Dogs are scared of loud sounds.
You may have noticed that your dog's behavior changes whenever there are sudden loud sounds.
Your dog may act unusual or even frightened and from this you can tell he has a noise phobia.
Environmental noise phobia is the term that a lot of dog owners as well as veterinarians use to describe the behavioral responses that dogs exhibit whenever they hear loud sounds.
To confirm that your dog is indeed scared, your dog's behavior might include excessive barking, whimpering, digging, uncontrolled urinating or defecating, and even aggressive behavior when there is a flurry of loud sounds.
If you are wondering how your dog's fear of loud sounds might affect you and your dog's lifestyle, do not worry because there are things you can do to cure your dog's noise phobia.
The following will be a discussion of some of the common things that most dog owners do in order to solve their dog's fear of loud sounds.
One thing you can do is get your dog used to loud noises so that eventually your dog will not be affected by environmental noises.
You do this by downloading an audio recording of loud sounds such as thunderstorms, gun shots, fireworks, sirens, and the likes at a very low volume.
You might have a hard time hearing the loud sounds but your dog won't.
This is because dogs have very sensitive ears so do not worry if the sound is barely audible to you.
After one or two days, increase the volume of audio recording by a notch and let it stay at that volume for the next two to three days after which you can again increase by another notch.
It is important to do this slowly and gradually so as not to surprise your dog which might lead both of you back to square one.
Remember to have a lot of patience with your dog whenever you attempt to cure his noise phobia.
This takes time and every dog shows different responses to training so do not become frustrated or give up on your four legged friend.
Another method to use is to let your dog be reminded of positive experiences every time he hears loud sounds.
When there is thunderstorm, fireworks, etc.
, give your dog a yummy treat or his favorite chew toy when he is calm or indifferent to the loud noises.
Be sure that you refrain from giving positive rewards if your dog is fearful during the loud events.
Otherwise your dog might associate his scared behavior with positive attention and will think that his scared behavior is being rewarded and encouraged.
Lastly, give your dog their own space that is all their own.
This can be a selected area or a crate that can become his "den".
Your dog can retreat to his safe comfort zone when he is afraid and this will help to calm and lessen his fears.