Suggestions For A Shy Hound...

[Guest AhSookieSookie]

Newbie here! My husband and I adopted a 2.5 yr old brindle girl 3/6/11. Sookie has had perfect house manners, gets along great with my other dog and my 3.5 yr old daughter. She has bonded to me and will play a little bit, bounce a little bit when its just me and her. However, she is very scared around my husband or any other unfamiliar adults. She justs trys to run away or will pace and hide. No fear aggression or submissive peeing or anything like that. My husband can take her out on the leash but she will not approach him of her own free will. I think she got scared because he 1) is very tall and kind of looms over her, and 2)tried reaching to pet her as she was flying by and I think she felt like he was tring to nab her or pin her. Jamie desperately wants to make friends and she is coming around. She has only been with us for 1.5 weeks. I think she will overcome on her own but any suggestions to get her more comfortable?

 

Thanks!

-Sara

[jimsherriek]

You might try, your husband being the sole person to feed, change her water, brush her etc.

 

Have him move slowly, while talking to Sookie and taking care of her. My husband is also extremely tall and big with a voice to match. He lies on the floor and talks to our spooky foster, letting her come and go as she will. He gives her tidbits of treats (very smelly ones) as she comes close to him, rewarding her without being on top of her.

Sookie will come around with time. Good luck and keep us posted.

[Jenbo]

That's what DBF did the first time he met Myka, he talked very soothingly and quietly and sat down on the floor and then laid on his back. She was instantly charmed.

 

Be patient, too, it just takes some time for the shy ones to realize they ARE home and that everything WILL be ok

[kudzu]

Be patient. (And it sounds like you will be.) Some Greys seem confident at the kennels on familiar territory but that confidence leaves them when you get them home. It will likely take time for her to feel comfortable in such strange surroundings. My girl was uncertain at first at home but nothing dramatic. We were shocked the next day as my BF came downstairs, with his usual heavy footsteps, when my girl's head popped up & she started barking at him. This repeated off & on for weeks, slowly fading out. He had a habit of closing doors rather loudly, walking loudly, appearing in various hats, etc. It was like she sometimes just didn't recognize him. We still have the running joke of "Scary man, scary man." And if either of us touched her while passing in a confined area, say the hallway, she'd bolt to the nearest room. We concluded that she was, "Scared of everything in the house." Though the truth is she just needed time & exposure. My family had no idea what I saw in this dog who didn't want them touching her. I, however, was madly in love with her. LOL

 

Ideas that come to mind first. Try ignoring her when first coming into a room. Try not to look straight at her as you first enter or if she comes walking in. When you look at her try not to stare or look her in the eye. You could try looking at her briefly with your head facing slightly away, though not really out of the corner of your eye. Then look quickly look away. Repeat it a couple times. I've seen dogs do that to each other & saw a behaviorist get a shy dog interested in her by doing this. If she is food motivated you can try gently tossing her a treat anytime she makes an attempt to pay attention to you. That is assuming the hand gesture doesn't startle her. Don't just reach for her & definitely not in a quick grabbing motion as you already know. Don't approach her directly. Go to her in a curve when approaching her with your body at an angle to her, not facing her head on. Don't lean over her. In fact, it is better to lean slightly away. I realize that's not necessarily an easy thing for a tall person trying to reach down to a dog & it isn't exactly second nature to most people. Again if she is food motivated, hubby can try carrying treats or just some of her daily kibble quota & drop a piece near her as he is walking by. If he finds her approaching him from the rear or side just let her approach without paying her much attention or with just casual attention. If she's close enough he can offer her a treat, maybe just easily hold out a piece with his elbow near his side & his hand down low, palm up & treat on fingertips. That's worked for me.

 

Mostly though, don't push her, make a huge fuss or let the desire to show her how much love & affection is awaiting become something that overwhelms her. Many of us have had timid hounds who blossom into social butterflies or at least not scaredy cats.

 

ETA: Though my Grey girl is very reserved so this approach didn't work, in the past BF has gotten many shy, frightened pups to approach him & become very interested in him when he goes into sort of a playbow position but then puts his forehead on the floor & covers his head with his hands. It looks like he is trying to stick his head in the sand. I don't know quite the attraction but it works an amazing amount of the time.

Edited March 16, 2011 by kudzu

[NeylasMom]

She'll get used to him, just give her time. In the meantime, I would have him ignore her. Avoid eye contact, don't try to approach or pet her, let it be on her terms. Having him sit on the floor or lie down might encourage her to approach him, but the thing is, when she does, have your husband just let her, not reach out and try to pet her.

 

Food also helps, but I think it's very important your husband not try to use food to lure her closer. Instead, have him toss treats to her at whatever distance she is comfortable with. As she starts to feel more confident and come closer, the treats still get thrown away from where she is. Eventually, when she will approach, she gets treats for actual contact but again, the food isn't being used to lure, it's only as a reward for what she initiates, preferably by your husband throwing the treats away at first.

