Is Your Puppy
Too Timid?
Rescue Dogs Need Good Homes Not TV Exploitation
A
puppy that is too timid can end up having as many problems as
one that is too boisterous, so its really important to achieve
the right balance. If you think your puppy or young dog is
really timid, then this may help you.
When it
comes to raising a confident well-adjusted puppy, an ounce of
prevention is certainly worth a pound of cure. By socializing
a puppy early on with a variety of new and unfamiliar people
(including calm and gentle children), on a regular and ongoing
basis, that’s a great start. By the way, the word
‘socialization’ here only means that you get the pup used to
the sights, sounds and people that he is going to meet most
often. This means cars, children, household objects, and
other dogs (after his shots or vaccinations are complete). You
will need to keep this up for at least the first two years of
the dog's life to make it work, but this will then help
prevent serious behavioral problems such as shyness, timidity,
and aggression from developing as the puppy matures. Once a
puppy has all of his puppy shots (usually by 16 weeks of age),
he should also be socialized with other friendly dogs, and
acclimated to new environments beyond the owner's home and
property, by being taken for regular daily walks on a leash.
Puppies raised in country and suburban
environments should be gradually acclimated to city noises
such as traffic noise, crowds of people and other everyday
life situations, early on. A weekly visit into town (beginning
when the puppy is around 8 to 10 weeks of age) can be very
helpful in preventing environmental fears and phobias. In
order to prevent exposure to disease, puppies with fewer than
3 or 4 series of vaccinations, should avoid contact with
unfamiliar dogs, and be carried (in a Sherpa Bag, Snuggly or
crate) to avoid contact with the sidewalk (or any other public
areas where other dogs may frequent).
But
What To Do If Timidity Has Already Taken Hold?
While
preventive steps are best, should your puppy or adolescent dog
already show signs of timidity, he should be gradually
introduced to many new and unfamiliar people, until your puppy
develops more confidence and trust. Rescue dogs will often be
overly timid as they may not have been treated well, so these
tips should be used on them as well.
The
following tips may be useful as a general guideline:
Visitors and passersby should avoid suddenly reaching out to
pet your puppy, as allowing a stranger to approach a timid
puppy right away is likely to increase the puppy's fear as
well as his inclination to react defensively. In fact, when a
timid puppy is first introduced to someone unfamiliar to him,
the person should remain relatively still and quiet, avoid eye
contact with the puppy, offer non-confrontational body
language, and allow the puppy to approach the person and
initiate contact. The puppy should never be forced or dragged
over to meet someone he is fearful of.
Asking the visitor to crouch down near the floor, with their
body facing at an angle AWAY from the puppy, and their hand
slightly extended to the side while holding a small puppy
treat, may help the puppy to gain enough confidence to
approach. The puppy should be allowed to sniff the person, and
to take the treat from their hand, without the person talking
to or reaching towards the puppy. Even if the puppy continues
to show fearfulness, the owner should remain upbeat, and
resist the temptation to coddle or "poor baby" the puppy.
Once the puppy appears to feel a bit more secure, the visitor
should slowly begin petting the puppy under the chin, and
continue offering him small treats. These steps should be
repeated with as many new people as possible, in as many new
environments as possible, until the puppy develops sufficient
confidence around new people.
Timidity Around Other Dogs
Fully
immunized puppies who are timid around other dogs, should be
socialized with other friendly, easy-going puppies (and dogs),
beginning with small to medium-sized puppies, then very
gradually introduced to larger, more active ones, over a
period of a few weeks. Observe both puppies' body language as
they meet, interact, and get to know each other. For
especially timid or sensitive puppies, one-on-one puppy play
sessions are usually best.
Supervised puppy play groups and puppy kindergarten classes
may also be helpful, provided that bigger, more dominant
puppies are not allowed to bully or intimidate the more timid
ones. Puppies should be properly matched by size, age,
dominance, activity level and temperament. Unsupervised group
"free-for-alls" can in fact be very counter-productive.
Ideally, an experienced dog trainer or behavioral consultant
should supervise all play activity and be present to prevent
any overly aggressive interactions between puppies.
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