# TWO YEAR OLD FEMALE V SCARED OF PEOPLE



## Herc (Jul 16, 2020)

Hi everyone, I have a two year old vizla who is afraid of people especially men and vets so we have a problem when it comes to going to the vet. It can be very frustrating and sad. When someone comes to our house and my V doesn't know him, he starts growling and barking at the person, he doesn't want to bite them, but warns them if they come close to her head. After the person who came and sits down, ignores her while she sniffs them, she becomes friendly. The new person has to come a couple of times for the V to fully except her. She loves all dogs and is very attentive and kind especially to children. I can't imagine that she could harm anyone or that something happens to her, or the vet can't help her because of her reactions. Does anyone have a similar problem and how to solve it or at least alleviate it a bit? Thanks everyone!


----------



## derwos (Nov 10, 2019)

Please tell us what you did 1.5 years ago, after you posted this: "6 months old girl HELP"

"Hi, I have a 6 month old vizsla, the problem is she is very scared of people.
Sometimes I think she might attack somebody out of fear. She is not like that with everyone.
She also began to be territorial. She bit my two nieces (4 & 2) because they were on my bed where she sleeps at the same time as she, she did not bit them hard but it was scary because she was never like that and she loves them very much. Besides that she is being terribly stubborn and not listening to anything, she jumps on people, on the table and eats cat **** every time. Can you give me some advice on this?"

Back then, you were provided with a good suggestion. Did you act on it?


----------



## Herc (Jul 16, 2020)

Of course, she is no longer territorial, she is great with children, she allows them to lie around her, even she puts her head or paw on them. She is territorial only with other dogs but not agressive. When she is walking without a leash she does not pay attention to people unless they are close to her, she is curious and wants to sniff everyone but she is scared when someone approaches her with her hand.


----------



## Herc (Jul 16, 2020)

We got a guideline from the vet that we should provoke her fear, I don't know how smart it is.
We take her to shopping malls, to places where there are a lot of people to get used to people and that there is no threat. 
Sometimes, it happens that someone approaches her for the first time and that she has a great reaction towards that person, it is very rare but it has happened.


----------



## derwos (Nov 10, 2019)

1.5 years ago, you stated: "...the problem is she is very scared of people."

What did the trainer do and advise you to do, back then, to help the 6 month old puppy overcome fear of people?

In your latest post you state: "We got a guideline from the vet that we should provoke her fear...". When were you given this advice?

I'm asking these questions not to be a pain in the butt. It's just that altering a 6 month old puppy's behavior is different than altering a 2 year old dog's. This has been an ongoing issue with your dog and for anyone here to be able to possibly help, information is key. People here gotta know what you've done/tried over the past 1.5 years in an attempt to "fix" this problem.


----------



## Herc (Jul 16, 2020)

We reduced the intensity of fear, when she was a puppy she was afraid of both people, people on bicycles, trucks, cars, motorcycles. She did not want to approach the man on the road. Now he shows interest in people and wants to approach them but does not want to be touched immidiately. She starts behaving friendly only when she is ignored by the man she sniffs, and after 15 minutes she shows confidence and starts cuddling. That first step is problem. 
The vet give us this advice one mont ago, he is new and she did not accept him yet.


----------



## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

Herc said:


> We got a guideline from the vet that we should provoke her fear, I don't know how smart it is.
> We take her to shopping malls, to places where there are a lot of people to get used to people and that there is no threat.
> Sometimes, it happens that someone approaches her for the first time and that she has a great reaction towards that person, it is very rare but it has happened.


A Veterinarian is not a behaviorist.
What he is asking you to do is called flooding, it pushes the dog over the threshold of their fear. Most behaviorist do not recommend doing this.


----------



## texasred (Jan 29, 2012)

This was not written by me. If this was missed during the puppy stage, it can still be done with a older dog.

This is a good illustration of puppy socialization needs, shared from Good as Gold Training, but I would also add that all of the listed exposure and experience needs to feel _safe_ for the puppy. If s/he is nervous, tentative, or fearful the fear should be handled by backing off a little and reintroducing very slowly and with lots of praise, food and patience. Sometimes, for the sake of "socialization", owners push their puppies too far and too fast, and it can backfire. Good socialization requires that we "read" our puppies and help them feel safe as they navigate the sounds, textures, people and animals in their new world.


----------



## derwos (Nov 10, 2019)

Herc said:


> We reduced the intensity of fear, when she was a puppy she was afraid of both people, people on bicycles, trucks, cars, motorcycles. She did not want to approach the man on the road. Now he shows interest in people and wants to approach them but does not want to be touched immidiately. She starts behaving friendly only when she is ignored by the man she sniffs, and after 15 minutes she shows confidence and starts cuddling. That first step is problem.
> The vet give us this advice one mont ago, he is new and she did not accept him yet.


