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Question:

By any chance…do you have a photo of your dog??? I have cattle dogs…and I have no idea what one would look like crossed with chow… I’ve seen pics of poodle-cattledogs…seen BC-cattle dog…..but a chow cattle dog?? Jen – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > My girl, chow/cattledog mix, used to growl at men.  She meant business. > Obedience training helped considerably. >  I taught her to "say hi"and with the help of some dog-savvy men I used this > command to teach her to tolerate strangers, especially men. I’d tell her to > "say hi," while they reached to pet her. Then, she’d get lots of praise. > She likes to work and saying hi was work for her. > I still give her the "say hi" command when strangers approach, especially men. > However, it’s more habit than anything else.  She’s actually pretty receptive > to being petted and handled by strangers. It’ s been over 5 years since she’s > growled at anyone. > She’s slow but thorough – I recently caught her begging for treats at the park. >  I don’t approve,nor allow my dogs to beg, but considering her reluctance to > approach strangers all these years, it was sort of a milestone. > Hope this helps. > BridgetH1

Response:

My girl, chow/cattledog mix, used to growl at men.  She meant business. Obedience training helped considerably.    I taught her to "say hi"and with the help of some dog-savvy men I used this command to teach her to tolerate strangers, especially men. I’d tell her to "say hi," while they reached to pet her. Then, she’d get lots of praise. She likes to work and saying hi was work for her.   I still give her the "say hi" command when strangers approach, especially men. However, it’s more habit than anything else.  She’s actually pretty receptive to being petted and handled by strangers. It’ s been over 5 years since she’s growled at anyone.   She’s slow but thorough – I recently caught her begging for treats at the park.  I don’t approve,nor allow my dogs to beg, but considering her reluctance to approach strangers all these years, it was sort of a milestone. Hope this helps. BridgetH1

Response:

- Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->Yup.  Same old Pookie, phobias and all.  We’ve been working on getting >him into the areas with water (kitchen and bathroom) by offering him >treats.  He does fine as long as there isn’t too much going on, like a >wide open faucet.  I’ve been leaving treats on the bathroom floor, and >while highly suspicious, he’ll still greedy enough to go in there and >grab it all.  We’ve still got a couple of months to work on him before >he turns into a little stinker (actually, a big stinker), and in the >meantime, I’m basically grooming him very religiously.  Someone >suggested sprinkling cornstarch on him prior to brushing to get rid of >some of the dirt.  Do you know anything about that? >Hopefully, we’ll be seeing you within the next couple of months. >Suja > >> How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? > >> Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….) > Is this Khan AKA Pookie? If so, how are you doing with his water phobia? > Talk to you soon:)Robyn > Robyn Lori Rosenthal > Sterling Cotons and Park Place Grooming > Sterling, VA USA

Hi Suja, A little cornstarch as a dry shampoo shouldn’t hurt him as long as you brush it all out. Did Lea tell you that I saw those sheets that you put over the brush in Petsmart? Good luck with him:) Robyn Lori Rosenthal Sterling Cotons and Park Place Grooming Sterling, VA USA

Response:

>That’s a problem.  When distracted or scared, he will refuse to eat.

  Bonnie did this, too.  She wasn’t afraid of men, but the outdoors – too much space, weird surface, too many noises and echoes – she would just slump down and pay attention of nothing at all.  I would put a piece of food literally into her mouth and she would let it fall to the ground (includes lunchmeat, cheese spread, liver).  All I succeeded in doing was making her afraid of the food (as in – food = shutdown)!   She’s much better now – it’s the first time I’ve had to train a dog to eat   : )   Baby steps are important.  Notice and celebrate everything (for Bonnie it was lifting the head, taking a step, walking, trying a curb, etc).  Quiet men are helpful, too.  I’ve had fosters that were scared of men – my BF at the time was tall, noisy, liked to give dogs noogies and wore heavy boots.  However, my dad is quiet, nonthreatening, and doesn’t mind being used as a tool to socialize dogs.  He makes a nice "first guy" for the scared ones.  Some of them that never really trusted the BF would lean on my dad for pets and biscuits.     I couldn’t agree more about not forcing the dog to meet and greet – it will almost certainly backfire and make the dog even more resistant, and it’s unfair to put the dog in a position where he might feel that he has to defend himself – by any means necessary. Jana  &Bonnie

Response:

Hey Robyn, Yup.  Same old Pookie, phobias and all.  We’ve been working on getting him into the areas with water (kitchen and bathroom) by offering him treats.  He does fine as long as there isn’t too much going on, like a wide open faucet.  I’ve been leaving treats on the bathroom floor, and while highly suspicious, he’ll still greedy enough to go in there and grab it all.  We’ve still got a couple of months to work on him before he turns into a little stinker (actually, a big stinker), and in the meantime, I’m basically grooming him very religiously.  Someone suggested sprinkling cornstarch on him prior to brushing to get rid of some of the dirt.  Do you know anything about that? Hopefully, we’ll be seeing you within the next couple of months. Suja – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text ->> How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? >> Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….) > Is this Khan AKA Pookie? If so, how are you doing with his water phobia? > Talk to you soon:)Robyn > Robyn Lori Rosenthal > Sterling Cotons and Park Place Grooming > Sterling, VA USA

Response:

>> How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? > Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….)

