressed, anxious or frustrated? Does your dog receive enough exercise and mental stimulation? Can he be overwhelmed by excessive noises and exposure to over stimulating situations? Only by carefully evaluating the root cause, you can address it correctly. Enlist the help of a behavior professional using force-free methods if you are not sure why your dog may be prone to chasing shadows.

-Provide outlets for natural, instinctive behaviors with fun brain games, sniffing adventures, digging opportunities and food puzzles so that your dog has an opportunity to put his mind to work and engage in natural behaviors.

-If your dog is stressed or anxious, determine why that may be. Then, take steps to minimize exposure to those stimuli or situations and work on a desensitization and counterconditioning program with the help of a professional.

-Consider a consistent routine. Stressed and anxious who have a hard time coping with changes, may benefit from daily routines which provide a reassuring effect.

-Redirect the behavior. As soon as you notice your dog is about to bite/react towards the shadow (very important that we redirect before the behavior occurs) redirect the behavior to another activity and make engaging in that activity very reinforcing, so that, over time, your dog will pick that activity more and more. For example, as soon as you notice a shadow and you see your dog noticing it as well, ask your dog to perform an easy-to perform replacement behavior you have practiced extensively in absence of the shadow and reinforce that generously with some high-value treats. You can for instance, ask your dog to target your hand or catch a treat you have tossed the opposite side away from the shadow. You can even do some steps of attention heeling if the attacking-shadow behavior occurs on walks.

Here you can find how to train these behaviors (train them first fluently in absence of shadows)

Hand targeting: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/preschool/targeting/

Attention heeling: https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/obedience-101/heeling-attention-heeling/

-Do not provide ANY form of attention when the behavior occurs. Ignore and even walk away from the room when your dog starts the behavior. Provide ample of attention though when your dog engages in other behaviors. However, aim to prevent the behavior from occurring as much as possible, which brings to the next tip.

-Avoid situations known for creating shadows and avoid walking your dog directly in areas or at times when there are lots of shadows. I know, easier said than done, but we don't want to allow rehearsal of the behavior. The more a behavior is rehearsed, the more it tends to become more and more ingrained, therefore, try your best in preventing the behavior from occurring in full form in the first place.

-However, avoidance need not be a long-term solution. Its primary goal is to provide fearful rescue dogs a break from daily anxiety-provoking stimuli, and prevent rehearsal of fearful behaviors until behavior modification can take place. If you want to work on the issue, keep your dog under threshold (https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/) at a distance from the shadow and work on reinforcing alternate behaviors (as mentioned, upon seeing the shadow at a distance, ask your dog to hand target, make eye contact or chase a kibble you toss the opposite way of the shadow). It is always best if behavior modification is done with the help of a professional for in-person guidance for an accurate assessment and correct implementation.

-Provide challenges and keep that brain working with the use of clicker training which is a great confidence booster (if your dog is afraid of sounds use a verbal marker or use the clicker in your pocket)

-Encourage structured brain games (such as hide-and-seek, the jazz-up and settle games) play fetch by asking your dog to sit before tossing the ball, or tug where your dog is asked to drop and take on cue.

 

I hope this helps,

Please let me know if you need further assistance or elucidations!

Best,

Adrienne

Edited October 27, 2019 by Adrienne Farricelli