Why is my dog afraid to enter the kitchen/bathroom?

Question

I have a black lab named Dakota. She was a rescue dog that we got from the Humane Society when she was about 8 months old.

She is now 7 years old, and ever since we've had her, she has had an odd fear of the kitchen in my home and any of the three bathrooms in my home.

If I go into the kitchen, she refuses to enter the kitchen, even if I try to offer her food.

The same goes for the bathroom...she will not go in no matter what.

One day, I got curious and picked her up and set her down in the middle of the kitchen. Much to my surprise, she cowered to the floor and *WOULD NOT MOVE* from the spot I had set her down. I left the kitchen for 5 minutes, and when I came back, she was still cowered down on the floor and had not moved an inch.

As soon as I picked her up and put her back outside the kitchen, she started acting normally again.

If she was abused as a pup, why would she continue to act this way now that she is no longer in the abusive home?

What is wrong with my baby? :*(

Answer 1

Without knowing the type of flooring you have I would suspect she was never introduced to tile or linoleum flooring. Or she could have had a tramatic experiance such as slipping and falling during a fear imprint stage.
Usually when a dog has a fear of something it is because of lack of socialization to it.
At this point you can live with it and ignore it or work on giving your dog as many pleasurable experiances in these areas.
Feed her next to the kitchen or bathrooms for a week or two. Then move them on to the floors. Make sure she has something extra special in her food bowl the first few times. What you are doing is called desensitizing. Also, maybe a few rugs or mats may help.

"The general consensus among trainers would be some version of a gradual approach, over time motivating the dog of his own will to step on to the tile, and rewarding for managing the courage to overcome. Depending on the severity of the fear, a veterinary behaviorist or veterinarian may recommend an anti anxiety drug before initiating therapy."

"That lesson would be teaching their dog to walk over all kinds of surfaces. All dog owners should teach their dogs to walk over tile, storm drains, manhole covers, ect.. so they don't freak when they are taken some place that has some other floor covering besides carpet. Judging how this dog reacted to the tile floor, I'm gathering he has been raised with carpeted floors or is only allowed to roam on carpeting at their house."

See links below for more information.
Good Luck

Answer 2

The dog may not like the floor in the bathrooms or kitchen BUT if it has not gone in there it would not know about the floor.

My guess is those are the rooms where the dog was abused before you got it. I have known animals who have lived in terror for their entire life from earlier abuse even when they were in a loving home.

Every time we touched a newspaper our dog would cower from us. We never used the news paper for anything except reading. The dog was trained when we got him so we did not even use paper for training. We would spread the paper out on a table to read and once the paper was spread out the dog would relax. As long as we held the paper the dog cowered... He lived to 14 years and did that the entire time we had him.

Answer 3

could be the tile floors freak her out. Its kind of nice that she doesnt go in the kitchen and leave dog hair all over the place...my dog has to go in the kitchen, the doggie door exit is there, its the only way out to the back yard, also his food and water are there-since its tile.

I think there was an episode of the dog whisperer where there was a lab mix who was afraid of the tile floors, even after they put rugs down.

If you dog doesn't whine, bark or misbehave-maybe just let it ride.

Abuse stays with you-certain things trigger it, your girl cant talk, so you'll never know. I say, just let it ride if its not a problem.

Answer 4

Yes she would continue to act this way even if she was abused when she was a puppy. Actually it would be way worse if she had been abused as a puppy. They would remember it with great fear.

This happens with many stray and rescued dogs. They have a fear that will stay with them for the rest of there lives.

Answer 5

She may be afraid of the linoleum floors. Some dogs don't feel that a floor like that gives them. The linoleum flooring is slippery and the dog is not in control of their footing and will slide on it. If she won't go on it, don't force her. It's not necessarily an abuse issue. They have innate fears too. It may seem silly to us but they need to feel in charge of what situations they can in their environment. We have herd group dogs and they do the same thing.

Answer 6

She'll remember the abuse she suffered when she was a pup. As you got her from a rescue you don't know what she went through in her background. Positive reinforcement is the way to go - and go really slowly with her. I got one of my rabbits from a rescue centre and it's taken the best part of a year to get her to trust me enough to let me pet her.

I don't know if you'll get results but I think it's wonderful that you have given her a loving home, faults and all.

Answer 7

Has she ever had a bad experience in a kitchen? Maybe got doused in hot water or something. Or maybe she doesn't like the floor, if you have slippery tiled ones. I guess you should just not press the issue. As long as she's happy in every other way, she should be okay.

Answer 8

Have you ever given Dakota a bath in the kitchen or bathroom? My dog is the same way. When he was a small puppy, we used to give him baths in the kitchen sink, and now that he is bigger we give him baths in the shower. If he hears the water running, he won't enter the room.

Answer 9

it sounds like your baby was definitely abused in some way. it could also be the type of flooring the bath and kitchen have. a lot of dogs that come into my grooming salon have difficulty navigating the slick tile because of the lack of traction. most people don't give dogs enough credit. they remember things that happen. just keep loving her and be patient.

Answer 10

She's afraid of the slippery floor!!! She may have a touch of arthritis, too, which would make it worse. Try putting down area rugs/mats so she can stay off the floor and she'll come in.