Free Tips for Helping a Rescue Dog with a Fear of the Harness

For this Omaha dog training session we worked with 6 year-old Chihuahua mix Fresco. Her guardians needed help learning how to help a rescue dog with a fear of the harness.

I always look forward to working with any dog adopted through Little White Dog Rescue. It is one of our favorite rescues in Omaha.

We conducted most of the session in Fresco’s back yard. It was a little brisk, but we made due and had a lot of fun.

Tips for Training A Rescue Dog

I started off by sharing a tip on how to stop a dog from jumping up on guests. Since we are in an era of social distancing, the opportunities to practice this are limited.

I’d like to see the kids in the home knock on the door or ring the bell pretending to be guests when they come home. This will help them practice stopping dog jumping. It will also help the dog learn some self-control.

We spent the first part of the session discussing the dog’s day to day life. As Omaha’s dog behavior expert, I see many people unknowingly cause dog behavior problems.

I always start by explaining how dogs learn. I also discuss how dogs view us. Our actions show them if we are leaders or followers.

I explained how to add some structure to petting your dog. I also talked about the importance of recognizing and rewarding your dog when it does things you like. Many people accidentally pet dogs at the wrong times. This can make the behavior you want even worse.

How to Help a Rescue Dog with a Fear of the Harness

To share the secret to helping a dog get over a fear of a harness, we headed inside. I gave one of the family’s kids my camera.

I wanted to show them how to help a dog stop fearing an object. We use a method called Conditioned Emotional Response, or CER. You can learn to use a CER to change how a dog feels about an object. Watch the free positive dog training video below.

Fresco did not respond as quickly as other dogs to this simple way to ease a dog’s fear of the harness. But that’s okay. Some dogs need more practice than others. The key is to practice when the dog is hungry and to take your time.

If we go at the dog’s pace and keep it positive, most dogs get over fears of things pretty quickly.

After we finished filming this tip to help dogs like their harness, I showed the guardian how to let the youngest kids feed Fresco. This is an easy way to help a dog develop some respect and comfort with a human. Humans can eventually switch to structured feeding. They can also use a snuffle mat or an Omega Paw treat ball for meals.

I would also like to see a rule that keeps dogs out of the kitchen when food is being made. They should also stay away from the table when people are eating. We recommend an easy trick to send a dog to their bed. This is a great way for the dog to start practicing some self control and the humans enforcing rules.

One of the issues we didn’t get to was Fresco’s habit of barking at the UPS or FedEx delivery people. Some of the rules we discussed, like no furniture, and petting with a purpose can help reduce barking.

I hope this is true. However, if Fresco is still barking at them in a month, I want to set up a follow-up session. We can address that issue if needed.

To help the guardians remember the dog behavior tips from our in-home training session, Fresco and I went outside and shot a roadmap to success video.