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Old 04-26-2013, 07:24 AM   #1
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Default Extreme Anxiety

Hello, I'm a newbie and need some sound advice please...
I just brought home our new Yorkie babie two days ago. He is 12 weeks old, and has extreme anxiety. He trembles, wets, and slobbers, with interaction. We were told about his problem by the breeder before we brought him home. That is the very reason we brought him home. We want to give him a loving calm home but I need to know what I'm dealing with and what you wise and experienced owners would suggest. Thank you in advance for your replies!
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Old 04-26-2013, 07:37 AM   #2
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Well congrats on your new puppy!! Your life will never be the same!! LOL So sorry to hear that your baby is not yet feeling "at home". Give it time and I'm sure he will come around. Other than that though I haven't had any experience with this issue other than first night jitters.

I would ask if your breeder sent you and your pup home with a blanket or towel that has the scent of your pup's family/mommy on it? Also, is there a medical reason this puppy is nervous? Just wondering.

I'm sure someone with more experience that I have will be along shortly and will be able to offer you some good advice. Good luck and welcome to YT!!
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Old 04-26-2013, 07:44 AM   #3
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Quote:
Originally Posted by AnnaG View Post
Hello, I'm a newbie and need some sound advice please...
I just brought home our new Yorkie babie two days ago. He is 12 weeks old, and has extreme anxiety. He trembles, wets, and slobbers, with interaction. We were told about his problem by the breeder before we brought him home. That is the very reason we brought him home. We want to give him a loving calm home but I need to know what I'm dealing with and what you wise and experienced owners would suggest. Thank you in advance for your replies!
First welcome to YT Glad you found us.

I am happy the breeder was upfront with you about his nature.

Now if you have not brought him to the vet for his check up - do so now. Very important to do this within the first 24-72 hours. You want to know if there are any medical issues for sure. He also should have done a special blood test at 16wks and repeated again at 6mths old. This is to determine if his liver is functioning properly and hopefully to rule out LS - Liver Shunt.

So my first question is do you have a quiet home? Are there only adults there and generally speaking not a lot of noise in your home?

It sounds like your pup (ruling out any bladder or UI infections) may be either or both a submissive urinator or excitement urinator. This will take time to correct, and just might be a now and again issue for their lifetime.

So in the beginning and especially when you exit and leave your home, do so quietly and don't make a fuss over the puppy. Calmly clean up accidents with an enzymatic cleaner. THis will remove the scent. Do not scold the puppy for accidents that happen when he is excited or scared. Scolding will not work, and may worsen his response!

INtroduce him to new places - toys - sounds - gradually. Once he has all his shots, take him for short walks outside.

Introduce him to his harness while in his Xpen or playpen. Have him wear it for several hours a day over several days, before going out with him. Try putting it on and off several times a day - while he is in his pen. Clean up his accidents matter of factly - no scolding! Keep and even warm tone with your voice - steadiness is very good.

Every day several times a day - sit on the floor - Let him come to you - say Good boy - give him a treat. Cheerios can work well. When he does come pet him softly as well. but first let him sniff your hands your clothes - everything. Again if he has an accident calmly clean it up.

So those some ideas for you
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Old 04-26-2013, 07:57 AM   #4
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Welcome and congratulations on getting a Yorkie. I am sorry he is a highly nervous, unstable and insecure dog but with patience and love and knowing what to do, you should be able to steer him toward a life of coping.

Get a good vet exam and be sure there is nothing painful or an illness causing this. The dog could have a medical problem the breeder and her vet didn't find.

You can consider some mild medication if the vet recommends it at first until you have had a chance to work with your baby. But be highly cautious about the correct dosing and when to give it. Likely your dog won't need that if you start him off right and keep him busy learning and working his body and mind.

