hi! My lab has always had low confidence but had been getting much better. He wasn’t reacting towards any stranger unless he got cornered and was very playful around other dogs. The last 2 weeks he has been barking at strangers, children, and dogs that lunge at him. Can they go through another fear period at this age (1.5 years)??? Help!
I can't offer any advice as I am a new puppy owner, but there are loads of experts on here that will help. I hope everything turns out ok; he is a very handsome boy and just look at that smile
From my own experience, which is limited to one dog, yes I think they can go through another fear stage. Our dog was a confident unfazed dog until he was about two when he started getting scared of loud noises such as fireworks and thunderstorms, this got steadily worse as we blindly thought it was a phase he'd get through. When he was about 3 and a half we started realising this was getting even worse as everyday noises in the street would upset him. We needed professional help and he was put onto anti anxiety medication. Over the last year we've had some improvements but there's still a long journey ahead. From my own experience my advice would be to go to a good dog behaviourist for advice and support in helping him find alternative ways to react before his behaviour becomes too entrenched.
Thanks! We are working with our trainer on it. He is now only allowed off lead if there isn’t anyone in the area. Hopefully we can move past this like we did before l.
