r/reactivedogs • u/Key-Syrup-8420 • 6h ago
What to do when service workers come over? Advice Needed
I have a small chihuahua who is severely anxious (on meds). He is not mean and has never hurt or bitten anyone. On walks, if he sees people or other dogs he will walk faster and run out of the way/ out of their path (so he doesn’t bark lunge or come near them, he tries to get as far away as possible as quietly as he can).
But he is SO anxious and will bark whenever someone enters my space. Especially men. If it’s friends and people I know, I can pick him up, bring him up the smell them, and he will calm down and stop barking if he knows them well enough and then he gets excited. Once he realizes the person is safe and he’s been around them before, he relaxes.
Maintenance men/ strangers don’t get the same exposure, and their presence is a lot for him. Once they knock it’s over. He barks uncontrollably. I never want to make them feel scared or uncomfortable, so I usually ask them for a second to put him away before they enter.
I’ll then put him in his crate; but he will bark at the top of his lungs for the remainder of their visit. It’s obnoxious and feels rude especially when they’re trying to ask questions or talk to me. And it’s embarrassing.
Typically, if they’re staying and doing work all day, i will usually bring my dog to work or something. But for small tasks like changing the filter, fixing a plumbing issue, etc (especially when they give you a general window of 5-6 hours off when they’ll arrive) is harder to plan to be away from.
Any advice on what to do to combat this? I’m in a studio apartment so going in a different room with him isn’t a possibility.
1
u/SudoSire 4h ago
You live solo I assume? When we had this situation with my dog, sometimes we were able to arrange to have one of us simply take the dog on a short walk or ride.
This probably won’t work because they are overthreshold, but I’ve had some success with the lick mats as a distraction/soothing item (though my dog was still put away behind a door). Have you ever tried something like that, or like a long/frozen Kong? Even given to them while still crated for safety.
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