I have recently rehomed a beautiful Chinese Crested dog who is 11 months old; he is a lovely dog, well put-together with a good gait, but he really dislikes people! He is fine at home with us, but growls and snaps when people approach him, I am unsure whether this is due to poor socialisation or how he will always be? We would love to show him in the future, but as no one can touch him without him really growling or screaming, he is unlikely to show.
I have been taking things very slowly with him, introducing him to dog friendly people, with introductions on his terms etc. I have also booked a Tellington TTouch course next month to see if that helps.
Any ideas would be gratefully received. I will stress though that showing him would be a bonus, and certainly not the be all and end all; he is, and always will be, a very treasured pet, whatever the outcome!
Hope you and the readers can help.
Donna Davis, Strood, Kent
I have been taking things very slowly with him, introducing him to dog friendly people, with introductions on his terms etc. I have also booked a Tellington TTouch course next month to see if that helps.
Any ideas would be gratefully received. I will stress though that showing him would be a bonus, and certainly not the be all and end all; he is, and always will be, a very treasured pet, whatever the outcome!
Hope you and the readers can help.
Donna Davis, Strood, Kent
Without seeing the little fella, it would be hard to suggest things for you to do that will help him. However it's fair to see it is likely to be a fear-based behaviour, and that it should improve with some work - though whether it will improve 1% or 100% depends on many factors.
ReplyDeleteI would suggest looking at the Pet Professional Guild (PPG), Association of Pet Dog Trainers UK (APDT UK), and/or Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (APBC) websites and finding a trainer near you. Anyone registered with one (or more) of these bodies *should* be using scientifically proven, force-free training methods (if you find someone that isn't, please report them to the relevant body!) which have been proven to be the only effective way to change how an animal feels about a situation, rather than simply suppressing behaviour.