Why does Bella panic when the lady coughs, and how can they gently desensitise her to the sound?
Bella is a little Bolognaise, a small dog of the Bichon type, nine years of age. She is, in every way apart from the one, happy and confident. She is treasured.
Panic
All her life since the lady got her at fourteen-weeks-old, Bella has been terrified when the lady coughs. In fact, she doesn’t even have to cough. Just drawing in breath like she might cough is enough to send the little dog running and hiding.
She shakes for about ten minutes.
Why does coughing scare her?
To answer the question why involves pure guesswork as it began before she came to live with the lady. I would guess something happened, inadvertently, at the breeder’s. Maybe a man shouting at TV or someone with a bad cough that scared her when very young. My guess is that something coincided with her fear period.
Surprisingly, she couldn’t tell me if it happens when someone else coughs. It seems to be only her – and in her house or garden.
The sequence is she draws breath and Bella is already alarmed. Then, when the sound follows, Bella runs and hides, shaking.
What is the lady’s response?
She says she has tried everything. Pursuing her, cuddling her, talking to her, treating her…… There is one thing she hasn’t tried so she will do that now. Remove herself.
If our plan doesn’t take too long to work the problem may not arise. It does however depend on her not scaring Bella while the work is being done. If she can’t help herself, then she will get up and walk away. Anything she currently does simply doesn’t work so it will be best to remove herself.
We need now to desensitise her (get her accustomed to throat noises at a level she can tolerate) and counter-condition her (get her associating what currently scares her with something especially nice and new – keeping her under her fear threshold).
She’s never had dried sprats before so they will try that.
So here is our plan. To do the following several times a day. Taking her time:
(Be ready to adjust as you go along in order to always keep within her comfort threshold).
1. Take the smallest intake of breath, just enough for Bella to notice. As soon as she looks at you quietly say ‘yes’ and drop something unique and special like a piece of dried sprat.
2. Do this until she’s really used to it. Now make the intake of air a bit louder – a very tiny bit. Repeat Yes and food.
3. After a while, do the same thing but keep silent. Drop the ‘Yes’.
4. Now take the gentle intake of breath and then the tiniest noise with your throat. It’s important it’s quiet enough she isn’t alarmed. Drop food.
5. Continue probably for several days.
6. Slightly increase the volume.
Carry on like this until you are able to clear your throat properly.
7. Now draw breath and introduce a very soft cough – so soft she barely notices.
8. Continue as with clearing throat – very slowly – gradually increasing the volume of the cough.
9. You may now have to introduce a soft sneeze sound.
10. If you do have to cough and you alarm her, immediately get up and walk away from her. Remove the ‘threat’ – you. She must get no feedback from you at all. It’s not worked in the past so it won’t work now.
It’s especially hard when the dog we love so much is scared of us. As it’s an isolated thing I have every hope that with patience the lady will be able to cough in Bella’s presence. There is nothing that makes one want to cough more than not being able to!
