Rehomed Whippet

[maggymills]

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Hi - ive been planning for a pup next spring, but yesterday i visited a farm where the woman has developed ms, and she was wanting to rehome most of her dogs, including her whippet 1yr old boy. While we were there i noticed every time she aproached him he would cower- scared of her. And he also displayed very good horse chasing skills!-which could have been the death of him..

The lady has told me he's never seen a cat before- which i have 2, and said we acn see how we go with him for few days.

So here he is with me on sofa! He is sooooo unsocialised- scared of gates, cars, my cats, stairs etc etc.................

But he is so very trusting and forgiving to humans-really sad.

When we got him home we let him sniff around and get to see the cats-which he ignored really, then as we were told to do so by behavourist we put him in crate,and only let him out for pees, but you could sense how scared he was, we went to bed with him still locked up, but he continued to panic, so my boyfriend carried him upstairs and he slept all night on sheepskin!

the behavourist told us to ignore him apart from at feeds and toilets- but he is very clingy and scared- i will pop him in kennel outside gradually today/tomorrow as he has to go in that for few hours mon/tues as im out for while-

Really need some tips on socialisation which is very gradual, the first time he saw my mums dog he tried to get head out of collar until i cuddled him- horrible! sad..

but i want to give him a better chance at family life xxxx

 

[Mark Roberts]

Hiya,

well done on getting him away from that enviroment, we took a dog back last year that we had bred and he came back in a simlar condition frightened of everything.

The main thing to do is take your time with him dont rush him into anything, give him plenty of quiet cuddles when he's scared of something and make a real fuss of him when he's been brave and faced something he would normaly be scared of.

try and find a local training club that runs puppy classes and explain how he is they will more than likely let you go along and help you get him used to being touch by strangers and slowly introduce him to strange dogs.

hope all goes well

keep us posted on his progress.

 

[sadieandco]

Poor little boy - i'm no dog behaviourist but i would tend to go the opposite of ignoring and give hime lots of love and attention. As you seem to be doing begin to socialise him a little at a time, firstly at home with your other animals and then with outside people and the outside world. Lots and lots of praise and treats for being brave with his fears. Do agree if he is really frightened it could be safest to crate him when you are not there to ensure he does not injure himself and obviously if any risk of him escapin through doors when people visit. But when you do have visitors let him interact at his own pace with strangers and hopefully gradually he will become better socialised the more trust he gains.

Good Luck and lots of patience.

 

[alfyn]

Thank goodness you got the poor wee soul out of that dreadful environment,good on you :thumbsup:

I think this so called behaviourist needs a good kick up the backside :angry: ,where the hell is she coming from telling you to cage him & ignore him,no wonder he was scared,& how is he supposed to adjust to his new environment if he's locked up :rant:

By all means get him used to a cage as he will get to like it as "his own space"& use it for when you go out so he can't do any damage.

Like Mark say's,don't rush him into anything,let him find his own feet & he will gradually adjust.

I wish you well & hope you post a photo of him soon.BTW,what's his name?

 

[colliecrew]

Hi - ive been planning for a pup next spring, but yesterday i visited a farm where the woman has developed ms, and she was wanting to rehome most of her dogs, including her whippet 1yr old boy. While we were there i noticed every time she aproached him he would cower- scared of her. And he also displayed very good horse chasing skills!-which could have been the death of him..
The lady has told me he's never seen a cat before- which i have 2, and said we acn see how we go with him for few days.

So here he is with me on sofa! He is sooooo unsocialised- scared of gates, cars, my cats, stairs etc etc.................

But he is so very trusting and forgiving to humans-really sad.

When we got him home we let him sniff around and get to see the cats-which he ignored really, then as we were told to do so by behavourist we put him in crate,and only let him out for pees, but you could sense how scared he was, we went to bed with him still locked up, but he continued to panic, so my boyfriend carried him upstairs and he slept all night on sheepskin!

the behavourist told us to ignore him apart from at feeds and toilets- but he is very clingy and scared-  i will pop him in kennel outside gradually today/tomorrow as he has to go in that for few hours mon/tues as im out for while-

Really need some tips on socialisation which is very gradual, the first time he saw my mums dog he tried to get head out of collar until i cuddled him- horrible! sad..

but i want to give him a better chance at family life xxxx

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

​

Personally I'd sack the behaviourist - doesn't sound like anybody I'd want to help me with a scared dog!

Maybe an over dominant one who's trying it on could do with a bit of ignoring as per the Nothing In Life Is Free programme, but an undersocialised scared one doesn't need that!

OK, they don't need inadvertant praise for being scared either, but I don't see the problem with reassurance, gentle jollying along and letting them sleep near you to be comforted.

Regardeing the collar, are you using a martingale type? Only if not be very careful he can't slip out - maybe a harness would be a good idea? Saves on neck stress to if he tries to pull away a lot.

Good luck, and thank you for taking the time out to help this dog

 

[melanie]

good on you for taking him in :thumbsup: have you named him yet?

i agree with alfyn on the behaviourist side of things, he needs lots of love not locking up

i hope he settles soon. have you any pic of him

 

[maggymills]

Also he isnt eating- but thats obviously stress so i will keep offering every now and then. And to get him used to kennel i have just popped him in for 10 mins-howls and cries alot, but once he was quiet i let him out and made a fuss, next time it will be 20mins, then an hour, it's just so horrible having to hear him cry like that! ive heard pups cry like him but not adults.

His name is jake- his mum is a whippet, dad is greyhoundxbull terrier- quite a large boy-just muscle,nicely covered- 22inches at top of withers, but reckon he weighs 15/17kg!

Black and white, symmetrical white patterns on legs and u-shape on neck-will post piccys soon! Just looks like big whippey!

