Fear Period Fun!

[Kissindra]

Atticus (Great Dane puppy) has just started showing signs of entering his first fear period - we had a good bark at a pile of clothes in the corner and a shadow down the hall, very much the same as Boo did when he was little but the latest has me stumped.

He's suddenly scared of coming up the back stairs after weeks of no issue, He takes them slow and hasn't had any falls but now he stops around halfway or 3/4 of the way up and whines, obviously scared.

The stairs have no backing and he can see through, just not sure this is the issue since he gets so far up them without problem. He's fine with the front steps, much shorter and can't see through. We are waiting on landlords permission to build a ramp in any case so I just need to know what to do in the meantime.

What is the best approach - I am sure as hell not carrying 30kg of Dane pup up the stairs, so far I can place his feet for him and he moves or I can ignore him and leave something he wants at the top of the stairs and he'll move eventually, alternatively I can block of the stairs and he can access the backyard via the front and side of the house (all fenced obviously)

Thoughts please?

Edited June 11, 2010 by Kissindra

[raineth]

Hi Kissindra!

Oh bless him!

O.k. not an expert - but I can say this is how i would handle it. although maybe you're already doing this (?)

I would walk confidently up them, completely ignoring any fear behaviours of his, especially whining.

If he wants to stay put in the middle of the the stairs whining I would just let him.

I think eventually he would get sick of this, and sick of being by himself in the middle of the stairs, and go up them. I would reward this with some yummy treats or a game of tug (if he likes that). I find you can also use jealousy quite well in this circumstance if you were to be at the top of the stairs having a wonderful game with your other dog... that may motivate him to come up.

Alternatively; If his fear was more intense, I'd probably use the clicker and make every step up worth a click and treat.

Also try some calming signals, and always make sure your body and face show that you are relaxed and confident.

and practice, practice, practice

[corvus]

Does he know how to target? I am currently using a nose target to coax Erik into aggreeing to have his harness put on every morning. For some unknown reason he utterly loathes the process of it being put on and hides under the bed, although once it's on he's fine. So I get the tastiest treat we have and get him to target my finger through the harness so he puts his head through voluntarily. Then he gets some cooked steak as a reward.

I'm all for counter-conditioning in fear periods. Sometimes you can just ignore it and it'll go away, but sometimes they need a little help.

[sas]

He could have had a little scary moment and this is reinforcing how he feels now or could just be that now the no backing just doesn't make him feel very secure.

What pup is experiencing is pretty standard, many dogs do not like stairs with no backing because they don't seem to feel safe on them, I would cover the gaps.

If inside you can just use blu tac and cardboard and if outside you can just use cut out pieces of tarp or something waterproof and staple to cover the gaps.

We've built ramps at our 2 previous rentals, there is a way you can make them without making them a permanent addition with nails etc.

Edited June 11, 2010 by sas

[Kissindra]

cheers guys, will try putting a backing on the stairs - tarp and a few nails ought to do it - and see if that makes the difference first. Hopefully the landlords get back soon from overseas and we'll have permission to sort a ramp. Will let you know how we progress!

[K9Nev]

cheers guys, will try putting a backing on the stairs - tarp and a few nails ought to do it - and see if that makes the difference first. Hopefully the landlords get back soon from overseas and we'll have permission to sort a ramp. Will let you know how we progress!

Have you tried luring him up with food or toys???. Our little guy balked coming down the stairs and would stand at the top and bark. Food lure didn't work, but chasing his favorite tug toy did and slowly he came down following the tug I was dragging in front of him. Did that a couple of times with a good play and praise when he reached the bottom and he now comes shooting down the stairs like a veteran

Edited June 12, 2010 by K9Nev

[Nekhbet]

leave a nice bowl of his favourite food at the top and let him work it out for himself. Give him coping skills. Dogs tend to make a game of it too, if he cant hack it he can stay down there until he does.