Our puppy got scared when my husband yelled at her one time, now she submissively pees in front of him all the time. What can he do to get her over this?

Our Golden Retriever is 6 mo old now. She is very sensitive and smart. My husband got frustrated when we were potty training her and yelled once - loudly. It scared her badly. Now, she submissive pees infront of him all the time. He has learned by his mistake, but not sure if it can be remedied. He never yells now and is careful not to react when she does sumissive pee. He just cleans it up. He can tell she is going to pee because of her crouching. He now doesn't want to interact with her. If he is sitting down on the couch, everything is fine and she is happy - she doesn't seem at all fearful of him when he is standing either. What can he do to get her over this? He does throw toys for her and she is happy to get them and seems ok then. But no guarantee that she wont' pee...we take her out when he gets home so she doesn't have a full bladder, but she has quite the reserve... I appreciate your time and experience.

Cindy's Answer

I would suggest that your husband ignore her and only interact with her outside. Even when he does interact,no direct eye contact, no bending over her, no petting. This is a normal and involuntary behavior with many puppies and young dogs and the more it happens, the more deep-seated the behavior can become.

With consistent, low-pressure interaction and plenty of positive experiences, this typically fades as her confidence increases.

the more we "do" to work on this the more it can become a lifelong issue. whether this can be remedied will remain to be seen, she'll hopefully outgrow it with calm and non-emotional handling.