Why is my usually friendly dog suddenly terrified of a new person?

First of all, well done on noticing this and realizing you need to take some action to avoid problems in the future. It's pretty common for dogs Conan's age to start showing signs of being fearful - when they are puppies they just deal with being nervous about some situations and as they get closer to adulthood they start to use aggression to ward off scary things. So Conan could definitely work up to biting someone if he continues to be fearful. The most helpful thing would be to start working with a good trainer and/or veterinary behaviorist. You want to use positive only techniques. If that's not possible, you can try to work on this on your own by asking random men to drop him treats and dropped treats whenever you walk past a male on the street.

Dogs can have certain people that they like or dislike right away just like humans. Things that can help if you have not already tried this, have your cousin feed Conan and give him treats. If Conan is trained to do tricks, have your cousin go through the training routine. Have your cousin walk Conan. Another thing that may help is to have Conan neutered. The results can be variable but pets who are neutered tend to be less reactive than pets who are not. This is highly variable however. Be patient and make every experience positive. Best of luck.

It sounds like Finn is fearful towards unknown people, which can happen for various reasons: sometimes there was a scary event early in life that conditioned him to be fearful, or sometimes fear can develop when there wasn't enough socialization early in life. His level of fear sounds pretty severe if your dad can't even touch him. I would recommend seeing a behaviorist as soon as possible to help determine what might be triggering his fear and to come up with a plan for how to help him. Your veterinarian should be able to make some recommendations for behaviorists in your area.

Poor Bongo! I bet the amount of people being around was overwhelming to him. Heck- it overwhelms me. If he has a good food drive, I would recommend using that to train him. It is best to use one person st a time. Make sure they have a yummy treat- something he only gets during training. Have the person walk by & gently toss the food to him & keep walking. No telling or staring at him. He will start to associate yummy treat with people. Have the person move closer if Bongo isn’t responding. The person holding Bongo’s leash needs to remain calm and praise positive behavior & ignore unwanted behavior. When he has that down- have him sit & allow the person to hand him the treat (make sure you trust that person). I would not place him in situations with large numbers of strangers for a while. I would also recommend a good basic obedience class-it will help him learn in a group setting. Thanks for reaching out to Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach!

It may be that something startled Amy that she was not used to. Did the person have glasses? A hat? a big scarf? All of these things may be scary to dogs if they are not used to them. If the behavior happens again, having that person gently toss treats to Amy until she feels more comfortable may help her associate that person with a positive, rather than a scary experience.

I hate to hear you both went through this trauma and unfortunately there is not an easy answer or easy advise to give. Dogs can suffer from PTSD type problems like people and until he has multiple, positive encounters he will not be the same. The other issue as well is that he is a large dog who is barking/growling and strangers are not going to approach him. In Hades brain, he does to want people to approach, so he barks. Of course, people do not approach so in Hades brain, he wins. He is having positive re-enforcement so he keeps doing it. This is a complicated situation that is best dealt with by a professional trainer who understands how dog's brains work. Because there are some aggressive signs already being shown, you need to stop him at this behavior before it escalates. You do not want a dog bite situation. I hope this helps to lead you in the right direction.

Hello, sorry to hear about Oscar. There are some things you can try at home to manage his fears. Here are some basic definitions and tips to better orient you, however, successful management of his fears may require patience and time as counterconditioning to the stimulus can sometimes take a long time. Hope this helps and best of luck. DOES YOUR DOG HAVE FEARS? Fear in a dog may present in a variety of ways. Recognizing that your dog is indeed fearful is the first step. Some signs that a fearful dog may display include: tucking its tail between its legs, lowering its head, shaking or trembling, lip licking, rolling over to expose the belly, urinating, or becoming immobilized. A scared or frightened dog may also display aggression, including barking or growling, if it feels it cannot escape what is feared. Avoidance behaviors such as running away, hiding or backing up into a corner may also be seen. WHY IS MY DOG FEARFUL? Many dogs are fearful of specific stimuli or situations. These fears may stem from a lack of exposure to the stimulus, or may develop due to an adverse experience. Both can result in the dog having a fearful, emotional reaction when confronted with the stimulus. Often dogs respond fearfully to things in their environment that in nature would be potentially dangerous, such as loud noises or strangers. This behavior can be troubling for owners to watch. Often, owners become concerned that they have done something to make their dog fearful and their natural reaction is to try to comfort the dog which may amplify these behaviors. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO HELP YOUR DOG? 1. Identify specific triggers This is an important step in moving forward and helping your pet overcome their fear. Knowing what stimuli are a “triggers” is key in creating a treatment plan because it allows you to have more control over the behavior and avoid such stimuli when possible. 2. Avoid the stimulus Initially it is often best to avoid the things that will trigger a fearful reaction. This may provide an opportunity to work on your relationship with your pet and develop trust without distraction. 3. Define your relationship with your pet How do you and your family members react to the behavior? Often times the natural reaction to the fearful pet is to comfort them by petting or picking up small dogs. This response may enhance the dog’s reaction to the fearful stimulus because they perceive the comfort as positive reinforcement of their fearful behavior. Rather, a more appropriate reaction is to act as though nothing unusual is going on and try to redirect the dog’s attention to you through a “look” or “sit” command and then treating that behavior. Some dogs are so fearful they may not be food motivated. Perhaps there is something else that your dog considers a “treat”. You may use this in the place of food. In these cases it is essential that all family members are consistent and treat the dog in the same manor.