It’s not surprising that two-year-old Moose suffers from lack of confidence around people. Considering his background as a puppy born on the streets of Romania, he’s doing great. They didn’t have him until he was sixteen weeks old.
No socialisation will have taken place during the crucial early weeks and what encounters he did have with people were very likely scary ones and now hard-wired into his brain. Continue reading…
I have just been to two lovely little dogs, a Westie and a Miniature Pinscher.
Both bark in a frenzy when someone knocks on the door. Westie Jock barks non-stop when out on a walk.
I group barking roughly into four types – one when the dog simply wants something, another when the dog has been trained to ‘speak’. Then there is barking in play. The fourth and most common type of barking that I go to help reduce is what you could call ’emotional barking’.
Poor little Lhasa Apso Max is scared of the new puppy. He is a great little dog with a wonderful temperament, but for four years he has been a much-loved Only Dog.
Things have already come a long way in the couple of days since they brought Frenchie puppy Brie home. Max’ first reaction was to growl in a defensive manner. He then ran away and hid. His family had assumed he would love her because generally he’s very happy with other dogs.
She is tiny and adorable but Max doesn’t think so. Continue reading…
Belle was found with her siblings, at just a few weeks old, by the roadside. From the beginning,, in her loving home, the Whippet mix was a scared and nervous puppy – in total contrast to their two Labradors.
When someone comes into the house the scared dog will leap onto the lady’s lap for reassurance.
Belle is now three years old and the behaviours her fear generates are hard for her family to deal with. She is extremely jumpy and scared of many everyday household things.
It’s easy to get cross with too much barking when one seems powerless to stop it.
The main message for helping Belle is for them to consider the emotions that cause her behaviours and deal with them instead of trying to stop the actions themselves. It can help to translate it into human terms. For instance, they wouldn’t scold a child who was crying due to fear. They would address the fear itself. Continue reading…
It seems Kirie is finding adjusting to her new life a bit hard. They moved house two months ago.
The seven-year-old Springer Labrador is the sweetest, most gentle dog. It distresses them to see her worried.
One change she finds it hard adjusting to is no longer being able to follow the young couple and their toddler freely around the house. Previously they had lived on one floor. Now they don’t want her upstairs and have gated the stairs.
At the same time as they moved house a couple of months ago, the young lady went back to work. Now they leave Kirie alone for a few hours a couple of days a week.
She’s okay with women but isn’t happy too near small children – or some men.
She welcomed me in a friendly fashion with lots of sniffs and a couple of little jumps but I took little notice of her until I had sat down. Then I gently said hello. She immediately and subtly shrank away a little.
The little Jack Russell Chihuahua mix is probably more nervous generally than they realise. People often find it hard to read the more subtle signs in their dog’s body language.
She had had four homes before she was even four months old. A man was giving away Callie and her tiny siblings in a car park. The crucial formative weeks of her life won’t have been the best.
However, fortune shone on her when she came to live with the couple, my clients. Continue reading…
I found Dexter friendly, but careful. He tries to please – almost like he’s scared not to.
He is a three-year-old mix of mostly Labrador and Lurcher or Greyhound. They have had him for just three months.
When out of the house fear takes over and then he’s unable to take notice of them.
Walking by the roads Dexter simply feels too unsafe so he’s on high alert, panting and pulling. Twice a day he pulls desperately to the nearby field where they can let him off lead. Once free, he’s a different dog. He charges about, happy, and will once more listen to them.
Dexter feels so unsafe only when he’s on lead. If he sees another dog, even at some distance, he starts to bark. The frantic barking then changes into a high-pitched cry. He then will jump up on them, almost hugging them, scared and appeasing at the same time, like expecting something very bad to happen. Continue reading…
Tala is shy with people she doesn’t know. She is particularly scared of men.
A year ago she was rescued from an abusive situation. Where shy dogs are very often more frightened of men than of women, it may be that Tala has particular reason to be shy of men.
She now lives in a lovely family. It took her time to relax with the two men when she came to them from the RSPCA a year ago, but now she’s soft, funny and loving. Continue reading…
Distraction is helpful if the dog is taken by surprise. Distraction however doesn’t help him to cope with the appearance of another dog.
Oaky is a sensitive little Border Terrier. He has lived with the lady for a couple of years and not too much is known about his past. A perfect dog in his loving home, the lady isn’t enjoying her walks with him due to his barking and pulling towards any other dog he sees.
Oaky wears a half-check collar. The lady pulls him to the side and holds onto him tightly as the dog passes. She may say ‘Watch Me’ as a distraction. She admits to feeling both anxious and embarrassed; he will doubtless feel this down the lead to his sensitive neck. Continue reading…
What a big change in living style the mix-breed terrier has had.
It seems Poppy came from a fairly manic household with comings and goings, unpredictable young people and lots of noise. Judging by how she may now wince or recoil from hands, it’s very likely she wasn’t handled very kindly.
It’s possible a man treated her harshly, though it is common for nervous dogs to be more afraid of men than of women.
They asked one of the older children if they were sorry to see her go. The child said, ‘Not really’. Continue reading…
