I have a 5 year old long-haired dachshund that I rescued last December named Doodad. I know a little about his previous life in a household with 4 other dogs, but what I wasn't told but suspect is that he may have been abused. When I reach down to pet him, he acts like he thinks I am going to hit him and frequently flops down onto his side and squirts out a little urine.
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I heard on TV from a dog training show that it has to do with sef-confidence. See if you can find dog training tips online or maybe in a book at the library. Dog/owner training classes can get expensive, but from what I've seen in my mother-in-law's dog, adopted from the animal shelter, it's well worth it.
Your dog may not have suffered extensive abuse, but certainly had a bad experience where someone reaching for him meant trouble and bad things to come. I have had this problem with a couple of my foster dogs.
First off get yourself some yummy, yummy treats. I prefer people food - cut up hot dogs, string cheese, pieces of lunch meat, etc cut up into very small pieces - dime size or smaller. If you have other dogs, I would do a few sessions away from them so you are one on one with your pooch. Also pick a quiet time with not much going on around the house.
Reach down to your pup and offer him a treat. Try to make it as much like reaching for him as possible. Let him eat the treat from one hand as you pet him with another. The general idea here is reaching for me = good food! If he wont take the food or is too concerned about being submissive, wallk away and ignore him. Any interest in the food, sniffing it, etc..
Do several 5 - 10 minute sessions of this over the course of a few days. Where nothing is expected of him except to eat food, take pets. Each dog is different so it may take him awhile to get the hang of it. But once he is confidently taking food, and not flinching when you bend down - start upping the anty. Instead of just petting, move your hands like you are going to pick him up, start having other family members do it, start doing it when the house is busier, give him less pets.
Your pooch just needs a little bit of re-programming. Remember when you are doing this training with food to cut his daily rations back. Weight gain is a huge problem with these little dogs and you dont want him to get fat.
Good Luck!
I've owned dachshund's most of my adult life. They are a wonderful breed. I read your problem and wanted to share with you mine. Toby was never abused (we got him when he was 11 weeks old). He is a healthy, happy 11 year old and has always had a problem with submissive urinating. His problem is very similar to yours, and he would make such a mess. I found that our reactions were actually making it worse for him. His problem would occur when we come home at the end of the day, or when company visits. I discovered that by ignoring him when we came home for the first 5 minutes, he got over his excitement. I had to alert all guests when they came for a visit, to simply ignore him when they walk in the door. After the 10 minutes passed, we were able to say hello and pet him. It's evidently a common problem. Good luck with yours and I hope this was somewhat helpful.
we have a lab/rotti cross and she has had the same problems, though excitement was also a cause for her. be sure not to scold your furry friend it is a normal reaction for them and that would only stress them more. we actually took our girl to doggy school and that has helped soooo much. she and i learned how to interact together to meet her needs. i think it's extra helpful for someone who knows about dogs to see the specific behaviour to be more helpful. she quickly became more confident through learning which behaviours would earn her rewards and it took the fear out of my hands b/c corrections were made in other ways.
we are in the same boat. tho ally was only 1 yr old when i got her.
she has gotten much much better since then. she is also 5. i think with lots of love and attention just for her she has gotten better.
i hope you all do well to.
How sad....I hope this dog has been treated.
I have a 2 year old dachshund and he does the same thing. I've had him since he was 6 wks and he is very pampered, and has never been abused.
A recent article outlined discovery of a "fear" gene in mice and rats that interacts in the amygdala of the brain to exaggerate the fear response.
Further research will follow to see if there is a way to limit its effect.
There is a group at Yahoo Groups called shy-K9s that discusses shy dogs. You are not alone.
WE HAVE THE SAME PROBLEM WITH OUT FEMALE DASCHUND, AND SHE HAS NEVER BEEN ABUSED. SHE PEES ALL OVER MY HUSBAND AT LEAST DAILY, USUALLY WHEN HE FIRST COMES HOME AND SHE IS EXCITED TO SEE HIM. BUT SHE IS VERY SHY AND COWERS EVERY TIME I TRY TO PICK HER UP. SHE IS ALSO REALLY BAD ABOUT HAVING HER TOENAILS CUT, WHICH IS USUALLY MY JOB. I THOUGHT MAYBE IT WAS BECAUSE OF THAT. NOW SHE GOES TO THE GROOMERS FOR TOENAIL CUTTING, AND SEEMS SOMEWHAT LESS FEARFUL. MAYBE THERE IS SOMETHING SHE ASSOCIATES WITH PART OF HER NORMAL CARE THAT IS MAKING HER SCARED.
You need to boost his self-esteem. Play with him, walk him, teach him tricks, make him work for treats, praise him. Feed him first, before the other dogs/animals. Lots of attention, love and praise.
My husband and I adopted a 1 year old poodle 3 and 1/2 years ago. We were the third people to adopt her. The other people kept her and, I am sure returned her because of her urinating. I am sure that she was abused by a woman because she trusted my husband from the start and urinated on my carpet every time I either looked or called her.
I tried ignoring her "accidents" and praising her when she did the appropriate thing outside. It took about 6 months of both ignoring her and giving her a lot of love attention when she would allow me to.
Her problem with me lasted about 6 months and then she became the perfect spoiled loving dog that sleeps with us at night. About 2 weeks ago we decided to adopt another rescue. Who is completely house broken and very sweet. They seemed to get along wonderfully and to my surprise my Goldie turned out to be the alpha dog.
About 5 days ago Goldie regressed and started to not only urinate but also to leave us other gifts in another bedroom every morning. She knows she is doing something wrong because she hides when she sees us cleaning up. She is not submissive with the other dog - they play the entire day and at night the new dog stays downstairs and Goldie sleeps upstairs in bed with us.
We have given Goldie more love and attention than normal, and that's a lot. Her behavior is now slightly better than it was when we first got her. Help
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