Tips for helping a dog overcome a fear of loud noises

Dear Cathy: Lulu is a 1½-year-old lab-hound rescue who has been with us since she was 8 weeks old. Until three weeks ago, we happily took long daily walks. The word “walk” or the sight of her harness still gets her extremely excited. She goes through all the motions of wanting to go for a walk, but once outside Lulu will freeze a few steps from our driveway. We’ve tried treats, but no change.

We had been on a long walk with a friend and her puppy just before this happened. During that walk, the friend stopped to have a conversation with a person in an idling diesel truck.

Noises frighten Lulu. I’m pretty sure she’s afraid now because of this truck.

Any suggestions on reducing her fear of noises and getting her to walk again? — Rosanne, Suffolk County, New York

Dear Rosanne: Loud noises can be very stressful for some pets. Talk to your vet about an anti-anxiety medication that will lessen Lulu’s reaction to noises. Also, consider getting her a canine pheromone collar to relax her for the next 30 days or buying canine pheromone spray to spritz on her leash or on your legs so she can inhale this right before and during her walk.

Once she is relaxed, introduce her to a few conditioning techniques. For example, find recordings of traffic noises online for her to listen to at low volume. You can increase the volume over time, but only to the level where she remains comfortable. Keep rewarding her for being relaxed around this noise.

Take Lulu for a car ride, then park and roll down the windows a bit where she can hear some traffic sounds. Again, don’t overwhelm her. You always want to increase exposure to sound incrementally to the point where she remains comfortable.

If her comfort level is improving, park the car down the street after one of your drives and walk her home from there. You can increase the walk from half a block to around the block. She just needs to know her outings don’t have to be scary and that she will end up in the comfort of her home again

When you are ready to start walking her again, try going at night instead, when it’s much quieter. Once she is happy with her nighttime walks, you can introduce her to daytime walks again.

If after all this, she still freezes when you take her outside, then get a lawn chair and sit with her in the front yard for a while. Do this every day, increasing the time outside so long as she remains relaxed. Be patient: Dogs that are sensitive to sound need time to adjust. Eventually, she will want to go for a walk again.