timid or scared

[boxervolscam]

I have a question and concern have a 4.5 month old female pup that displays timid, scared, and or submissive nature. not sure if it is from the person that had her before us, not sure if she was mistreated. can this be corrected and how as far as making her not be this way and will this effect training and trust that the dog will have with us.

 

[liljack]

I have a question and concern have a 4.5 month old female pup that displays timid, scared, and or submissive nature.

When you say this, what exactly is she displaying? Is this in regards to people? Other dogs? Most likely it's a lack of socialization. At 4.5 months, she's certainly young enough that she can still be socialized with no negative effects. What you really are going to want to do is start getting her familiar with being people and other dogs as soon as possible, as this submissive behavior could quickly turn into aggressive behavior when she gets older. On the other hand, some dogs are simply submissive dogs, it doesn't mean there's anything wrong or that they've been mistreated, she may just not have a dominant nature. However, you want to be sure, so start socializing now to avoid taking the chance of that turning into aggression.

 

[boxervolscam]

what she will do is drop her head to the ground, and tuck her hind end walk real slow that type of thing. you are right i dont want this to turn into anything major as we have a three year old son

 

[liljack]

How long have you had her? My guess is that she hasn't been around many people and has been taught to be submissive. As simple as it is, socialization is such and easy way to make her comfortable around people and understand that she's not under any threat...When you are out for walks, make sure people approach her slowly (because of course, everyone wants to run up and play with a boxer pup!). Encourage her with treats and when she realizes that she's getting tons of love from people, she'll start getting excited for it...there's that boxer wiggle!

good luck!

 

[ELubas]

what she will do is drop her head to the ground, and tuck her hind end walk real slow that type of thing. you are right i dont want this to turn into anything major as we have a three year old son

She does just sound unsure of herself. Lowering her head is a good thing, and so are slow approaches. She is making sure she is not going "to upset" another dog. Don't baby her and start getting her out there and use lots of cookies and happy talk. I think you have a huge window to bring her along. Just want to be sure it is all POSITIVE. So do not let people (especially kids) rush up into her face, grab and try to hug her, etc. And do not let people who have "the my dog is friendly " syndrome run up in her face either. Control her greetings for her so she can feel safe and confident. I bet she will come around quite nicely. A puppy socialization class would be great too if you could take her. My last sweet girl was very timid as a pup but she grew up to a truly wonderful dog-good luck with your little one

 

[chrystel]

Snatch is that way....

he was a happy puppy, we got him at 10 weeks old.. he was not scared of anything...
we took him EVERYWHERE we could: famer's market, best buy, homedepot.. spending saturday mornings at petsmart just for him to see everyone...

and then around 9month he started... everything looked scary to him... a car with an open hood, someone dropping a box in the stairs....

all of a sudden.. and nothing bad ever happened to him

Snatch is 4 now. He's a good doggy he learned a lot and is ok now to see a car with an open hood I just know that my doggy can run off because of a loud noise....

Same if a stranger enter the house.. he will run low until his safe place (his crate) and stay there with his head popping out...
he's ok when the person sits.. then here comnes the giggles :D

But just imagine the maintenance guy... he's scared of dogs.. and my dogs is scraed of him... it's like a circus when he comes in... LOL

I don't force him.. I just ignore the behavior.

I though we socialized him well... i don't know what happened.. he's just a scarty cat....

 

[BetsyB]

Puppies also go through "fear" stages. Things that never bothered them all of the sudden seem to send them cowering behind your legs or hiding behind a chair. Sometimes the reaction is raised hackles and sharp pitched barking. These stages sometimes last a week or two. Sometimes they last a couple of months. It is just a normal developmental stage. Sort of like when a baby who has never fussed before when you left her with a sitter starts to scream in terror when you leave the room for just a second...
Your first instinct is probably to stop taking her places or around people that cause her to react this way, but it is extremely important at this point to keep exposing her to as many different situations, people, animals, sounds, as possible and make sure they are positive experiences. If you coddle her and say "oh poor baby" she will continue to behave this way...