Author: dkirkland
Total Posts:5
Date Joined: 5/14/2010
Posted:
hi all, new here..i have a 12 week old wolf hybrid. hes a high content. he gets along great with any other dog, and loves my other dog(blue heeler).
The problem we have is we have a park right outside we take him to go to the bathroom(still potty training). He does great in his crate, but when taking him outside he sees other people and freaks out. if he's on the ground he will tuck his tail, and try to run. or sometimes poop and pee. its very sad to see him so scared because people just want to pet him and i have to tell them to back away. I want him to be social like my other pup but i feel im going about this the wrong way..what are some tips you can provide to help him get social with other humans and not be scared?
we have tried to have the strangers feed him food, but he wont eat it. He will even see people walking yards away and he wont poop in the grass because he's too busy watching their every move. he instead poops on the way back inside. ANY help is greatly appreciated!
Author: Chris
Total Posts:8780
Date Joined: 7/15/2006
Posted:
As I recall then, he's with you now 6 weeks so everything is still quite new. He has already bonded with doggies probably because he has spent a lot of time with them. He may need more time with you (human). Grooming/handling is a good way to spend time and will be easier when he is older for caretaking. Are there any visitors that come over? This could be a little easier to get used to those two-leggers. Is potty time only at the park or is their his own territory to mark at home, too? The park might be too much world all at once. He does not have enough confidence yet IMO. Keep going as often as possible but reduce the size of the exposure perhaps by furthering the distance. As puppy's comfort zone improves, increase the exposure; get closer. Best wishes to you and congratulations on your pup.
Author: Nakoowolf
Total Posts:15466
Date Joined: 5/21/2004
Posted:
This is a tough situation and one that will take lots of time, work and above all patience to work through, but it can be done. My son has a Labradoodle that spent his first two years of life like that, just being afraid of people and in particular men. The first order of business is to have your friends come over but ask them first to ignore the pup. Let him watch them and decide if he wants to socialize with them. Let him see other people giving your other dogs treats and petting them (no roughhousing with them or it may be misconstrued by the pup). How is he at the Vets? You need to keep exposing him to people or this will never get better. Secondly, like Chris said, he needs more time with YOU and not the dogs. When we were socializing the Wolf pups here, they preferred the company of dogs to humans (that is their nature) so the time we let them spend with the dogs became limited. Is it a dog park your bringing him to?
One of our Huskies was like this as a pup as well but not to the extreme you described, he just ran and hid when people came over. Eventually, his desire to be with the other dogs and get the attention and treats they were getting helped him to over come his fear. There is light at the end of the tunnel but not without work and some people who understand what's going on to help out.
Author: dkirkland
Total Posts:5
Date Joined: 5/14/2010
Posted:
well, we live in downtown dallas. so the park is just the thanksgiving park here that everyone in my complex takes their dogs to. I definitely will try and get more and more people to come over, it sounds like a good idea because the house here is his comfort zone, so gradually get used to people here..then take him out there to get used to people. Appreciate the help i will let you know how this progresses!
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probably because he has spent a lot of time with them. He may need more time with you (human). Grooming/handling is a good way to spend time and will be easier when he is older for caretaking. Are there any visitors that come over? This could be a little easier to get used to those two-leggers. Is potty time only at the park or is their his own territory to mark at home, too? The park might be too much world all at once. He does not have enough confidence yet IMO. Keep going as often as possible but reduce the size of the exposure perhaps by furthering the distance. As puppy's comfort zone improves, increase the exposure; get closer. Best wishes to you and congratulations on your pup.
