After Six Months: Will Abused Dog Ever Recover?

In My Humble Opinion
1

Sirius has now been a member of our family for six months. He will be a year old in June.

He was given to me by a friend who breeds Jack Russel Terriers. Sirius had been sold to a family when he was very young, and the breeder told me that he offered to buy him back because the family “wasn’t treating him right.” I don’t know any more details than that, but since the breeder isn’t a man who’s very loving with his dogs (though he takes good care of them) I imagine that the situation had to be pretty bad for him to intervene.

Sirius is very timid around humans. He gets along with my other dogs just fine, but with people, he’s extremely skittish. I take him with me everywhere I go to try to socialize him and show him that meeting people is a good experience. He’s excellent to travel with, because he’s very quiet, but he runs to hid between my legs or buries his face in my neck when I’m holding him if people are around.

I have to be very gentle with my discipline with him. Saying “NO!” in a loud tone of voice sends him scurrying, or will cause him to submissively urinate.

He runs from me whenever I try to pick him up. He will not come when called if he’s outside, though indoors, I can coax him to me if I crouch down and use a “baby talk” tone. I’ve tried to condition him by picking him up at random times and giving him snuggles and treats.

He is a very loving dog. His favorite place in the world is cuddled up on my lap while I’m reading, and he lays on my feet while I’m on the computer. He sleeps beside me on the bed while I’m watching TV, and snuggles me whenever he can.

But he’s afraid of me when I’m in a dominant position (i.e leaning over him.) If he escapes while he’s outside, getting him back is a real problem. (I think the people who had him before must have called him to them for discipline and now he’s afraid to come when called.)

He has gotten a little bit better. He used to submissively urinate at the drop of a hat. (If one of the other dogs barked at him, or if Hubby and I made any loud noises or sudden moves, he would tremble and pee.) That has tapered off-- he only does it now when he’s really scared, and that doesn’t happen too often. (No, I never corrected him for it, because he couldn’t help it.)

As I said, I’ve been trying to rehabilitate him. Whenever possible, I have strangers give him treats and pet him. (He never growls at anyone-- he just puts his ears back and cowers.) I scoop him up during random times of the day for snuggles and praise, and I call him to me as often as I can, showing him that coming to me results in Good Things like treats and toys.

It’s been six months, and we seem to have plateaued. I thought surely he would understand by now that I won’t hurt him. Is there a chance for further improvement, or is he permenantly scarred? Is there anything else I should be doing?

2

I had a dog that lived the first year of her life in a bad home. I remember the first time she was at my house it was Christmas time and we had about 11 people over for dinner. She hid the entire time in the basement huddled behind the couch terrified of all of the footsteps and voices coming from upstairs. I sat in her view gently calling her over trying to get her to come out of hiding for over an hour until she trusted me enough to let me even touch her. For months every time the doorbell would ring she would hide behind the couch and pee. She gradually warmed up to strangers, it took her years before she would trust a male that she didn’t know, but eventually she became a very happy and trusting dog. I think that the main factor in her regaining trust was that we had another dog that was a few years older and absolutely loved people.

The timid dog would follow our other one around everywhere; they were inseparable. So when the friendly dog would go up to say hello to visitors the timid one would stand back at first but then would see all the pats that the other dog was getting. It didn’t take long for her to get in on that action.

So I guess what I am saying is that it is possible for your dog to learn how to trust.

Do you have any other pets?

3

But then again my cousins have a dog that was abused only for the first few weeks of it’s life and I have never seen a more bitter and angry animal.

4

I’m not a dog expert, and I’m sure some will be around to give you accurate advice, but in my in-expert opinion, it sounds like he’s doing pretty good so far, and will continue to get better as he becomes more sure of you and his situation. I truly believe animals respond to attitude and tone - I think if you keep on coaxing him to trust you with a loving tone and good intentions, he will come around eventually, especially since he already adores you.

5

Yeah, I do, but neither of them are good examples when it comes to socializing with other people.

Bean,, my oldest, is ten. I screwed up with her by not socializing her properly as a pup. She is okay with most visitors, but can get agressive if she senses they’re nervous around her. She also once knocked down a child who had kicked her, scratching her in the face. I usually keep her away from visitors just to avoid any potential upsets. She is also hostile to other dogs. (It took her about four months to accept each of the others.) My fault entirely-- I’ve made an effort not make the same mistake with the others.

