Oh boy, trying to help neighbor with ****zu mix rescue who bit
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2 visitors. They don't seem willing to spend money on a professional trainer so I went over with some books and talked to her and spent time with the dog who was fine with me, but i gave treats as soon as I went in, made no eye contact, did not pet, etc. she kept saying "it was out of nowhere" and we all know that is never the case. So I kept asking questions and found out that the first woman was afraid of dogs and had her crate him at first...pretty high risk of a shelter dog becoming nore anxious in a crate I bet, she said he HATES the crate...so already starting a negative reaction to the woman. Then the woman walked up to crate and stuck her face super close. Who knows what he went through at the shelter? This could have been a really bad thing for him. At that point he flipped out barking and growling. Why she took HIM OUT after that I have no idea...
2nd person was contractor who WALKED IN THEIR DOOR without knocking.Enough said. You can't let people do that when you have a dog.
I went over the basics like creating positive experiences with visitors, no eye contact (she didn't know about that) and making commands SIMPLE...she was talking to him in sentences. I told him to sit and stay very simply and he did. You can tell he is smart. Just needs direction. Also explained about IGNORING when he barks to demand something instead of talking back to him. It was like a tv show...dog started barking at me for treat, I turned my body and he shut up and LAYED DOWN. She was amazed. So he definitely picks up on things quickly.
I just hope she can relax (she is high strung herself) and have the patience to help him.
