Adopted very shy, likely abused dog... Help please.

[Heather]

I adopted a beautiful dog from our local humane society on Sunday. She was picked up as a stray in a neighboring town, brought to the local vet because she had an open wound. They said it was too old to suture, so she was sent to the shelter. I adopted her the next day she was available.

I named her Miley...

She was a very sweet disposition, but is EXTREMELY shy and scared. I would guess by looking at her wound it was inflicted by some sort of swinging object (shovel, maybe?)

I've never dealt with an a abusive situation... I know she is terrified of people, yet she still tries to please. She will come when called and then drops down and submits.

She is such a wonderful dog, has been doing wonderful on the housebreaking.... but she is so scared. Does anyone have any tips or advice on how to deal with this? I would never hit her or hurt her in any way, and I know that I will have to earn her trust, but is there some tips to help me along the way???

Thanks!

 

[unitard311]

my advice

I too adopted an abused dog. She had been beaten severely by a rancher after he accidentally caused her to develop gangrene and she became too sick to work. She was terrified of men, but she eventually overcame her fears by exposure to men that weren't threatening. Give your dog lots of positive enforcement and be sure to socialize it with other dogs, this helped my dog to not be so afraid. As long as they are given a safe place that they know is their own, the dog has a pretty good chance of growing out of their fear. It might not be entirely emotionally healed, but give it time and a feeling of safety. Hope that helps.

 

[desertdweller]

Most dogs that are abused are subject to, in their minds, never pleasing the owner and being hurt for no reason. Their lives are unpredictable and scary. Along with all the love you give your pooch also provide a routine that can be counted on. Stability, predictability, and consistent approval. No surprises. Good for you for making a difference in this dog's life.

 

[Cirith Ungol]

My advice - Don't treat it like it's that "oh so poor abused dog", that will only make it continue behave as you would see a "poor abused dog" to behave - fearful, even scared, maybe even defensive and you can't ever tollerate that. Bringing somone (in this case person or dog) back into realism from having had a very bad time doesn't mean that you constantly shelter it or the person. Instead they have to be reintegrated back into reality where such things are known not to happen.

Make the dog work, walk with it long and often, that creates a good bond. Next you will have to be the leader (if you don't know what it means to be pack leader I suggest you look it up somewhere serious and stick to it for the rest of your life) because if you're not the pack leader you're too weak to help the dog normalize, you could say it won't take you seriously. Because if you want to stabilize someone or something you have to be stable yourself - and who is more stable in a dog's eyes than a good pack leader? Logical isn't it?

Be consistent with what you do. A no is a no and you're the boss. But no need for harsh treatment. It's just reinforcement of your roll. The rest will fall in place and there'll always be time for a bit of a cuddle. But don't forget not to shelter it. Dogs arn't people, they don't understand your "good intentions", that will only teach them new odd behaviours because they only understand what you do right there and then.

Good luck and have fun with your new pack member, follower and friend

 

[Heather]

Thanks for the info...

It is really hard not to cuddle, pet and love her when she feels so scared! But it does make sense to be the leader!

I will take all the info and move forward from here... she seems to be very intelligent and learns new info quickly, so I think she may do well adjusting.

Thanks to all for the advice!!

 

[Cirith Ungol]

Thanks for the info...

It is really hard not to cuddle, pet and love her when she feels so scared! But it does make sense to be the leader!

Exactly! That's very important not to do. Cuddling or audial rewards are seen by the dog as reward for what it is doing at the time. You can't refer the dog to something that happend a few minutes earlier or something that will happen in a few minutes. So if the dog is scared, don't cuddle it, or it will see it as a reward for (its "effort" of) being scared and continue to at least immitate that behaviour or to actually be scared. Give only rewards when the dog is being calm, relaxed, and behaves at its best. Because that's what you want more of, a calm, relaxed dog, so that's the only thing you should reward.