Polairs was a rescue puppy. She’s a year and three months old now. We got her at only five weeks old from the pound where her litter was “overdue” to be put down, and being seperated from her momma and litter so young, she never got the crucial socialization that a puppy needs at that time. I knew there would be problems, so I took her to Puppy Day Care when she was old enough so she could learn to dog ettiquette and be around other people. It worked wonders on her, but she’s still a little skittish with strangers.

All of our dogs are damaged. The younger two still have hope, and with both of them, we’re working to make them the best dogs they can be (and trying to be the best “parents” we can be.)

6

Two of our girls are timid around strangers and two aren’t and we didn’t really socialize them differently, so I don’t have any suggestions for that.

About getting him to come to you…have you tried starting from scratch on recall using a new word and everything? The easiest way to train him to recall would be to always have something he loves for him when he does what you want. So start from the beginning, using a new word for recalling him. Just because Bean and Polaris come when you call them with “Come*” doesn’t mean you have to have Sirius trained to recall with the same word. Then he can realize that everytime he hears “Sirius, spoon**!” it means only the best of things for him.

Sorry I don’t have any better suggestions.

*or whatever word you use.

**We are actually planning to add this one to the girls commands as a backup recall. We’re odd.

7

I don’t use command words for “come.” I just call the dog’s name. (With multiple dogs, “come” would bring all of them.)

He reacts best if I’m sitting, or laying down. I call his name in a sing-song voice, and pat the chair beside me. Often, he’ll hop up, curl up in a ball by my side, and all’s good. But, if I’m standing up, the closest he’ll come is about three feet away. If I offer a treat, he’ll snatch it and back away to eat it.

He’s the most submissive dog I’ve ever had. The vet is absolutely astonished with him, because he just stands stock-still and lets her do whatever she wants. He never struggles to get out of my arms if I’m holding him, and he doesn’t even try to pull away if I clip his nails. If you turn him onto his back, he curls up, trying to protect his stomach with his back legs, but he doesn’t try to struggle.

Laying beside me, he’s completely trusting, so I’ve tried making sudden moves and then petting him or giving him a treat to show him that he doesn’t need to be afraid if I move quickly. Again, he seems to only be afraid if I’m standing up and looming over him. (He’s not afraid if I loom over him on a chair.)

Not odd at all, but I’d use a different word, one that you’ll think of in a panic. My trainer (the woman who ran Puppy Day Care and trained Polaris) suggested you use “NOW!” as your emergency recall because it’s something you would naturally think to say if you were panicking. She told us to shout it at random times in the house and give the dog something extra-yummy if she obeyed. (A special treat reserved only for recall training, like chicken or hotdogs.)

She said it’s also important to shout when you’re practicing, like you’re really angry or afraid as you might be in an emergency, to get the dog used to that tone of voice because some dogs would think, “Oh, shit, I’m in trouble,” and hesitate to obey if they weren’t used to it.

Polaris has no problems with recall, because she’s scared to be in a strange place without me. Sirius once escaped and was running loose in the neighborhood, and would not come no matter what I did. If a stranger hadn’t seen it, and jumped at Sirius waving his arms, I never would have caught him. (Sirius saw him, and immediately hit the deck in a submissive please-don’t-hurt-me posture.) I don’t know what to do about teaching him.

8

Do you have any idea what his personality was like before he went to his abusive home? If not, consider that he is timid by genetic predisposition and that it has nothing to do with his poor care. Sure, that’s not a typical personality for a Jack Russell - but there are differences within a breed.

I’ve met many well-cared for dogs that are extremely timid and submissive by nature.
I’ve met some dogs that were abused terribly who are happy and outgoing. I, myself, had a R. Ridgeback that I got as a year old dog who was reportedly beaten by his past owner whenever he soiled the guy’s apartment and he was never walked. That dog was about the nicest Ridgeback I’ve every come across.

My advice to take or leave - is not to worry “why” your dog behaves the way he does. It is what it is. It could well be his intrinsic nature and thus rehabilitation has nothing to do with it. If you want to change his behavior, you need to work with the dog that he is now - and the “how her got that way” doesn’t matter all that much anyhow.

(I mean, it’s not like you’d take a dog that was naturally timid but not abused and knock him around).

9

Lissa, good on you for taking in these pups! I’ve known several dogs who were abused and (very) gradually came to trust people again. One of my housemates, otoh, had a dog that she believed had been abused as a puppy, and that poor critter was the most skittish, scared animal I’d ever seen. We lived together for 6 months, and every time I came into a room with the dog (say, into the kitchen for breakfast), she would run and hide behind my housemate all the while barking at me. Strangely enough, the only time the dog was ever friendly towards me was when we were having a party. She would alternate between us housemates and our boyfriends, going up to us and standing very, very close. Maybe the thought was “Yeah, you’re scary and wierd, but not quite as scary and wierd as all of these new, more frightening people.”

