How to get my dog to like people?

Well, my black lab/golden retriever mix is not too big to be inside, as was my shar pei and a german shepard/ great dane mix that I fostered. you say that you are a big animal person, yet you are going to get “rid of” one dog to breed another dog just so that you can purchase a car. I am sorry, but to me that is selfish and does not reflect the actions of a “big animal person”. I would NEVER “get rid of” one dog to breed another to pay for ANYTHING for myself. I would get a job, or two jobs…anything to avoid that…actually I would NEVER even consider doing that. You live on a busy street, have kept an active, intelligent, sweet dog in a pen and never socialized her and now you are going to get rid of her so that you can get a car. I leave out the college part because the car is so much more selfish. You could get better grades and get a schlorship or apply for grants to cover college or again, GET A JOB. Sorry if I seem harsh but I deal with unwanted dogs on a daily basis and am sick and tired of selfish breeding practices. What if you don’t sell all of your puppies, how will you “get rid of” them? Your dog should be spayed. Both of your dogs should be spayed. And you should not get any more or, I am sorry to say, refer to yourself as a big animal person. You are a young person that needs to understand that animals are not here to use at will for our selfish purposes. They are here to be loved, respected and cared for.

so would you rather me let her out of the pen for full time and her get hit by a car and die I dont knw if you’d want that but I’m not going to let her die just because you think that I treat her bad by keeping her in a pen…she gets out as much as I can possibly let her…and also not everybody drives to where I would work everyday and if they did it wouldnt be at the same time that I needed to go I’d really wish yall would understand for 2 seconds what I was talking about,,,instead of chewing me out for crap you know nothing about…im trying my hardest to get this dog socialable im trying my hardest to get her to learn she cant go in the road when I let her out and so far shes done good…you say im not an animal person yet if I wasnt an animal person I wouldnt be spending every minute of my days working with her and on the internet trying to get answers…and I dont live in NC and if you went to carams.com and read its trying to get you to donate because ALL ANIMALS THAT ARE NOT ADOPTED WILL HAVE TO BE PUT DOWN

wht is tsk?…anyway your dogs are inside at night and running around on a one acre fenced in area…my dog is in a pen big enough for two and a half cars to fit inside it at night and running on not quite 2 acres but a little more than one acre for 2 to 3 hours during the day I DO NOT TREAT HER WRONG the only difference between our situations is your dog is used to people my dog is GETTING used to people I’ve never made her go to people until now im not going to let somebody that doesn’t even know me say that I don’t treat my dogs right I have 5 and every single one of them is happy, healthy, respected, loved, and cared for I’m not going to get another dog because 5 is enough but I can confidentally say that if something happened to one of my dogs and I wanted another dog I will get one and he/she will turn out just fine just like all my dogs did/ including daisy she has one down fall…that doesn’t mean I wasn’t a good owner…it just means she was scared I thought it was mean to make her go to people but now im trying…oh and by the way daisy may not live IN a house with a loving family…but she DOES live AT a house with a loving family…thanks for your help…Jesus loves you!! bye!

I live in a small house, with a 130# German Shepherd, and a little Westie…and a very big man…so far, we’ve managed to get both the big man and the big dog into the house, comfortably…Course, we happen to housetrain our dogs, when they are puppies…I also live on a VERY busy county road, in rural MONTANA…so our living situations are equal, just not the way we treat our dogs.

Maybe instead of training her yourself, since you’ve had such bad luck training this girl, you might look into a recue for her…so REAL “big animal people” can do for her what you cannot. If money is the only reason you’re breeding your dachsund, then you’re part of an every growing problem…”big animal people” devote themselves to being part of the SOLUTION.

phrannie

Take her to obedience class.

You can’t get her to become what you want her to be unless you get her out of that pen and work with her.

Lots of love, praise, kisses and a nice crate with a blanket of her own and start teaching her to be a house pet that is loved and not a caged, penned up animal.

Go to the library and check out books on working her. “The Adoptable Dog” is a wonderful book. THAN work with her work with her and work with her.

