This morning Satchmo flipped out when I took him outside. There were roofers tossing down large pieces of roof two buildings away. Upon seeing this Satchmo FREAKED OUT! He became really scared and tweaked out. He tried to get out of his collar. He tried twice to run past the limit of the line he was attached to (he always knows when he is out of line), which he never does. He then went to the fence and tried to get over. Then he went into my basement stairwell and HID under the wooden stairs. I had to physically pull him out. The whole time he was struggling with all his might to get back under the stairs.
I got him back inside and he settled down a little. I crated him and went to work.
When I came home he was cowering in his crate. I took him outside, the roofers were gone, and he was still acting a little scared. Now that he is inside he keeps looking up at things like lights and ceiling fans like they pose a threat to him.
I have never seen him show a 'flight' response like this. It scared me. If he had got out of his collar I am sure he would have run away. This is just so strange for him and opposite of his normal behavior.
Just for the record there was no aggression displayed by Mo, but I was a little worried pulling him out of the stairwell. Not because he is a pit bull, but because he was a terrified and cornered dog. he is a very relaxed mellow kind of dog, but is not timid. To me he is middle of the road between dominant and sumissive. Leaning towards dominant and almost never fearful in the least.
I am at a loss for why he reacted so strongly.
Any opinions on what happened or any similar situations?