Extremely aloof AA puppy
Last week I adopted Breezy an AA puppy. She has been with me for 8 days now and is still extremely aloof with me and every human she comes in contact with. She dosent want to play, if you try she will look at you like your crazy and walk away. She seems to be indifferent about being petted and touched most of the time opting to get up and move. I understand that the aloofness is part of her temperament and but she dosent seem to like anybody except my other dog. I'm trying to train basic commands but she is not food motivated..at all. Like I said I know that AA's are naturally aloof I just don't want her like that with me. I love her to death and have just signed her up for puppy classes. Any suggestions on how to bring her out of her shell would be very welcome. Thanks guys
Comments
Jesse
@CrimsonO2 Yea, that's what I was thinking. It just kind of threw me off because I have never had a puppy act like this. I've also never owned an AA though.
If she will take food from you, you might want to consider feeding her meals to her from your hand. That will help her realize that you are a valuable resource provider.
----
RE: Feeding out of your hand, you might want to check out this book: http://drsophiayin.com/perfectpuppy
----
Jesse
@sachismom I was just wondering if she would go for tuna, I'm going to have to try that out. And yea cat- like is definitely how I would describe her right about now lol
@jellyfart Thanks for the encouragement I guess just need to give her a little time. Glad others have dealt with this problem though
@JackBurton I got her from a breeder. She was8 weeks and a day when they shipped her to me.
And I would absolutely LOVE to upload pictures but I'm on my iPad and I can't figure how to upload from here.
I always tell this story to my friends/neighbors who get puppies. My dog and I have a very close bond. People get puppies and worry that they don't have it. When I picked up Koda for the first time, he looked at me like "who the hell are you" and I looked back at him and thought "hey I don't know who the hell you are either but we are in this together now." He liked me, but he would go under the desk in my bedroom to sleep or stick to himself with a bully stick. It took a while, but now I'm his everything. I don't think we had the close bond that we have now until he was 4 months old at least.
I'm with Brad on the feeding from your hand. I fed Koda's first few meals from my hand. I think it also helps with food aggression as well as teaching them that treats come from your hand. Just my theory, not sure if there's any proof to back that up.
Maybe she doesn't like her food. Also make sure she's hungry when you are giving her treats. If you try right after a meal, that's not going to work out. She's full.
Jesse
In the meantime, you just got your pup, and it will take awhile for her to get used to you. I'd follow Brad's suggestion and try hand feeding, but I imagine with a lot of play and attention and feeding, she'll soon be thrilled to have you around. She does sound like a cautious dog, though. Did you meet the parents? Or did the breeder tell you much about the parents temperament? I'm just asking because you'll need to socialize her like crazy anyway, but if you know that she tends to be shy, or if the parents do, then you'll know now you need to double up on the socialization, and make sure she meets a ton of different types people and sees new things. With a shy dog, this can't be overstressed. My AA was quite outgoing and friendly as a puppy, and I thought I did a lot of socialization (and I did in his puppyhood) but kind of slacked off as he got older and bigger, and he's showing a bit of nervous barking around people he doesn't know now that's 1.5 years old. I wish I had continued with more serious socialization (and that was with a friendly, outgoing pup!) So work on it as much as possible, and that will help her be a confident adult. Puppy socializations classes are a must!
@shibamistress I agree 100 %, but I was curious when we're out for walks is it necessary that she meets all the people that walk by or is seeing them enough?
She is young and you will notice over time that a bond will grow...Some of the most sensitive or aloof dogs actually develop some of the most impressive talents. Never underestimate it.
IMHO I don't think she needs to meet everyone that passes unless she is comfortable doing so. Not all dogs (regardless of breed) want to greet, some prefer to observe and come to their own conclusions on approaching people. After observing many dogs and owners, forcing interacts does not seem to change that reserved tendency. However, providing general exposure by hanging out and providing opportunity to engage is important so she can choose. Use treats and good things so she is encouraged to try and investigate new people and things. Target training can help with this hurdle as well.
I would make sure that you do a lot of food work with her and targeting. It may seem impossible now but she will develop more of a food/treat predilection as you work with her over time. You have to test and discover what she likes and then expand on her palate.
If she does not take treats when you are out this usually indicates she is stressed or possibly she values another type of reward, toy tug, ball or favorite "wobbie" more. Work on ferreting out her likes etc. Note, dogs favorites will also change over time as they develop so don't get too frustrated just keep up with the change up.
Your Akita may always be a reserved pup as an inherent part of her personality though. However, as others point out you can mold and direct her a bit more. Timed quality interactions that continues over the long haul (decent play with friendly dogs in short spurts - 5 to 10 mins) and positive contact when she is comfortable in regard to people. Even with the most shy, early age staging of small positive events can be so helpful in developing a more emotionally secure dog, of course backed with training classes as things progress.
I don't know that I would "correct" about eating out of another dog's food bowl but I would reinforce with treats etc to make sure that she eats out of her own dish, your hand and redirect her to another activity when she finishes her meal or move her away from the other dog and its food when she is done eating.
If she is really interested in the other dog food I would use that brand as treats for starters in training, say when the other dogs is eating. That way she does not feel left out that hers is "different" and she will get the idea to do something other than focus in on other animal feeding.
Basically work with the room mate to get on the same page with management and then follow up with a puppy sessions. I think petco and petsmart in some locations have puppy social hrs for basic interaction of young pups. Look up your regional area stores to ask. It is a good time of year for that since a lot of young pups will have been purchased around the beginning of the yr. ......you should be able to find a slot somewhere if you check around.
Snf
Snf
...and if you haven't already, buy yourself a gallon of Nature's Miracle to clean up after your puppy now (and in the future).
Jesse
Luckily this is Jmary21's post, so he will get a notification.