 

I know this is backward from what you've ever heard, but it makes sense when you think about it. She feels safe away from your husband. When she ventures a little closer (this is kind of scary but I can handle it) we're then tempted to lure her closer (okay, I might come because I really want that treat but I'm really not comfortable with this distance) versus throwing the treat away (look, going closer to that guy didn't cause anything bad to happen, instead I could go back to where I feel totally safe, cool).

 

This is my (probably somewhat poor) attempt to casually explain a technique I learned from Suzanne Clothier. She claims that when done properly it will change the dog's attitude completely in only a few sessions. Not sure how well I've explained it and there's a lot more detail at the contact stage that it doesn't make sense for me to try to. I'm about to take in a super shy foster tomorrow night and will be trying this with him so I'll let you know if it works as well as she says. Or you can try and let me know.

[JJNg]

Jamie desperately wants to make friends

If he's actively trying to 'make friends' with her, this may be too much for her to handle. As hard as it may be for him, I have to agree with all the excellent advice you've gotten to have him ignore her and let her approach him at her own pace. I've found that most shy dogs come around more quickly with people who ignore them and don't keep trying to make advances.

 

As kudzu mentioned, and you've noticed yourself, body language is very important - no direct eye contact, no direct approaches, no reaching for or leaning over her. I actually find the process of earning the trust of a shy, spooky dog to be one of the most rewarding experiences in interacting with dogs. I don't foster much, but have fostered a spook for our group and prefer to work with these special dogs.

[Guest mollieandme]

Mollie (my first) was afraid of me when I brought her home. She kept to the furthest, darkest part of the house she could. I set her crate up in my office which allowed her some security but also forced her to be near me if she wanted the security. She spent weeks in the crate, door open, just watching me. Occasionally, when I decided to hang out in the living room, I'd close the office door so she'd have to be elsewhere in the house- not necessarily with me, but not hiding in the office. I did everything with her: feed, walk, let her out, etc. I often sat by her crate and read and her bed was close to mine.

 

She began to venture out and explore the house, eventually deciding I could be trusted and that the couch was better than the crate. I start sitting next to her on said couch until one day she hopped up with me on her own. These days she looks forward to the evening when I sit somewhere with enough room that she can curl up at my side. In fact, the other day, she started barking until I sat on the couch, at which point she jumped up and sighed (or, more accurately, "chuffed".)

 

So time and patience, as people have stated. Food helps and so will walking her but mostly time. One day you'll wonder where the shy girl went.

Edited March 17, 2011 by mollieandme

[JohnF]

Patience, love and persistence will get you there.

Practice using Calming Signals like we did with our initially spooky hound Peggy.

Links at the top intro of her photo gallery here:

http://www.pbase.com/johnfr/peggy

[Guest Patience]

Everyone's advice here just confirms what we found when we brought Gracie home 6 years ago. We would approach her as needed to walk her, but otherwise gave her some space.

 

It was funny when she started coming to us for affection: if one of us was sitting on the couch quietly, she'd slowly walk within reach and simply stand there, looking away. It was as if she was trying to be "casual" about it. I'd pet her and whisper to her until she walked away. Gradually, she'd stay longer and inch closer. Now, she runs to us and leans with her whole body, practically knocking us down.

 

As you've said, 1.5 weeks isn't that long. I bet Sookie relaxes in no time.

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

My female Olive was absolutely terrified of me. If I even looked in her direction, she would run from the room. Now, my girl Olive is my little sweetheart. I can pick her up when she is dead asleep and nothing. She no longer has any issues at all with me. NOTHING. This is what I did, and what I strongly suggest for any hound exhibiting any fear or aggression toward certain people in the household:

 

1) have your husband hand-feed every single meal the girl gets. In my case I had to sit on the floor (to make myself smaller), have a handful of food and extend it behind my back and not even look at my girl when she would approach to eat the food. It took 2 weeks before I could even move my arm to my side. A few more weeks and I was able to hold the food at arm's length in front of me. By the 5th week or so, I could hold a handful of food in my lap and she would eat it.

2) your husband does ALL walking.

3) your husband gives ALL treats.

 

Do you see the pattern here? Every bit of food and walking is done by your husband. Your husband needs to be sure that he moves calmly and as quietly as possible for the first month. He also needs to refrain from eye contact and forcing any type of physical contact with your hound. You may ask, well if she runs from him, how does he walk her. Well he just needs to approach her and put the leash on her and take her out. If she runs, then he follows-NOT chase, but follow. Regardless of if you have a fenced in yard or not, he still needs to walk her every single day.

 

The hand-feeding is probably the single-most important step in this process. On an instinctual level she will understand that he gives the life-sustaining food, therefore she will bond with him and not fear him. This process is very time consuming, and even a PIA, but it works so very well. It will build an unbelievable relationship with the hound.

