Is it bad to "coddle" your fearful dog?

Have you heard that "coddling" or babying your fearful dog will make them worse?  Or that in order to become more confident, your sensitive dog has to face their fears? Wondering if it's true? 

If you're looking for the short answer, then no, the above is not good advice.  Protecting your dog from scary things, and avoiding forcing them into situations they are scared of, is not only the kinder option, it's the smarter one too. 

If you'd like the "why" underlying advice to protect your dog from being terrified, watch the following two short videos. 

In this first video, I talk about whether it's ok to let a dog hide from things they're afraid of: 

In this second video, I talk about whether comforting your scared dog is likely to be helpful or not: 

What do YOU think? Do the explanations in the videos make sense? Or are you still on the fence between comforting your dog, vs. worrying about "coddling" them? Shoot me an email at @[email protected] and tell me about it.