[monkeys23]

So I have had Sparky back to my house after a month long hiatus. He is officially mine now and has the dog license to prove it.
I'm worried about him because he is much more fearful of any loud noise (except the neighbor's yapping dog that he likes to run along the fence with) and consequently is pulling a lot on the leash when we walk. We met friendly people last night and he kept trying to back away because of the loud music in their yard, but normally he is very happy and outgoing meeting new people. He never had a problem with pulling before this. At first I thought he was just hyper from being cooped up at the boyfriend's house for too long, but after a day or two it was pretty obvious he has some major fear going on.

I totally stopped using the choke chain and am just using his regular collar for walks. I'm also trying to switch to just positive reinforcement as far as getting him not to pull. So I stop and walk him the other way a few steps before continuing on. The other day we spent ten minutes on the same 10 foot stretch of sidewalk before he was ready to move on. I've had mixed results with this because sometimes he is trying to go so quickly I do have to pull him toward me in a "corrective" manner. Sometimes I'll just stand in one place for a minute so he had to acclimate to whatever is freaking him out.

I really do not want to use any negative correction because he is so fearful. I feel like we're on the right track, but I'd really like any tips that more experienced people can provide. Especially how I can avoid pulling on his leash against his pulling, if that makes sense.

I'm also worried because when he first came home last week he would back away whenever I gave the sit command. He knows sit and has never had a problem plopping down right next to me before. I just know that it has to be something my boyfriend's brother did.
He is not listening to command like "come" either, its almost like he is reverting to oblivious puppyhood mentally. I noticed he is a lot more mouthy than he ever has been. I say no and walk away whenever that happens, so he should figure out pretty quick that its not acceptable.

He's actually better about not jumping up on me. But he knows he can get away with it where my roommate is concerned because she gives him attention after saying "off."

On the upside he has made a LOT of progress in the past two days. Ain't it amazing what a schedule and some love can do.
I would really appreciate any tips on what I can do to get him to be more attentive to commands in general. I know its going to take a long time before he is in a good place regarding his mental state and training, but anything that can aid that progress would be great!

I am familiar with NILIF and the basic methods of positive training, however I have never trained a dog with either before (when I was a kid it was always traditional training from library books and sadly, yes my babysitter let me walk and train her hyper sheperd mix by myself), so give me any tips and pointers that you've got!

[Michele]

When he starts freaking out, how do you react?

[maryellen]

you can start retraining him by pretending he is a puppy again and start from scratch. do NILIF consistantly, and retrain all his commands from scratch with all positive reinforcements. do not EVER let him go to that house again, as obviously he was treated badly there.

you are going to have to take baby steps all over again with him for training and socialization.

[PNWPBR]

Have you tried a gentle leader or a Sporn no-pull harness for walks since he is a puller? We use both on our program dogs and some dogs respond to the harness, others to the Gentle Leader......

[monkeys23]

Originally Posted by Michele When he starts freaking out, how do you react?

I just keep normal and when I either have him walk back by whatever is freaking him out or just sit for a minute to deal, then I will talk in a reassuring way and pet him.

Thats some very good advice maryellen, and almost what I've been doing with him. I really just need to build my consistency and confidence more because it is taking such small baby steps to achieve. He really has been acting like he has reverted to puppyhood, except that he's 60lbs...

PNWPBR, The only thing is that he doesn't pull all the time, only when he's freaked out by noises like traffic or a dog barking through a fence (he tries to run from those), so I'm not sure if it'd be worth spending the money on a harness or gentle leader (I'm pretty tight right now). It helps to have him take however many steps back to relax and get used to whatever is freaking him out before we move on.

Sadly I can now say the the crap has been literally scared out of him... Today we were headed to the local farmers market for some socialization and some little girls got really excited to see a dog coming toward them, this one rolled up on her skate shoes and hopped to a stop; which quite literally made Sparky mess himself. The poor guy, his confidence is totally destroyed right now because he normally adores meeting new people.
So we had to sit and let him sniff their hands one at a time and then get some pets. He was pretty worried, but luckily the kids were patient and not pushy with him so it went well in the end.

Anyway, I gotta go medicate the perenially sick cat and then play some fetch with Sparky. He is slowly learning *drop it* and *leave it*.

[Zoe]

Originally Posted by monkeys23 I will talk in a reassuring way and pet him.

I would really avoid this. Basically, he can see it like he is being praised for over reacting. Your best bet is to just ignore him when he is being shy and PRAISE PRAISE PRAISE when he does act more confident. Act confident yourself, like whatever is freaking him out is no big deal and he will pick up on that.

You can also redirect the shy behaviour to more confident behaviours. My girl Venus was VERY shy as a pup but she was VERY toy and food motivated, and loved to perform. If I had her out somewhere where she was acting uncomfortable because of her surroundings, I'd take out a toy and treats and get her to do a little training session as we walked along. It really helped to build her confidence, to replace her shy behaviour with the chance to "show her stuff" so to speak.

[Michele]

or just sit for a minute to deal, then I will talk in a reassuring way and pet him.

I agree with Zoe. Don't praise this behavior. By you petting him, he thinks the behavior is ok.

[monkeys23]

Originally Posted by Michele I agree with Zoe. Don't praise this behavior. By you petting him, he thinks the behavior is ok.

