Not Wanting To Go Out In The Am- Growling And Snapping

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

Hello, I've had Andy for a week now and he has not been very willing to go outside in general. It's worse in the mornings.

Yesterday he growled at me but eventually went out with me. This morning he again growled and snapped at me.

I tired luring him with snacks but that did not work. I tried tugging the leash lightly and saying go but he still growled at me.

Everytime he growled I loudly said no but wasn't willing to keep trying as I'm worried he might bite me.

I let him be as I had to go to work but I know that's not what should be done.

I will go home over lunch and try to get him out then but I don't want to be afraid of him. any help would be appreciated.

[Batmom]

Have you chatted with your adoption group to see if they have any ideas?

 

When you do take him out, are you going for a walk? Does he seem to enjoy it once he gets going, or does he mostly just want to go home again? How often are you taking him out? Some dogs who are new to home life really just want to go out, do their potty business, and go back inside. And that's OK.

 

One thing that can help to get a dog up and moving is to clip the leash on, turn AWAY from the dog (don't face him), nice cheerful "Let's go!" and begin marching off.

[msjpk]

Take a deep breath. You are both getting to know each other.

 

Might be a problem if you are leashing him while he is laying down. Call him, to you, pat your leg, say "come" every time you go for a walk.

He will pick up the come command.

 

If you need to bribe him at first, grab a goodie, pat your leg, command "come" leash him up, give goodie, take control and off you go.

Persistence, persistence, persistence.

 

Keep us posted and I am sure many people on this board can help you. Good luck.

[GeorgeofNE]

So now Andy is at home without having gone outside to go to the bathroom at all?? Oh dear!

 

I am guessing you've never had a dog before? If possible, have someone from your group come to your house and show you the ropes!!

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

The place i adopted him from does not seem to have a group. I will contact someone in my city and hopefully they will be willing to help.

He doesn't seem very interested in going for walks but I think it's because we're in the city and he is freaked out by some of the noise.

When I take him out on a walk on a trail he seems fine.

He doesn't really come when called - only when he wants to.

I tried bribing him, he didn't even move .

And yes, he is my first own dog.

Edited October 21, 2013 by AndyandMaggie

[Batmom]

Whereabouts are you located? Might be some people on this board in your area who can help or suggest good resources for you.

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

Hamilton, Ontario

[Batmom]

I sent private messages to a couple people who I *think* are near your area. Hopefully one or more of them will wander by here and offer some resources.

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

Thank you!

[Guest PiagetsMom]

Thanks, Jey! I'm glad you're reaching out for some help and advice - try to stay relaxed and calm as Andy will pick up on those things. What you're experiencing is not all that uncommon, and hopefully you'll get some good suggestions and direction to guide you through, especially since Andy is your first greyhound and first pup

 

Just wanted to add that my girl, Maya, is not always particularly gung ho about going out, but I've found that it's easier to get her out if we go right after breakfast in the morning before she has a chance to get settled again - we eat, and we immediately go out. I keep treats with me so that as soon as she's done her business, she gets a treat, along with lots of happy "Good girl, Maya's!"

Edited October 21, 2013 by PiagetsMom

[OwnedBySummer]

GLOHW is in Hamilton. I don't know if this is who you adopted from but they are definitely an adoption group with resources. They may be able to help you, whether or not the dog is from them. There are other individual greyhound adopters out that way but I can't think of who they are. If GLOHW is your group, they should be able to hook you up with someone. Or perhaps you adopted from GRA? -- they have a forum and you can post on it that you are looking for other nearby members. FYI, on Saturday, Nov.2, GLOHW and Greyhound Trust & Alliance is having a Meet & Greet at Munchie's Restaurant (1000 Upper Gage) in Hamilton -- this might be useful and enjoyable for you. And bring your dog (and something for him to lie on)! -- Munchie's is a dog friendly restaurant. Scroll down: http://www.glohw.com/upcoming-events/

 

We'll be there!

