Fear of the street is not cured by hunger

It happens that the dog is terribly afraid of the street and flatly refuses to walk. And the first piece of advice given by not very competent cynologists is to feed your pet only on the street in order to “motivate” not to be afraid. But this advice is completely unacceptable.

The fact is that fear for any living being is stronger than hunger. You will not enjoy even the most exquisite dish if bombs are exploding around. And the dog, in whose view the street is full of dangers, usually flatly refuses to take treats, even the most beloved ones.

Some owners starve their “four-legged friend” for several days, and as a result, the dog may frantically snatch food in order to survive – but this does not affect its attitude to the street.

In addition, you can deprive a dog of food only if a starvation diet is recommended by a veterinarian for some kind of disease. In all other cases, the dog should receive a normal portion of food every day, regardless of the behavior of the pet and your mood. This is the basis of the well-being of any animal.

Of course, fear of the street is not the norm. And this is something that needs to be worked on. But not by food deprivation, but in other ways, using acceptable reinforcement. As a rule, the reinforcement in this case is the movement (3-4 steps) towards the house. However, this reinforcement must be applied in time. If you are not sure that you can handle it, you should contact a specialist who will not advise depriving the dog of food “until he gets smarter.”

But treats are still worth taking with you to the street. Because the moment when the dog agrees to take a tasty piece from you (but not because he has not eaten for two weeks!) will indicate that he feels much calmer, in any case, he is no longer so afraid. It means you are moving in the right direction.

You can learn how to educate and train a dog humanely by using our video courses.