Why has she been in a pen? Pens are for pigs. A dog is a gift from God to be treated with love and honored.

Of course she is scared, how old is she? Oh on the crate that is only to sleep in and for security, NOT to pen her up in again.

You should have been loving and working with this dog before now. Now you take an interest in her and of course she is suspicious. I wouldn’t trust you over night either.

Daisy is a cute name, one that should be given to a dog that is loved and worked with.

It is good you are going to get her to another home. Make sure that it is one that does not pen her up. Or look to a rescue that will do what you failed to do for this poor dog.

YOU ARE GETTING RID OF DAISY BECAUSE YOU ARE GOING TO BREED ANOTHER DOG FOR PROFIT!!!

and the “jesus loves you” was the cherry on the top of this sundae.

WWJD? (what would jesus do?) TREAT THAT DOG BETTER!

I know all of this and im glad you want to speak your mind but you seriously dont knw the whole story bout the buying a car its not that easy just to get better grades and get a scholarship coming from a small school that cares more about atheltics than acedemics kind of stops me from that… the AKC gives scholarships to people that have activites with purebred dogs…also how the heck do you expect me to get a job if I have no way of getting to that job I dont know if your from a big city where you can walk two steps to any place you want but the nearest business is 25 to 30 minutes away so yes I do have to have a car and yes I AM getting a job and I dont knw how big of a house you live in but mine is not that big and she’s not housebroken so I’d rather not have my house smelling horribly plus my mom wouldnt allow her inside anyway also she’s for the 15th time that I’ve said this: SHE IS IN A PEN SO THAT SHE DOES NOT GET HIT BY A CAR!!! I let her out as much as possible and even socializing with her as a puppy she was always nervous around people…another reason that I want to breed puppies before I start saving up for a car is to help give money to CARA I dont know if you’ve heard about it but its a “no kill” animal rescue center that has over 400 dogs and about 40 cats and they’re about to have to put down all the animals that are not adopted because they have no money so before you start on me with the whole im not an animal person get the facts because honey you dont know me at all and you dont know whats in my heart…im so glad that you are a big animal person you’ve given great advice and I dont mean to be so rude but im just saying there’s more than one reason why im giving her away to breed I will gladly name them all if you’d like

thanks for all yalls help…im only 14 so yall have way more experience than me and just because I dont know any of those things doesnt mean I dont love animals I will learn from everything yall have said and im not breeding for money at all im breeding for a scholorship with the AKC and next summer im getting a job helping out at I vets office so hopefully ill learn more then I love all of my pets to death I respect and take care of them all…thank yall all for all yalls help…but just some advice that I have learned in 14 years big dogs such as german shepards or labs…having them inside a house is basically the same as having them in a pen

No, sorry…It is not. My large dogs are running free during the day on a one acre FENCED area with trees, bushes, hiding area, areas to explore, etc. They come in at night. Even if they were in the house with me all day and night, only to go outside to go to the bathroom they would be HAPPIER because there would be humans around, rooms to explore, etc. There would be a different room to wander to if they grew bored. Your dog is alone in a pen, WATCHING the world go by and only gets to be with a human when you DEEM to go and get her. You don’t get it, PLEASE don’t get more pets. You try to justify your actions at every turn. Your actions aren’t intentionally cruel, just wrong. It is NOT the same to pen a large dog compared to keeping it in the house. If your Daisy had lived in the house with a loving family, she wouldn’t be having the problems she is now. Tsk…Tsk…

It is good that you are trying… if you take ANY lesson away from this, it is that you have enough pets. Don’t get more. And spay/neuter you animals BEFORE they have a litter. If you want to be on the road to becoming a “good animal person” you will show responsibility and spay/neuter ALL of your animals, don’t breed an animal purely for the money, work with your animals from day one, don’t get an animal that you have to pen because it might be run over otherwise, a pen is no way to live, and most of all LOVE, RESPECT AND TAKE CARE OF YOUR PETS! And one other thing, respect the “good animal people” that try to help. We know what we are doing, we have been doing it for years. You aren’t a “big animal person” now but you might well be on your way to becoming one, if you listen to what we said and you stop making excuses. Good luck with everything. Now that the shelter has money, maybe you should volunteer and learn about responsible breeding, overpopulation and what happens to unwanted/unloved dogs and cats.

