Shyness

Name: Sharon Markle
Email: bac.markle@comcast.net
Date: 2006-03-11 15:29:01

Hi Bonnie, my family (husband, son 12) just adopted a female shep/border collie mix who is 5 or 6 months old. We have had her home for 2 days now and prior to adopting her we knew that she was exceptionally shy. This was part of the reason we adopted her, we were afraid she may not get adopted due to her special needs. We don't thnk she has had much if any socialization with other humans or animals, now that we have her home we have tried to let her come out on her own (she cowers under the couch or anywhere she can hide). The problem is she won't eat or drink, she is really thin, since she has been home she has had one bowel movement but she has not urinated. We take her for walks 3 times for an hour at a time and she seems to do pretty good on them, her tail is carried low but not between whereas in when we first brought her home it was between her legs. I guess the questions I have are should we allow her to keep hiding and come out on her own on her own time? What should we do about her eating, we were told to socialize her to feed her by hand, but she won't eat or drink? What can we do to bring this little beauty out of her shell? Thanks for your help.

Date: 2006-03-29 10:25:35

Sharon Congratulations on your new dog and for adopting a rescue dog. What is her name? Sometimes dogs can be a little shy when they first enter a new situation and with a lot of love and support, she will eventually come out of her shell. I would recommend trying to feed her some wet food since that has water in it and the smell may entice her to eat. I would also make sure not to make any sudden movements towards her and to just sit on the floor next to her and let her come to you-it may take time but eventually she will. I also have some books and calming signals that may help. Give us a call at the store 288-8186 and make an appointment to come in and meet with me and I can show you some tips. Good luck and let us know how things progress with your beauty!

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