Extreme shyness in new rescue pup

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pogopup

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Hello everyone,

I am so glad I found this forum! I have a 5 month old Sheltie pup I rescued when he was 3.5 mos old. He was literally shoved in a cat carrier when younger and left one someone doorstep! He then got taken to a pound where all the loud noises scared him. Then the pound contacted my local Sheltie rescue and they went and got him. So I can only imagine the trauma and baggage he is carrying around with him.

I will try to ask my question and be brief, but not leave out any important information.

I am worried that he is possibly suffering from hypothyroidism or has some extreme fear and/or depression and could use some advise from Sheltie experts!

The thing that worries me the most is that he is always on edge. I don't think he can ever feel like he can just calm down. Any movement, sudden or slow, he jumps up and is like "what's that? What's going on? What are you doing?" I don't think he drinks water enough, but when he does, it's almost as if he only has one chance at it and gulps down almost the whole bowl. I change the water frequently, so what was there this morning is not the same water that is there now. He is even not eating very well. I feed him Innova puppy food and he is eating about half of what the schedule says (a full cup a day).

He is also very very shy. Shy to the point that he runs and hides either behind the couch, in his crate, or under my coffee table. These people that come around are frequent visitors so he should be at least used to them being around, but no. We've tried treats, but no luck. He is a one person dog, and I am that person. His coat is full and nice and other than just his behavior goes, that the only thing that makes me wonder about his thyroid. I've started taking him to Petsmart's Doggie day camp to help with his socialization and we are starting obedience in two weeks. But he is so scared around strange people/situations that it prevents him from learning.

Has anyone had good luck with anti-anxiety medicine as a short term method in addition to obedience/doggie day camp? I should also mention that he drools like a rabid dog when he goes for a car ride. Today when we got home from doggie day camp, he threw up after he got out of the car (I appreciate that he didn't do it in the car!).

Sorry for this being so long, but I could use some advise/help. Also, on a side note, how tall should a average 5 mos old Sheltie be and how much does an average 5 mos weigh? I am just curious to see if he will be a standard size when he grows up or if he will be undersized. Of course, either way I will love him!

Again, I appreciate everyone's help/advise/input!
 
Oh pogopup! I feel for you! I have a 15 month old that I rescued 4 weeks ago and your baby sounds so much like Meeko. It is heart wrenching. Progress has been slow with Meeko. Sometimes we take two steps forward and 3 steps back, but on a whole he is making progress. 4 weks ago I was hand feeding him and now he eats out of a bowl but only if it is very quiet. Advice that was given to me here on this forum has been to take it slow. Check out my thread Help Requested in the behavior forum. There is a wonderful link in one of the posts about a collie who had similar issues. It was a wonderful read. Good luck. I can't help with the meds issue but am curious as to what others have to say about it.

Do you have other dogs? I purchased a puppy at the same time I rescued Meeko and I really feel Meeko is doing so well because of Indy.
 
Pogopup

Whats the poor little pups name? The poor thing is petrified and has to learn to trust people. This may take a long time. The poor baby has been tramatized, by his former humans, if they can be called that.:mad: I hate when people abuse animals and Kids I think they are skum!! Just take it in short intervals introducing him a little at a time. What makes you think he may have a thyroid problem ? This poor little pup is going to need a lot of TLC and much Patience to bring him around to trusting again. :cry: You are who he has chosen. Are you the one that went to get him ? You will be his angel his protector thus his teacher. Best of luck. Looking forward to seeing pictures of the little guy? Welcome to the forum . You are now officially owned by a Sheltie. He has tons of unconditional love for you just give him time.:biggrin2: They do have anti-anxiety meds that the vet may prescribe for him but that is a topic best for the vet A holistic vet can give you more natural things to give instead of meds. Listar hits the nail on the head , that's experience for you !!
Oh pogopup! I feel for you! I have a 15 month old that I rescued 4 weeks ago and your baby sounds so much like Meeko. It is heart wrenching. Progress has been slow with Meeko. Sometimes we take two steps forward and 3 steps back, but on a whole he is making progress. 4 weks ago I was hand feeding him and now he eats out of a bowl but only if it is very quiet. Advice that was given to me here on this forum has been to take it slow. Check out my thread Help Requested in the behavior forum. There is a wonderful link in one of the posts about a collie who had similar issues. It was a wonderful read. Good luck. I can't help with the meds issue but am curious as to what others have to say about it.

Do you have other dogs? I purchased a puppy at the same time I rescued Meeko and I really feel Meeko is doing so well because of Indy.
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Thanks Listarz & elaine2004 for the responses. His name is Pogo. I named him that because when I first got him, he spent the first 4 days (he wouldn't let me near him) going in the crate, out the crate, in the crate, out the crate...well, you get the idea. Now he's attached to me like a band-aid on a hairy arm! LOL...:winkgrin:

the only thing that makes me wonder if it's thyroid issues is because it is very common in Shelties and also his behavior change. Like I said at first he was just reserved shyness, now it's extreme shyness, even around people who come over daily and spends his time growl/barking at my mother (she comes over daily as well). I'm not expecting happy go lucky at this point, but was at least hoping he wouldn't still be hiding from everyone. I know aggression is a sign of hypothyrioidism, but didn't know if it went the other way as well.

