Puppies: Fear Periods and Reactivity
Is your puppy suddenly scared of things or people they’ve seen before? It may be surprising that your puppy is now frightened by the lawn statue they’ve passed several times on a walk or your friend they’ve already met without issue. But don’t worry — this is a normal stage of development called a fear period. With patience, compassion and positive reinforcement training, you can help your dog feel more confident and safe in their surroundings.
What Is a Fear Period?
As your puppy or young dog is growing up, they begin to question if people or things in their environment are potentially harmful. This is a normal, natural stage in their development that may happen anytime between the ages of 8-10 weeks for puppies and 6-14 months for adolescents. Fear periods usually last for one to two weeks and can happen more than once in a young dog’s life.
Dogs in this stage of development may show signs of fear around any number of seemingly silly things. You may see them shy away from people wearing hats or carrying a large bag. They may suddenly notice things that have been there all along — like a fire hydrant on your routine walk — and react. All of these behaviors are normal and happen due to a new awareness of their environment. With patience, you can get things back on track in no time.
What Are the Signs It’s a Fear Period?
First, learn to watch for signals that your dog is afraid, so that you can help them through their fear. Your puppy may:
- Lower their head and body from normal position (cower)
- Flinch
- Bark
- Show the whites of their eyes (whale eye), stare or purposely look in another direction away from the “scary” thing or person
- Sniff the air in the direction of the unfamiliar object or person but not want to move toward the object or person
If you see any of these behaviors, move your dog away from the object or person scaring them. This builds trust and will let them know you are always there when they need you.
How to Overcome the Fear Period
Help your pup associate the scary thing with something positive (such as praise, treats, play or distance from the object or person). This makes them think that seeing the mail carrier or child on a bike leads to a tasty treat or play time — things they enjoy!
By doing this over and over again at a “safe distance” (a place where they can see the object or person but don’t show the signs of fear mentioned above), you are helping your dog create a positive association with the object or person they were worried about.
The good news is, most dogs grow out of their fear period with support and guidance from their pet parents. Our advice is to help your dog work through any fearfulness they develop during these periods. If ignored, the newfound fear may never go away.
What If It’s Not a Fear Period?
You can typically tell if your dog is experiencing a fear period because they will begin to react to things that they have already encountered. If your normally friendly and confident dog shows sudden fearful behavior to new things, there could be an underlying medical issue requiring a visit to the veterinarian.
Also, if you notice your dog’s fear lasting more than two weeks, you may be dealing with a different behavior issue than a fear period. In this case, it is best to enlist the services of a certified, positive-reinforcement based trainer to help you do the careful training needed to help your dog work through these big emotions. Visit our Trainer Directory for recommended trainers in Southern California and beyond.