Gotcha. Makes sense, although don't know why that didn't occur to me before. Our version of fetch involves me doing a lot of ignoring until he stops gallavanting around the yard long enough to remember that he is supposed to drop the toy so I can throw it for him again. Its kind of fun to watch because he gets so excited to be played with that he's like an ADHD kid, but sad at the same time because he's completely lost a skill he used to have down pat.

Doing better on sit since this weekend, he's confident enough to sit right next to me on command.
He still stays in down a long way away from me while I'm filling the food dish. I mean, I'm glad he isn't pushy and waits for me to say "OK" before going to his food, but I don't even want to know why the poor pup stays so far away while waiting for it.

[Drgnrdr]

maybe this can help a little
Desensitization and socialization are important parts of rehabilitating a shy dog. Desensitization exposes the dog to things that frighten it at low levels, gradually increasing the level as the dog becomes accustomed to it. Socialization involves exposing the dog to other dogs, people, and situations.
Much of your work with your shy dog will involve desensitizing him to things he's afraid of--loud sounds, running children, men with hats, big black dogs, little white dogs--whatever. It takes time, and requires many small steps, patiently increasing both the time of exposure and closeness to the frightening object. A happy, upbeat mood on your part is essential, as well as a sharp eye on the dog's mental state; knowing when to quit can prevent backsliding.
Socialization is a vital part of every puppy's education. Even dogs with stable temperaments benefit from learning to interact quietly with strange dogs, people, and situations. With a shy dog, don't plunge right in, taking them to the nearby street fair. Instead, start small, with one or two people at a time. This is not a time for you to be shy; most people don't know how to behave around shy dogs and will do all the wrong things. It's up to you to instruct them carefully how to act.
If possible, ask them to sit on the floor--or even lie down!
They must NOT look your dog in the eye--this is a challenge in dog language and will frighten your dog more.
They should not try to touch the dog. They should let the dog come to them. They may offer the dog a treat. The best way for them to do this is to hold it in their open palm and sit quietly, waiting for the dog to approach them. With a very shy dog, they may try offering the treat from behind their back.
They should not try to touch the dog's head or neck if the dog does approach them. This is often construed as a threat by a shy dog, and can lead to a warning growl or a snap. If they must pet the dog, ask the person to move their hand in from the side, and to touch the dog's shoulder or back.
You should be watching your dog carefully, praising each indication of interest and curiosity (positive reinforcement), and ignoring fearful reactions (extinguishing a behavior). It is also your responsibility to know when your dog has had enough and to break off the encounter.
Socialization possibilities are endless. Take your dog to shopping centers. Some malls will allow a dog on a leash. Go to PetSmart. To accustom your dog to children, take a walk by the local grade school or day care center. Go to Little League games. At first keep your dog's interactions to a minimum; the idea is to accustom her to groups of people. Keep her mind off her fear. Ask her to heel, to sit, to lie down, and praise and reward her lavishly. If she doesn't obey because she's distracted by her fear, you are allowed to correct her for not obeying a command--not for being afraid. Most dogs will quickly learn that you will not put them in danger and that staying close to you and obeying your commands is a safe and good thing to do.
As your dog becomes accustomed to the situation, you can start to allow one or two limited personal encounters. Try to keep control of them. Warn the person that your dog is shy and ask them to let your dog approach them rather than the other way around. Let them give your dog a treat. Children (one at a time) can be surprisingly cooperative about this. Everyone will try to touch your dog's head; it seems to be ingrained human behavior and they will do it even if asked not to. After your dog ducks, try to salvage the situation by explaining again that your dog is shy and doesn't like to be touched, but maybe they can pet his shoulder. Set the dog up for this by asking him to do a sit stay, and try to keep the dog's attention on you. Praise for success.
With a shy dog, socialization is a never-ending process. Use your imagination.
You can also ask people to walk by your dog and drop tasty treats, or offer treats while they have no touching, no talking, no eye contact, turned sidewise to the dog and squat down to the dogs level to be less threatening, and offer a sidewise profile to them, the dog must come forward not the person, owner praise and be upbeat, no touching on the person part at all, let the dog smell if they want but no movement to the dog at all at first.
Always progress at the speed which your dog dictates.

[monkeys23]

Thanks, that was a helpful article!

[Sagesmom]

That was great, DrgnRdr!
One piece I would add is to treat, treat, treat her whenever getting within distance of something that upsets her. You want her to associate these things with treats, as in something good. For instance, if passing cars freaks her out, take her as far from the road as you can get and just stuff her one treat after the other as the car goes by.
At home, start playing "Stuff a dog" get a bunch of treats, say her name once, give her a treat. Whisper her name, giver her a treat, growl her name, give her a treat, yell her name, give her a treat.
I'd really recommend the book "Scaredy Dog" if you can afford it- GREAT book for understanding dogs who are scared and how to work with them. My dog is lucky enough to go to this trainer and it is helping immensely!
There is also some very good information on her website: http://www.greatcompanions.info check out the Reactive Dogs page.
Good luck... with work, patience and love, you can get your dog back. It won't be overnight, but you will bond during the process.

[Sagesmom]

Oh- another thing I've heard that helps some dogs in place of a harness would be a snug t-shirt. That you probably have at home now. For some reason, I've heard that "wraps" or snug clothes, packs, harnesses make the dogs feel more secure.