Edited October 21, 2013 by OwnedBySummer

[Sambuca]

I've had Bu for 5 years and he can be extremely difficult in the morning. He'll occasionally growl at me when I try to get him out of bed, I call it grumbling though, since for him he's just protesting, but has no intention of backing it up.

Putting a leash on him first is a good idea, that way there are 6' between you two. I wouldn't tug at him, just say "let's go" and start walking. As soon as he stands up and starts moving, hand him a small treat. Is there anywhere you can take him on quick outs that are quieter? Maybe even just a back alley?

I also like the idea of feeding breakfast, then going out since he's already up.

Will he take treats while he's outside? If so, start giving him little treats outside so it becomes more enjoyable to him.

[Guest elff]

When we first brought Sidney home, he was real stubborn.

We had problems with him when we went walking. He would just stop. Tugging on the lease would do nothing, bribery would do nothing.

Eventually when he wanted to go, he would.

It's was frustrating so we stopped going on walks with him for a while. We have a fenced in 1 acre back yard, so we are lucky in this regard.

 

It was all him just getting used to us. Now, he is completely different on walks. He loves them and is extremely well behaved on the lease.

 

Good Luck and stay positive. Like others said, this should work itself out as you 2 get used to each other.

[Acadianarose]

Poor man. He must be terrified. He needs to learn to trust you. Right now, he has no idea who you are and he has no reason to believe you are going to protect him from the scary things outside.

 

Right off the bat, I started teaching Payton “it’s okay”. If something scares him, I just say “it’s okay” in a happy voice and now, he trusts what I am saying.

 

Are you trying really yummy treats, like hot dogs, chicken, something like that? Every dog I have ever had would do just about anything for a hot dog. Payton is very food motivated, but there are times when he is too distracted to focus on food. If he was really scared, he would have no interest in food at all.

 

Andy has to go outside to potty, whether he wants to or not. If not, you will have a big mess. I would put his muzzle on him if you are scared he will bite you.

 

And, they have to be taught to come when called, and it can take a while. Starting with food and saying " come on" in a really happy voice and walking away usually works.

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

Thanks for all your help everyone! I emailed GLOHW so hopefully someone will get back to me.

I went home around 11 and he greeted me at the door. I leashed him and we went out. He didn't have any accidents in the house so I guess he is just not a morning dog.

I'm not comfortable with him growling at me though so we will need to work on that.

Definitely going to pick up a pack of hot dogs today

[Batmom]

You can get a lot of treats out of a hot dog -- I slice mine paper-thin but for starting out, the thickness of a quarter is probably good. If you want to carry some in your pocket for an hour or so, you can line your pocket with a little sandwich bag.

[RedHead]

I am assuming that he has already made the association of you coming to him in the morning with the leash a negative one (normally using a leash helps) so I would try to switch your approach. If you just ignore him and do your thing, will he eventually get up? Especially if you put food in his bowl, throw a toy, etc. I would try to not put so much focus on forcing him to do it which I know is hard because mornings are on a time limit.

 

With time, he will most likely become more comfortable going out (hopefully he learns to enjoy it!). During his more active times in the house when he is already up, you could also practice some desensitizing by putting the leash on, giving him a reward, and taking it off, etc. You can also work on recalls by calling him to you, grabbing his collar, and giving him a treat. A lot of greys go through weird issues like this in the beginning, don't feel discouraged!

[Brandiandwe]

Welcome to the group! I'd chime with the others. It will come with time. I'd spend a lot of time with him not taking him too far especially in the morning. Work out whether he wants to eat then go out or go the other way round. Or does he pee last thing at night then not want to go again? Hot dogs are awesome, rotisserie chicken is also a big hit in my house, cheese, fish, greasy horrible bits off the roast..... think anything that is edible that makes your hand smell and feel funny and thats the best sort of treat going.

