My dog is terrified of noises, people, and going outside. What helps?

Poor Jaxon! It does sound like he's quite fearful of many things, including sounds, the vet's office, and other dogs barking. The patch of hair that stands up is called his "hackles" - when you see the hair stand up like this, it usually means that the dog is frightened or upset. Since it sounds like his anxiety is fairly severe, the best option would be to make an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate Jaxon in person. He/she can help you determine why he is so fearful, and will give you a detailed treatment plan for him including some training exercises you can do to increase his confidence and teach him to associate good things with people, other dogs, etc. He may also benefit from anti-anxiety medication. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org In the meantime, you could try a DAP pheromone collar along with a natural calming supplement like Zylkene or Composure to help reduce his anxiety - this won't be as effective as prescription medication, but it may help to take the edge off of his fear in these situations until you are able to see the behaviorist for a more complete treatment plan.

Hi there and thank you for using Pet Coach to address your concern. I would recommend socializing her more and getting her out of the house and potentially into some training classes for dogs. You can also use the below products, which can be found online. I hope this helps! Please let me know if you have any other questions or concerns and I would be more than happy to help you further. Please take the time to mark this question as helpful or not as it helps us to improve on the quality of our answers to other pet owners. Thank you kindly! 1. Adaptil collar 2. Thundershirt 3. NaturVet Quiet Moments Calm Chews with Melatonin

Socialization is key, and that means exposure to everything! Make it a fun game and every time your dog hears or sees something new, praise them and give them a treat when they show interest in it. If he's too scared, move him to a distance where he isn't as startled, and then treat and praise from there until he is more comfortable. If he's very scared, or runs away, taking a break and trying again later is best, as you don't want to force him into it and then turn it into something bad instead of something good. Since Tobi is so young, everything is probably very scary and new right now, and a lot of this will get better with time and practice. I also highly recommend a puppy kindergarten class once he is old enough and vaccinated so that you can practice learning together in a structured environment.

You can make a kennel or a safe place for him to go for comfort when this happens. It often helps to keep a white noise machine on that can help mask some of the sounds. When a sound comes try to comfort him an give him a treat to help minimize the anxiety

Loud noises can be very scary for dogs! I would considered getting Gus a Thundershirt to wear. This can help dogs who have anxiety from loud noises. Then I would have Gus seen by a professional behavior expert. This expert can help him with his fear and anxiety of loud noises, and can condition him to react appropriately to them. Also keep in mind not to comfort Gus when he acts this way. While you think you are helping him, you are actually telling him it's ok to behave this way and are reinforcing the behavior.

Hello. It is good that you are exposing Oscar to new things. Overtime he should adjust, but you do have to go slow & limit these public excursions to a few minutes at a time. I am sure you are very reassuring with him, but do reward him with special treats when he seems to relax. You can also try some of the natural stress relieving products such as Zylkene. The best way to help Oscar get over his fears is to work with a veterinary behavioral specialist. Your veterinarian should be able to see if there are any in your area. Thanks for using Petco Pet Education Center, formerly Petcoach.

Poor pup! It sounds like your dog is a fearful girl in general - this can be due to genetics, lack of early socialization, negative early experiences in life, or some combination of all three. Many fearful dogs are afraid of loud noises, and are often more fearful of men because they are physically larger and have louder, deeper voices than women. Generally speaking, a treatment plan for this type of problem would involve managing your dog so that she isn't put in stressful or scary situations as much as possible, as well as working with her to help associate good things (like treats!) with men, noises, and other things that frighten her. Depending on how severe her anxiety is, medication may also be helpful. I would suggest making an appointment with a veterinary behaviorist who can evaluate her in person - he/she can put together a detailed plan to help you work on this problem, and can also prescribe anti-anxiety medication for her if needed. You can search for a board-certified veterinary behaviorist in your area here: www.dacvb.org