Need a litte advice.. my boy is timid - Page 2

 Carry treats.

Don't allow people to rush him,  have them ignore him but drop food to him, while they are talking with you. You also feed  him.

Is there a coffee shop you can take him to?? Sit away from people and treat, treat treat.  He needs to learn that when I am around people it is a good thing. Again, find out what he can handle at this time, if he backs up when people are 10 feet away, ask the person to throw treats from 15 feet away then build up to having people closer.

Use counter conditioning, 

TAKE IT SLOW

Don't force him to meet and greet..

DON'T LET ANYONE TELL YOU TO USE FORCE OR PUNISHMENT.

I went through this with my shepherd.  It turned out at 6 months it was discovered he had a grade 3 heart mumur.  He was shy from the day I got him at 8 weeks. I did all the socialization with him, slowly but he just never warmed up. Within 3 months his heart mumur was a grade 5, he went to raleigh nc for ballon surgery.   So please have him checked by your vet. to rule out any medical problems.

Timber still has a grade 5 mumur, but he has improved in his shyness.  He'll never be totally comfortable with people, as he knows there is something wrong with him and it is a stress for him when there are lots of people around or new situations.

However, I stuck to my guns and ignored the "expert's who said I should force him to sit and let people touch him.

Friends have told me that if anyone else had owned him, he would have been euthanized by now, because if I had used force methods with him, he would've have bit someone out of fear. He has improved greatly. 

Even though I am a trainer and behaviorst myself, I still did a phone consult with Patricia Mcconell, an excellent behaviorst, to make sure I was doing things correctly.

GET her book, CAUTIOUS CANINE AND JEAN DONALDSON'S BOOK  CULTURE CLASH. PLEASE STAY AWAY FROM THE MONKS OF NEW SKETE. THEY'VE ALREADY ADMITTED THEY WERE WRONG IN SUGGESTING THE ALPHA ROLLOVER 20 years ago. They  caused many dogs to be ruined.

go to Dogwise and grab Patricia's books and Jean Donaldson.  Your window of opportunity  for socialization is very thin, as that window closes at 16 weeks, however it's not impossible but you have to be careful it is done in a gentle, humane way. 

If you would like I can send you a personal email or phone call, just let me know.

Take care laura

Petro,

Great post again!

http://www.dogclub.co.uk/advice/puppygrowth.php

from the "Fear of People" file at http://www.siriuspup.com/behavior_problems.html#

Puppy Classes, Walks, and Parties
As soon as your puppy is old enough, enroll in a puppy class so your puppy may socialize with other dogs and people and fine-tune his bite inhibition. Without a doubt, walking your puppy is the very best socialization and confidence-building exercise. Stop every 25 yards and instruct your puppy to sit (for control), and occasionally to settle down (with a stuffed chewtoy) and watch the world go by. Handfeed dinner when anyone approaches—one piece of kibble for a woman, three pieces for a man, three pieces of freeze-dried liver for each child, and five pieces of liver for a boy on a bike or skateboard. You may allow passersby to handfeed your pup once you have shown them how to lure him to sit to say hello. Above all, don't keep your puppy a secret. Continue to have regular puppy parties at home and invite family, friends, and especially neighbors to meet your puppy. Instruct each person to bring a friend. When you socialize a puppy properly, you will find your own social life improves dramatically.

For a more detailed socialization agenda and information on lure-reward training, read AFTER You Get Your Puppy and Doctor Dunbar's Good Little Dog Book, and make sure to watch the SIRIUS® Puppy Training video.

Did anyone mention taking the dog to the vet? Socialization and the puppys ability to travel before sitting down are two different things to me. If the puppy doesnt have any health issues you can cross that off your list and continue with socialization. I wouldnt be petting the puppy when he does what he wants. It might seem like you are reassuring him but really your telling him that sitting down is ok because you are praising him for the wrong behavior. Having dogs end up  sick from trips to Petsmart, I no longer recommend that either. I would find a puppy class in your area (other than through major retail operations) where the two of you can meet and greet with others of same interest.

In the mean time, short trips out (10 min or so) for walking is good. Puppys can only take in so much in one session so limit the time and exposure. Once the puppy is feeling more confident, try walking in front of a Walmart or Target where there are alot of people and its really busy. Or any kind of shopping mall works. Lots of people not alot of other dogs makes for good socialization with limited exposure to canine disease. I personally dont like strange people petting my dogs so have friends feed the puppy treats. Exposure is the key and the more the better. But remember he is only 4 mo old and needs time to grow and take it all in. Good luck!

Hello wdozier,

It is crucial you ensure firm bonding with your pup at this stage.  Best is to control the time the pup spend with your bulldog in the house.  Is the pup crated by chance or does he have unlimited access and companionship with your bulldog?

A puppy can bond easily with its four legged friend than its human counterparts.  The "reluctant walks" you have described in your earlier post probably suggest that he is missing his companion bulldog. 

Until the pup finds you interesting and fun, there will always be some uphill struggle.  JMHO.

Good luck.

poseidon - i think you may have hit the nail on the head.  

firm bonding with you (wdozier) and not your pup's bulldog buddy is needed. when i read poseidon's post a gsd pup in one of dunbar videos popped into my head.  i forget the name of the video but it was of a puppy class and this gsd pup was very timid. the owner said he was surprised because at home the pup had 2 adult gsds he played with fearlessly. dunbar said he wasn't surprised often pups with adult dogs at home, unless heavily socialized, are shy when away from them. 

one thing that might help on these walks is continuously talking to your pup.  this will not only keep his attention on you (which is always a good thing:) instead of the world around him; but the sound of your voice will help strengthen the bond between you 2. this will teach him to turn to you to "protect" him instead of his dog buddy whom he feels at a loss without.  regardless spending sufficient one on one time with your pup to become more import to him than your other dog is very important.

 Bhaugh- yes I mentioned in my post to wdozier to have the pup checked out again by her vet., to rule out any medical problems.

Through my career of working with behavior problems in dogs, experience as a vet tech and the experiences with my own dogs, (they are the best teachers!) especially fear/ aggression issues, it is most important to have the dog checked out by your vet..

This year alone 3 of the dogs I consulted with on aggression problems, I suggested a thyroid panel be done before we started behavior modification.  All three dogs had low thyroid. What a huge difference in the dog' s personality once the thyroid was under control. 

You bring up an excellent point, as like people, dogs that don't feel good due to an underlying medical problem aren't going to be at their best where behavior is concerned.

Never assume the dog is just being stubborn, lazy, "bad", etc. when the dog is having difficulty with an exercise or life in general, RULE OUT MEDICAL PROBLEMS, with a complete check up, chemistry blood panel and thyroid panel.