If you see the dog is scared of something *LEAD* it past that situation and out of it, but you have to be relaxed when doing it, otherwise the dog will pick up on how stressed you are and remember: "Oh OK! Here is something to be scared of or nervous about because the pack leader is scared." The dog will become nervous "with" you. So relax, and lead, show the way and show the way to behave correctly.

 

[mindlessvw]

We got an extremely shy dog from a rescue and, i know this sounds odd, but we kind of ignored her. When she was comfortable enough around us to come to us she did...it took about a week but she finally would come sit by us, then gradually in our laps, then she became a snuggle bunny, and now she is content either with us or laying by herself. That has taken over a year. Also, treats help. If they realize you are not going to hurt them and in fact you are something good and fun I think that helps. What kind of dog do they think it is? That may help explain some behaviours...

 

[arachyd]

We too adopted an abused young dog ( 3 months old at the time). She eventually came around to trusting and even protecting members of the family but never could be trusted with male strangers or children outside our family. She was very attached to one of my sons and decided she was his dog. She developed a violent dislike to a pup we got (not till the pup was nearly a year old) and they had to be kept separated until she passed away at 12 years old but had no problems with any of our other dogs. Needless to say, she had some emotional baggage that we were unable to get rid of but no way was she going back to the dog pound (back then it really was a horrible thing for a dog to be at the pound). We worked around her needs and she was a good dog.

What breed is she? Some breeds respond to different methods better than others. All the rescued dogs don't always overcome their abuse 100% but with stability, routine, consistent praise/correction and a calm attitude on the part of everyone in contact with her she should become a very welcome part of your household. Those are the things that are the exact opposite of the dog's past life which caused the dog to be fearful, uncertain and expecting of punishment it could not understand and therefore could not avoid. The best thing for it now is a normal life, not an overprotective one.

For safety's sake watch the dog carefully for any signs of fear biting. That is when the dog snaps at a quickly approaching hand instinctively to protect itself (not the dog's fault if it was abused) similar to how a person flinches and blinks when you throw a fake punch at them. The problem is flinching doesn't hurt you, a bite can. Children should not be allowed alone with the dog because of this possibility until you are absolutely sure of the dog.

 

[Heather]

Here she is with my son... you can see her unsure personality and the wound on her hip.

Another view (she was NOT going after my little Gizzer... they were running and playing!)

And a close up:

She weighs 59 lbs... I put her on puppy food to hopefully get her to a healthier weight sooner. She looks good, but is still too thin.

She is a Doberman... most likely purbred, even tho they didn't crop her ears and didn't dock the tail like most Dobermans. I owned a Male intact Doberman for 6 years... she is similar to him, other than the shy, nervous behavior.

So far she has done wonderful with my son... I would never leave them alone together. She is so submissive to people that I hope she won't bite... but I understand that I will never be sure.

The wound is healing, the swelling has gone done a lot. I don't have any pics of it yet. Those were taken on Monday. I really wonder how she got the wound... : (

She goes in on Monday to be spayed. There is no way she would ever go back the shelter... sadly I don't think our shelter is a good place in any way.

It's scary not knowing how she will turn out... but I will take all the advice given here and guide her the best I can.

 

[JMoran1097]

people that abuse animals should get a royal beating. it's chickensh$%

 

[arachyd]

She looks like a purebred. Her tail is docked but a bit longer than usual. That is a terrible wound. She could have gotten it by crashing through a window (one of our hounds has a problem with windows and cannot be trusted alone in a room with a window he can reach) and getting cut on the glass in the upper part of the frame. She doesn't look stressed out, just submissive but it is hard to tell from pics. I hope she works out well for you, she'll be beautiful when she fills out.

 

[bugmankeith]

I would say let her approach you when she is ready, and when she does make it a positive experience mabye by offering a treat or favorite toy that is only given when she comes up to you.

Definetly dont make any sudden movements and loud noises, try to avoid that as much as possible. She may get scared and try to nip if you surprise her.

She looks like a really sweet dog and once she heals and puts on weight will look even more amazing!