Whether becoming a guardian of an anxious or fearful dog is by choice or by accident, many people are unprepared for the impact the experience will have on their lives. Having a dog who seems to be a square peg in a round hole, unable to cope with our busy human lifestyles, can be exhausting and isolating. But finding effective help and differentiating between the varied advice being widely shared is far from easy.
Pamela understands the desperation people feel when they have spent months or even years trying to help their struggling canine friends, thinking they have tried every training technique and product available without significant success. She was once in exactly that position with her own dog Buster, yet when she consulted with expert in fearful dogs Debbie Jacobs, she was amazed how much difference following the step by step training plans made to his progress. This experience provided the life changing inspiration to continue her education in training, behaviour and counselling at the Academy for Dog Trainers.
TraininG
ANXIOUS OR
FEARFUL DOGS
How we’LL help
There are many ways a dog can become fearful including genetics, maternal behaviour and lack of positive early socialisation in addition to scary life experiences. People often feel guilty that they have somehow caused their dog’s fear when it is far from the case.
Dogs will vary in their responses to fear, using fight, flight or freeze, or a combination of strategies.
Pamela follows Debbie Jacobs’ guidelines for working with fearful dogs:
Keep them feeling safe, which may include talking to your vet about medications.
Create fabulous associations with anything they are afraid of or we don’t want them ever to be afraid of.
Train them using lots of positive reinforcement to build strong, reliable behaviours they can perform anywhere and anytime.
The mistake many people make when training fearful dogs is to go too fast - often our human lives seem to be racing along at lightning speed, and it’s not easy to slow down and go at the dog’s pace, but that’s what our nervous dogs desperately need. We will create training plans that are broken down into as many micro steps as necessary, and always be ready to make it easier if the dog is still struggling. We may not always know why the dog is fearful, but by using effective techniques we can give them the best chance to learn how to cope in our human world.
PRICING FOR Training ANXIOUS OR FEARFUL DOGS
Remote consultation via Zoom: £80 per session (approximately 1 hour).
Note: All initial consultations take place remotely, regardless of location.
In-home consultation: £95 per session (approximately 1 hour).
In-home pricing is based on consultations within a 25-mile radius of our North Oxfordshire base near Banbury. Additional mileage charges will apply for travel to more distant locations - please ask for details.
STILL DON’t KNOW WHAT TO DO?
No need to continue to suffer alone. We understand the stress of living with anxious or fearful dogs and will help set you on the right track.