Having alcohol on my breath, can it bring back memories in my rescue dog??

Question

He seems to have flash backs, can a dog remember details??

My dog seems to get scared when i,ve had a drink. He cowers in a corner but soon comes round once he realises he,s safe, I`m wondering if his previouse owner treated him badly and he remembers. It seems that IF he thinks he`s bad he`s in for a battering. I`v never given him a clout and never will, I just wonder if he will get over his fear??????

Answer 1

You don 't give details on your dogs behaviour, please could you give more information as it may help determine what is happening. :)

Your dog may just really dislike the smell of alcohol, and this may be what makes him behave in a strange way.

Or...maybe he has made an association between the smell of alcohol and something bad that has happened.

Answer 2

Absolutely! You just need to remember to be patient and let him know its okay. I would agree with the suggestion of giving him a treat, or making sure that you give some extra attention. Depending on the severity of the circumstance, it might take a little or a long while for him to completely trust that its okay. My parents black lab had a kid on a bike almost run over her when she was a puppy, to this day if a biker gets too close she will try to attack it, and she is not the kind of dog to do something like that. They will never completely forget but you can show him that its okay now.

Answer 3

I once saw an experiment on bbc 1 by professor winston which may answer your question.

There was a tank full of goldfish swimming around as goldfish do.
along comes prof.W with a big plastic model which he lowers down into the tank of goldfish. As he lowered it quite slowly and in a predictable way (- straight downwards), the fish either igignored it or swam over to it to see what it was.
Then prof W started to move around the plastic model, faster and faster, chasing the fish. The fish swam away quickly, they decided the plastic model was a danger to them, andtried to swim away to safty.
Some time later (weeks later), prof.W had the same goldfish in their tank again. They were again just swimming around as they do. Then comes the plastic model- carring the goldfish food. ALL the fish immedialty see the midel being lowered and swim off th the opposite corner of the tank. The plastic model has imacted on them so much they are overriding one of their basic biological need because they ar so afraid.

So in reply to your question, yes anials do remember, and do carry scars.Your dog remebers the smell as this would have been how he could detect that his onwer was not ok- he was dangerous and the dogs life was at risk. Its like a waring smell- reminding the dog to run as far and as fast as possible or to put up a fight to protect itself.

You could try being teetotal, or if you feel the dog is young enough, you could try to help it see that alcohol doesnt always equate being hurt.- Like with a small child, it takes time and patience-and goes without saying, involves you never being so out of it that you endup comatosed or irrational drunk.

Answer 4

if he has a dislike for it and acts different....the answer is yes... try to make a fuss of him and let him know he is not at risk.. dogs hav a very long memory some better than us and are very inteligent... talk to him quietly when he reacts to this , it may take some time but if he knows that you love him andyou show this ,things will be fine. give him time let him know gently that you are mates,give treats, Be careful that other people do'nt undo all your hard work ,or he'll be back to the hurt he remembers.Good luck ...Helen

Answer 5

Absolutely. Dogs are very in tune to their environments. If something particularly traumatic or meaningful happened to him and he was aware of the smell of alcohol at the time, the smell of alcohol now could trigger a reaction.

Answer 6

If a drunk person was cruel to him before then yes the smell of alcohol may scare him.

Answer 7

yes it can. try not to let it come near you when you are drinking. and yes i think a dog can remember details.

Answer 8

i think so, dont fully get the question though - tell us the story!