I haven't said much about this previously, but we've been struggling to help our dog Shadow get more accustomed to being around strangers. Whenever we take her to a new place, or she sees new people, she barks and barks and barks. The hair on the back of her neck raises, and she bares her teeth. Professionals who have interacted with her tell us she is exhibiting fear aggression. I've discovered that it is a difficult thing to find out your dog is a special-needs dog. I never would have guessed the emotional reaction I'd have as a "parent" to this animal. I get defensive of her, protective of her, and I also spent a lot of time denying that she might need extra intervention.
We got Shadow when she was six weeks old. She was just a little ball of fur, loved everyone she came into contact with; she feared nothing. We have loved her, nurtured her, and learned from her. She is wonderful with all of us at home. She isn't mean-spirited or aggressive. She loves to run, romp and play. Her favorite thing to do is chase her blue ball in the backyard. She will do this over and over again...and just when you think she's tired out, she comes back for more. I love watching her race to beat the ball to the fence, jump up and catch the ball mid-air, and then bring it back to me so proudly. We have two blue balls that are identical, so she's really good at bringing one back, dropping it at my feet, and then waiting for me to throw the other one. And, she's smart. I can ask her for specific colored toys and she goes to get them. When I tell her to go get some water, she goes right to her dish to take a drink, and does the same with her food.
Why, then, is she so terrified of strangers? We started Shadow in puppy class when she was eight weeks old. She was rambunctious, and sometimes sassy, but overall did well and "graduated" after the program was done. We then did advanced puppy training. Again, more of her timidness started to show, she was leery of the trainer and the other people in class, but did well with the dogs. Although she is really scary when she's in the presence of strangers, I know she isn't trying to hurt anyone. One day, while we were letting her outside to go in the backyard, she took off through the open garage door. There were two young girls walking down the sidewalk. Shadow was barking, growling and following them. We instructed the girls not to run, to just keep walking. She followed them, but never broke into a run. She was protecting her household, and once they were far enough away she came back.
That incident prompted us to put in her a new training class. We are working with a very intense trainer, one who yells more at the handlers than the dogs. We are learning so much about how to handle a dog with special needs, how not to get frustrated (that just feeds her weirdness), and how to help build her confidence. I've spoken to many people at several dog places regarding Shadow's struggles. They all keep telling me we have to build her confidence with training. The training IS helping Shadow improve, but it's not doing everything we'd hoped. I got Shadow a calming collar on Wednesday that is supposed to give off pheromones that remind her of her mother. It stinks to high heaven, in my opinion, but appears to be working to a small extent.
Tony and I discussed it, and on Friday he took her to the vet to get evaluated for medication. We are hoping that we can keep her on the anti-anxiety medication long enough so that it becomes normal for her to be at ease around strangers...and then we'd like to hopefully wean her off of these medications. So, she was given a prescription for Prozac, and one for diazepam. She takes the Prozac daily, and will be using the diazepam as needed for visits to "scary" places, such as the groomer. Even though they say it takes three weeks in order for us to see a difference, I have to say she's been a little more mellow since she started the meds yesterday. Tony and I were able to sleep in a little bit today, and Shadow came down and just snuggled in. It was so nice.
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