Spooks

[Guest tammy]

help

new (and first) greyhound. she is 4 yrs old. very sweet and very spooked. have had her a little over 2 mos. she will come up to me and likes my other little dog. she will not let my husband or kids approach her and can barley stand being in the same room as them. they try treats, participate in feeding and walks. nothing seems to help. i'll take any advice.. i feel bad for them and her

tammy

[Guest MyBoys]

Having had a full blown spook myself I understand how you are feeling. First, 2 months is not a long time for her to be completly comfortable, you need to be patient and allow her the time she needs to adjust. The first 6 months we had our spooky boy we thought he was going to live in the bedroom forever, he only came out for meals, he was actually terrified of going for walks, he was terrified of my husband, he was terrified of any unusual sounds. He had actually been returned twice because of his issues, but I hung in there with him and allowed him the time and space he needed to blossom. I have to say that when he finally let his guard down and became one of the family it was the best feeling ever and I knew at that point he was finally a happy dog. A spook will always have some issues, for instance out for walks, you just never know what will scare them, so a little advice would be to always use a harness when out for walks, it is so easy for them to slip thier collar when they go into a panic mode. Don't get frustrated and keep you husband and children involved with everything she does without overwhelming her. Like I said, there is no better feeling then when your spooky pup finally lets go. Hang in there and be patient, I promise it will pay off.

[Guest tammy]

thanks. that makes me feel better. i will hang in there and give her time.

[greysmom]

It took my spook more than a year, behavioral training and drugs before she was able to have a relatively "normal" life. Time and patience are the biggest factors in letting her adjust at her own pace. Keep your husband and kids involved in low key ways. Reassure them that her reaction IS NOT a personal slap and that your greyhound needs their time and support too. Beyond patience, the next thing to say is to try and not be frustrated with her. But don't coddle her either. No baby voices to comfort her when she's scared. Just tell her she's a nutball and go on about your/her business. This will reassure her that you're not scared so she does't have to be either.

 

Some other tips: don't pet her on the top of her head - it's very threatening for a dog and requires a lot of their trust to enjoy; don't look her in the eye or stare her down - also very threatening; get a spook harness to walk her; try and put her in situations where she can succeed to help boost her confidence, even if it's only one simple command that she knows.

 

You may want to explore some other ways to support her. DAP (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) sprays can help her stay calm. Homeopathic rememdies like Rescue Remedy ca be helpful as well. Some spooky greys like to be wrapped in a T-shirt, and there are professional "swaddling" outfits that accomplish the same thing. If necessary, you can explore prescription options with your vet.

 

Try reading some books by Patricia McConnell to become comfortable with the signs and signals she gives to help you deal with her fears.

 

Spooks do need more from their owners than other greyhounds. The rewards can be huge when you finally see them come out of their shells!

 

Please be honest with yourself, your family, and your situation. If you don't want to put in the time and effort you'd be better off returning her sooner rather than later.

Edited March 26, 2010 by greysmom

[rschultz]

you are doing all the right things. It just takes time. Took lexie 3 months to come up to us. We didn't see her tail wag for more than that. 2 years later...she won't leave our side. Just keep up the consistency, treats, lots of praise and love .ect..it will happen

[Guest tammy]

It took my spook more than a year, behavioral training and drugs before she was able to have a relatively "normal" life. Time and patience are the biggest factors in letting her adjust at her own pace. Keep your husband and kids involved in low key ways. Reassure them that her reaction IS NOT a personal slap and that your greyhound needs their time and support too. Beyond patience, the next thing to say is to try and not be frustrated with her. But don't coddle her either. No baby voices to comfort her when she's scared. Just tell her she's a nutball and go on about your/her business. This will reassure her that you're not scared so she does't have to be either.

 

Some other tips: don't pet her on the top of her head - it's very threatening for a dog and requires a lot of their trust to enjoy; don't look her in the eye or stare her down - also very threatening; get a spook harness to walk her; try and put her in situations where she can succeed to help boost her confidence, even if it's only one simple command that she knows.

 

You may want to explore some other ways to support her. DAP (Dog Appeasing Pheromone) sprays can help her stay calm. Homeopathic rememdies like Rescue Remedy ca be helpful as well. Some spooky greys like to be wrapped in a T-shirt, and there are professional "swaddling" outfits that accomplish the same thing. If necessary, you can explore prescription options with your vet.

 

Try reading some books by Patricia McConnell to become comfortable with the signs and signals she gives to help you deal with her fears.

 

Spooks do need more from their owners than other greyhounds. The rewards can be huge when you finally see them come out of their shells!

 

Please be honest with yourself, your family, and your situation. If you don't want to put in the time and effort you'd be better off returning her sooner rather than later.

[Guest tammy]

how depressing. thanks for being honest. of course i don't want to give her back. that's why i came to this site for help. not an easy way out.

