What To Do When Your Dog Is Scared

A Trainer’s Guide to Raising Emotionally Resilient Dogs.

Fear is a natural, adaptive emotion—even for dogs. But how we respond in those fragile moments can shape our dog’s long-term behavior, emotional health, and resilience. Whether your dog startles at a loud noise, shies away from a stranger, or panics after getting hurt, knowing how to respond with structure (not panic) is essential.

This guide will teach you what not to do, what to do instead, and how to raise a dog who can bounce back from fear—stronger and more secure than before.

🧠 Fear Is a Nervous System Response—Not Disobedience

When your dog gets scared, they’re not being stubborn or dramatic—they’re experiencing a surge of nervous system activation. Their brain shifts into survival mode, often bypassing learned behaviors in favor of primal instincts like freezing, fleeing, or barking.

This response is especially heightened during fear periods, sensitive developmental windows where even neutral stimuli can feel threatening. Puppies go through at least two major fear periods (and possibly a third during adolescence), so it’s critical to know how to respond during these moments.

🚫 What Not to Do When Your Dog Is Scared

It’s instinctive to want to comfort your dog with cooing, petting, or even scooping them up—but depending on how we do it, we may unintentionally reinforce the fear.

Avoid:

• Speaking in high-pitched, anxious tones (“It’s okay! It’s okay!”), which can validate the fear instead of soothe it.

• Forcing them to interact with the scary thing (“Just say hi!”) before they’re ready.

• Freezing in indecision or panic yourself. Dogs look to us to gauge how worried they should be.

✅ What to Do Instead

When your dog shows fear, your first job is to stay calm and guide them through it. Fear is contagious—but so is confidence.

Here’s what to do:

✔️ Stay Neutral, Grounded, and Calm

Use a steady tone and confident body language. Your dog will mirror you.

✔️ Increase Distance from the Trigger

Get far enough away that your dog can observe the scary thing without going over threshold. This is called working under threshold.

✔️ Redirect to a Familiar Cue or Game

Simple behaviors like “Find it,” “Let’s go,” or touch targeting give your dog a structured action to fall back on. Movement = relief.

✔️ Reinforce Curiosity

If they sniff the trigger, glance at it calmly, or even just recover from a freeze—mark it and reward it. These are moments of resilience.

🔁 Teach an Alternative to Fear: Engagement

Scared dogs don’t need pity—they need clarity. When we teach our dogs what to do in uncertain moments, we give them power.

Try:

• A “Look at That” game for scary people or objects

• Pattern games that build predictability

• Counter-conditioning: pairing the trigger with something positive like food or play

• A go-to “safe” behavior like a hand target, orienting to you, or walking away on cue

When fear becomes a signal to engage with you, instead of panic, everything changes.

🐾 Final Thoughts: Fear Is a Teaching Opportunity

Your dog will be scared sometimes. That’s not failure—that’s life. But in those moments, you have a choice:

Panic with your dog, or show them the way through.

By staying grounded, creating distance, and providing an alternative behavior, you’re doing more than just “managing” fear—you’re building trust. And trust is the foundation of emotional resilience.

Want more guidance?

Explore our online classroom or schedule a private session where we can create a custom plan to support your dog’s confidence and social success.