Your dog is your best friend, and you’re his. But if your dog suddenly starts acting afraid of you, that can be pretty upsetting and confusing.
In this article, we’ll talk about why your dog might be scared and what you can do to help him feel more comfortable.
Let’s get started.
Table of Contents
Why is my dog suddenly afraid of me?
Building a bond with your dog is important. The relationship that you and your dog share is one of the best things about having a dog.
But what if your dog acts scared of you? What could be going on, and is there any way you can get a scared dog to trust you?
The good news is that there are effective ways to get a dog that’s afraid of you to trust you again. With some effort and patience, you can prove to him that you’re someone he can trust.
Before we can talk about that, though, you need to understand why he’s scared in the first place.
These are a few reasons why your dog might be afraid of you. He likely just had a bad experience with you, or remembers one from his past. He might also be in pain or ill. Apart from treating any underlying issues, you will have to regain your dog’s trust with plenty of positive experiences.
Signs your dog is scared of you
The first step to helping your dog is recognizing what the are signs that he’s afraid are in the first place. If your dog is frightened of you, he’ll show show it with his body language.
He might keep his ears flat against his head when he’s around you. He may also tuck his tail between his legs. Frightened dogs will also avoid eye contact, and they might yawn or lick their lips excessively.
Frightened dogs will also pace, appear to watch your movement extremely carefully, and might scratch constantly.
Another common problem with dogs that are frightened is submissive dog peeing. For some help with this problem, here are 13 tips to stop excited or submissive dog peeing.
You punished him
When your dog acts out, what is your response?
Even if you’ve worked hard on training your dog, it’s natural for him to have an “off” day and do something he knows he shouldn’t.
When this does happen, is your first reaction to punish him? It might seem reasonable to punish him for being bad. But punishing your dog could make him afraid of you.
When you’re working with your dog on things like bad behavior, you need to make sure you’re using the right training methods. You should always avoid punishing your dog, especially using any physical punishments.
If you’d like to learn more about dog training, here are the 7 most common types of dog training and how to choose the right one.
He remembers a bad experience
Another big reason why your dog might be scared is that he’s had a bad experience before.
This could have been with you. For instance, perhaps you punished him and now he’s anxious to be around you.
However, this is also a very common problem with rescue dogs. Some of these dogs may have been abused in the past. This could make them nervous around other people.
It can be hard to know a rescue dog’s background. But if you suspect your dog is scared because he was abused, you need to focus on building up his trust and confidence.
You accidentally scared your dog
Sometimes accidents happen! Maybe you startled your dog by coming around a corner too fast. Or perhaps you dropped something and it made a loud noise that scared him.
Whatever the situation, now your dog seems to be afraid of you. It can be especially upsetting when this happens because you certainly didn’t intend to frighten him!
If your dog is scared for this reason, it’s usually not too hard to get him to settle down and remember that he’s safe with you.
He can sense you’re stressed
Dogs are highly intuitive animals. They can easily pick up on our body language to figure out what we’re feeling.
They also have incredibly strong senses of smell and can pick up on changes in your hormones.
That means that when you started feeling stressed or frightened, your dog is going to notice. And when he sees that you’re feeling scared or stressed about something, he’ll think there’s good reason for him to feel that way too.
This is why it’s important to be aware of your own reactions and actions when you’re working with your dog. This is especially important for problems that can escalate, like fear.
Your dog is ill or in pain
Your dog could be acting scared because he’s been injured or he’s feeling unwell.
Dogs might start instinctively feeling afraid when they get sick or injured. Your dog is trying to protect himself and keep himself safe.
If this is the problem, your dog is likely to show several signs. He might be limping or crying a lot. Your dog might also try to keep you from touching him.
If your dog is sick, then signs could include diarrhea, vomiting, restlessness, or refusing to eat. Make sure you get your dog to a vet if you think he’s sick.
It could be dog dementia
Just like humans, dogs can experience dementia. Dog dementia can be a difficult thing to deal with for both you and your dog.
When dogs get dementia, they might start acting more afraid. If you think your dog could be experiencing dementia, you should call your vet.
They will diagnose your dog and set you up with a plan to manage your dog’s symptoms.
How do I get my dog to not be afraid of me: 7 steps
Now that you know why your dog might be afraid of you, there are several ways that you can help him.
Here are some tips that will help you get your dog to trust you again.
1. What to do if a dog is scared of you
In the moment when you’re dealing with a scared dog, there are a few things you should be aware of.
The number one thing to remember is to stay calm. If you start acting upset in any way, this is going to make your dog feel even more afraid.
You should also avoid touching the dog. Leave him be until he’s calmed down. Approaching your dog could scare him even more and he might become reactive or aggressive.