Okay, cool it. I went to their site and donated also because the first post said CARA. So I donated there also. The shelter in Jackson now has $200 more than it did yesterday and I have posted this in my friends animal magazine. Donations should begin to pour in. Let me ask one question… Why did you get a large dog, knowing that you live on a busy street and that it was too large to be in your home? No one said that you should let her out to be run over. I think that through proper training from the start, she would be a loving, well trained house dog that is trained to go outside to go to the bathroom.. Instead you picked a large dog and stuck her in a pen “for her own good”. It is fine that you are trying to train her now, but where were you all of that time in her early puppy life. Why is she not house trained? Do you live around the Jackson area or did you learn about the shelter on the news?

im not being harsh and everything yall are saying I’ve thought about and im probably one of the biggest animal people you’ll ever meet…she’s in a pen because I live on a main hwy and teenagers fly through here and most WILL NOT STOP for a dog I’ve had to see one of my all time favorite dogs get hit and im not about to let it happen to her sure I let her out I try to let her out everyday its just she’s never LET anybody associate with her shes a mut but mainly Lab and no im not gettin rid of her because of her social skills that’d be the only reason that I DIDNT get rid of her im trying to get rid of her because we need to start breeding my weenie dog so that I can have money for a car and to save up for college also I want to give her away so that she can run around like she needs to…and also she IS kennel shy…yall are all giving GREAT advice but I’ve tried every bit of what yall are saying except takin her to petsmart and bringing her inside which both of those probably WOULD help a little but they’re impossible to do in this situation right now because shes to big for inside and if she went to petsmart she would feel in danger and might bite shes never acted like she would but im not going to take that risk

I think you are missing my point? Does your dog ever come in the house? Most people want a dog that will come in the house and keep them company. She needs more interaction. She is Kennel Shy. That is truly what it is called.

She is afraid because the pen is her whole world, you and that pen. She needs to ride in the car. Take walks on a leash. Take a class with other dogs and people and go to the Pet store (Petsmart allows you to bring your dog in) they also have excellent classes in most towns.

She needs to go to the dog park and a groomer. You need to bring her in and get her use to the TV, washer, dropping things, vacuums, kids, cats and everything a family has going on.

She may always be a shy dog but she can become use to a house and outside interaction.

The local library has wonderful books on Kennel Shyness. A book called the “Adoptable Dog” actually addresses this issue.

A trainer can help you with her but she needs a lot of work, you need to also be sure she doesn’t bite in her fear. Most dogs bite in fear not aggression.

Good luck Andre’

excuse me carams.org…click on animal shelter fears closure and read it will tell you if they arent adopted they’ll be put down

you know I’ve never seen somebody so quick to judge…I say she’s in a pen and you have a heart attack like she has no room to move or something…I say she’s only in it at night and you act like that wasn’t even said..I’m not giving her away for sure but if I did it would be for many more reasons than you’ll understand…not everyone is as perfect as you..okay?.. so whatever…bye…

for the thousandth time there is MORE TO THE SITUATION THAN ME GIVING HER AWAY TO BREED thats not the only reason and even if I was just giving her away for thta thats still NOT TREATING HER BADLY and im probably not giving her away if I can teach her to stay out of the road like the other 2 dogs of mine…and for the second time stop chewing me out for crap YOU KNOW NOTHING ABOUT!!!