Give it time. And remember that just like every person has a different personality, so does every dog. Good luck!

10

My cat Lucky was so skittish when I got him that people didn’t even know he was in the house. I had one girlfriend for over a year who thought I only had 2 cats (Lucky was #3). He would run and hide when I came home, even.

10 years later, after much work similiar to what you are doing with Sirius, Lucky comes when called by name, sits on my lap all day if I let him, and doesn’t even bother to wake up when someone comes over to the house.

He still doesn’t like to be yelled at (so I don’t), but he is a markedly different cat than he was 10 years ago.

Keep up the good work! You will get the results you are after.

11

Have you tried any kind of formal training with him? Or something fun like agility?

I’m thinking that any type of consistent training (with positive reinforcement, no negative stuff, avoiding the word “no” and just using gentle leash correction/guidance) will give him confidence. He’ll know EXACTLY what you expect from him, and he’ll learn EXACTLY what to expect from you.

Just to be clear, I’m not advocating ANY kind of training that involves choke collars, stern corrections, stuff like that. We had our VERY skittish border collie in “alternative” obedience classes and it was all very gentle and loving and quite effective.

I’d be happy to tell you more about it if you’re interested. I just believe that dogs thrive when they have confidence and consistency.

12

Marty was a stray I got from rescue. He was clearly badly beaten. He was emaciated, and hand shy. He, like Sirius, wouldn’t dream of coming when he was call, and in fact ran in the opposite direction. It took a very long time, but he is over most of it.

My vet says dogs only have a memory of about 6 months to a year, and although I think it’s longer than that, it isn’t human. So basically you have to treat her right, until she forgets she was ever treated badly. This took about two years with Mart, and he still has some issues. However, now I think his issues are more habit than conditioning.

I really like dog parks for socialization. Marty not only wasn’t people socialized, he was bad with dogs too. He’s come about 180 degrees on this one. He pretty much ignores dogs, unless they approach us first. He’s always been good around people. He’s submissive, so he just rolls on his back, instead of jumping. It really is amazing how he doesn’t hold a grudge.

My biggest advice is hang in there. And this is a bit touchy-feely for me, but another thing that really seemed to help, both with me and my husband was getting down on the floor when he was on his bed, and just whispering in his ear good things to him. We told he was a “good dog” since most people, even rotten owners, will at some point say this, and we just talked to him in a whisper. It seemed to help.

Good luck

13

I’ve trained him at home myself using an amalgamation of the Clicker Method and other positive-reinfocement methods . He’s a quick learner and eager to please. I didn’t want to do any formal training yet, thinking that a intensive couple of weeks of classses might be too much for him. I wanted him to get comfortable with me first before I did anything else.

Every now and then, I take him to the kennel for an hour of Puppy Play Time, where the staff plays with the puppy one-on-one, and I also take him with me when I visit friends and family members.

I also take him on all of our vacations and business trips. People in hotels always have to come over and pet him, and his shyness always makes them saw “awww” and treat him gently. We’ve had some very positive interractions this way. (I carry treats in my pockets and ask strangers to give him one if they want to pet him.)

When we’re out in public, I have to carry him everywhere. (Thank God he’s small.) He won’t walk if there are people around-- he’ll lock all four legs and cower to the ground.

Polaris was a present from my husband. I’d wanted to have another “fur baby” for a long time, and one day he surprised me with a tiny ball of fur wrapped in a towel. He had gone to the pound to look at dogs, and had seen a litter that was described as “overdue” to be put down. He knew he had to get one of them. The people at the pound tried to get him to pick another puppy in the litter, because Polaris hadn’t been doing well-- she wouldn’t eat or drink, and they were worried she had been exposed to parvo. Hubby said she just pulled at his heartstrings so much that he insisted that she was the puppy he wanted.

He warned me when he gave her to me that she was very sick and she might die. I tried not to get too attatched in case that happened-- of course, you know how well that sort of thing works. :wink: For the first five nights that she was with us, we slept in shifts on the couch next to her. We had to give her water with an eyedropper and put moistened food on the tips of our fingers so she could slurp it off. She had several different ailments, all relatively minor, but for a while it was touch and go.

I never intended to get a second dog, but Siriu didn’t give me much choice. I was at the breeder’s house for a Halloween party. I had refused to come over while the litter were tiny puppies, because I knew I’d fall in love, and God knows, I didn’t need a third dog.

