When Affection Helps—and When It Makes Anxiety Worse
Merle Dachshund resting calmly in a Florida backyard, illustrating how affection should support emotional stability rather than rescue dogs from discomfort.
Conditioning For Stress
For any dog that has successfully avoided pushing through a stressful situation, and reacts with aggression, barking, growling, or flight, the reward is to either scare the threat away by growling, or to run from it.