Clean Run - February 2013 - 54

Teen Angst

HANDLING
YOUR
PUPPY’S
MOMENTS

Insecurity
OF

By Catherine Steinke

When your puppy’s adult teeth
begin to emerge, often so do
his insecurities. One day your fur-

How you handle your developing puppy’s
moments of insecurity can have a great
impact on his ability to trust you, his repertoire of behavioral choices, and his future success in life. What’s a puppy-mom
to do? Here are some things to know
and games to play to help you navigate
your puppy’s teen months.
54

Defensive fear can quickly turn into offensive aggression with experience. For
example, your puppy startles and barks
loudly at a scary bicyclist... the bicyclist
leaves the area… and your puppy is no
longer scared. From your puppy’s perspective, barking worked. Every time
this happens, your puppy learns that aggression is a useful tool to control his
fear. This is not ideal. What would you
prefer his response be? Time to make
a training plan!
Teach the games included here when
your puppy is not afraid so that if he
becomes startled, you will both have
options. Learning a new skill cannot
occur during panic. Can you imagine
riding in a car when the driver loses
control? Could you learn to knit while
careening off the road? Of course not!
If your puppy has crossed the threshold into panic—wide-eyed, tail tucked,
bolting away, alarm barking—do not
attempt to alter his behavior at that
moment. Handle the situation by
getting your puppy to a safe
distance. Take time to allow
his fear to subside, then
analyze the scenario and
make wise choices about
how to proceed.

incident but didn’t proactively consider
how that might affect him. As an adult,
that dog was a great Search and Rescue
dog that had to work closely with other
dogs and handlers, often traveling in helicopters and other confined spaces. He
was fabulous with all other dogs, except
black Labs. If he could, he avoided them.
If they came into his personal space, he
responded with offensive aggression.
Our ignoring the incident resulted in
his permanent fearful association.
Do not force your puppy to
confront his fear. I have seen puppies in a state of panic, their well-meaning caregivers dragging them toward
the teeter, A-frame or scary child-in-astroller. A few even had cheese in their
hands, which mattered not at all to the
puppy. If the puppy is afraid, he’s afraid.
Stop! Remove yourself with your puppy
and think through how to overcome
the problem. Forcing your puppy to face
his fear will do nothing but destroy the
trust he has in you.
Do not trap your puppy. A technique commonly called “flooding,”
putting your puppy in an inescapable
situation by

Note: If you have adopted an older puppy and do not
know his early puppy experiences,
the fears you observe may not be a
temporary phase. Consult a qualified
positive-reinforcement trainer who has
experience solving fear issues to find
the best solution for your puppy.

kid will confidently dash up to strangers, and the next day he alarm barks,
with his tail tucked and hair standing
straight on end, at an overcoat hanging on a chair—such teen angst! These
sorts of dramas can occur during the
onset of canine adolescence, about
4 or 5 months of age, and may loop
through a few cycles until your puppy
reaches adulthood, 15-24 months of
age. Scientists disagree about “adolescent fear-periods”—how long they last
or whether they even happen. There
just isn’t enough research on the subject. But many trainers and dog parents
agree that they do happen, perhaps
more often in naturally sensitive
breeds like the highly visual herding
dogs often found in agility circles.
A little planning and preparation can
go a long way to helping your puppy
grow into a confident adult.

Don’t Wait for Fear to Happen
A one-time event can impact your
puppy forever. Therefore, your current
puppy training regimen must include a
plan for how to overcome a fearful situation. Don’t wait for fear to occur—it
will, eventually. Think ahead now about
how you’ll respond if it does happen.

When Your Puppy Spooks
Do not ignore the fear. Sure,
your puppy will grow out of
adolescence (thankfully!) but
one-time learning can occur.
Years ago, my mother had a fourmonth-old Golden Retriever that
was attacked by a black Labrador.
We thought it was an unfortunate
Clean Run | February 13

Clean Run - February 2013

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