I don't have another dog, but I have a 13 yr old Bengal cat that amazingly enough, tolerates him. Caesar (the cat) will play occasionally with him. Although I'm convinced Caesar is trying to figure out a way to make him "dissapear" :lol:
 
Good morning Pogo and family,

Now I understand why you are wondering about the thyroid, thanks for the explanation. Pogo sounds like he will be a great pup when he settles down. When is he scheduled to see the vet ? Or has he already? Have you tried contacting the Sheltie rescue you adopted him from to see if they know of any body who can help you with some of his problems? They might be able to help. It's worth a shot.:biggrin2:
 
I managed to get him in to see his vet at 8:30 today. Wish us luck! Hopefully it's nothing more than bad anxiety.
 
Does not sound like a thyroid problem to me, just extreme fear. After consulting your vet you may want to look into an experienced dog trainer who deals with such extreme problems, I don't think that Petsmart's trainers have the degree of expertise that you need to help you with such an extreme case.

Poor little thing, I can't imagine what it must be like for him living in fear all of the time. I don't understand how people can be so cruel :sadsmile:
 
I have been reading your posts and I can honestly say that I am not sure what I would do. It will take a lot of time for him to trust people if he was in that bad of a situation. I agree with Elaine, I don't understand what makes people tick when they do the things that they do to animals and kids. They will get their day in front of God and I don't think that they will be forgiven. Anyway, Listarz did recommend a great page before so you should check it out. It might really help. The only other thing that I can think of is when people come over act like it's no big deal and try being relaxed and not pay attention to his growling. I don't know what you currently are doing but maybe if you don't acknowledge his behavior he will see that it is not necessary and stop doing it. I tend to watch a lot of Cesar Milan and there are a lot of dogs out there that display the same behaviors that you are talking about. He has the owners ignore the dog and the dog figures out that they don't need to act like that. Long shot but might help. Hope the vet appt. went well. Have a great day!
 
Hi and welcome to you and little Pogo! Kudos for taking on the task of rehabbing this poor little pup. It will happen; he will come out of his shell eventually and the reward you will have in his loyalty and love will be unbelievable. But for now, I agree with everyone else here, it will be a long road that will take lots of patience and love. Give him tons of attention, as you're doing. He needs reassurance that you aren't going to leave him too.

Innova is a wonderful food and I wouldn't worry too much as long as he's eating. If you're concerned, try mixing it with a bit of canned food and even some water to make a gravy...that might appeal to him. We had a rescue Sheltie years ago who ate and drank like there was no tomorrow for the first six months we had him. Every time you raised your hand to wave at someone the poor guy flinched. He lived with us for 12 wonderful years and was the most loving creature you can imagine once he gained confidence. But it did take time. Shelties tend to be shy characteristically so some of that comes naturally to him.

I wouldn't rush too much to socialize him with people or other dogs. Give him some time to adapt first to his new situation and get to know you. Once you've done that, I agree with Ontario--I'd consult a good trainer who can help you with any residual issues. In the meantime, if it helps him, why not crate him when you have people in he doesn't know, especially if he feels secure in his crate. A little at a time, and slow baby steps for this poor little guy will give you the best progress.

As for medications, Springtime makes a great supplement called Stress Free Calmplex (http://www.springtimeinc.com/product/100/2) that is made of natural ingredients. That might help him out. You could also try something like Rescue Remedy for him, which you can find online or in natural pet food stores. And of course your vet can check on possible thyroid issues.

Good luck to you and please keep us posted on Pogo's progress!
 
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First off, I want to thank everyone for their kinds words and helpful advise and encouragement. :smile2:

His vet appt went fine-no thyroid problems. But his kidney function was way off the chart, so the vet was concerned he was in the early stages of renal problems :eek2: :uhoh:. So, more tests later and, phew, it was just UTI. Thank god.

We put him on some short term anti-anxiety meds to help with his car rides and just in general calm him down. We are going under the assumption for now that he was so badly traumatized as a pup, that he is still having a hard time realizing he's "OK" now and still trying to figure things out.

OntarioSheltie, thanks for your comment. I just take him to Petsmart for their doggie day camp to get socialized with other dogs and also to interact with their staff (different people). It also helps break the boredom of being crated all day. The obedience class we start next Saturday is hosted by a great trainer in my area who is well aware of his situation. I'm hoping that by all this (and of course lots of love) his confidence will bloom and he'll become a happy and confident dog. I really really want to get him into agility or flyball when he's old enough-until then I want to stick with advanced obedience-just to give him the mental stimulation he needs.
 
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