He will only come in the house for me-Help!

[jakesmom001]

When Thor is let outside he will not come in the house unless he hears my voice. DH, and our two children cannot get him inside. When they open the door and call him he gets up close to the door and then he'll look at them and run away. We live on an acre with a fenced yard and he's hard to catch. They've tried enticing him with everything you can imagine. On occasion if they leave the door open and walk away he'll come in, but most of the time he'll just sit outside by the open door. They have been taking him out on the leash and that's fine but I would still like to know why this is happening. I am not the only one who cares for him. I also noticed if DH puts his foold down before I get home he won't eat it until I get home. Everybody in the family has fed, walked, played, etc. with him. DH has spent more time with him because he's home more than I. This is starting to concern me. Any advice would be appreciated.

 

[mguiette]

my DH also had the same problem with maximus. axle will come to you, even if he's in trouble but maximus would come just within arms' reach, then bolt back into the yard and stand there, like he's challenging you. he would come for me, but not dh. he tried treats, food, etc... i think with maximus, every time (almost) dh called him, it was b/c he was in trouble... so that's what he associated it with... not saying your man is like that, b/c he's home MORE than you are, we were opposite with maximus... what we had to do was no matter HOW LONG it took for maximus to come inside, we praised him, even if we wanted to strangle him for being so strong-willed!!! AHHH!! he also had to stand about 3 feet inside the door, let maximus come in (enough to where he could grab him before he got outside again) give him the treat to distract him b/c he eats ANYTHING, then grab his collar... no discipline, just praise... i think having axe come every time and EXAGGERATING his praise b/c he came the first time we called helped too... now maximus comes everytime, but summer's coming and it'll be beautiful out, so we'll see.... good luck!!

 

[zandz]

How old is Thor? It sounds like your husband and kids may have (accidentally, of course!) done things to make Thor feel a little uncertain around them. When your husband calls Thor to come in, be sure that he always sounds super excited and happy, even if he's actually feeling a bit frustrated. Some men tend to always use a deep voice even when they praise a dog, while women tend to use a higher pitched voice. The tone of voice really makes a huge difference. Dogs don't understand many of the words we say, so a lot of the time they just react based on the tone of voice. Same thing with your kids--it might depend on how old they are, but it's really easy for kids who are just being normal kids to do things that spook a dog.

Thor needs to learn that it's always a good idea to come to everyone in your family, and also keep in mind that nobody can tell him to come unless they are in a position to back it up. So that means you shouldn't say "come" unless you have him on a leash or long line and even if he doesn't come, you can use the line to reel him in (and keep calling him and talking in a very happy way the whole time, plus a tasty treat every single time.)

I'd try having your husband and each of your children hand feed Thor for a few weeks. I know you said Thor won't eat until you get home, so do this when you're home and if you need to be in the room, that's okay too. But the food should come directly from your husband's hand. If Thor won't eat like that, then have your husband drop the food into the bowl one handful at a time, then work up to the hand feeding.

I could be off base here, but it just sounds like Thor is uncomfortable around your husband and kids. And please, please don't think that I'm saying they did anything to him because that's not it at all, but in Thor's mind, this could be the way it is. Hand feeding and also seeing that all good resources come from your husband and kids will help to build that relationship back up.