my dog was from an abusive home

• 10-19-2007 3:42 PM

  poeticrose74 Joined on 10-19-2007 Posts 4 Points 0

  my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact  I have 6yr old Chihuahua who I adopted from the animal shelter.  He was neutered and ever since he has been sad and in pain...but now we have started to notice that he is aggressive and doesn't like to be told what to do and if you become stern with him he becomes scared and then aggressive and has bitten me and my husband. What do I do? I don't want him to go back to the pound because they will put him to sleep.  I need help to learn how to deal with my dog and get him past the abused stage and to show him I am the master but that I am not going to hurt him.  Help!

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• 10-19-2007 3:52 PM

  In reply to poeticrose74

  houndlove Joined on 08-28-2006 Pittsburgh, PA, USA Posts 4,054 Points 995	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact Please find a certified dog behaviorist in your area to come and evaluate him and work with you on training and rehabilitation. The shelter you adopted him from may have references for people they recommend (and some shelters even have a behaviorist on staff).   Cressida and her best friends:
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• 10-19-2007 3:55 PM

  In reply to poeticrose74

  glenmar Joined on 09-10-2007 The Florida Panhandle Posts 14,272 Points 430

  Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact My best suggestion would be to not try to show him you are the master, but rather let him know that you are a benevolent leader.   NILF (nothing in life is free) is an excellent program  to show him that it is YOU who controls the resources.  And, he, or she, who controls the resources (food, fun, walks, loving) is he or she who wins the game. A house without fur is not a home. Glenda ,

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• 10-19-2007 3:56 PM

  In reply to houndlove

  poeticrose74 Joined on 10-19-2007 Posts 4 Points 0	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact  Thank you...I am looking into it...I would hate to see him get put down..I wanted a dog and I chose him. but I hope I can get him to see I am not the bad person or persons who hurt him...my son is the only one who can get the dog when he becomes aggressive.  my son babies the dog...
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• 10-19-2007 4:00 PM

  In reply to glenmar

  poeticrose74 Joined on 10-19-2007 Posts 4 Points 0	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact  Thank you for your comments I am going to look into that type of training and I am going to work with Red to the best of our ability.. I don't want to give up on him.  He is not a hyper dog so I want give him a chance...
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• 10-19-2007 4:03 PM

  In reply to poeticrose74

  houndlove Joined on 08-28-2006 Pittsburgh, PA, USA Posts 4,054 Points 995	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact Here's a link about Nothing in Life is Free: http://www.k9deb.com/nilif  Cressida and her best friends:
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• 10-19-2007 4:11 PM

  In reply to houndlove

  poeticrose74 Joined on 10-19-2007 Posts 4 Points 0	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact  Thank you once again...I appreciate the help I am going to go and check out the site right now...thank you for all you help...Red will be a happier pooch after this...I just want him to know that I am here for him as well...thanks again...
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• 10-19-2007 4:54 PM

  In reply to poeticrose74

  mudpuppy Joined on 09-10-2007 Posts 5,991 Points 100	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact stop being stern with him. Make it worth his while to do what he is told, and make sure he actually understands what you are telling him to do- dogs don't speak english.
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• 10-19-2007 10:43 PM

  In reply to mudpuppy

  luvmyswissy Joined on 09-10-2007 Posts 2,268 Points 25

  Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact What you really need to accomplish first and for and foemost is trust.  If you are stern he will fear you and not trust you - this is not your goal I am sure.  NILIF is a wonderful program and will show him that you are the bearer of all good things and that you can be trusted to deliver.  Don't cuddle your dog either.  Try and lead but being positive.  Use rewards like treats to help teach him commands.  Learn to teach trade so if you need to get something from him you don't have to rush him and take it.  Be patient.  Use a crate for those times when you all need a peaceful break. They say dogs don't live in the past, only here and now.  If you do this right, the past will be forgotten and the future bright. Obdience classes are a wonderful way to work with your dog and socialize all at one time.

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• 10-20-2007 1:56 AM

  In reply to luvmyswissy

  Cita Joined on 12-13-2006 CT Posts 5,905 Points 845

  Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact  Great for you for taking the dog in! What he really needs right now is a combination of love, tenderness, and discipline/routine. Not discipline like "No, bad dog!" but making sure you're the one calling the shots - if you're asking him to do something you don't necessarily need a "stern" tone, you can give him commands with a happy voice too! It is important that he have boundaries, though, both to establish his place in the household and to help him learn to trust you. That's one reason NILIF is so, so helpful - when a dog knows what's expected of him he gains confidence and becomes less fearful. Meanwhile you get a very well-behaved dog who's happy to do what you want - everyone wins :) Because this is such a delicate situation and there is the potential for you to get hurt, I think it's a very very good idea to follow the other posters' advice and find an animal behaviorist to come help you learn what to do. You'd be amazed how much many abused dogs can "recover" with the right training! Here's a couple of places to get started looking for behaviorists (though do call the shelter and your veterinarian for recommendations, too): http://www.iaabc.org/consultant_locator_dogs.htm   http://www.apdt.com/po/ts/us.asp Other places you might look (I personally have never used these, though, so I'm not sure how helpful they might be): http://www.animalbehavior.org/ABSAppliedBehavior/caab-directory   http://www.geocities.com/l_herf/behavior.htm

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• 10-22-2007 4:14 PM

  In reply to Cita

  kelliope Joined on 08-28-2007 Posts 326 Points 0

  Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact I agree with Cita - what he needs now is love, tenderness and routine.  I purposely left out discipline.  As the owner of two rescue Chi's who were tormented by children (I am certain unknowingly) and undersocialized, I believe the Chihuahuas (even more than some other breeds) do not respond well to "stern" and "discipline".  I have always had big dogs and we sometimes used stern approach as some of the dogs were hard to handle when we got them.  We used the NILF type training on those dogs as well - though we didn't have a name for it.  Anyway, the same stern type tactics with my Chihuahuas only made them worse.  If I told my dog "No!" for barking, they became a little hysterical and started barking more and more!  Finally I realized that I had to re-direct the negative behavior.  For example, if they were doing something I didn't want such as barking at people coming into the house, I'd redirect them into a game of play away from the person entering but still within sight.  Soon they were happy when people came over and now are pretty well socialized.  I for one am not someone who believes little dogs are just like big dogs but smaller - I believe that often they are far more sensitive than the average big dog and quick to sense anger or frustration in people.  I believe little dogs can handle nothing less than the most positive of training methods and sometimes they need a little more time to adjust.  Good luck to you and hang in there with the little guy.

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• 10-27-2007 2:32 AM

  In reply to kelliope

  grab01 Joined on 09-10-2007 middle of the desert Posts 1,613 Points 0

  Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact As I believe was said above, it's time to stop focusing on the 'abused dog' label. It is also noteworthy that many timid, fearful, or aggressive dogs are often called 'abused' by unknowing owners, or by shelter workers who either don't know better, or feel it offers the dog a better chance of being adopted.  It is also unlikely that this long after surgery that he is sad or in pain over being neutered. Dogs don't know or care about their lack of 'bits' back there   There are some wonderful links up above for training ideas. And, as was said, there's no need for sternness. Calm, confident ownership always helps

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• 11-10-2007 7:07 PM

  In reply to grab01

  Callista Joined on 10-10-2006 Posts 66 Points 0	Re: my dog was from an abusive home Reply Contact What if there was some trouble with the neutering surgery? I know that hardly ever happens, but it's worth it for the vet to take a look--maybe something's still achy.
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