I wanted to thank everybody again for all their input and continued help. You are a really wonderful resource. I come back to this thread to refresh myself on tips for dealing with Jake.
One thing I've noticed - and I'm pretty disappointed in myself for feeling this - is that I actually feel a little jealous about the situation. I've spent a lot of time, energy, and patience on the little guy and it bums me out that there just isn't any improvement. He's a wonderful little guy when my girlfriend is around, but a total wreck when she isn't. When she's here, he's prancing around, acting rambunctious, loves going on walks, jumping up on her, wanting to be pet, he'll eat, chew on chew sticks, playfully beg for food, and do everything he can to be around her. But when it's just Jake and me, he won't eat, shakes with fear if I even get near him, hides under the bed the second he notices I'm here and she's not, sulks around, and I'm practically dragging him behind me when we go out to potty (we live in a loft in downtown, no backyard). When she walks him, he's confident, prancing around, ears up, tail up. With me, his tail is between his legs and he's just staring at me in fear. It's like Jekyll and Hyde. I've tried all the advice - ignoring him, only providing food/potty/walks/treats, being loving, being patient. I feel like if I even make eye contract with him, he'll get scared and I will unravel whatever progress might have been made.
When my girlfriend is home, he will occasionally come near to beg if I have food, but he'd definitely never do that if she's not around. When she goes out of town, he sometimes doesn't eat for 72 hours, and only then at that point if I leave him a dish somewhere secluded and he'll eat at like 3:00am while I'm sleeping.
I'm just frustrated. It's been over a year like this. He's just an immensely loving little guy around my girlfriend, her mom, and her grandma, but is 100% the opposite with me. It's just strange having an animal in my house that is uncomfortable with me. I've never dealt with it before. I love animals and I get along great with every cat and dog I've ever met. It's weird coming home to one dog super excited to see me (Roxy) and another that runs immediately to hide (Jake). They both just worship her and just lose their minds when she's gone.
It's petty of me to be frustrated, I know. I just wish I knew what to do. |