Just Adopted Our First Greyhound, Questions About Anti-Social Behavior

[Guest ItsysMama]

We adopted my first Greyhound (my husband had them as a child), Itsy, a little over 1 week ago. She is very sweet and docile, but only when we can get her to come downstairs from our bedroom. Once we introduced her bed to her and placed it in our bedroom, she spends 99% of the day in there. I know that she probably feels safe up there, but she will only come downstairs when called to go outside or to eat. The first couple of days, she would come to us, but she was always shaking like a leaf. Now she at least wags her tailwhen she comes to us and when we pet her. So we know she's starting to get a little more comfortable around us. But she is ALWAYS upstairs in her bed and never comes down on her own, only when called. And after she comes downstairs, she will stay for a few seconds and then suddenly run back upstairs as if she's still scared of us. We also have a 6 year old son who is very good with her, but we know she is still pretty skittish around him. However, she will run back upstairs regardless of whether our son is with us or not, so it's not just him. We have tried blocking off the stairs so she has to stay on the main floor and spend time with us, but she becomes very nervous and shaky. Are we doing something wrong? Is there anything we should do differently? How long will it take for her to get used to us? We want her to stay with us on the main floor and have her become part of the family. Please help!

[Guest NSGREY]

You're doing fine. She's just new, nothing wrong with that she will come out of her shell more and more as time goes by. Honestly, both of mine took about a year to really come out of their shells and shows their true personalities and each of them can be anti social when they want to be.

 

Congratulations on Itsy

[Guest JMinAugustaGA]

Do you have a dog bed downstairs for her? If not, I would suggesting getting another nice comfy dog bed (or two) and put it downstairs somewhere that she can see you quite a bit. Maybe a crate downstairs with a bed in it, with the crate door open so she can go in and come out when she wants. And be sure the child does not bother the greyhound when the greyhound is on her bed.

[Guest Downtownhoundz]

Congratulations on your girl! Sometimes it just takes time for them to adjust!

[Guest kkaiser104]

Do you have a dog bed downstairs for her? If not, I would suggesting getting another nice comfy dog bed (or two) and put it downstairs somewhere that she can see you quite a bit. Maybe a crate downstairs with a bed in it, with the crate door open so she can go in and come out when she wants. And be sure the child does not bother the greyhound when the greyhound is on her bed.

 

 

Teddi will lay wherever his bed is.

[Guest ItsysMama]

Unfortunately, she doesn't like her crate. We put her in her crate when we leave the house, but she won't go into it voluntarily. We tried her bed downstairs, also. Nothing seems to work. When she does come downstairs (after we call her of course), we praise her and give her a treat. We also told our son to try to be quiet around her and no quick movements or jumping around. It's so bad, we've nicknamed her "Skittsy Itsy".

[oscarsmom]

It will just take some time. In our old house Darla would hide in our bedroom for most of the day. The only time she would come out was to eat or go outside. That lasted for about a month. Just keep doing what you are doing. I have heard that behavior could last a few of months in the worst cases till they get used to you and the family. My suggestion would be lots and lots of walks. That way she is hanging out more with you guys.

[djsgreys]

Did you get your girl from a group? Just wondering how much information was given to you.

 

When I place a greyhound, I always tell them that they can expect it to take 4-6 months for their grey to really settle in and that each day they will start to see a new aspect of their personality. Its important that you remember that her whole world has been turned upside down - nothing is that has been is anymore. The home environment is completely new to her as are the members of your family. And for the first time, she is an only dog - with no other greys to take her cues from. Be patient - don't push her but keep doing what you are doing with the praise and treats.

 

If you didn't get an adoption manual there are a lot of greyt threads on here about settling your grey in.

[fourofem]

Give her some time, it's only been a week...she'll get more comfortable around everyone/thing. House was pretty anti-social when I first adopted him. He would stay on his bed in the kitchen rather than coming in with the rest of us for a good while. I didn't push him and eventually, he came around and now wherever we are, he is!!!!

[BatterseaBrindl]

Nixon spent the first week here in his open crate.