 

I am an adoption rep and I actually recommend to every new adopter to hand-feed their new hound for the first few weeks or so regardless of shyness or not. It just helps to build a very strong base relationship.

 

Good Luck

Chad

 

One other thing, my girl Olive is what I call "head shy". She gets nervous when strangers approach her head. If you stand next to her and pet her flanks, she is ok. This may be something that your husband can do after a few weeks of hand-feeding when he sees that she is starting to come closer to him and begins to relax around him.

Edited March 17, 2011 by Greyt_dog_lover

[kudzu]

This is my (probably somewhat poor) attempt to casually explain a technique I learned from Suzanne Clothier. She claims that when done properly it will change the dog's attitude completely in only a few sessions. Not sure how well I've explained it and there's a lot more detail at the contact stage that it doesn't make sense for me to try to.

I think you did a wonderful job of explaining it. Thank you for adding that.

[Guest AhSookieSookie]

Thanks for all the great suggestions! I have had Jamie ignoring her for the most part and he has started hand feeding her. He has done this twice with a huge difference btwn the 1st and 2nd times. The first time she would cicrle and circle and then sneek one piece of food then circle again. This morning she came right over and ate from his hand fairly consistently. I had him ignore her during this as well, no attempts at petting or anything like that. I think she will come around pretty quick.

 

I look forward to seeing her happy like she is with just me around him. She will play bow and wiggle and wag with me and my heart just melts when she chitters her teeth. So damn cute!

!

[Guest dragontearz]

When I first adopted Guinness, I could not touch or reach in his direction without him flinching...hand feeding certainly helped him get to trust me, and he wolfed his food down so fast at first hand feeding was the only way to keep him from choking and hacking up the food he had just ate. After a few months, he was like velcro, always had to be able to see me in a room and was that way until he died.

[SPDoggie]

She's adjusting very quickly, so I bet she is comfortable with your husband in no time. Our shy boy Kingsley peered around corners at people for years... but now he runs to the door to greet whomever has just come in.

[Guest Desonia]

AhSookieSookie, I have the exactly same problem with my GD and my husband. It's been about 2 weeks we have him. I'm so happy you posted this. Thank you all for you're comments. I will try them and let you know the progress Marty does with my husband.

 

Merci

[Guest june]

Some great suggestions from everyone. The biggest thing I would suggest is patience, patience, patience. Don't rush her and let her progress at her own speed. She wants to be loved and will respond it's just that everything is so new to her.

june

Edited March 18, 2011 by june

[Guest TexasGreytMom]

Our household consists of just DH and I so there's not a lot of noise. When anyone visits, our Dora paces, looking for a place to hide. At first, we closed all doors to other rooms, forcing her to stay among everyone. But, we realized that it stressed her far too much and now, when anyone visits, we leave our bedroom door open and she's free to hang out in there. When everyone leaves, she's back to her normal self.

 

Shelby was shy at first and would hide out in the bedroom when anyone visited, but now, she's out and mingling, even with 3 yr old niece who is loud and boisterous.

 

Our youngest DS (an adult) is heavy footed and sort of "like a bull in a china shop" and both pups are leery of him. When he sits down and is quiet, after a bit they will approach him. But, sudden movements or sudden loud noises have Dora rushing back to our bedroom for safety.

 

Your pup is new to your family and will learn that it's a safe haven. All greys have different comfort levels with people and with sounds.

 

We've had some that have taken to our entire family immediately and for others it took a while.

 

You got some great suggestions - having your DH be the sole caregiver for feeding, treats, etc for a while ... before long I'm sure she's be his shadow! Don't be discouraged ... the situation is totally normal for some greys.

 

Also, Dora is much like Chad described with his Olive ... "head shy" ... if we pet the top of her head, she will turn and walk away. But, if we pet her back or behind her ears, she'll stay forever.

Edited March 18, 2011 by TexasGreytMom

[Guest Desonia]

It's been 4 days now and my husband feeds him, walk him, but he's not trying to pet or call him, he just ignores him ... and it worked. Marty is now going to my husband to smell him, he's less scared. That was a good advice, it's like when you try to much to make the greyhound like you it does the opposite...

[Guest Greyt_dog_lover]

It's been 4 days now and my husband feeds him, walk him, but he's not trying to pet or call him, he just ignores him ... and it worked. Marty is now going to my husband to smell him, he's less scared. That was a good advice, it's like when you try to much to make the greyhound like you it does the opposite...

 

 

Funny thing, I have found the same to be true with the women in my life. =}}}

[Guest Desonia]

It's been 4 days now and my husband feeds him, walk him, but he's not trying to pet or call him, he just ignores him ... and it worked. Marty is now going to my husband to smell him, he's less scared. That was a good advice, it's like when you try to much to make the greyhound like you it does the opposite...

 

 

Funny thing, I have found the same to be true with the women in my life. =}}}

 

Kind of cute Greyt_dog_lover