I'm not a behavioralist. Though, I'd never "provoke" (or "flooding", as @texasred explained above) a vizsla through fearful behavior! That would require some sort of compulsion. While not 100% accurate, for the purposes of this issue I'll make the broad statement of "vizslas generally don't respond well to training by compulsion". Also, think of "fear" as the exact opposite of "trust".

When my Aly was very young, she exhibited behaviors quite suggestive of her becoming a timid dog, if not "addressed". One of those behaviors was the degree of caution she'd exhibit when meeting some (not all) new people. From the start, I vowed Aly would interact with 5000 new people her first year. The choice of number was arbitrary and I didn't keep track... though, I'm quite confident we either came very close to meeting them all or exceeded.

From the time Aly came into my life at exactly 8 weeks old, I go/went to great lengths to foster her unquestionable trust in me. Part (a lot) of that fostered trust came thru developing a communication system, operant conditioning and rewards based training. TREATS! LOL

Aly overcame her timidity (slight fear?) of some new people by me always having very high value treats with me, when we went out and about. EVERY TIME someone was willing to chat and interact with Aly and I, I'd give the person treats to give to Aly. Trust me, it didn't take long for Aly wanting attention from EVERYONE.

Now, at 17 months old, Aly is (and has been for a long time) at complete ease and super appropriate when out and about new people... and Aly goes EVERYWHERE with me.

So @Herc, you might want to try the treat method.

If I was in your shoes, I'd start very slow, with very brief interactions... and make every interaction FUN. Such as a random stranger (start with women) who seems to take interest in your dog. As you walk up to the person, be talking to your dog in a happy voice saying a word or phrase (you will use the same tone and same phrase for every interaction). Ask the stranger if they'd like to give your dog a treat (and hand the person the treat at the same time you are asking). The stranger offers the dog the treat, the dog takes it and the whole time you are verbally praising the dog. Then politely tell the stranger it's a training routine, thank them and quickly be on your way.

Start by doing this once or twice a day, with women. Over a couple weeks, increase the number of stranger interactions you have, but keep the length of time very short for each interaction.

Even though your dog is 2 years old, I think you'll find she very quickly begins to associate new people to treats.

The next step will be to slowly extend the time you spend with each new person. Ask the stranger to command your dog to do a simple learned behavior like "sit" and then give a treat. Thank the stranger and be on your way.

Your goal at this point is to work towards being able to have a brief conversation with someone, while that someone is interacting with your dog. You are "Normalizing" appropriate behavior.

The next step would be, when you come across a person (still woman) who seems to really like your dog, briefly explain what you are trying to accomplish (at this stage, a single touch on the dog where you know the dog likes to be scratched. In Aly's case, she loves when ya scratch her butt. LOL). This step requires a lot of nuance and patience. You know your dog and you'll have to figure out how you can strategically position yourself and your dog, in relation to the stranger, so the stranger is not a threat to the dog and can still briefly touch the dog. This is going to be the most difficult stage and it heavily relies on your dog's trust in YOU!

Over time, continue treats from the strangers for performing the learned behaviors and increase to two, three, four touches of the dog. Just calm, brief touches. Over time, the touches can turn into petting, patting, scratching... whatever.

After nearly any woman can pet your dog, you go back to the beginning, with men... and do the whole thing all over again. As men are more challenging for her, perhaps go a little slower with each stage. By then, you should have a pretty good feeling when you might be trying to progress too fast.

At any time your dog shows the slightest fear or apprehension, you go back a step (or two)... and work from there. Going back a step or two is not failure!

Your overall goal in the entire process is to completely reconstruct what meeting a stranger means to your dog. To do this correctly, it's going to be quite a long process. Make it a game! Make it fun! Admire every instance of progress!

IF your dog shows ANY aggression, at ANY TIME while doing this, it would be time to stop IMMEDIATELY and seek professional help!

Even today, I still walk up to random strangers (who I have a sense are admiring Aly) and do what I've explained above. I talk to Aly in tones and inflections probably no man should ever be heard making. Even in public! I don't care! Experiencing Aly overcome her timidness in ALL areas has been enormously satisfying... and probably the greatest gift I could give her, besides food and love... OH... and TREATS & TOYS! LOL

Best of luck!!!

However you decide to deal with the issue, it would be great if you kept us informed. Thanks!


----------