Didn't even attempt the stairs for 2 weeks.

 

Itsy (LOVE the name!) has probably never been around a small child before.

 

Our Grandchildren (6 & 4) visit frequently and my dogs spend quite a bit of time upstairs, away from the activity, when they're here. Even Nixon...who is a Certified Child-Friendly Therapy Dog... likes his quiet time away from the kids activites.

However, when the kids go to bed, Ruby usually spends the night sleeping on a dog bed on the floor right beside Kaila's bed.

 

Please make sure your son - or anybody for that matter - does not go near her when she is resting on her bed.

This is a very strict rule in our house...Greyhounds are not used to people in their sleeping/resting space.

 

 

I agree ...you should get a couple more beds for downstairs. We have 4 beds in the kitchen, 2 in the living room, 1 + a fouton in the mud room and 3 beds upstairs

 

As others have said...she will come around.

"Patience is a virtue"

 

Oh...and we need pictures of Itsy!!!!

[Guest cwholsin]

This may or may not apply to your gal, but when we first got Hermes (our 1st greyhound) he was allowed on one of our couches. He loved it so much he would not get off the couch, so. Had to take away couch priviledges. He wasn't very skittish, so I don't know if restricting her from the bed would help or not.

 

To help her overcome h shyness, you could try hand feeding part or all of some of her meals to help build a relationship with her. Congrats, and good luck!

[greysmom]

Time and patience. Patience and time. It can take months for a new greyhound to settle in and start coming out of her shell. As long as she is eating and drinking and going outside to potty, I wouldn't push her for interaction. Let her stay in her "safe place." There's another thread in this section right now about a dog who has the same issue.

 

If possible, visit her often in her "safe place." Just a quick visit to say Hello and give her a treat, a pat under the chin or on her shoulder (NOT on top of her head). If she is OK during these visits, start spending a little more quiet time with her - sit and read a book with your son, or do another calm and quiet activity. Give her YUMMY treats as she remains in the room with you and not anxious. You might cut the visit short if she does become anxious. After a while, she should begin to spend more and more time outside her Safe Place. Soon, you'll be posting about how you have a Velcro Dog that follows you from room to room and won't let you out of her sight! Hopefully, anyway.

 

Walks are a good idea. They provide both exercise and bonding time. Remember to remain calm and give lots of praise and treats.

 

Nancy's advice about never letting children approach a dog on their bed is very wise. Your son is old enough to learn rules about how to be around the dog, and you're doing a great job helping him.

[Guest KatyC]

Hello, we have had peggy for a week now and she is very similiar! So you are not alone. She has a room with beds and duvets in it and she likes to spend a lot of the time in there. She will sometimes come and lay on another bed in the lounge with us in the evening but only if we are being quiet. If we start cooking or washing up or moving around she will either pace around or go back into her room. We are just letting her get on with it and giving her a stroke and cuddle if she comes to us and going into her room to give her a stroke and sit on the floor for 5 minutes with her. Peggy is really skittish and nervous outside too, on walks, is yours? She will sometimes jump at the slightest noise or movement too.

If you find any other things that help please let me know! We can share tips! I am hoping that with time it will get less good luck

[Guest ItsysMama]

Thanks, everyone! All your suggestions have been very helpful. As far as walks go, I wouldn't say she's skittish, but she doesn't really like walks. I say that because, once we go outside, she immediately tries to turn around and continues to for the first half of the walk. Also, she shakes the whole walk and acts as though she just wants to hurry and get it over with. She walks ok on the lead, doesn't pull that much, but she doesn't want to stop and smell or anything. Should I just try to take her on more walks to get her acclimated? She's just so pittiful because I know she hates it. And by the way, I would love to post a pic of Itsy, but I don't know how! Any tips?

[Guest zombrie]

Time, time, time!!! Remember, she is in a whole new world that she has never seen before. It can take days, weeks, months, or even years for some dogs to get comfortable in their new life.

