Afraid of the dark

[Murph and Me]

Murphy will be four in October. He gets along great with other dogs. He is very well behaved at home. His problem

He is afraid of the night

More to it he is deathly afraid of fireworks and thunder. He was never a fan of them but as he gets older its becoming more and more of a problem. This July between fireworks and thunder storms he has now gotten to the point were I have to drag him out of the house. He is fine during the day but once it gets dark out he hides in the tiniest spots not wanting to go out. He has always loved going out  We meet his girlfriend and off leash the two of them explore, wrestle and meet the other dogs in the park. He usually does not want to go home. But a couple of ill timed fireworks and a few nights with big thunder it seems he has figured out in his own crazy way that night time is big bang time and he is not going to deal with it. Its a forced march that we go on and the only time I let him off leash is if he meets his girl friend. But he is constantly looking around and has his tail down. All it takes is a pop in the distance and tail between the legs and he is looking to run and hide. So my question is what to do to get hm back to being happy about being out at night. He is never going to like fireworks or thunder I get that, but what to do about getting him to relax. 

[Leslie, Yogi & Maci Bear]

I don't have an idea about his night problem (bless his heart). I do know that the thunder shirt works wonders for Maci
when it thunders or in the case of fireworks. Like many other dogs she starts just trembling when they start, we put the shirt on her, she calms way down. It amazes me how much it helps her. So I highly recommend them.

[Judith and Addie]

My Addie has been afraid of the dark ever since I got her at 3 months old. She is what is termed a fearful dog.

When I would take her out to potty at night, she would stay where there was light from my outdoor lighting, not daring to move into the dark. She still prefers short nighttime walks.

When I was training her to walk on a leash, it was over three weeks before she would get farther than the end of the driveway.And trucks were another category of things to try to make disappear.

She is afraid of new things in her environment, from a different car parked in a driveway to a new pot of flowers on a front porch.

And then, at just under a year, at a dog park, she was overwhelmed by 5 or 6 larger dogs and was on her back squealing for a bit before I could extricate her, so of course now she is fearful of other dogs.

Luckily, she is not afraid of sounds like fireworks in the distance, thunder, or gunshots (somewhat rural where I live).

That being said, what I would recommend are a few things. Look into counter-conditioning and desensitizing. The CARE protocol is a good place to start: http://careforreactivedogs.com/ You might consider joining a private Facebook group for fearful dogs run by Debbie Jacobs: https://www.facebook.com/groups/fearfuldogs/ . Also, talk with your vet about whether medication is a good idea, at least while you are working with Murph to overcome his fearful of the dark. You might also look into getting him evaluated by a dog behaviorist, especially if your vet is not very familiar with fearful dogs or does not believe in medication.

Thundershirt may be a useful tool, as well as giving Murph a safe space where he can retreat when the noise is overwhelming, such as thunderstorms and fireworks. This could be a small space in a closet, under a desk, etc.

Going back to things I have mentioned, the biggest help for me was joining the Fearful Dogs group because the people on the site are wonderful and will give you more advice, support, and perspective. They have been there; done that.

Good luck. Getting a dog over his fears is a long road which can be frustrating but will make you so proud of your pup and yourself for being able to work through it.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

My Guinness is also terrified of thunder and fireworks...it's so sad to watch them when they're this frightened.  My advice would be to only take him out after dark to potty and then bring him right back inside where he can feel more comfortable and "hide" if he feels like he needs to...Guinness uses the back corner of the bathroom.  I would not try to force him to get over his fear of the dark right now by making him go for walks especially if there might be fireworks....I really think that will just reinforce the fear.  I see that you're in NY, so it should only be another couple of months with the evening storms.  Also, I'd be very careful to only take him off leash in a fenced area.  When dogs are this fearful they will often run away to try to find a hiding place.  Is it possible to exercise him during the day or early evening when it's still light out?

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I think this is perfect advice. 

[Murph and Me]

Im in Brooklyn by the harbor and I have to check for the minor league baseball team in Coney Island and Staten Island as well as Jersey City for their fireworks. The night time is the only time where I can really give him a good work out. After 9PM in city parks you can have them off leash and Murph has always been high tailed and a big goofball running around with his girlfriend and other dogs. Its just the last month where he has this thing about going out at night. Going to check out the fearful dog online and see if it has any ideas. Thanks all for the help.

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

My new guy is a rescue and I think his problem is that he wasn't given the opportunities to be around traffic noises, etc.  I also suspect that he is not afraid of the dark so much, but is afraid he will be shut outside after that last pee. He won't willingly go out after dark and holds his pee until the next day.  What I am doing is taking him for a short walk just as it is getting dark. I have no idea if it will work as I haven't ever had a dog with his issues.  This is not what people with more experience are advising you to do, and I have no idea if my plan will be successful, but exposing him to new things with a little insistence feels right to me with my new boy.