I am adding to what phrannie said… follow magichalo’s advice… I agree with phrannie, you should be upbeat and positive but maybe you SHOULD be sympathetic with her, sorry but you sound a bit harsh… you are talking to animal people here… why is she always in a pen? what breed dog is she? how old is she? Are you looking to “get rid of her” because of her lack of social skills? It sounds like “kennel shyness” to me also. When your world consists of the same 4 walls day after day, you tend not to be socialized. She needs love, understanding and lots of work on your part.

im not symapathetic with her I’ve trained dogs before she’s just the only one that just isn’t responding to anything I do and I can’t take her inside because she’s way to big but I was thinking about taking her to petsmart but I asked a woman that works with the animal rescue league and she said that it might make her just go into a shell she also starts bucking really bad like a horse when she gets with a lot of people do you have any suggestions on how I could make that stop I usually just stop go to comfort her she walks a little more til someone else approaches her then bucks again…do you know anything else I could do

I have two other big dogs that are outside but not in a pen I got daisy about 1year ago and was going to train her the way I did bear and shadow…my other 2 dogs that are outside…but instead of learning like they did it just didnt work I tried as much as I could but one day I was inside and when I glanced out the window I bout had a heartattack because daisy was in the middle of the road and a car was coming and wasnt stopping daisy finally moved but she barely made it I had already seen my dog george get hit and die a few years before so I decided that it was best for daisy to have been put in the pen and if it was up to me she would have been inside from the start and I would have trained her just like I did all my other dogs but im only 14 so its not up to me whether the dog comes inside or not I’ve had a lot of dogs through my life and none of them have been like her which is why I didnt worry about proper training when she was younger I was 13 and all my dogs before that weren’t kennel shy or scared of noises none of the big dogs I had got in the road she just didnt respond to any of the training like my other dogs had and im trying…im trying my hardest to the best of my ability to get her where she needs to be and I believe that I can make it happen I dont care if it takes a year or 2 years…and a woman my mama works with told her about cara like 2 years ago when my dog shadow had puppies right before we got her fixed…and no her problem is not of boredom..she doesnt like water and shes not a full blooded lab when im outside during the day and I let her out she plays with bear and shadow and roams through the woods and through our neighbors chicken houses like I said shes mainly in a pen at night and on rainy days which we dont get many of those its not like im keeping her sheltered from the world shes been around people shes just never let them touch her and its never really occured to me that its not good she doesnt like people until a few months ago…people make mistakes and they learn from them…atleast im trying now and ill know for the future

Her biggest problem is probably BOREDOM…a lab is an active smart dog…ever take her swimming…any lakes nearby…a river? a creek? a pond??? Or do you live in the Mohavi desert??

Tell strangers not to look at her, talk to her or touch her when they first meet her. Tell them to stand up straight and talk to you. Talk about your dog, what makes your dog special, etc. She’ll relax eventually and realize that people aren’t out to “get” her. After she’s relaxed, the person can bend down and put a hand near her neck or shoulder (not on it). If she moves away, she’s not ready to greet them. If she doesn’t , they can pat her on the shoulder. Tell strangers to avoid reaching for her head. This can look aggressive to from a dog’s point of view. Hope that helps! L

Listen to magichalo…she rehabilitates all breeds of dogs…dogs who have never been handled at all…she knows what she’s talking about.

Some dogs are simply shyer than others…obedience classes…the kind with many dogs, many people in them are wonderful for building the confidence of a shy dog. Also, learning the basics like sit…down…stay…are things that she will know and can be praised for when she’s in a shy moment…all small steps in confidence building.

Also…DO NOT SYMPATHIZE with her…You need to be upbeat, and confident yourself when you work with her…that also helps instill confidence in bashful dog…her faith in you will boost her over scary situations.

phrannie

no I’ve been working with her for the past 6 months and she’s in a pen because she gets in the road and cars have to come to complete stops because she doesn’t move and one day they’re not going to stop and I let her out of the pen a few time a week to run around but she goes back in at night…and she does trust me she’s fine around them if I’m there…of course she’s still scared but she doesn’t run it’s when people approach her without me that I need her to get used to

bring him or her around people a lot then he will grow into it

I think you should give her away. Probably best all around…

if your dog doesn’t like people she/he has a problem