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Hi all! I have a 1.5 year old Puerto Rican street dog named Rico. He was found in a box when he was around 4 weeks old, and almost didn't survive. It was a long road getting him to be a basic functional dog with regards to housetraining and basic commands/tricks, but he's come a long way.
His main issue is he's very fearful outside of the home on walks around the neighborhood, and also of random new things to the outdoor environment. We have a dog park right across from our backyard, and he does perfectly fine there. I've taken him to the beach and he did okay. Nervous, but no major freakouts. He was doing great on walks, even though he was still scared he was calm, walked by my side, and didn't panic. Until one night we walked by a bush that was full of tiny coqui frogs that are CRAZY LOUD and started chirping right as we walked by. He lost it and about jumped out of his skin trying to get away. The same thing happened during the daytime when we walked by a kid with a ball. Rico started doing a kind of scream-cry, tried to climb up a brick wall, and nervous pooped. Now he's terrified to even walk out the door.
One of his other quirks is panic barking at the new things in his outdoor environment, such as a garden hose appearing at the house next door, or a plastic bag floating past the backyard. He barked at the garden hose every time he went out for 3 days, until it was moved. I want him to be more comfortable and confident, especially since we will be leaving the island next year and he will have to fly. (any tips on that would be appreciated too!) I've tried finding trainers or classes, and haven't had much luck here. Any tips or resources I can work on with him? Thanks so much!
His main issue is he's very fearful outside of the home on walks around the neighborhood, and also of random new things to the outdoor environment. We have a dog park right across from our backyard, and he does perfectly fine there. I've taken him to the beach and he did okay. Nervous, but no major freakouts. He was doing great on walks, even though he was still scared he was calm, walked by my side, and didn't panic. Until one night we walked by a bush that was full of tiny coqui frogs that are CRAZY LOUD and started chirping right as we walked by. He lost it and about jumped out of his skin trying to get away. The same thing happened during the daytime when we walked by a kid with a ball. Rico started doing a kind of scream-cry, tried to climb up a brick wall, and nervous pooped. Now he's terrified to even walk out the door.
One of his other quirks is panic barking at the new things in his outdoor environment, such as a garden hose appearing at the house next door, or a plastic bag floating past the backyard. He barked at the garden hose every time he went out for 3 days, until it was moved. I want him to be more comfortable and confident, especially since we will be leaving the island next year and he will have to fly. (any tips on that would be appreciated too!) I've tried finding trainers or classes, and haven't had much luck here. Any tips or resources I can work on with him? Thanks so much!
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