[robinw]

Hello from Kitchener! Batmom told me about you. Maybe we can get together for a walk in a few weeks if you'd like. In the meantime, treats, confidence and patience! I've known many dogs who freeze and struggle when being walked. Act confident and ignore the behaviour. Just keep going. Treats help, but sometimes they are motivated by food. I think confidence is the key and try to make it fun.

Edited October 21, 2013 by robinw

[a_daerr]

You're having the 'oh, sh!t' moment. I think we've all been there.

 

If you're patient and gentle, you will have a different dog in a few short months- you won't have to be afraid of him, I guarantee it. Lots of good advice from the others. Robin is a great resource for shy dogs. Good luck, and keep us updated on his progress.

[Guest AndyandMaggie]

I got home after work and tried luring him out of the crate to go for a walk with a bit of hot dog. Left the hot dog in front of the crate and he came out but only once i left the room. We went out and he seemed less spooked than before.

I won't force him to come out of the crate in the mornings and just grab him after he's done eating.

So far I have taken him out twice in the morning before work, once at lunch, right after work and then one last time around 9.

I suppose he really does not need to go out that many times. I am hoping to not have to come over lunch so that will be cut out and now we are down to one time out in the morning.

We don't go for very long walks because he just doesn't want to.

He doesn't mind me putting the leash on, the problem is him actually getting up and going haha.

Robinw I would definitely love to meet up. Ive gotten into contact with GLOHW but I will not say no to more advice.

[greytluck]

Batmom alerted me to this thread, unfortunately being in Pickering I'm probably a little far to be of much help.

My first greyhound did have the same issue when I brought him home though. Time and trust were ultimately the things that turned it around.

I lived in a condo in Toronto at the time so needed to leash walk him every time he had to potty. He wasn't at all food motivated and in fact wouldn't take treats from our hands at all, so coaxing with treats never worked for me either. After being growled and snapped at too I eventually learned I just had to snap a leash on him. Turn away from him and say " Let's go", and I would just walk to the door. I never jerked the leash but there were times the leash did pull him to his feet. I know some people wouldn't recommend this but really it was the only safe way to get him to his feet and outside.

I also found a greyhound weekly run to join, and met up as often as possible with another greyhound in my building to walk with. These two things helped so much in helping him over come his fears.

 

I wish you luck, I know how frustrating it can be, but believe me its all worth it.

[Batmom]

So glad to see you are getting some local contacts and are doing some good strategizing of your own!

 

For what it's worth:

 

- I sometimes muzzle a dog when I'm not sure how he/she will react to what I'm going to do. No shame at all.

 

- One of mine did not like the walk thing -- or even the great outdoors in a fenced yard -- until a couple months after he came home. He wasn't crabby about it, but he'd go out, do what he needed to do, and immediately turn around and haul butt back inside. I didn't do anything about it, just let him figure things out at his own pace. And he did .

[RedHead]

MaidMarcia on the board is from Hamilton...but I don't know how active she is here. There are a lot of grey people and support in Hamilton though with GLOHW and Needle-Nose Adoption. I don't know if you already know, but there is a greyhound get-together on Nov. 2nd at Munchies Coffee House and BARKery in Hamilton. It might be fun to go to meet grey owners in your area. I have also seen a few instances of some very shy and insecure hounds, who came right out of their shell after their first grey play date! Maybe you could meet some greys in your area who do grey walks or play groups.

[Guest DeniseL]

Miami growled and snapped all the time in the beginning. Lots of yummy treats in the beginning when we put on the leash. Both me and my dh were bit on the hand at one time. Miami was terrified of us and his whole new life. It took a lot of time and we had to ask for help from those more experienced. Today he is my heart and soul. Even more special to me because of the work we all had to do. My gentle giant. We both learned to trust each other, but it didn't happen over night...

I learned this technique of holding the leash with a treat on the other side and he would put his head in it. Worked good and he was more comfortable with doing that.