Out of my comfort zone

As most of you know we came home with a puppy the other night, a slightly large one.

I knew her story but didnt know it was this bad, I feel like a fish out of water slightly so here goes, if she was abused I can deal with that but am at a loss to this.

Her story is she was pick of litter but hasn't enough confidence for showing. The ladies husband fell in the kitchen (he is disabled) and that has knocked her for 6, she prefers dogs to humans as she is very nervous, so here we are 5 months old.

She has taken up home in the same space as Snow did, directly by the side of me although if I went to smooth her she would back away. We are not bothering her for anything and letting her settle in but I just haven't come across a puppy ever being like this.

My other halfs mum came over last night to drop something off to him, she walked towards me and there was a low growl from the side of me, no teeth if I hadn't of recognised it I would have thought it was somebodys stomach. I told her to hush and she did, didn't hear it again.

She hasn't bothered with the kids so we thought give her time and she may come out of her shell eventually, well a little later my son walked up to me to have a kiss good night, she shot up, barking and growling at him, again no teeth baring and didn't look as if she was going to attack, I told her to hush and told my son to ignore her which he did. He walked closer to me for the kiss and she darted behind the computer.

Once the kids went to bed she came around slightly, she came for fusses off both me and the other half.

This morning, my daughter came up the stairs to brush her teeth, me and Brea? (not 100% on the name yet) was on the bed, Brea growled, that stomach growling sound again, no teeth, no move towards her nothing. Then downstairs my daughter was on the sofa, Brea was at the other end on the floor, Soph got up to get her shoes and there was another growl, same as before no teeth nothing.

She hasn't come out from under the table now the kids have come home but we have left her alone and haven't even bothered.

I don't think she has been socialised but is supposed to have gone to classes? i'm guessing she has never met kids.

I have ordered a few books and am waiting for them to come.

In the meantime any ideas on what I could try?

Cheers

The first thing I would try is to not allow this dog upstairs or on your bed, nor ever be left alone with the chidlren.

Do you know the breeding of this dog and is the breeder renowned for breeding sound, outgoing, even tempered dogs?

If not, I would proceed with extreme caution.

I read your original post and deliberately did not comment as the phrases "not bold enough to show" are disturbingly familiar and euphemisms for poor temperament.

Have you got an experienced Rottie owner/trainer who can come round and observe her?

Rotties do "talk" however it does not sound as though this is what it is.

A well bred 5 month old Rottie should NEVER be "shy".

She sounds fearful and nervous. I think you're doing the right thing in ensuring everyone gives her space and lets her get used to her new home.

Remember that growling can be a warning; it's possibly her showing that she's uncomfortable with whatever is triggering it. So while of course it's not an ideal response on her part, you don't want to entirely stop this warning system.

It sounds as though whenever someone approaches you, the puppy is getting nervous, so she may be over protective. How about asking anyone who approaches to hold a treat for her...? So she starts to see that good things happen when your family approach...?

I would also be very careful about when anyone new visits, just for now. It might be an idea to have a baby gate or something to keep the puppy away from any visitors - just for now, while you assess what's happening with her.

Give it a few days, see if approaching people giving her treats helps at all. If she doesn't start to relax you might need to seek help from a trainer.

Remember this is all strange and new for her so don't panic too much. When Dex came to us he growled and showed his teeth and snapped the entire time - now a year on he spends most of his life on his back waving his legs in the air, waiting for a tummy rub.....

I would carefully take note of everything the previous owners say... then ignore it.
People are economical with the truth when they are trying to rid themselves of a dog for one thing - and dogs behave very differently in different environments for another.
You and your pup have years to get to know each other so back off and chill, and let her find her feet.
I wouldn`t read too much into an anxious dog in a strange enviroment being nervous - and even if she isn`t the bravest of creatures, you can help her gain confidence in time.
For now - give her time and space. And tell everyone else to do the same.

I am on the phone to the breeder a sec will update when I get off the phone

I have just been on the phone to the original breeder. He assured me that this is not a temperament problem in their lines and even offered me to come to their home as the family are there.

They are show line bred, can I say the name on here??

SB: I will try the sleeping downstairs maybe in her crate?, she is crate trained but wanted to get her out of it as she had been crated quite a bit in her last home.

From the research I have done the breeding seems sound and then speaking to the actual breeder has put my mind at rest there.

With regards to showing, she was perfectly fine up until this womans husband fell, not sure whether he fell on the crate she was in but this seems to have been the trigger of it.

I don't know of a Rotti trainer in this area but would be happy to contact one if someone could point me in the right direction??

When we came in this afternoon from the school run she was in her usual spot, she has just now as i'm typing decided she is happy to venture out and sniff Soph. Soph didn't move or fuss she carried on watching the tv, she is wandering round now playing with the dogs so it could well be new environment nerves but want to have some tips/back up on hand if we don't make alot of progress.

Tabitha: With regards to treats she will now take them off me and my other half as we can approach her not a problem but if somebody else does it she backs off.... well this happened yesterday i'm not sure about today as we haven't tried.

PM me with your location (your profile says UK) and the kennel name, I may be able to help.

Sounds like she's just very wary and nervous, which is understandable; she's still young

I think just carry on letting her appoach others when she's ready. If she backs off when people hold treats out then clearly she's not ready for that yet but great that she will accept them from youself and your OH

Again if it's any consolation, Dex was extemely tense and snappy when he arrived here. It took quite a while for him to really start relaxing.

Hi,

I suspect she's just not been well socialised during the important time, so your priority would be to gain her trust and also to proactively socialise her, BUT (very important) at a level she can handle, so that it does not make her worse

One thing I have found for pups who are shy (especially of men) is to use a toy that they really love and then to very gently encourage interaction with the scary person - but very cautiously! for example, get the person to not interact at first, but to roll the toy; but not towards them, do it away from them, so they have the choice of running after it or staying put. And never try to pull them out from under chairs or anything like that. Progress at their pace always, that way you avoid putting too much pressure on them.

I agree with Tabitha about the growling - although you don't want it, you also dont' want to stop it as it is a warning. Dogs who are stopped from growling may go to a snap instead. So just take heed of what she is trying to tell you, and organise things in the environment with that in mind

As her trust and coping mechanisms improve, she should growl less and less.

Wys
x

After sitting down and thinking when this was posted I actually thought about she wasn't socialised enough, we went on a short walk yesterday, she was fine on the lead, she enjoyed nosing around but I didn't let anyone approach, we sat down on a bench and a few people pass, although nervous at first I didn't respond to her just allowed her to come round. The last person to pass she didn't respond at all so I treated her on that occasion, we then went home so will continue at this pace for awhile with her.

I didn't even think about not hushing her and now you pair have said that I feel quite embarrassed as this would have been the exact same comment I would have given to someone else.

She loves toys and joined in with a game of fetch my daughter was playing with the other two here, Fizz and Snow got bored but Brea still played, she even sat for Soph to give her a treat after it. Will find out which one is her favourite and use that like you have said, fab idea by the way