 

[littleminx]

:cheers: Well done you and i agree these behavourist's have been so in undated with dominance and aggression problem's that that is all they can advise now :blink: :- "

Kylie was a very nervous dog at first and ewxcept for the odd jump she is full of it now, she rule's the gsd's, sleep's in our bed (rule's us too lol) play's brilliantly with the kid's and they where her biggest fear!

We just gave her time, love and understanding, we never forced her she worked thing's out by herself, do everything slowly with him don't force him to sit with you etc he will soon work out he can trust you very quickly and then you can start socailizing him, again little trip's to the local shop's working up to car boot sale's etc, a small training class but be careful as he has missed the pup classes you don't scare him with lot's of dog's at once.

Good luck, have fun and pic's and progress please

 

[fallenangel]

we ork for greyhoundand lurcher recue and have had lots of dog come here for fostering. we do not comforts and stresses or frightend behavour as it reinforces there is a problem but for everything new he trys and copes with give lots of fuss cuddels and a smale treet. if you show theres no problem with a gate stars and anything else he osnt like he will get the messige it ok it may take some time but he will get there and puppy classes are a brill idea just ask if you can sit at the back at first and slowly bring him round to others.

This socilising can take time and paciance but it works and is so rewarding but i do strees dont reinforce negative behavour dont even make eye contact with him its realy hard cos you wont to give him loves and cuddels but it will mak him worres

good luck with the lad I am sure he will do you proud

 

[quintessence]

Hiya,

Well done for taking Jake, I'm sure you will receive lots of good advice on K9 and I would say ask away with any questions you have. There are lots of people with years of experience who are only too happy to help. How can you ignore a whippet, they are made for loving and cuddling. Where do you live? maybe there is someone who lives close who could team up with you for walks etc. Best of luck with Jake and looking forward to a picture soon.

Jenny

 

[Janimal]

Very well done for taking Jake on :wub: I am sure he sounds like hes going to get a whole lot more love with you :wub: than his last home ( :rant: )

Hope he settles really well :luck:

 

[bardmand]

sorry, double-posted, so removed the contents of this one - see next post

 

[bardmand]

If the dog is scared in the crate - don't crate him. If the dog wants to be in close contact, let him be so - but don't overdo the attention. Do not try to "comfort" him (I put that in quotation marks, because it does not comfort the dog), avoid too much eye contact, and avoid approaching the dog - let him approach you. And don't force him into situations he is scared of - I'm sure he will come around eventually. Just don't try to worry too much that he is worried, I am sure dogs pick up on such things.

I really recommend a great little book about dog language:

On Talking Terms with Dogs: Calming Signals by Turid Rugaas.

Just to sum up a few of the calming signals that dogs use between themselves that you can imitate to try and communicate to your dog that it has nothing to worry about: yawning, looking away, closing your eyes, lying down, avoid approaching straight on, but rather in a curve, from the side.

As for loving and cuddling the human way - that is something dogs *learn* to tolerate and sometimes even appreciate - if it has not been learnt, dogs will usually find it threatening. Let the dog be close to you if he wants to, but try not to pour attention over him when he does. The best way to show your dog you love him, is by trying to understand him, and trying to communicate with him in his own language.

You have a great foundation in that the dog seems to trust you, I'm sure he will become less scared after a while, as long as you don't rush things with him.

Good luck!

 

[bardmand]

oops, sorry, messed up - just wanted to add a few things -not sure how to delete the first post

 

[BeeJay]

>we do not comforts and stresses or frightend behavour as it reinforces there is a problem

I agree with Wendy. When he is stressing ignore him. It's important to act like there is nothing wrong. If you comfort him then it'll reinforce that there is a problem.

As long as he can't get off the lead then when he's panicking just stand quietly until he calms down. He will in the end. If he knows that the behaviour isn't going to work AND that nothing awful is actually going to happen to him he'll start to behave differently. When I say ignore him I mean it don't even look at him directly. Just a quick look out of the corner of your eye to check on him but don't make eye contact. Once he's behaving like you want him to then you reward him.

It's a pity that he's not eating because using one of his meals to reward good behaviour would be very useful. Giving food like that from your hands helps IMO to build the bond between owner and dog.

Other 100% bombproof dogs are very useful in situations like this so if you can get him to relax with one of those then that will help.

Good luck with him.

 

[wild whippies]

Haven't got anything to add as I feel there's been some very good posts made that should be beneficial to you. I do want to say that I wish you all the best of luck with Jake :luck: , here's waiting for the day when you post that he's doing walls of death in your living room and he's a truly happy little whippy!

 

[jools]

Well done for taking Jake on - I'm sure you will have a loyal and loving addition to your family. The advice given by all the other members is right, you stay calm and relaxed and he will soon pick up on it .

Beware some of these behavourists, they seem to come in 2 types, the genuine ones who really love dogs and want to make their lives better and type 2, learnt by correspondence course so they could increase their finances and don't really care about dogs at all. I agree that some behavourist seem to treat all breeds the same - different things work for different dogs - as they do with people!!

Good luck with jake, don't be long with the pics, I can't wait to see him he sounds beautiful. :luck: :luck: :luck:

 

[OEH]

Well done you for rescuing Jake. Poor boy what a sad start to life, but everything's going to change now isn't it

 

[maggymills]

he's lying on his back next to me with all legs in the air! can say he's pretty relaxed at moment!

dont think he'll enjoy being on his own monday

 

[lalena]

poor thing ! give him all the love in the world :huggles: its wonderful to hear that he has a brilliant new home and people to adore him! best of luck with restoring his confidence, and here's to a long and happy life :cheers: