My watchdog is afraid of the dark....

I thought this was hilarious and very odd. I have had over 8 dogs and never have I seen this. I good my brother and he said put the dog in a dark room with food and water. I think you should just try keeping the food in a dim room and turn some lights off in the house then call the dog into a dark area of the house. If you can't do that try to stay with the dog when you turn the lights out.

I don't think it is funny. I had a dog who was terrified of loud noises, and I know it is not a funny thing to see a scared dog. You can try to help him alleviate his fear by training. You must have a lot of patience for that. First, you should know that you must not scold him when he shows fear. You don't have to coddle him neither, because doing so when he is afraid could make him understand that being afraid is good. You have to get your dog to become more and more accustomed to the dark, until he understands that there is no more need to be afraid. First, make him come to the porch door, with the door opened. Praise him if he is calm and doesn't show fear. Then make him come closer and closer to the door, until you manage to get outside for few steps. Don't forget to praise him for any step he makes. You can also use treats for not being afraid. If he shows fear, it means that you've made too many steps at a time, and you should slow down the process. Don't coddle the fear, but reward the progress. It will take a lot of time until he will become accustomed to the dark, but I think it worth.

You may have to go out with him, I guess, or turn on the lights when he goes out. Give him his own little lighted area. Maybe you could get a few solar lights and outline a doggie do area. It is funny.

Ah, if you hadn't explained the gross part of the post, then we wouldn't really realize the magnitude of your dog's fear. As for my pets, there has really only been one thing that I've realized that any of them are afraid of (we have two dogs and two cats). The one fear that I've discovered for them is that they are afraid of fireworks. My oldest dog is ten years old now and every year around the 4th of July and New Years she absolutely goes crazy. She won't stay outside and she won't even stay upstairs in the room that the dogs and my daughter share, she has to be downstairs, underfeet until the noise is over.

that's funny indeed and kind of weird. maybe you need to train him to get used to the dark. i think it would make him a better watch dog if he has nothing to be scared about hehe. i have a couple of dogs and i dont realy know what they are afraid of because they are all tied up. they are pretty noisy when there are tons of people in front of our house so I guess they are doing their jobs right. also, whenever there are stray cats crossing their way, they get angry but not when there are roaches or mice..

This sound weird. I have never of dogs being afraid of darkness. I have had one who is afraid of thunder and another who have probia for insects. You might not believe but there is a belief that dogs can see things which human eyes can't, especially the supernatural. A tell-tale sign, looks at the tail. If it is dropping down and between the hind legs, then it sure that he have seen something.

well it is kinda funny that a big dog is afraid of the dark. one of my dogs are afraid of loud sudden noises and the other one is afraid of masks. one time we used a mask and she was barking really loud because of it.

I think that's kind of unusual for a dog to be a afraid of the dark since they have a different sense of vision compared to us humans. Our Labrador doesn't have that kind of problem when taken to a unlit environment. Maybe there's something else that's messing up with your Labs senses or memory, a bad experience perhaps? and yes, Labradors are all bark and no bite.