My dog suddenly became scared of me after 6 months. He used to be extremely excited to see me and would jump all over me but now he hides under my bed all day long... I don't know why because I never mistreat him at all. When my girlfriend comes over he'll come out and act all normal but when I show up he starts to shake... He won't eat when I feed him anymore but will when my girlfriend does... What gives? I love him very much and would like him to love me back again..
Licorice is scared of me!! =(
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Is there any incident at all you can think of, where maybe YOU didn't scare him, but something around you did?
For example.. you took him out for a walk and a garbage truck whizzed by and scared the heck out of him.. or you were cuddling with him and all of a sudden loud firecrackers went off.. or something like that.. or has he had any other bad experiences with those of your gender?
What form of training or "discipline" have you used? Any yelling or spanking?
For example.. you took him out for a walk and a garbage truck whizzed by and scared the heck out of him.. or you were cuddling with him and all of a sudden loud firecrackers went off.. or something like that.. or has he had any other bad experiences with those of your gender?
What form of training or "discipline" have you used? Any yelling or spanking?
I usually use a firm, "no" as punishment but when he does things that are absolutely unacceptable like lunge at people, I pick him up and stare at him and tell him no very firmly a couple times.
No I can't think of anything that would have traumatized him.. maybe a squeaky ball that i just brought home for him... When i squeaked it, he freaked out and hid...
No I can't think of anything that would have traumatized him.. maybe a squeaky ball that i just brought home for him... When i squeaked it, he freaked out and hid...
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That might be it - as weird that is to say.
I know Wally HATES loud squeaks. There's this fuzzy dog thing (those funky colored Dachshund-looking toys) where if you squeeze basically where it's you-know-what parts would be it makes this loud squeak. Wally hated that thing for the longest time.
He won't run from it anymore, but it still looks at it like "why did you do that?" and he'll turn his back on it. Personally, I want him to get mad at it and bark at it. Maybe one day...
I know Wally HATES loud squeaks. There's this fuzzy dog thing (those funky colored Dachshund-looking toys) where if you squeeze basically where it's you-know-what parts would be it makes this loud squeak. Wally hated that thing for the longest time.
He won't run from it anymore, but it still looks at it like "why did you do that?" and he'll turn his back on it. Personally, I want him to get mad at it and bark at it. Maybe one day...
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A couple of things to keep in mind... Your dog is at an age where the 2nd fear period begins. You need to continue your dog's socialization, but be very careful about introducing novel items to you dog.
Picking your dog up and staring into his face to say no is a threat in dog speak. If you want your dog to associate you with all that is wonderful in the world, don't do that. Don't think about the bad behavior your dog just did, think of what behavior you want instead and train that.
You say that lunging at people is unacceptable... How many people has this dog been introduced to, and have you taught him to sit at introductions? If your pup hasn't met hundreds of people, and hasn't been taught to sit for people...this is unacceptable. I'm not trying to point out blame, but I am trying to give you a direction. You may want to consider hiring the services of a certified trainer to help you with this.
Picking your dog up and staring into his face to say no is a threat in dog speak. If you want your dog to associate you with all that is wonderful in the world, don't do that. Don't think about the bad behavior your dog just did, think of what behavior you want instead and train that.
You say that lunging at people is unacceptable... How many people has this dog been introduced to, and have you taught him to sit at introductions? If your pup hasn't met hundreds of people, and hasn't been taught to sit for people...this is unacceptable. I'm not trying to point out blame, but I am trying to give you a direction. You may want to consider hiring the services of a certified trainer to help you with this.
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Ditch the "no" and the staring and actually give him direction. Because when you tell him no, but don't tell him what to do, it can be confusing for him..
If he lunges at something, distract him.. work on attention commands, leave it, recall, etc.
If he is on the furniture, or jumps on someone, an "off" command is better than "no" with an intimidating stare. Stuff like that.
If he lunges at something, distract him.. work on attention commands, leave it, recall, etc.
If he is on the furniture, or jumps on someone, an "off" command is better than "no" with an intimidating stare. Stuff like that.
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Picking him up and staring at him is extremely threatening. Depending on the dogs nature they will either attack/defend themselves or submit/avoid that person in the future.
As was suggested....you need to train...not discipline. If you didn't do the training of how to politely meet people the fault is yours not the dogs.
As was suggested....you need to train...not discipline. If you didn't do the training of how to politely meet people the fault is yours not the dogs.
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lay on the floor with treats all around you...don't move, don't look at him, don't do anything, and just wait, and see if he will come out, if he starts to eat treats from around you don't move, not until he's done, and if he walks away, get up and leave.
If he doesn't come out for 10-15 minutes, try again another time.
Try and practice some training sessions daily, keep them light and fun! Use a light happy voice, no stern tones.
Training and a calm attitude will help form a close bond, your dog just may be very sensitive to "rough" punishment, which means you have to try and check yourself when you get angry or frustrated..just remember, its not the dogs fault, they don't speak English, and its up to you to teach him a bit of our language, but well enough so he remembers it and finds you a wonderful leader who he has no need to be afraid of.
And like everyone else said, no more harsh NO's, or stares, if he does something wrong, redirect him, make him sit, or tell him to do something, and praise him.
If he doesn't come out for 10-15 minutes, try again another time.
Try and practice some training sessions daily, keep them light and fun! Use a light happy voice, no stern tones.
Training and a calm attitude will help form a close bond, your dog just may be very sensitive to "rough" punishment, which means you have to try and check yourself when you get angry or frustrated..just remember, its not the dogs fault, they don't speak English, and its up to you to teach him a bit of our language, but well enough so he remembers it and finds you a wonderful leader who he has no need to be afraid of.
And like everyone else said, no more harsh NO's, or stares, if he does something wrong, redirect him, make him sit, or tell him to do something, and praise him.
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