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My dog hates children!

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  • 17-08-2010 11:56pm
    #1
    OkComputerGirl
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13 ✭


    I have a male 3 year old yorkkie who is absoloutely spoilt rotten. We love him to bits. However, he is very moddy coddled (i think i spelt that right?) and is a big softy. One day a child was in our house, and the child grabbed his male decorations (if u get me ;) ) and he was in pain and yelped for ages. Ever since then he wont let any child near him, he growls and gets so nervous and angry. I dont know what to do. We are all adults but children do come into the house quite regularly so i dont want this to be an issue.

    Another point, when he is frightened (he gets scared for no reason) when someone tries to pick him he snaps at them (this only happens with a certain member of the distant family though?) She is quite large and loud.

    How do i make him more sociable and less of a ****ing pussy!! :)


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    #2
    rainbowtrout
    Registered Users Posts: 15,381 ✭✭✭✭rainbowtrout


    Well if I was a dog and some small brat grabbed my genitals I'd be fairly pissed off too. I'm not surprised he doesn't like children. One of my dogs doesn't like children - I got her from a shelter so the I can only assume there were children in her last home and they did something to her. She was terrified of them when I got her. To get her used to them, if I was in contact with a well behaved child or met families out on walks, I used to hold her and make sure she was under my control and let the child give her a small pet and a scratch and I did this lots and lots of times over the last 2 years. She would never approach a child to this day but she will allow a child to pet her, but only if I am with her.

    On the other point, lots of dogs don't like being picked up. I assume it's because they don't have any control of their situation. Imagine it , especially for a small dog, you could drop them or throw them and there's nothing they can do about it. My two hate it and wriggle to free themselves asap. Stop (strange) people picking up your dog. It's not a toy, and they wouldn't do it if it was a large breed.


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    #3
    Toulouse
    Registered Users Posts: 2,413 ✭✭✭Toulouse


    OkComputerGirl wrote: »
    How do i make him more sociable and less of a ****ing pussy!! :)

    How about teaching the people you let into your house to have some respect for your dog?

    Letting a child grab and hurt a dog is just asking for trouble so I suggest you strictly supervise all contact from now on. You've had your warning, don't ignore it.

    Contact a reputable trainer/behaviourist for more advice http://www.apdt.ie/


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    #4
    Roro4Brit
    Registered Users Posts: 595 ✭✭✭Roro4Brit


    Your dog is smart. I don't like kids either - what is there to like? I'm not very fond of fat distant relatives picking me up off the ground either. You say pussy, I say wise.


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    #5
    Shammy
    Registered Users Posts: 3,009 ✭✭✭Shammy


    Its much harder to train people than dogs, if you could tell the children that call to ignore (make it a game) the dog will start to see that they are not a threat.


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    #6
    OkComputerGirl
    Closed Accounts Posts: 13 ✭OkComputerGirl


    Kids come up to the gate and it tries to go for them.. i really cant supervise him or them all of time. He is the only dog i know who is like this. These kids are 9 and ten... when a stranger (adult) goes to pet him he gets really worried and scared and shakes really badly. I really think its a deeper problem than controlling the adults and kids.


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    #7
    Shammy
    Registered Users Posts: 3,009 ✭✭✭Shammy


    OkComputerGirl wrote: »
    Kids come up to the gate and it tries to go for them.. i really cant supervise him or them all of time. He is the only dog i know who is like this. These kids are 9 and ten... when a stranger (adult) goes to pet him he gets really worried and scared and shakes really badly. I really think its a deeper problem than controlling the adults and kids.

    Yes there is, the dog has created an anxiety , he now has a fear of people possibly caused by him getting his privates groped.
    He needs a lot of socialization and you need to have patience as it could take a long while.

    By socialization i mean taking it very slow start with a family friend coming over frequently and ignoring the dog , slowly the dog will see that this person is not a threat then you move forward from there.


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    #8
    Knine
    Registered Users Posts: 3,761 ✭✭✭Knine


    Toulouse wrote: »
    How about teaching the people you let into your house to have some respect for your dog?

    Letting a child grab and hurt a dog is just asking for trouble so I suggest you strictly supervise all contact from now on. You've had your warning, don't ignore it.

    Contact a reputable trainer/behaviourist for more advice http://www.apdt.ie/

    Totally agree with the above. You know he has a problem with children so you have to be very careful in future. I wouldnt call a child a brat for grabbing a dog if we are talking about a toddler or small child under 7 but a 9/10 year old should know better.

    What are their parents doing while they are behaving like this? I'm amazed at the amount of parents that are actully watching their child behave in an unacceptable manner and never chastise them for it.


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    #9
    seamus
    Registered Users Posts: 68,317 ✭✭✭✭seamus


    As Shammy says, the anxiety has been created and probably reinforced. When the dog slinks away and cowers, you probably go over, speak to him in soft language and give him a cuddle - reinforcing the anxiety rather than comforting it.

    You need to work on it regularly. As Shammy says:
    By socialization i mean taking it very slow start with a family friend coming over frequently and ignoring the dog , slowly the dog will see that this person is not a threat then you move forward from there.
    When the stranger is over and the dog is cowering out of the way, don't indulge it. Don't try to comfort the dog, but don't force him into accepting the stranger either.
    As he learns that he is in no danger, he will come around himself and slowly come out to say hi to the visitor. This too needs to be done slowly and the dog should be praised every time he gets a bit braver.

    As for the picking up thing, well this family member just needs to be told not to pick the dog up. Our old JRT was a bit of a loner. Quite insular, didn't like other dogs, really only gave visitors a passing glance, but wasn't unfriendly, they'd get a wag and a sniff. I have an Aunt who's insane in more ways than one, very loud, very brash and to any animal would appear very scary. The JRT never growled at anyone, ever, except for this Aunt. She had never even met my Aunt and the first time this woman came into our house, the dog cowered under the table and let out a really, really low growl that we'd never heard before.
    Dogs recognise that people are different (just like dogs are) and you should never expect your dog to like everyone. They're entitled to dislike unlikeable individuals.


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    #10
    Howitzer
    Registered Users Posts: 461 ✭✭Howitzer


    My dog loves kids... but she couldn't eat a whole one ;-)


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    #11
    cjf
    Registered Users Posts: 294 ✭✭cjf


    Dogs that have issues with children generally stem from something like that happening. You could try to find the exact age group that he is reacting to e.g under 13? Under 7? toddlers? then work with socialising him with children a bit older and gradually work your way down to the problem age group. Its a slow process and he will always need supervision . . and protection from grabbing hands but over time it should make a difference to him. Another good way is to teach a leave it with kids. If he goes towards a child tell him leave it and make him turn away This way you have much more control if you see a grabber as you can give him a quick leave it command and get him out of the danger zone!!

    I just love my leave it's they work across so many areas!! Good luck!


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