[Guest MyBoys]

I never used drugs on my spooky boy, and believe me he was a servere case. He was terrified of candles flickering, ceiling fans, all humans, sunlight comming through the window and reflecting on the wall, I am telling you I could go on and on. Like I mentioned in my other post he had been returned twice because of his issues. I thought to myself I have the time and patience to work with him so we adopted him, after the first week I thought to myself, WHAT DID I GET MYSELF INTO . This dog was a total train reck and I didn't know where or how to start with him. People would come to my home and say, oh, I thought you had 3 greyhounds because he would never show his face if anyone else was in the house, he would hide when DH would come home from work. I had to take him out in the yard on a leash because he would hide in the bushes, even with my other 2 greys out there. But I hung in there and so did he, until one night I was home alone watching TV, my other 2 boys were in the room with me, I look up and there he is standing at the doorway,at this point he had been with us almost a year, I paid no attention to him and after standing there for a few minutes he came in and laid down, I knew then we were heading in the right direction. A week later he got up the nerve to greet DH at the door with our other 2 boys, victory #2. Little by little he allowed himself to become part of the family, but it was on his terms, he needed to feel we were trustworthy. I can't tell you exactly how to handle your girl or long it will take except again to say, time, patience, love and praise without overwhelming her, if she is overwhelmed she will retreat. For instance, he was totally out of it during thunderstorms, shaking and drooling, at one point his eyes actually rolled back in his head, but I made the mistake of sitting with him and talking to him, I was actually renforcing his behavior. After that, I put a blanket in the bathroom and let him work it out, alone. My sweet spooky boy passed away last March from osteo, he was a month short of 7 years old. I use to say to my family that he is one little weirdo, but he was my little weirdo and I loved him just the way he was, and I would do it all over again if I could have him back. I promise you that you will have a very special bond with your little spooky girl because you will work through it together.

Edited March 26, 2010 by MyBoys

[NeylasMom]

Only have time for a really quick response, but please read The Cautious Canine by Patricia McConnell. Also, many spooks are helped significantly by the presence of another dog - I personally don't think they shoudl be adopted out as only dogs but sometimes you don't know in advance that the dog will be spooky in a home environment. Not suggesting you add another dog to your household necessarily, but you might look into fostering, or try having friends with dogs meet you for walks, etc. to build her confidence. It does take a lot of patience to work with a spook, but the reward is SO great. Just for fun and some encouragement:

 

Neyla in the first 6 months that I had her:

 

Neyla now:

 

 

And just so you don't think she was trying to get away from me in the last photo (in case the happy smile and the tail wag wasn't clear), immediately after, when I got bopped in the nose by her really aggressively giving me kisses:

Edited March 26, 2010 by NeylasMom

[greysmom]

how depressing. thanks for being honest. of course i don't want to give her back. that's why i came to this site for help. not an easy way out.

 

 

I wasn't saying you should or should not, only that you make an honest assessment. If you truly are willing to work with her, then more power to you! We'll be here - probably with more advice than you need or want. Every dog and situation is different, so you'll be figuring out what can work for yours.

 

"The Cautious Canine" is a great book to start with for info.

[JohnF]

Hi, and thank you for making a really great effort to turn a spooky grey around. It's never easy and it can be difficult to prevent it from causing issues with people in your family that the dog is scared of. If you look on my profile and follow the web site link to Peggy's photo gallery on PBase.com you'll be able to see how I handled it. Peeople must understand that it isn't that the dog doesn't like them, but rather it would love to be nice to them but is too scared to try.

Good luck, you'll get there in the end and when you do give your grey a wonderful hug.

Edited March 27, 2010 by JohnF

[greg1229]

I have had Gracie, my spook foster for 5 months now, For the first 3 days I didn't even see her. She had her "safe" place in the spare bedroom. The key I have had with getting her to open up was to let her open up at her pace. I free feed so she is able to eat when she wants.

 

I know that everyone in the family wants to help your pup open up by helping with the feeding, but that may be overwhelming her. Maybe you should do the feeding for now and once she is comfortable with you then the rest of the family can start helping. Once she starts trusting one of you she will slowly open up to the rest of the family.

 

I know that sounds mean, and i don't mean it to be. But the spooks I've fostered have become the sweetest hounds I've ever worked with. I know the frustration you are feeling, I've felt it often. But Gracie is now such a snuggle bunny and even goes out back with me on "poop patrol" to make sure I get it all. For 3 months, if I was outside she would not even think about coming out. And if she and the other dogs were already outside if i went out she would cower and sneak by me out of arms reach to get back inside. To this day, she still shakes and lowers her head at meet and greets. But at home, a total 180.

 

Give her time and I bet she will become an attention loving houndie..

 

Greg

[Batmom]

If she really seems terrified of them, the best thing for them to do is pretty much ignore her. Hard for kids to do, maybe easier for your husband. Some good advice above about not looking directly at her. One thing I like to do with a shy/spooky dog is to spend some time every day -- for me it is the evening -- sitting on the floor with a little pile of delicious treats next to me and a nice dog bed next to that; read a magazine, watch TV, ignore the dog. In your case might start out with the treats a foot away from the person (say, DH) and the dog bed a foot away from that. Don't try to coax her over, don't look at her, just ignore her. Eventually, she'll see this very large person (DH) is actually just about her size ('cause he's sitting on the floor), and wherever he is there are liver treats or hot dog slices or cheddar cheese cubes. And then she'll come over and sneak a treat and maybe snuffle his shoulder, in which case he should continue to just ignore her.

 

Could take a couple weeks before she gets up the nerve to approach, but haven't had one fail yet.

 

Hugs and best luck!