FEAR OF STRANGERS

Stage One

For one week: Divide all of your dog’s food up into ten equal portions for each meal. Feed him in the following manner:

· Put him on a lead and touch him all over quickly before offering him the portion of food.

· Repeat again for each separate portion.

· Make sure that it is only yourself and your partner who does this for the first week of the program.

· No other food is to be available for the duration of this program.

Stage Two

For one week: Repeat touching/handling procedures but now feed most of his food outside the house on walks.

Reserve one or two portions of food to use in the house in the following manner:

· When anyone that your dog knows well and is friendly towards enters the house they are not to greet him at the front door.

· They should walk straight past him without saying a word and go straight to where the food and toys are.

· They should get one portion of food and place it on the floor for him to eat.

· It sometimes helps, if he is very friendly towards certain people to get them to stroke him before giving him the food.

You should also continue playing with a toy from this location whenever anyone enters the house that he knows and is friendly towards.
 

Stage Three

For one week: You can introduce him to people that he does not know quite as well both inside and outside the house.

· Begin by chopping up any favorite food into tiny pieces and putting the pieces into a container.

· Have a person approach and speak to you and your dog.

· Immediately begin feeding him pieces of the food, one piece every five seconds until he is relaxed.

· Then have the person take hold of the lead and if possible walk him a few paces away before returning to you. This person must still hold the lead the whole time.

· When your dog is relaxed, then you can stop stroking him and let the other person stroke and handle him.

· He is still being fed every five seconds.

· Continue until the food runs out.

· Repeat as many times as you can.

If you find this program helpful, please make a donation to the Pasadena Humane Society. You can donate online or mail a check made out to PHS to:

BEST Training
Pasadena Humane Society &SPCA
361 S. Raymond Ave
Pasadena, CA 91105