Dog Behavior Problems - Training A Battered Dog

Any dog that has spent even a little time in an abusive environmnet will exhibit dog behavior problems. Many years ago we came across one such dog that we witnessed in a nearby neighborhood being beaten, and left tied outside on a 6 foot leash for days at a time. We of course called animal control and they took the animal from the owners. We, not realizing what we were in for at the time, adopted it.

This particular animal exhibited many dog behavior problems, and correcting them took some time, but it can be done. If a dog has been over-punished it lacks confidence. So that's the first thing to work on. The dog needs to succeed. This is not as hard as it sounds. They will learn quick but need to be taught by non-physical methods. Even a simple exercise, done daily, will result in a behavior change in a few days.

Start by crouching down and saying "Fido, come" and give the dog lots of praise when it responds, even if that response is simply looking at you. If he urinates on the way, you still need to continue the praise. The wetting will disappear as his confidence improves. When he finally comes all the way he should be petted. It's best to pet the dog on the throat and chest. Sometimes hands over or on top of the head can cause a fear response.

Most shy dogs will generally come to a crouching figure. You can encourage this by having a treat in your hand. It's even better if you can practice this first thing in the morning before the dog has eaten. This will make the treat even more appealing.

Once he comes dependably, "sit" becomes a simple command. Hold your hand over his rump as you say "Fido, sit" but do not press down. He'll likely start by looking upward, and he should be praised by happily saying "Good, sit", but without bending down or petting. If this is patiently repeated, most dogs will eventually sit down. Then the spoken praise should be followed by petting. Remember this is all about making sure he succeeds to gain confidence and lose his dog behavior problems.

One thing you don't want to do with shy dogs is bend over from the waist to pet them. This movement likely signals punishment to them. Crouching avoids bending over, and is a more friendly and reassuring posture.

Do not push down on his rump or hold it down in any way. Physical force is at the root of his submissive behavior and will interfere with effective dog behavior training.

The second part of this therapy is that you must avoid punishing the pet. More often than not, other dog behavior problems will exist. These problems must be resolved using non-physical methods. This will require a significant amount of self control on your part.

Avoid any thoughts that "the dog needs to be told it has done wrong". Remember this dog training is different from training an animal that does not have a battered history. If you backslide into a punishment mentality, your pet will backslide also.

The third step in this correction is used for dogs that are overly submissive to persons outside the family. You'll need to gather a few friends to reinforce your teachings. Have them do some training exercises with the pet and the dog will usually respond.

Older pets with persistant dog behavior problems will likely require longer training periods. Also, we're assuming that the overly submissive dog or shy dog is healthy, so no possible organic influence is interfering with his learning capabilities.

As we mentioned, this process does require some time. In most instances rehabilitation will take about 6 weeks, and that's only if you carry out the process daily. But if you do, the dog behavior problems will be reduced or eliminated and all your efforts will be worth it.

As for the dog we told you about, she turned out to be a great pet for many years before finally passing. The only lingering problem from her previous abuse was her inability to get pregnant, which we were told was probably from her previous persistant beatings. Which was not really a problem since we were going to get her spayed anyway.

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