We were outside around the campfire, and he hopped up on my lap. He slept beneath my coat for four hours. We went into the house when it got really cold and he followed me, whimpering until I said it was okay to hop up onto my lap again. He curled up and let out a contented sigh. When I got up to leave, he stared at me with adoring eyes, and the owner said gruffly that if I didn’t take him, he was going to take him back outside and put him in the kennel. It broke my heart to think that I was the first experience he had of warmth and snuggles, and he was going back out into that cold pen . . .

Normal, frisky puppy as far as I know. The breeder never noticed any shyness or submission before he sold him. He noted that the dog’s father had had a withdrawn demeanor when he was very young, but had quickly grown out of it. He predicted the same would happen with Sirius. As he put it, “Yeah, he’s sweet and tame now, but Jack Russels are nicknamed Jack Russel Terrorists.”

I do that with him a lot. My trainer urged me not to-- she said that it was a tacit encouragement of fearful behavior, but I think that’s bunk.

I had good results with an experiment I did with Polaris as a puppy: I made soft clicking noises whenever she was good, or when I was cuddling her. (I was thinking along the lines of cats and purring-- that kittens get comfort from a sound their mother makes, and thought that a dog might be similar.) Soon, she began to associate that clicking sound with comfort, and if I did it at the vet’s office, I could see her calm. I’m doing the same with Sirius. I snuggle him, click and coo at him in soft baby-talk tones. It does seem to relax him a little if something scary has happened and I make that sound.

14

2 weeks of intensive classes??? No no no … I meant a one-night-a-week-for-a-couple-of-months kind of thing.

Teaching a pup what you expect from them and what they can expect from you is very rewarding for everyone.

The class that was the best for our skittish shy border collie was more of a manners-type class - it was really beneficial for her - she hated hearing “no”, she hated the choke collar - she didn’t like healing.

This class taught her a bunch of life skills (sounds corny but it was cool) that we could reinforce on a daily basis.

Anyway, I know you’ve had lots of dogs and you probably have more experience than I do. I just hate to see an idea dismissed so quickly! :slight_smile:

15

Hi, I’m the proud owner of a 80lb, 16yr old, neurotic hound dog in desperate need of therapy and a sense of humor.

I found her when she was 3 months old, the vet said she had 2 days left to live. She was terrified of everyone, everything. Loud noise, men, pick anything. The only thing she usually wasn’t completely terrified of was me. I spent an hour in the pouring rain with a steak trying to catch her when I found her.

I have socialized the heck out of her, took her to restaraunts, college, everywhere. She has been my shadow for 15 years. She adores my husband, but won’t go outside for him unless I’m not home. She is much better now than she was. I never raise my voice at her, never get “threatening” treat her gently, love her to death. She is always the shy dog, hanging back, which makes me sad because she is the nicest dog I have ever had. She has missed out on so much attention over the years because she just can’t bring herself to get close to strangers. She deserves every pat she’s ever missed.

I once took her to a dog park. It was actually a pretty horrible experience, not because of my Jezebel, she loves to watch people/dogs, but she just can’t bring herself to interact. There was a lady there who had a big, white, fluffy, happy dog, who played with everyone and everything. She made a nasty comment about Jezzie and how I must abuse her (something like that) for her to act that way. I was so sad for Jezzie. She wants the attention, she wants to play, she just can’t do it. I was pretty emotional that day with her, because she was about 12 and would interact with dogs in the neighborhood and I thought she would enjoy it. Rather than yell at the lady or say anything, I just took my precious, neurotic baby for a walk away from the “cool chick” and we went home. It seemed to be a very cliquey dog park and obviously, my Jezzie and I were not welcome.

She’s not brave, she’s not social, she is fiercely devoted to me, as loyal as can be, she won’t even appear to be disloyal. She is kind, an eager learner, a fierce protector (as long as there is a door between her and whomever) and just one hell of a dog.

Your dog may not ever recover. He might. This modified by man dog that you have, if you are lucky, might just be the finest pet you have ever had.

I’m not sure if I can ever love another dog the way I love Jezzie, she’s taken me from a child to a grown up, taught me responsibility and just been a phenomenal dog. I hope your little terrorist can give you half the joy Jezzie has given me.

I don’t have much time left with her (She’s on her 4th “she’s gonna die” spell) She’s almost blind, pretty deaf, really arthritic, and pretty lumpy. She is not in any pain, she does what she feels like she can do and the first moment she is in pain, I will put her down. I owe her that.

Thank you for reminding me what a wonderful, sweet, sweet puppy I have.

