Bella is very reactive and wary of many things she could have been gently habituated to from the start. The vacuum cleaner, lawn mower, hairdryer, garden hose and more. The young man plays wrestling games and hypes her up when he comes home till she’s flying all over him like a wild thing. Inadvertently, through his shouting at a TV football match, she is now really frightened when he raises his voice.
It they always keep the little boy away from Matty he will never learn that he’s harmless. In the same way that they have patiently socialised Matty by habituating him to real life, traffic, the town and so on, they need to do the same thing with the child. Of course making sure the environment is completely safe for both of them – in the same room but unable to actually make contact.
Eight-year-old Robbie spent the first seven and a half years of his life never outside a utility room and garden, with virtually no human company.
People think that saying Down, looking the dog in the eye and giving him a push will do the trick. But how many dogs are still jumping up after years of this?
Using force, pushing him into scary situations he’s not ready for and even using a spray collar for when he barks at people on walks as ‘a friend said’, will have the very opposite effect to what they want him to grow up to be. A relaxed, friendly and confident adult dog.
Sasha is very similar to my Milly in temperament. Both are German Shepherds and neither had the best start in life. Sasha was found dumped in a park in London at about 5 months old, and Milly was in a puppy farm until she was three months old. Neither had Read more