Is this Khan AKA Pookie? If so, how are you doing with his water phobia? Talk to you soon:)Robyn Robyn Lori Rosenthal Sterling Cotons and Park Place Grooming Sterling, VA USA

Response:

> Find a yummy nummy that the dog just can’t live without…

That’s a problem.  When distracted or scared, he will refuse to eat.  I could stick an entire hot-dog under his nose, and he would ignore it completely, although he would work for it under normal circumstances.  I will try your suggestion, and see if we can get him to calm down at a distance, and then work on bringing him closer and closer. Suja

Response:

Hi… Having an extremely shy suspiscious dog of my own and how I worked thru this: Find a yummy nummy that the dog just can’t live without… sit/stand/squat next to a man…and give the dog the treat.  (This works faster if you clicker train).  Next..give a treat to the man (don’t let him eat it!! its for the dog!) and have him quietly offer the treat to the dog. Repeat and repeat and repeat. I would take my bitch everywhere, and ask strangers…would you feed my dog this treat?  I would get weird looks, but most subjected to their part of my training. My girl is still leery of people, but will approach and sniff…if the person reaches out properly (not reaching out higher than the dogs head, but coming up from underneath the dogs muzzel, allowing the dog to sniff rather than feeling intimidated), she will allow them to pet her. I found that Rollover food works wonders, as well as cheese, hotdogs and dried liver.  Just make the pieces small, and every once in a while "jackpot" with a big piece.  If the dog shows pure signs of stress and fear, don’t force it.  You’ll only make it worse..  If need be bribe the dog over by tossing treats to it…then tossing them closer and closer to the man. If your friend will comply by helping you do this…all the more easier…Especially if you can do it in your own living room.  When the dog finnally makes it to him, let the man give him a jackpot.  This is something that can take a couple sessions…or months…  Depending on the dog…and how much pressure you put on it..  The more physicall pressure (dragging the dog via leash for example) the longer the process will take.  And you’ll likely end up doing more damage than good. Hope this helps, Jen – Hide quoted text — Show quoted text – > Looks like there are at least a couple of others around here who have > gone through this before. > Here’s the story:  Khan, my 2+ year old rescue GSD mix who has been with > us for a month now seems to be afraid of men.  It is really strange, > ’cause when we went to the adoption day, there were plenty of people > walking in and out, petting him, taking him for walks (including my > brother and husband), and he seemed just fine.  We brought him home, and > he was fine with the both of us, as well as a friend (male) who came to > the house 2 days later.  In fact, he lay two feet away from him the > whole time. > More recently, he seems to be reacting very poorly to men coming into > the house.  The same guy that he saw earlier came by two weeks ago, and > he just about jumped out of his skin trying to get away from him.  Khan > would settle down far away from the friend, but in a place where he > could see him, and would jump up and run away at any sign of the guy > making an attempt to get up.  The same guy came by last weekend, and > while Khan didn’t seem quite so skittish, he was still very nervous > (ears down, tail between legs), and after a few minutes, decided to just > go upstairs to the bedroom and avoid the guy altogether.  He would come > by from time to time, watch us for a couple of minutes and head > upstairs.  We had another male friend come to the house, and while he > was okay with him when he was outdoors, he again showed the same nervous > behavior indoors, although it was slightly less pronounced (probably > because friend #2 brought him a bone).  He is much better at being > approached when he is outdoors (in fact, he expects everyone he meets to > play with him, wagging his tail and making play bows), and is tolerant > of strangers in other enclosed spaces (pet store, work etc.), although > he still isn’t too entirely comfortable.  He is fine with both myself > and my husband.  In general, I would say that he is fine with kids and > women, but is very wary of men. > We do know that he was probably abused before he came to us, and when he > was initially found, was very afraid of people in general.  My guess is > that he has had bad experiences with men before and is afraid of them, > but for the life of me can’t figure out why it is surfacing now instead > of earlier, when we were all strangers to him.  We are trying to ask the > same two friends over as much as we can (once a week each) to see if we > can get him comfortable with them, and then try to introduce him to > other friends slowly.  We take him out on average 2-3 times a week to > pet stores and parks for socialization, and he gets to meet our > neighbors pretty much every day. > How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? > Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….)

