Life is Scary (Part One)

The Face of Fear and the Root of It

What is the face of fear?

A dog experiencing fear can display a wide variety of symptoms. The most severe of which are in bold on this list. If a dog is demonstrating severe symptoms it is important to get them to a safe area quickly and remove the stimulus causing fear. However, it is not advisable to repeatedly cause a dog to display severe symptoms of fear. Make a plan to help your dog feel more comfortable in the future or begin working with a professional to reduce their fearfulness.

Symptoms of fear can include…

• Signs shown through body language

  • Turning head away

  • Frequent eye blinks

  • Furrowed brow

  • Ears held back

  • Mouth closed tightly

  • Tongue flicks and licking mouth

  • Stress panting (the cheeks are held back very tightly potentially causing wrinkling in the face and the dog is panting rapidly)

  • Yawning

  • Whale eye (the eye is very open and the white of the eye is very apparent)

  • Piloerection (aka hackles raised)

  • Heavy shedding (more than is usual for the dog)

  • Tail tucked (may or may not be wagging)

  • Rolling over to expose belly, but the body is tense

  • Crouched body posture

  • Snarling

  • Air snapping

  • Biting

• Signs shown through other behavior

  • Keeping a “safe” distance

  • Seeking comfort/security from a human or dog they’re attached to

  • Hiding

  • Pacing

  • Whining

  • Barking

  • Very light startle response to stimuli that is typically ignored

  • Growling

  • Urinating/defecating on themselves

This list is not exhaustive! If you own a fearful dog I encourage you to check out the additional resources at the end of this post.

What is the root cause of abnormal fearfulness?

There are many potential factors that “create” fearful dogs, and in many cases dogs that are abnormally fearful have more than one root cause.

1. A lack of or bad experiences during the critical socialization period

   The critical socialization period is a window of time when puppies are most receptive to new experiences and primed to bond with other humans and animals. While there is some variance in opinion, the general consensus is this socialization period lasts from six to twelve weeks of age. Dogs that are abnormally fearful may have received minimal socialization during this period or may have had unpleasant social experiences. For example, puppies born and raised in a “pen out back” would be considered to have minimal socialization. While they have not had “bad” experiences, the sheer lack of experience sets them up to have trouble functioning in their future homes. Conversely, puppies born and raised inside a family home, but repeatedly exposed to inappropriate socialization experiences like rough handling by children and exposure to loud noise that they can’t move away from would be considered to have bad socialization, and much like the puppies raised in a “pen out back” are primed to be more fearful of normal life experiences.

2. Bad experience(s) during developmental fear periods

   A developmental fear period is a short length of time in which puppies are more sensitive to new things and/or show a regression in their confidence with previously benign things. Puppies go through an initial fear period at 2-3 weeks of age, and then another in adolescence. The adolescent fear period will span about 2 weeks, but the age window is much broader, ranging from 6 to 14 months of age. Dogs are particularly susceptible to single event learning during fear periods, meaning one bad experience can have long-lasting repercussions.

3. Chronic stress of the mother dog during pregnancy

   When the mother dog’s cortisol levels (a hormone elevated by stress) are chronically high the puppies developing in the uterus receive some of that hormone through the placenta. The early “dose” of cortisol sets the puppies up to be more sensitive to stress and more likely to respond fearfully to unfamiliar experiences.

4. Medical issues, specifically chronic pain

   Interestingly, new research is finding a correlation between noise phobia and chronic pain in dogs. Specifically, the current research discusses how musculoskeletal disorders like hip dysplasia and arthritis can indirectly cause noise phobias.

   Here’s the scenario.

   A dog hears a sudden noise which elicits a typical startle response. The dog’s body tenses when they are startled and because this dog has a musculoskeletal disorder body tension is painful. Over time the dog begins to associate sudden noises with physical pain, therefore, the dog develops a fear of noises. These dogs may also be fearful in other situations that they have associated with their physical pain (i.e. interacting with other dogs).

5. Physical/emotional abuse

   Usually, physical/emotional abuse is the first thing that comes to mind when someone meets a dog that is abnormally fearful, but I place it at the bottom of this list because it is generally the least likely culprit for a dog’s fearfulness. Statistically, it is far more likely that a dog simply had poor socialization during their critical development periods than it is for them to have been abused. However, abuse does occur, and it doesn’t require much critical thinking to understand why a dog that has been physically/emotionally abused may be fearful of strangers, brooms, loud noises and other normal experiences.

While I could certainly write more on this topic today, I will instead recommend the following resources for those that would like to dig deeper!

Proper Puppy Socialization

Critical Socialization Periods

Prevent the Fear with Early Socialization

Fear Periods and Single Event Learning

Mother's Stress and Unborn Puppies

Noise Phobia and Physical Pain

Guide to Reading Canine Body Language

Introduction to Dog Body Language

On Talking Terms With Dogs: Calming Signals

Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide Interpreting the Native Language of the Domestic Dog

Be sure to check out the blog next week for “Part Two: Training Away Fear? It Can Be Done”