Shy and Timid Dogs

By: Andrea Arden on 09/04/2008

"Billy," a 4 month old miniature long-haired dachshund, crept into puppy class clinging to the wall. His little tail was between his legs and his already low set ears were about as low as they could go. Needless to say, "Billy" was not a happy puppy. "He is so playful at home, I don't understand this," said his owner, Mary Karlin of New Jersey.

It isn't unusual to see timid pups on the first night of class. "My veterinarian told me to keep him in until he had all of his shots," said Mary. In this case, "Billy" was essentially kept in social isolation. Not good for anyone, especially not a pup during his most crucial period of social development. Keep Reading...

Puppy Mill Puppies

By: Andrea Arden on 02/22/2010

I had a dog training lesson this morning with a family who recently purchased their 5 month-old Havanese puppy from a pet store in New York City. They have had the pup for a few weeks and during that time have dealt with what seems to be more than their share of puppy issues. This little pup is consistently urinating and defecating in it's sleeping area, is eating it's feces, and is terrified of everyone, including it's own family. Watching this scared little pup trying to hide behind the furniture so it wouldn't be seen, let alone touched, made me feel heartbroken for her and for her family. They purchased this puppy against their own best judgement. That is, they acknowledged that they knew it was not a good idea to buy a dog from a pet store. But, like so many people do, they entered the store after seeing her curled in the back of the window area and felt they needed to rescue her. The store told them that she had been there a month, and that before that she came from a reputable breeder and lived in the persons home. But, as I explained to the family, the dog's behavior and logic would suggest otherwise.

First and foremost, a reputable breeder would want to know who their pups are going to live with. They would want to talk to the people and feel confident it was a good match. They also want to keep some track of the dogs they choose to bring into this world, if ony to become aware of any potential genetic health issues in their breeding lines. Selling a dog to a pet store would make these things unlikely to happen.

Also, a person who chooses to breed purebred dogs responsibly would certainly understand a thing or two about early socialization, handling and gentling. The experiences in the first 22 weeks of a pup's life play a dramatic role in their behavior and temperament throughout the rest of their life. In this pup's case, odds are she received very little handling and socialization in the place where she was born. From there she was shipped on a truck from Missouri to a pet store in New York City and put into a display cage where she was forced to eat, sleep, drink, urinate and defecate all in the same area. This does not bode well for maintaining a dog's natural sense of cleanliness, nor for ease of future housetraining.

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