To learn more about aggression, check out these related articles:
- 7 Tips for Overtired Puppy Aggression
- My Dog Gets Aggressive When Tired—What Can I Do?
- 6 Signs of an Aggressive Puppy and How to Stop It
2. Find out why your dog is suddenly afraid of you
The next step to helping your scared dog is to figure out the reason why he’s scared in the first place.
Consider all of the above reasons and take stock of your situation. You can usually use context to figure out what your dog is so afraid of.
For example, if your dog is acting scared after you yell at him, that’s probably why. Likewise, if he’s showing signs of being injured, that’s most likely the reason.
Knowing why your dog is scared will help you with the next steps. It will also help you prevent him from getting scared like this in the future.
3. Use positive reinforcement dog training
The type of dog training that you choose matters. If you use aversive methods, meaning they involve punishments, that’s quickly going to make your dog afraid of you.
You can keep this from happening by using positive reinforcement dog training. This type of training focuses on encouraging good behavior by rewarding it instead of punishing bad behavior.
Positive reinforcement is the safest type of training, and it’s one of the best ways to build your bond with your dog.
4. Don’t punish your dog
When your dog acts out, it can be pretty tempting to show him what he did was wrong by punishing him.
But when you punish your dog, this is most likely going to make him afraid of you. You’d be scared too if you were being yelled at or hit!
Another reason to never punish your dog is that a frightened dog might try to defend himself. A dog that is scared can quickly become reactive, putting you and himself in danger.
5. Take care of your own stress
As mentioned before, your dog can easily pick up on your emotions. That’s why you need to make sure that you’re regulating your own feeling effectively when you’re around your dog.
If you’re feeling stressed out and you’re around your dog, consider walking away and dealing with your own feelings before you interact with your dog.
This will prevent your dog from becoming even more frightened because of the way you’re acting.
6. Treat any underlying conditions
Do you suspect that your dog is frightened because he’s sick or injured? If you do, then you should book an appointment with your vet right away.
Vet visits can get expensive, but there are ways to help curb the costs. These articles can provide some helpful advice:
7. Get help
Sometimes a problem is too big for us to handle on our own.
If your dog is afraid of you and you’re struggling to get him to trust you, you might want to call in a professional.
Look for a dog trainer or behaviorist that focuses on positive reinforcement to build up your bond with your dog.
Related topic: For dog training in general I highly recommend you get a program that walks you through step by step, such as Braintrainingfordogs. Certified dog trainer Adrienne Farricelli teaches you to train your dog to be the best dog he can by be using mental stimulation! Check out Dogpackr’s review to see if this is a fit for you!
Dog is suddenly afraid of me FAQ
Do you still have some questions about your dog being afraid of you? You’ll find some answers here.
Will my dog ever stop being scared of me?
If your dog seems super afraid of you, you might be wondering if it’s hopeless trying to get him to trust you.
Don’t give up! Some dogs just have a more difficult time trusting than others do. This tends to be especially true for rescue dogs.
Just stay patient and keep working with your dog to show him you’re someone he can trust.
Why is my dog scared of my room all of a sudden?
If your dog suddenly seems frightened of your room, most likely something unpleasant has happened in there recently.
Perhaps you punished him while he was in there, or maybe something happened that just startled him.
Whatever the reason, work on building up positive associations with your room to get him more comfortable again.
My dog is suddenly afraid of my husband, why is that?
When dogs are suddenly frightened of a particular family member, there’s usually a reason for it. That family member may have unintentionally done something that frightened your dog.
It could also be that your dog wasn’t socialized with men enough as a puppy. Now, your dog finds men a little bit scary.
Work on socialization and hire a dog trainer to help you if necessary.
Why is my dog suddenly afraid of the TV?
Does your dog suddenly seem super nervous around the TV? There might have been something playing on a show you were watching that scared him.
Now he’s a little nervous around it!
Like anything else, you can build positive associations with the TV to teach your dog to relax around it.
My dog is scared of me but not my wife, why?
If your dog is afraid of you but not your wife, he might not have spent enough time with men before you adopted him.
Just stay patient and keep showing your dog that you’re someone he can trust.
Why is my dog suddenly afraid of the dark?
This tends to be a common problem with older dogs whose vision isn’t as good as it used to be. If your dog seems afraid of the dark, he might be confused by it because he can’t see well anymore.
You can speak to your vet about ways to help your dog get more comfortable in the dark.
Conclusion
When your dog is afraid of you, this can be extremely upsetting for both of you. Luckily, there are ways to get your dog to trust you. Remember the above tips to help strengthen your bond with your dog.
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