16

Lived in a house with some guys and one got a German Shepard from an elderly couple and the husband had kept the poor thing tied up on a balcony day in and day out for over a year. It was a mean dog at first and my SO took on the project. Within two months, the dog was OK with the residents of the house (about six people on average) and about two months later, friends could visit and the dog would look up and if you nodded yes, it would let the friends enter. (BTW, it was one hell of a guard dog.)

The only embarrassing thing was that even after a year, when the dog had gotten back to “normal”, it was a racist dog! Anybody of color who ever came near the house got the wrath of that dog like you cannot believe! It went berserk! One day we found the black UPS guy standing on the roof of one of our cars because the dog got out.

17

He already has. He’s the sweetest-natured dog I have ever seen. Because he’s so tiny and adorable, he’s kept me on that seratonin high I got when Hubby gave me puppy Polaris. She’s grown out of the “awww” stage-- he never will.

Polaris was utterly delighted when we got Sirius. Bean is getting cranky in her old age, and doesn’t want to play as often as Polaris does. Now she has an equally energetic puppy to play with, if she gan get him off my lap, that is. (She actually will seize his collar and drag him to the floor if he refuses to come and play.)

I guess if he never changes, I’ll end up with a sweet, loving cuddle puppy who’s afraid of everyone but me and Hubby (unless we’re leaning over him). I can deal with that. Yeah, I guess I’ve got three weird dogs, but I’m not so “normal” myself.

18

Baron hasn’t - he’s just what you describe - a sweet, loving cuddle puppy who’s afraid of everyone but me and Hubbya - and we’re happier than ever.

He is what he is - and deserves every bit of love we give him. He may never be Rin Tin Tin, but he’s Baron - and we don’t think we’re going to fall into a well or get run over by a threshing machine anway. :wink:

19

I know this is hard to believe unless you know it from experience, but domestic rats are very much like dogs personality-wise. Two of mine, Bettina and Cookie, are very outgoing and not shy in the least. If you offer your hand to them they will lick it until you take it away. My newest rat, Ruby, is about 4 months old and still very nervous. She was a basket case when I got her - fearful, hid all the time, and would run and hide if you even looked at her. She would pee in fear if you tried to pick her up. Now, through a couple months of gentle contact and talking (and lots of treats), she trusts me to the point where she will place her forepaws on my hand if I hold it out to her and sniff around. She still jumps a mile if I make any unexpected movements, though, but she’s better than she was. I think one thing that helped her a lot was observing how the other rats interact with me. When she saw that they took treats from me without fear, she decided she’d do it too.

It takes time, but I think Sirius will continue to improve.

20

According to the dog whisperer (Cesar Millan), you have to be a calm, assertive pack leader. That means putting her on the ground and not coddling her when she is acting afraid. Put her in the presence of other calm, stable dogs, and ignore her completely when she comes running to you. Do not give her eye contact or pick her up. Only when she behaves appropriately do you pay attention to her. Continue talking among the people and share your calm energy with her, but leave her on the ground because she’s an animal, not a human. What works to reassure people (talking encouragingly and stroking her) is not appropriate with dogs because you inadvertently reinforce that unstable state of mind. Do not share affection when they are in any state of mind except calm submission.

According to Millan, by constantly acting as the calm, assertive pack leader (including disciplining the dog with a stiff touch or a shht! sound) , the dog will eventually relax. That will open the door for her to socialize with other animals. Remember that a dog cannot socialize properly in your arms as this is not how dogs interact with each other. Being up in your arms gives her status over the other dogs and has already created an unstable introduction.

Other things he recommends is putting her on a leash and walking confidently with her at your side or behind you. If they show reluctance or skittishness, continue to walk forward, not allowing them to give in to their fears and certainly not picking them up. Exercise is integral to dogs and gives you an opportunity to establish yourself as the calm, in-control pack leader. Eventually, if you keep moving forward, they will take your lead and will walk confidently because YOU are walking confidently.

Millan is a great believer in the notion that dogs live in the present and not in the past. A dog doesn’t sit and feel sorry for itself because it was abused before. PEOPLE feel sorry for the dog because that is the way people are. Dogs aren’t like that, so don’t use this is an excuse for accepting skittish or timid behavior. They can and will change with appropriate guidance.

That’s the philosophy of Millan, anyway. It works with him. I’ve seen him take a dog who was literally afraid of his own shadow and turn him into a dog who could walk with confidence down a city street. The show “the Dog Whisperer” is on National Geographic and repeats often. We’ve actually used his techniques with our beagle (who used to take us on pulls) with success. Bud no longer pulls us and walking is much more enjoyable.