Fear & Reactivity with Objects

[KerryCampion]

I'm trying to help my anxious dog be more comfortable around certain objects that make her nervous. One big one is these new types of backpack/suitcase combo that all the kids have here.

 

Basically one time a girl nearly hit her in the face with one and since then she can be reactive when she sees one. I've heard teaching the dog to target can help with fear of objects? I'd love some feedback on my plan to help her overcome this fear:

 

• Teach her to target the object but start slow - reward for first looking at it, getting closer, sniffing it etc until she's eventually comfortable touching it.
• Classical conditioning: walking around the house with it and feeding her in its presence. Not just me, my husband and daughter but eventually my nieces and nephews also. Also decreasing the distance with which she watches them walk around the garden with it and work our way up to seeing them run with it without reacting.
• Periodically bring it out at home and give her high-value food like chicken when it comes out and stop when I put it away.

 

Is there anything else I could do? Does this sound OK? She barked at a girl today who had one and the poor thing was scared but thankfully I explained to the mum that she wasn't barking at the girl herself but actually at the suitcase and she was OK. 

[Adrienne Farricelli]

Hi there!

Yes, target training can help with the fear of objects. Specifically, I like to use the clicker to reward baby steps as you have described (looking at it, walking towards it, sniffing it). If your dog is not fearful of the clicker's sound, here is the guide on clicker training:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/brain-training/clicker-training/

If your dog is fearful of the clicker sound, here's a guide for that:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/your-clicker-best-friend-or-worst-enemy/

I am boarding/training right now a pup called "King" who pulls wildly on the leash and he doesn't like the harness and is scared of having it put over the head. Before investing in a step-in-harness, I am trying to get him to voluntarily investigate it and then phase 2 will be getting him to voluntarily stick his head in the harness on his own. First step is therefore creating positive associations with the harness using "click the trigger." 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tqy35Rbg3zo

Open bar/closed bar can be helpful too for fear of luggage/suitcases etc. Like you can have a helper walk with the backpack rolling along the hallway, and keep you dog perpendicular at an entrance and feed treats every time she watches the luggage pass by. Here is a guide on open/bar closed bar:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/open-bar-closed-bar/

I would suggest bringing high-value treats on walks and keep her at a distance from anybody with a luggage so that she's under threshold ad feed treats upon watching it calmly from a distance.

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/threshold-levels/\

Baby steps and high-value treats is key! With this English setter I am working on, kibble isn't enough even though he loves it. It's with the higher value treats that these days he has started volunteering putting the head through the harness. 

Important is also watching her comfort levels. Depending on how fearful she is, you may even have to start by recording the sound of the suitcase rolling and playing it back at low volume as you feed treats. Once the recording sound is over, no more treats. This is covered in the 'hear that" section:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/pre-lat-look-behavior-modification/

Aim for a positive conditioned emotional response:

https://www.braintraining4dogs.com/members/archive/conditioned-emotional-response-cer/

Slow and steady wins the race!

Happy training!

Adrienne