I just wanted to add something, is there something downstairs that she could be afraid of? I had a foster who only liked walking on carpet, she did not like walking on harder, more slippery surfaces like hardwood or tile. Took her a couple weeks to not be afraid of the floors anymore. A had another foster who hated the kitchen sounds (pots hitting, tin foil ripping, etc) Just a thought!

[krissy]

Even social, outgoing hounds can exhibit this same behaviour, so it doesn't necessarily mean she hates her new home or the people in it.

 

We have had Summit for 2 years now and he had a home before us for 2.5 years. It still took a good 8 months before his full personality was shown to us. And even now he elects to spend his evenings in our bedroom on our bed instead of on the dog bed in the living room. Sometimes we'll shut our bedroom door so he has to choose the dog bed, but usually we just let him be. We enjoy our walks together and other bonding time so that's good enough.

 

Give her some time. She'll come out of her shell. But that doesn't necessarily mean she'll come out of the bedroom!

[RedHead]

Teague also discovered his "favourite areas" in the house, but with time he explored more. I would definitely give it some more time, and worry a bit more if things don't improve with time. Personally, I think (depending on the dog) other dogs can work wonders in these situations. Are there any greys or other dogs in your area that you could walk with or have over for a visit? Obviously, this would depend on how your girl responds to dogs, you don't want something barging in and freaking her out, but if it draws her forward and makes her play or act confidently sometimes that can break the ice. Maybe a GTer is in your area and could meet you for a walk or visit.

 

I actually prefer a new dog to be okay with being away from me as opposed to having to follow me around everywhere, that kind of thing can lead to more serious problems IMO. Give it some time, don't coddle or praise (ie. reinforce) scared behaviour, and she will hopefully come around.

[Guest KatyC]

I would definately agree with the seeing other dogs idea. Peggy is much more confident with other dogs around. Today we walked with her brother eli and a kid drove a motorbike on a field right up to us and she didn't care because eli was there and he didn't care. It has been helpful for us so far

[JJNg]

she doesn't really like walks. I say that because, once we go outside, she immediately tries to turn around and continues to for the first half of the walk. Also, she shakes the whole walk and acts as though she just wants to hurry and get it over with. She walks ok on the lead, doesn't pull that much, but she doesn't want to stop and smell or anything. Should I just try to take her on more walks to get her acclimated?

I would keep the walks short and stay in familiar areas until she gets more relaxed and comfortable. Then gradually extend the walks from there. In the beginning, this might just mean staying in your yard and hanging out together outside if just being outside the house makes her nervous. Forcing her on longer walks where she is stressed and shaking the whole time doesn't help her learn that walks are ok and may actually make her worse.

[Guest joviemom]

This sounds so much like how my girl used to be. She was extremely skittish and didn't like being down stairs (especially when the mean kitty was zooming around lol). I have had her home now for a little over 6 months and she recently started coming out of her shell. Se is totally a Velcro dog and only goes up to the bedroom if the cat is running around and being loud lol.

 

She is still very afraid of men and will go upstairs if people she doesn't know come to the house but the best thing to do is go slow and learn her limits! You will be amazed at the kid of dog you will end up with, I know I am!

[a_daerr]

You're gotten good advice. She sounds a little spooky, so the best thing is just time and patience. I would definitely not deny her access to her "safe area" or try to force the interaction. Just take it slow, and allow her to show affection on her terms. Some of the shy ones will make a 100% turnaround and bloom into tail-wagging social butterflies. Some of them will always be shy. If you are commited to keeping her and working through her quirks, the best thing to do is just allow things to progress naturally.

 

My first retired racer started out very shy. It was wonderful and beautiful seeing the progress he made day-to-day. He's my heart dog.

[Guest ultraviolet79]

Give her lots of treats when she's downstairs with you.

 

One of my greys was sick recently, and we had to give him shots and other medicine, which he naturally did not like! It made him avoid us... he stayed in our bedroom pretty much all of the time unless he was having dinner or going outside. We just started giving him tons of really good treats whenever he was downstairs with us and he eventually came around. Good luck!