My dog runs away when he hears cell phone sounds. Is he scared?

Your dog isn't quite aware of what a smart phone is, and so may think that it is some sort of strange animal hissing and jumping at him! This is very common for pets with all sorts of electronics as the beeps and bings and buzzes can mimic animals that your dog may need to protect you from or run away from. The best way to get your dog used to your phone is through gradual introduction and desensitization. Show your dog the phone while it is off so that now accidental sounds or buzzes can come from it. If your dog is curious or checks it out, praise him and offer a treat. You can even put the treat around the phone so that he is more likely to come close and explore. Once he is used to the phone while it is off, turn it back on and set it down. Let it make a noise or buzz and do not react if your dog becomes fearful or barks at it. Doing so encourages that his fearful behavior is OK! If he does react, pick up the phone and act as if nothing happened. If he doesn't react, or actively checks out the phone, praise him and give him a reward. This form of training will help get your dog used to this strange device (to him!) and make it so that he soon does not react, or does react positively. In some cases, you may even end up with a dog who will come and let you know your phone has an alert!

Hi there and thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach to address your concern. It is hard to say for sure what the problem is without seeing him myself. There could be an ear infection bothering him or something else with the ears or he is becoming more nervous as he ages with certain noises and things being near his head if his vision is not very good any more. I would recommend having him examined by a veterinarian so that the most appropriate diagnostic and treatment recommendations can be made. I hope this helps!

Hi there and thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! No, there is likely nothing at all wrong with Mike. What he is experiencing is likely irritation to the pitch of the car horn. Have you ever heard dogs in movies howling at police sirens? Likely the same thing. Imagine what you are hearing with a car horn (already loud) and then imagine amplifying it several hundred of times. This is how our canine and feline companions hear things. Many think loud noises are uncomfortable for them in general. I hope this helps!

Hello and thank you for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach. I'm sorry to hear that Charlie is barking so much at the construction. Since it is such a new, loud noise, he is not used to hearing it yet. My best advice is for you to ignore the noise - the less you react to the noise, Charlie will realize that it is not a big deal. It may take 2-3 days for him to adjust. If after this time, he is still barking incessantly, I recommend asking your veterinarian about a calming medication he/she could prescribe for the short term. A good example is Trazodone. I hope this is helpful!

Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! Sometimes dogs can get scared even when there does not appear to be anything scary in sight. Remember that they can hear and sense much better than us so he may be perceiving something that is near which you may not. This can improve but it can certainly become a bit difficult at times. I recommend that you start taking him out for longer periods but very slowly over the next several weeks. Encourage him to stay out with treats and positive words. Also, in the beginning just take him out without walking initially just to get him used to his surroundings. Eventually little by little he will learn that going outside equals getting treats and attention and will improve with time but it does require time and patience. You can consider using the Thunder shirt for him which you may find online and can help a lot in these cases. Good luck and have a great day!

Thank you for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach! It is important to introduce new things in your dog's environment slowly and provide plenty of positive reinforcement during the process in the form of praise and treats. The idea is to demonstrate that the object or event is positive and not harmful.

tSince Coco was a stray, there is no way to know for sure what caused her to be afraid of high-pitched noises. You can work on easing that fear, however. Buy a high-pitched dog whistle that you cannot hear. Start by having someone at the far end of the house or yard give a short blast of the whistle. While this is happening (and you have to coordinate it exactly, by using hand signals or the word "Now!" for example), give Coco a treat and praise her. Don't reassure her, as that will give her the idea that there really is something to be afraid of! Just act your normal self, and every time she is relaxed as the whistle is sounded, praise and treat. When she is very comfortable with the sound at a considerable distance, have the person with the whistle move a bit closer . . . say two or three steps. This must happen over a period of days or weeks (depending on how fearful she is and how she is responding to the whistle). You can try it several times a day, for only for a few trials each session. If at some point as the whistler moves closer Coco shows fear again, have the person go back to the distance at which Coco was last okay, and proceed more slowly from there. If you need additional help with this, you can click on the prompt and initiate a consult, where we can discuss what is going on and what changes might need to be made. Good luck!