Meeting New People

Name: Krista Lathery
Email: kl67@evansville.edu
Date: 2006-10-22 13:17:54

Hello Bonnie, I have a 5 yr old chihuahua that is frightened by strangers. She runs into the bedroom and hides. If the person goes to pet her, she puts her tail inbetween her legs and starts to shake with fear. She has been so frightened before that she has peed and pooped because of fear. What can do to help her get over her fear of strangers?

Date: 2006-10-25 22:23:58

Hello Thank you for writing about your chihuaha. I will try to give you some tips that may help with her stress. I am not sure from your email how long this has lasted or if you have had her as a puppy but here is what I would do-keep in mind this will take time and will not happen overnight. If you have a friend come over to your home, leave your chihuaha out but ask the person not to go over to pet her. That sometimes frightens dogs-the best thing they can do is stay calm and relaxed and possibly sit on the floor about 5-7 feet away from your dog and socialize with you or watch some TV with some really good smelling treats in her hand. Your friend can try to toss a few treats to the chihuahua but then ignore her. This process alone may take several visits. Eventually if the person is sitting on the floor and not staring at the dog, the dog will come over and check the person out and then the person can set a treat on the floor next to them and the dog may take it. The next step would be for the person to put her hand out and allow the dog to come over and sniff the hand and then the person can pet her-go very slowly as not to startle the dog. This will also take time. I would recommend having a friend come over a few times a week and keep the routine the same. Hopefully over time this will help with the socialization. I would also encourage if you have company to keep your dog in a crate or a room so she isn't stressed out by all the people and allow the dog to come to them rather than having them walk up to her-this should also help with the urinating and deficating. Try this process for the next few months and let us know if you are making any progress and if we can be of further assistance. Good luck and thank you for taking such good care of your dog!

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