Response:

– Hide quoted text — Show quoted text -> Looks like there are at least a couple of others around here who have > gone through this before. > Here’s the story:  Khan, my 2+ year old rescue GSD mix who has been with > us for a month now seems to be afraid of men.  It is really strange, > ’cause when we went to the adoption day, there were plenty of people > walking in and out, petting him, taking him for walks (including my > brother and husband), and he seemed just fine.  We brought him home, and > he was fine with the both of us, as well as a friend (male) who came to > the house 2 days later.  In fact, he lay two feet away from him the > whole time. > More recently, he seems to be reacting very poorly to men coming into > the house.  The same guy that he saw earlier came by two weeks ago, and > he just about jumped out of his skin trying to get away from him.  Khan > would settle down far away from the friend, but in a place where he > could see him, and would jump up and run away at any sign of the guy > making an attempt to get up.  The same guy came by last weekend, and > while Khan didn’t seem quite so skittish, he was still very nervous > (ears down, tail between legs), and after a few minutes, decided to just > go upstairs to the bedroom and avoid the guy altogether.  He would come > by from time to time, watch us for a couple of minutes and head > upstairs.  We had another male friend come to the house, and while he > was okay with him when he was outdoors, he again showed the same nervous > behavior indoors, although it was slightly less pronounced (probably > because friend #2 brought him a bone).  He is much better at being > approached when he is outdoors (in fact, he expects everyone he meets to > play with him, wagging his tail and making play bows), and is tolerant > of strangers in other enclosed spaces (pet store, work etc.), although > he still isn’t too entirely comfortable.  He is fine with both myself > and my husband.  In general, I would say that he is fine with kids and > women, but is very wary of men. > We do know that he was probably abused before he came to us, and when he > was initially found, was very afraid of people in general.  My guess is > that he has had bad experiences with men before and is afraid of them, > but for the life of me can’t figure out why it is surfacing now instead > of earlier, when we were all strangers to him.  We are trying to ask the > same two friends over as much as we can (once a week each) to see if we > can get him comfortable with them, and then try to introduce him to > other friends slowly.  We take him out on average 2-3 times a week to > pet stores and parks for socialization, and he gets to meet our > neighbors pretty much every day. > How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? > Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….)

I have an opinion although probably far-fetched.  I believe that dogs, like humans, have the ability to detach themselves emotionally, retreat to some safe place inside themselves until the threat has passed.  Maybe that’s what Khan did while at the shelter…just retreated, knowing he had no choice but to be there with all those people. Now you’ve given him a home and he’s beginning to get his bearings back, trying to remember how to trust again and while he’s making good progress, he’s not hiding anymore and so his fears are all coming back and showing outwardly. Sounds like a bunch of psycho-babble, I know, but unfortunately, I know someone who went through that cycle which stemmed from an abusive foster home.  It took her a long time not to not hit the floor, cowering whenever a man raised his voice.  Makes me so mad that there are abusers like that in this world!

Response:

Looks like there are at least a couple of others around here who have gone through this before.   Here’s the story:  Khan, my 2+ year old rescue GSD mix who has been with us for a month now seems to be afraid of men.  It is really strange, ’cause when we went to the adoption day, there were plenty of people walking in and out, petting him, taking him for walks (including my brother and husband), and he seemed just fine.  We brought him home, and he was fine with the both of us, as well as a friend (male) who came to the house 2 days later.  In fact, he lay two feet away from him the whole time.   More recently, he seems to be reacting very poorly to men coming into the house.  The same guy that he saw earlier came by two weeks ago, and he just about jumped out of his skin trying to get away from him.  Khan would settle down far away from the friend, but in a place where he could see him, and would jump up and run away at any sign of the guy making an attempt to get up.  The same guy came by last weekend, and while Khan didn’t seem quite so skittish, he was still very nervous (ears down, tail between legs), and after a few minutes, decided to just go upstairs to the bedroom and avoid the guy altogether.  He would come by from time to time, watch us for a couple of minutes and head upstairs.  We had another male friend come to the house, and while he was okay with him when he was outdoors, he again showed the same nervous behavior indoors, although it was slightly less pronounced (probably because friend #2 brought him a bone).  He is much better at being approached when he is outdoors (in fact, he expects everyone he meets to play with him, wagging his tail and making play bows), and is tolerant of strangers in other enclosed spaces (pet store, work etc.), although he still isn’t too entirely comfortable.  He is fine with both myself and my husband.  In general, I would say that he is fine with kids and women, but is very wary of men. We do know that he was probably abused before he came to us, and when he was initially found, was very afraid of people in general.  My guess is that he has had bad experiences with men before and is afraid of them, but for the life of me can’t figure out why it is surfacing now instead of earlier, when we were all strangers to him.  We are trying to ask the same two friends over as much as we can (once a week each) to see if we can get him comfortable with them, and then try to introduce him to other friends slowly.  We take him out on average 2-3 times a week to pet stores and parks for socialization, and he gets to meet our neighbors pretty much every day.   How do I let him know that anyone I can trust, he can trust too? Suja & Khan (who’s afraid of men, water, elevators….)

Response: