Charlie Copying Nervous Behaviour From Daisy?

[MattB]

I've posted a few times, usually in relation to leash reactivity. We had Charlie for 6 months then rehomed a very very nervous girl partly because we thought Charlie would like the company but mainly because I felt so sorry for her. She was terrified of us and it took a long time for her to calm down.

 

She's come on leaps and bounds but strangely Charlie has started to copy her nervous behaviour. He was always very sociable with new people including visitors but will now run straight upstairs and hide from anyone other from me and my other half. These are situations he's previously been fine in but he now seems to have become more anxious to escape from people than Daisy (the nervous one!).

 

I just wondered if anyone else has experienced this and if there's anything we could be doing to help him.

[Guest LazyBlaze]

Hi there. It's my experience that yes, dogs can pick up nervous behaviours from others (we had a terrier that never bothered about fireworks until we got our shepherd, who was terrified of them. Eventually the terrier got more scared than the shepherd...). If Charlie's behaviour is new and totally out of character for him then I would probably get him checked by a vet just to rule out anything medical. If all okay then just work on positive reinforcements and jollying him along with the 'scary' situations. Just working on basic training and bonding with him again will help build his confidence. He maybe just needs some extra reassurance with the changes that have taken place in his life, it's possible he is feeling a little overwhelmed.

 

Good luck, and hugs to your pups.

[MattB]

Thanks very much. We took both hounds for a check up and the very didn't think there was anything medical to worry about and more likely to be the change to living situation. Yes I agree with Charlie being overwhelmed, he was on his own for 6 months and was really settlling in prior to Daisy arriving.