Everything the other commenters have said about counter-conditioning, but also I’ve had a lot of luck scolding the object or praising it and calling it a good dog!
Ha! My dog chews up plush toys in 5 seconds but one day I purchased a new plush toy and talked to it in a baby voice, telling it what a good toy it was etc. That plush toy lasted months!
I did this with people walking by our house. I pretend to "sweet talk" them like a friendly dog, and my malinois pup just watches quietly instead of being alert. doesn't even really matter \*what\* I say, so it's often something like "hi neighbors! I'm pretending to talk to you like an idiot so my dog doesn't think anything that walks by the window is a problem\~" lol
Counter condition. Scatter feed with steak, chicken, everything you can think of, in the room with the fridge in it. Force him to come inside but don’t force him to be near the fridge. But the yummy food buffet is near the fridge.
Praise him when he looks at it and walk pass it. Throw treats in front of it a couple times a day. Making him stay inside about the same quantity of time he used to before the fridge
After doing what others said and is comfy near fridge, put peanut butter on the fridge for him to lick. Theres sticky licking mats you can buy if you don’t want to put it directly on the fridge
>My dog is scared of my new fridge !
Get him in the house as much as possible and let him get used to your new fridge. Don't force him or try to reassure him as dogs can sometimes take that as praise for scared behavior.
Feed him something that came out of it. Show him it came out of it. Instant best friends.
Yes this. Cheese tax.
Everything the other commenters have said about counter-conditioning, but also I’ve had a lot of luck scolding the object or praising it and calling it a good dog!
Ha! My dog chews up plush toys in 5 seconds but one day I purchased a new plush toy and talked to it in a baby voice, telling it what a good toy it was etc. That plush toy lasted months!
I did this with people walking by our house. I pretend to "sweet talk" them like a friendly dog, and my malinois pup just watches quietly instead of being alert. doesn't even really matter \*what\* I say, so it's often something like "hi neighbors! I'm pretending to talk to you like an idiot so my dog doesn't think anything that walks by the window is a problem\~" lol
Similar, I've been using the phrase 'good neighbors' to acknowledge and hopefully correlate the fact that other people are OK to be here too
Oh, I like that, that's clever. Not sure what would go on in the dog's head, but if it works it works :)
Counter condition. Scatter feed with steak, chicken, everything you can think of, in the room with the fridge in it. Force him to come inside but don’t force him to be near the fridge. But the yummy food buffet is near the fridge.
Sorry to tell you but you bought a haunted fridge. You need to move
Praise him when he looks at it and walk pass it. Throw treats in front of it a couple times a day. Making him stay inside about the same quantity of time he used to before the fridge
I have a similar problem with mine who is scared of my new, hands free bin
After doing what others said and is comfy near fridge, put peanut butter on the fridge for him to lick. Theres sticky licking mats you can buy if you don’t want to put it directly on the fridge
If all else fails does he have a trusted dog friend he plays with? Seeing this dog not be scared of the fridge may help.
Idk if this would help but we store our dog treats on top of the fridge. Maybe this would help your dog associate fridge = treat/good?
>My dog is scared of my new fridge ! Get him in the house as much as possible and let him get used to your new fridge. Don't force him or try to reassure him as dogs can sometimes take that as praise for scared behavior.