Shy Dogs & Puppies
Puppies go through a development period called the socialization window between the ages of 6 and 16 weeks. During this time, it is incredibly important to expose them to a wide variety of stimuli (new people, new dogs, new experiences, etc.) in a safe, non-threatening way. Doing so helps to insure that they will grow into confident, behaviorally healthy adults. Essentially, the things they are exposed to during this window are the things they will think are safe in the future. Things that they are not exposed to will generally be considered scary and threatening in the future. Puppies who are already fearful at this age face a much greater risk of growing into fearful adults, which can ultimately manifest as reactivity or even aggression.
If you are fostering a puppy who is showing fear of new things, use the tips below to help them build confidence and trust in new things and new people.
These tips also work with an adult dog who is just a little timid with strangers. If you are fostering an adult dogs who is more than just a little shy, please be sure to email us so we can discuss in more detail.
People Bring Good Things!
We need to work very hard to associate humans with good things. People need to be the direct supplier of things that the puppy values. We can do this in a number of ways. Read the tips below to get started. It is important to never push the puppy into an interaction it is not comfortable with. Puppies need to have choice in order to gain trust and confidence.
Hand feed meals
Food is hugely valuable for dogs. We want to associate people with food and a very easy way to start this is by hand feeding meals. Feed a few kibbles at a time from your hand, repeating until the meal is complete.
If the puppy will not eat directly from your hand at first, try rolling the kibble to him or mixing the kibble with a bit of wet food or yogurt to make it more appealing.
Get everyone in the family involved in hand feeding. The more people that engage the puppy in this way, the more likely he is to begin to generalize the association (all people are safe vs. one person is safe).
Treat liberally regardless of behavior
Our focus right now is building positive associations with people. Obedience can come later. We actually love the moment when shy, fearful dogs become confident enough to be “bad” dogs (steal objects, jump on people, bark for attention, etc). Manners are easy to teach once our puppies are confident and interactive.
Set yourself up for success by wearing a bait bag stuffed with extremely tasty treats (chopped up hot dogs work really well). Every time you walk into a room, toss the puppy bits of tasty treat. The key right now is tossing the treat directly to the puppy (even if he’s hiding) instead of asking him to come up to you to get it or even trying to hand it directly to him.
Continue tossing treats intermittently the entire time you are in the same room as the puppy. Again, he doesn’t have to do anything to earn them, simply existing in the same space as something he finds scary is enough to get a treat right now.
Use this same process when guests come over. Remind them (frequently) that this is a fearful puppy who is hiding because he doesn’t feel safe. We don’t want to encroach on his space, we just want to associate our presence with wonderful things.
Toys are a fantastic tool
Some fearful puppies may be too intimidated to play directly with you at first. Try sitting quietly on the ground with your body angled away from the puppy and softly dancing a toy in front of him. If he begins to interact, you’ve got a great new way to add value to your presence.
If the puppy is too fearful to play with you directly, try tying a piece of rope to the toy so you can create more distance. It is similar to the cat toys on a string and allows you to direct the play while still giving the puppy enough room to feel safe and comfortable.
Petting and attention varies based on the individual
Tiny, fearful puppies know that they are not able to pose much of a threat. Oftentimes, they will shut down and tolerate petting and affection from people because they are too frightened to do anything else. As they grow into adults, unfortunately they’ve learned that people cannot be trusted as they don’t respect the puppy’s requests for space.
When petting, interacting with the puppy, watch his body language to determine what he is seeking. If he moves towards you, wags his tail when you approach, nudges/nuzzles you, or attempts to play with you then he is asking for petting and attention. If his body is perfectly still and frozen, is oriented away from you, or actively moving away from you, he is asking to be left alone. This means we need to spend more time working on building positive associations through food and toy pairing before attention and petting from people will be rewarding.
It is particularly hard to manage our feelings in this area because we know we don’t mean the puppy any harm and only want to help him. Trust that letting him have some level of control over his interactions with people will do him more good in the long run than almost anything else.
Do 'consent tests" frequently. When petting the puppy, pet 3 times, then stop. If the puppy moves towards you, paws, at you, or otherwise indicates they want more petting, then you may continue. Repeat the consent tests regularly while petting the puppy.
If the puppy does not re-engage with you (they move away, or do not move at all when you stop petting), so not continue to pet them. You can continue to sit with them, or offer them small pieces of treat, but do not attempt to continue petting.