Dog Community

scaredy 5 month old shih tzu

Posted : 5/30/2011 11:17:00 PM

Hello everyone :) I currently have a 5 month old shih tzu who is very much scared of new dogs and new people. I need some help on how I may be able to introduce him to new situations. We take him on as many walks as possible to allow him to get acquainted with his environment. So far, he doesn't like it when strangers and dogs approach us during our walks. He tries to run away or just lay on the ground refusing to move. His previous owner never took him out on walks and we've only gone on 20 walks so far. I can understand the nervousness he's feeling, but I don't think it's healthy for him to just stay in our apartment and not be able to socialize. Any suggestions?

Also, is it possible for him to be confused when there are 2 different people who are teaching him tricks/commands? We've been successful with sit, stay, down, and a couple of others that keeps him out of certain areas we don't want him in with the word 'out'. But there are times when he doesn't do what we ask him even though we know HE knows what they mean. Do they get confused? He is a puppy after all, maybe we should slow down on the puppy commands?

Xebby

Posted : 5/31/2011 12:00:25 AM

puppy classes! Find a good trainer and the right class then with some guidance you'll be set on the right path to socialization. Maybe do a initial consultation to see how everyone feels about working with him and go from there. Good luck!

JackieG

Posted : 5/31/2011 6:57:58 AM

It's very possible that your pup wasn't properly socialized during the optimum socialization period which ends at around sixteen weeks of age. Add to that the possible genetic factor involved, since pet shop puppies generally come from breeders who aren't breeding for good temperment, and you can easily have a dog predisposed to be fearful and shy. You can still do a lot to help your pup become less afraid but you may never have a social butterfly of a dog.

Patricia McConnell has a great little booklet available called 'The Cautious Canine". It's got good tips and a program to help you desensitize your pup to strangers. I highly recommend it and it's ridiculously cheap at around $10.

What you don't want to do is put your dog into a situation that arouses fear until you've worked on helping him overcome his fear of strangers. Dogs that are forced to endure scary situations often end up biting someone because they feel so defensive when placed in a situation they can't escape. As much as you want to have your dog enjoy walks and meeting new people and dogs, I advise you to go slowly and work on building this dog's confidence and his bond with you. Even a puppy class may be overwhelming for a fearful dog and most classes aren't designed to deal with either end of the personality spectrum when it comes to dogs. The super excited, six month old Lab who is choking itself to get to the other people and dogs in the class is just as left out as the shy dog who cowers behind the owner and can't participate in the exercises because of it's fear. I'm a big believer in puppy classes but not every dog will benefit without an understanding owner and trainer.

diseasedee

Posted : 5/31/2011 7:29:41 AM

Petsmart holds free classes once or twice a month. We were fortunate enough to catch one of them this month :) Gizmo didn't respond too well to the business of the store and so they suggested I get a private pet trainer or just someone that can do a 1-on-1 with him. I couldn't get him to socialize but I was able to learn some other things from the class, I figured if I stayed and let him observe the other dogs and people he'd be a wee bit interested. Which helped a little, I saw that he was curious about the other dogs but observing them from afar and under a chair lol.

glenmar

Posted : 5/31/2011 7:39:30 AM

It does sound like Gizmo missed out on the important socialization. So now, slow and steady and never force a situation as Jackie said.

When you are working with the pup be sure that BOTH of you use identical commands, rewards, etc. There should be absolutely NO difference in how the two of you teach the little guy. As in human parenting, consistency is super important.

You've gotten some really good advice already. The one thing I would add is never to reward the fear with verbal or nonverbal behavior. If you make a big deal out of it, Gizmo may feel that it's a good thing to be afraid and reinforce the fear if that makes sense.

diseasedee

Posted : 5/31/2011 7:39:30 AM

Thanks so much! I will definitely look for that.

I wanted to see what I could do first before I resort to any other options. He's doing ok I suppose, he'll sniff around and seem curious but he prefers to do it from far away. He won't growl (thank goodness) but will try to bolt when they come near.
We figured it had a lot to do with his history also, his previous owner locked him up in a bathroom most of the day :(.

He's wonderful and learns very quickly, we've had no problems with him despite being anti-social.

I will definitely take it slow and take it from there.

diseasedee

Posted : 5/31/2011 7:44:07 AM

glenmar
It does sound like Gizmo missed out on the important socialization. So now, slow and steady and never force a situation as Jackie said.

When you are working with the pup be sure that BOTH of you use identical commands, rewards, etc. There should be absolutely NO difference in how the two of you teach the little guy. As in human parenting, consistency is super important.

You've gotten some really good advice already. The one thing I would add is never to reward the fear with verbal or nonverbal behavior. If you make a big deal out of it, Gizmo may feel that it's a good thing to be afraid and reinforce the fear if that makes sense.

Ahhh, ok. I can definitely say we weren't being consistent lol. My bf uses affection as a reward and I use a treat. We'll have to work on that...

What I usually do when he starts to get tense is I keep him at that spot (he won't move anyway :/) until he settles down on his own. I'm not sure if that's a good thing for him?

spiritdogs

Posted : 5/31/2011 8:48:15 AM

Are you near enough to Seattle to train there? Ahimsa Dog Training - go!!!!! Grisha is a nationally known trainer with great skills who can help you. Don't waste any time. At five months, most puppies will go through a bit of a fear period, but a pup with less than adequate socialization is in more danger of being permanently afraid if nothing changes. Grisha has solid scientific knowledge and is a positive trainer. You can't do much better in your area.

JackieG

Posted : 5/31/2011 9:25:50 AM

diseasedee
Also, is it possible for him to be confused when there are 2 different people who are teaching him tricks/commands?

Very possible he's confused with two different people training him. It's important to keep everything consistent especially in the early stages of training. Even though you both may be using the same words, everyone has a different style of training with different body language, voice tones, timing of rewards, etc. Your pup is still in the very early stages of training so I advise that one person do the teaching until your pup has a better understanding. Keep in mind that a dog may seem to know a command such as "sit" because he will sit on command most of the time. This means he's starting to make the association between the action of sitting and the word "sit". Now you work on how long he will remain sitting and also how far from him can you move while he's still sitting and what distractions can he ignore and remain sitting. This all takes time and working in little steps so he can be successful and move to the next degree of difficulty.

I would not slow down on the training but I would make sure you have a goal in mind each time you train. Short ten minute sessions several times a day are best for teaching.

tiffy

Posted : 6/1/2011 7:55:57 PM

Puppy class is a must do.