Understanding Your Puppy's Fearful Behavior

It takes a lot of courage for a puppy to leave the side of his dam, step from the nest, and discover the world. That’s why very young puppies are relatively fearless; after all, they can’t be afraid of everything new because everything is new. But eternally fearless dogs turn into accident-prone dogs, so as puppies age and get more active, they also start to develop more fear of the unknown.

Puppies start to develop some fearfulness by only 3 weeks of age. Still, they are relatively fearless of novel objects and situations, and even if something bad happens it doesn’t make much of a permanent impression. The only situation that seems to distress them is being separated from their littermates or dam. Beginning at about 5 weeks of age, puppies start to get more cautious and to remember situations or objects that weren’t as fun as they looked.

By 7 weeks of age, pups are still relatively fearless and are still strongly attracted to new people and dogs. Because their fearfulness will continue to rise gradually, most canine behaviorists believe that the best time for puppies to go to their new homes is at 7 to 8 weeks of age, before they begin to become fearful of novel situations. Sometime after 12 weeks of age the fear response completely swamps the approach response, making it difficult for the puppy to accept new situations it has never before experienced.

Domestic dogs are subjected to a situation that wild canids don’t have to encounter: sudden removal from their family and home, the two things that give them a sense of security. The situation is far less traumatic if the breeder separates each puppy for gradually increasing time periods before they leave for their new homes, but even this may not alleviate the sudden stress of a new home.

Before your puppy came to your house he probably spent every night of his life snuggled in the safety of his litter. Now he has been plucked from the nest and taken to a strange place where he knows nobody. Night falls, and he is placed in a box and left all alone. Scared and lonely, he does what any puppy in his situation should do: he screams and cries in an attempt to be reunited with his family. You may have been told to ignore your crying puppy so you don’t spoil him and reward him for crying. But this only teaches him that in the most frightening situation he’s ever encountered, no matter what he does nobody is there to help him. His real mother would never treat him that way. You’ve taught him he is helpless, and you’ve taught him this at a very impressionable developmental period in his life. You have placed him in a fearful situation and refused to give him any support that may have made it more tolerable. You have taught him that being in a crate or by himself is indeed a terrifying situation. Some dog behaviorists believe such a situation may contribute to separation anxiety in adulthood.

Traditional child rearing advice advocated that parents ignore their crying babies, but current advice recommends comforting the baby so the baby learns she has some control over her environment. Traditional dog rearing advice similarly advocated ignoring the crying pup, but newer advice advocates responding in much the same way as you would to a crying baby. 

That doesn’t mean you spend the rest of your life rushing in at the slightest cry, offering your dog a floorshow or a buffet; it means comforting the puppy briefly and either placing him back in his bed once he's fallen asleep or finding a bed that is less secluded.

Besides the fear of being alone, some other fears, such as the fear of falling or of loud startling noises, are innate. You can work with your puppy to accept loud noises by gradually working up to them and associating good things with them by playing or giving a treat immediately after each noise.

But fears can also be learned. For example, if children come over and one fall on the puppy he may develop a fear of children. He’s formed an association between a child and the pain and fright of being squished. He can carry it further. If he now has a fear of children and the doorbell rings and children are standing there every time for a few days, he’s likely to respond to the doorbell by running and hiding. He’s developed an association between the doorbell and the fear he feels of children.

Had children been over many times before without falling on him, your dog would have essentially been inoculated against forming an association between children and being crushed, and he probably would not form a fearful association. This is why it’s so vital to have as many guaranteed good experiences as possible before taking chances on having bad ones. The more you can control your dog’s first encounters and outings, the better your chance of preventing him from forming bad associations before he’s had a chance to form good or neutral ones.

Socialization and puppy kindergarten classes are important aids when it comes to raising a puppy that is not overly fearful. But genetics also plays a role in fearfulness; not all dogs that are fearful are abused, as many people assume. More often they are genetically fearful or have simply not been adequately socialized.