Scared Newfie

[wiggi]

I'm new to this site so i'm not fully introduced to everyone yet. I've had Jaspa my black newfie since he was a pup and he's now 2yrs old. He's absolutely gorgeous and when he's in the house he's brilliant with me and the rest of our family. If anyone comes inside the house he's a little wary until he's sniffed them out and then he normally settles down and goes for a cuddle from them. However when he's outside on the lead it's a different story. If we walk past anyone who shows any interest in him he really starts to growl but at the same time he's shying away from them. I've tried all kinds of things to get him to calm down but nothing seems to work, also even though we go out walking everyday he's still scared when a truck drives by and he'll try to get as far away from it as he can. Is my baby just a whimp?

[chaos270]

Welcome to BPO!!! Jaspa is gorgeous!!!

Kali is the same way with people she'll run right up to some people but others she backs away from and barks at.  We take it as she has people she likes and doesn't like so we don't force the issue. I think in a way it's her right to choose whether to approach someone and if she doesn't like someone I have no problem telling them not to approach her.  It also helps if people approach from the side and touch her back first as it's alot less threatening. 

As for the vehicles have you tried having him sit so he can see it coming at a distance where it won't be as threatening. You can try slowly approaching the road closer each day to desensitize him.  Also don't try to calm him if he gets nervous as talking to him can help reinforce the behaviour.  You'll have to post some more pics of him.

[schelmischekitty]

you might try having "strange" friends walk up to you, have them give your dog a treat, that way jaspa learns that people are good and sometimes have treats.  if he won't go to them for treats, at first, just have them toss a treat at his feet then work up to handing it to jaspa.  i agree about the cars, and desensitizing jaspa from a distance first, then working closer to parked cars, then to slow moving cars, etc.  keep us posted, and your baby is gorgeous, i can't wait for more pics!

[Tspanos]

Hi I'm Tim Kali dad, Chaos270 is my sis. Like she said Kali is selective with people. I don't stress over it because as a general rule she is okay with strangers. In your case it sounds more universal which can be quite disconcerting. Your best bet would be to do as schelmischekit ty has suggested and recruit "strange friends" to help. As for the car thing I personally don't see a fear of cars as a bad thing, with the exception of if it extends to going for rides. If he doesn't like rides out of fear of the car or truck then I would say you have a problem there. Also if he is expressing his fear through aggression I would be more worried than if he is truely scared.
Finally welcome and if you havn't already let us know where your from do so, you may just have someone on the board who lives nearby. We're in New England.

[wiggi]

Thanks everybody for your advice i'll definately try it. With regards to the last post i'm from the UK and his fear of trucks doesn't extend to him not liking rides out in the car because he loves it. I can walk him past parked cars and moving cars and he has no problems with these it just seems to be the big trucks, although i do have to admit that some of them do come rushing by and really do make quite a loud noise. Also i'll try and post more pics when i figure out how to do it right hahaha. Once again thanx to everyone and i hope to hear more from you all.

[schelmischekitty]

if that's the case about vehicles, then exposure is a good idea.  i know semi's that come flying buy even make me jump sometimes, so you can't blame jaspa ha ha. 

[pink2378]

Hi there!  I'm mom to 8 month old Lucy.  She used to be really freaked out when we were on walks and big loud trucks would rumble by. She would twist and turn to try and get far away from the sound. But then I got her a gentle leader to help with her pulling and it has helped with her fear of cars too.  She can't pull and freak out when a big truck goes by so it seems like her mind has made itself calm down when they go by.  Now even when she's not on her gentle leader the trucks don't bug her.

Jaspa is SO handsome!!  More pictures, please!!

[CrazyLoveRosie]

My Newf, Rosie, is 4 years old and she has a barking habit as well when it comes to strangers. We find that she doesn't like being petted by strangers until she's given them a once-over (more like a few times over). Otherwise, she'll continue barking like mad. So what we do now is give all of our friends and even strangers we encounter on walks a disclaimer that she wants to sniff them first before they try to pet her. That has worked most times, other times it takes a treat to get her to settle down with new people.

[lorim2]

Welcome to BPO!  Jaspa is beautiful.  I am mom to alot of babies as you can see in my signature.  Marley is scared of alot!  Mainly fast moving kiddos and anything loud, so I know what you mean.  Also if anyone acts scared of him, then he is scared of them, which causes him to bark, which scares them worse!  Oh well...never-ending circle!!  Welcome