Am I Making Him Worse

S

Sheltiekisses

Forums Novice
Cade will be 13 weeks on Monday, when I take him outside he is terrified of EVERYTHING. I live in an apartment complex and there is a lot of noise and people. A person can be just within his view and he goes crazy trying to run back to the apartment.

I make him stay outside but today I started wondering if that was only aggravating the situation? He went a solid week with no accidents in the house and today he started having them. Of course, I expected it to happen but he was jumping on the door when he had to go out and now he isn't.

How would you handle him?

Jody and Cade
 
I'd be spending quality time sitting in the grass with cookies or dinner and hand feeding him. Don't reward the scared behavior, but when he is calm, feed him. He'll learn that things won't kill him, and that goofy behavior doesn't get rewarded. Start with small sessions, like less than two minutes, and build up.

If he wants to look at something, that's ok, or bark once, that's ok. But then get his attention back to you and reward the attention.
 
ClantyreSheltie said:
I'd be spending quality time sitting in the grass with cookies or dinner and hand feeding him. Don't reward the scared behavior, but when he is calm, feed him. He'll learn that things won't kill him, and that goofy behavior doesn't get rewarded. Start with small sessions, like less than two minutes, and build up.

If he wants to look at something, that's ok, or bark once, that's ok. But then get his attention back to you and reward the attention.
Click to expand...

Took the words right of my mouth!

I remember my breeder telling me that that about a week before I was due to bring Bacca home, she would take him on the front lawn and sit him down to listen to cars going by.

First walks were still an issue, but we took baby steps. Sometimes we would just go to the end of the drive and sit.
 
I agree with others, you need to keep working on acclimating him. Make lots of great things happen outside. Try to only go back in when he is calm and focused on you. "What you pet is what you get," so be mindful that you are not inadvertently reinforcing fear by trying to "soothe" him when he is reacting. Just be matter of fact and try to counter-condition/redirect BEFORE he sees the scary thing/person/whatever.

Think of it this way--when he goes outside, things scare him and he fears that something bad will happen--he wants to go inside where he knows nothing bad happens. If you let him take you back inside, nothing "bad" happens, of course, but he will naturally assume that it was because he ran away that he stayed "safe". It will make his fears worse. He has to stay out there long enough to realize that nothing terrible is happening. In fact, very good things are happening!

Put more simply, every time he succeeds in going back indoors while in a state of fear/flight, you will reinforce the connection between outside = anxiety, going inside = decreasing anxiety. I other words, there is "pressure" he feels when he is outside that he tries to relieve by going indoors. Don't give him that release, help him find it when he's outside.

Also, as a puppy, I would not depend on him to "tell" you when it's time to go out. Just take him outside on a regular schedule, whether he appears to need to go or not. You'll help avoid accidents.
 
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