Fear of Sounds and Objects

Morteza,

I have a two-year-old Chihuahua who is afraid of almost everything. It seems as if everything is falling on him. I have had him since he was 12 weeks old and as far as I can remember, we have never had an incident and nothing has fallen on his head. He is even afraid of his food bowl since it fell once, but not on him. He is worried when eating and drinking, as if something is about to happen.

A trainer told me that he is a timid pup, there is nothing you can do and you should just live with it. I have tried everything – changed his food and water bowl, tried to hand feed him and give him love while eating, but it is just getting worse. Can you help me please?

Charlotte Dormer

Morteza’s advice

Dear Charlotte,

Thank you for your message. To me, it looks like a self-confidence issue and we must approach this issue very delicately. Dogs with confidence issues – who are fearful or timid – usually take longer to rehabilitate.

Your main priority is to build your dog’s self-esteem and self-confidence. Obstacle courses, agility courses and swimming can help tremendously. Through these activities, the dogs feel that they have achieved something and feel greater about themselves. You are helping your dog to accomplish small goals slowly and with every success comes a little more confidence. However, you need to be mindful as helping a dog to regain his confidence is a very long process, so you need to be patient and consistent.  

A professional dog trainer can also help to accelerate this process by challenging your dog further and providing you with the right techniques. You also need to think about training yourself and by this, I mean that you must be a good role model through projecting positive energy while challenging your dog, as opposed to feeling sorry for your dog. Remember that you can’t help anybody if you feel sorry for them and instead, you need to be projecting calm energy.

Good Luck,

Morteza