Yesterday, I opend the door to tells some kids , my kids wernt home. My dog,Rotti/ hound mix. barged his way out, and at the last second, I grabbed his tail to keep him from running away. you see we have deer hunters here and I was affraid he would get shot because if he started to chase a deer that hunter was after .THEY WOULD KILL HIM., if he made it into the woods.he yelped, I have NEVER hit, grabbed , spanked, or even yelled at him before.now he shys from me. He wouldn't even take a treat from me. I have told him how sorry I am and am giving extra love. I FEEL SO BAD. He was a shelter dog I adopted last year. So i know nothing about his past. will he ever trust me again? GOD knows I didn't mean to hurt him physically, or emotionally. is there anything else I can do to gain his trust back? I feel like some sort of animal abusing monster.
2007-11-28 14:15:31 · 32 answers · asked by Anonymous in Pets ➔ Dogs
You're not an abusing monster.
You did it out of love and protection.
By the way thank you so much for having a heart and adopting him!
You just have to pretty much stick to the little man like GLUE. Pet him, rub his belly, sleep with him, play ball with him, take him for a walk...
He probably has been through abuse before and he thinks that it's happening again. You just have to kinda reassure him that it's not happening again.
I know, it's so hard because they really just don't understand. Especially rescues. =(
Good luck!
2007-11-28 14:20:28 · answer #1 · answered by Anonymous · 6⤊ 2⤋
First of all don't feel bad (or try not to), it wasn't your fault, just an unfortunate accident, you did what you had to do to keep him safe and as you don't know his history, you weren't to know that he would react so badly.
My dog is like this, we got him from the shelter, and he was defiantly abused before being a stray for a long time, if anyone is arguing or there is any kind of conflict he gets really upset and tries to hide, but it never lasts long.
Things just happen that they have bad associations with, and that sends them back to a vulnerable place, after a while the remember that your not the person who actually hurt them. What ever happened to him, he has been able to move past it enough to get rehomed as a family dog, do i can't imagine the fright you gave him would be a braking point.
Just give him time, be gentle and quite around him, give him enough room so when he wants to, he can come up to you without feeling forced. He's just feeling vulnerable about him place in your family, so this is when you need to prove to him that your different from the last people he was with. And try not to be upset, because he might pick up on it and think that your upset with something he did, there is a good chance that he thinks you were punishing him for something he did, so if you seem upset or tense around him, he might think your still angry.
2007-11-28 14:33:16 · answer #2 · answered by fray 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
I hate all the thumbs down here. Think of it this way, if your child was a toddler and running out the door towards a transport truck, would you grab her hair to stop her from possibly being hit? I'm sure you would!
I had to do something similar about a year ago. I threw out my back and was taking my dog out (slowly lol!) and she saw a squirrel and started to run, pulling the leash out of my hand. I ran (pumped with adrenaline I guess!) and managed to leap and grab her hind leg and wouldn't let go for dear life because she was running towards a VERY busy highway! I felt horrible because I had pulled her leg hard (she was running and I stopped her mid stride by grabbing it). She shyed away from me, like yours is now, and warmed up to me, after a few days, right back to where she was.
I wouldn't feel bad. I would feel that you had saved your dogs life and he will warm up to you again. If you are really concerned, you can always contact a trainer to work on recall training. That would allow you to train the dog so that if he ever does run out the door again, calling him will have him come back.
2007-11-28 15:04:56 · answer #3 · answered by bpbjess 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your dog always trusts you, just sometimes he might be shy of you for awhile. I was going into the bathroom and I didn't know that my dog was following me, and I shut the door right on his foot. I actually made it bleed on accident. Well I immediatly opened the door to make sure that he was okay, and he ran away from me. But I approached him. This just happened 2 days ago. Now we are fine. So just give him time and a lot of love and he will know that you are just as great as before.
2007-11-28 14:27:51 · answer #4 · answered by shymokota 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Dog's are very forgiving and do not hold grudges, so yes, he will trust you again. You weren't trying to hurt him, you were trying to protect him. I don't think you are an animal abusing monster. Just give him a lot of love and attention, and a little time and he will be fine.
2007-11-28 14:22:43 · answer #5 · answered by Chihuahua Addict Adores Scooby 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
He isn't still upset over having his tail pulled yesterday. Dogs don't have the mentality to hold a grudge over a one time deal. He is upset because he senses that you are upset. They do have the capacity to pick up your feelings, but yet he cannot understand them. He doesn't know that you feel bad about something that happened yesterday, he just knows something is wrong with you, and that you are acting unstable. This is making him very nervous, because he depends on your stability to be comfortable himself. Stop feeling guilt, and move on to what you normally feel, and act like you normally act. He will sense when you are back to your 'old self' and will respond with confidence again.
2007-11-28 14:23:40 · answer #6 · answered by stulisa42 4 · 3⤊ 1⤋
Don't worry, I think eventually he will come out of it. I don't blame you for what you did, you were trying to protect him. Just be calm and gentle around him. It's possible that by pulling his tail you may have triggered some bad memory. I am sorry this happend. It upsets me when my cat avoids me. If it continues to last, see a dog behavioralist, they might be of some help. Good luck.
2007-11-28 14:21:36 · answer #7 · answered by Sunshine 6 · 0⤊ 2⤋
If I was worried about my dog getting killed I would pull her tail too. You did good.
2007-11-28 14:39:08 · answer #8 · answered by happylady216 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Cook him chicken and plain rice. You can give him liver treats you can buy at the pet store. I figure since dogs go crazy and absolutely love these treats, slowly you can tame him again. I believe you, you're not a monster!
2007-11-28 14:44:13 · answer #9 · answered by Quentpoy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Your pup will get over it eventually, just give him time and also treats. My husband was waching a football game, got all heated and yelled at the TV, one of my dogs (boston terrier) he got scared and just jumped on my lap and was shaking, we never yell at him or anything, so that was the first time he heard someone yell. My husband told him that it was okay, gave him kisses and and then my dog got over it. Just give your dog time and he'll be okay.
2007-11-28 15:00:51 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