First, don't ever reinforce his fear by soothing him when shaking or reacting to fear as you would a person. To a dog this will merely seem as reinforcing behavior if you say "it's okay" and things like that as he's shaking and feeling fear. He will think it is good to act that way. Rather, try to distract him with a high-value treat, fun squeaky toy, tossing a ball and actively redirecting him into action. The activity will help bleed the tension from him and get his mind off his fears.

Don't greet him when you first arrive after being gone or first thing in the morning. Just go about your business and ignore him and let him accommodate to your being around gradually on his own terms. Make him work to get your attention - putting him in charge of these times for the time being.

Give him a place to de-stress. Place his crate up against the wall on one side of the room and you can even blanket 3 sides of it to enclose his private den where he can access it to have times in his safe-house. Don't allow children to kick it or bang things against it while he is in there - keep it a safe den for him to go into. Now, be careful not to allow him to cloister there for too long. Lure him out with toys or treats and get him to playing and rough-housing.

A strict schedule for a dog like this so he will know what comes next and can come to rely on the same thing at the same time will settle him sooner than a happenstance way of living. Get him outside for play sessions and then walks as soon as his vax schedule allows. Frequent outdoors exercise can be a godsend for these nervous little ones - anything to keep their minds and bodies active and destressed.

Early on, Google YouTube videos about obedience training, read books and become a good dog trainer. One of the easiest ways to help overcome anxiety and fright is to work with a dog getting them busy with the job of learning basic obedience tricks. It is hugely rewarding and gives the dog a sense of accomplishment and pride. He learns how to overcome and suppress his impulses and do what you request. He learns that learning is fun, rewarding and a wholly positive experience and it makes you happy. He learns that making you happy gives him his best life and will work hard to keep on pleasing you by doing what you say. You two become a strong and happy team.

Read all that you can about positive-rewards behavior training and reshaping.

Any good positive-reinforcement obedience training video or written instructions on the internet would be good to use as long as it doesn't encourage use of collars, aversives or discipline in training. Dogs learn fastest when they learn that they receive rich rewards and treats for doing your request and both of you wind up happy that way.

During thunderstorms or other great noise times, distract your dog with tossing balls, tossing treats to fetch and playing togowar or other rough-house games but don't coddle him - keep him busy and keeping that tension away.

Those are just a very few things to get you started. More later and good luck and thank you for wanting to learn how to help your baby.
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Old 04-26-2013, 12:22 PM   #5
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Thanks Ldy, Gemy, and Jilly for the well wishes and great advice and suggestions. He has been vet checked and all is well. I do keep a sm blanket and toy in his cage. As for taking him outside for a walk he wont do anything but hunker down and shake. He is extremely afraid. He still does not come and wont even take a treat at all. He is eating his puppy food and takes a few drinks of water occasionally. I think time and a calm surrounding will help. He does seem better than when he first came home so I know we are headed in the right direction. Thanks so much for the encouragement!
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Old 04-26-2013, 12:55 PM   #6
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He's very young and maybe has had a bad scare at some time - possibly during the time his brain was learning about fear and there was nothing to soothe him. I've long heard the theory that nervous or fearful dogs were frightened badly shortly after their brains first learned how to perceive fear - don't know if that's true or not. Or he was just born a nervous dog or your house is really loud, a lot of people come and going, maybe other dogs or cats that scare him or a loud bird that calls out - or - none of those and he's just a nervous dog. Or your vet missed something and he's ill or hurting. Just keep watching him and if he stays this fearful, take him to a different vet for a check-up and consult.

At 12 weeks, he's still a very young baby and very young to have him do anything well on a walk but just learning. Just keep working with him. It takes a dog a long, long time to learn to come 100% of the time when called and the fact that a baby dog doesn't come when called means nothing.

If you had to learn a poem, you would have to repeatedly study and read and say it and it would take you days or weeks to commit that poem to memory. That's how a dog learns to come or walk on a leash or sit or lie down on command - by repetition of having them do it to the command, praising/treating when they do. Over and over and over in little short 5 minutes sessions - for a puppy this young about 2 or 3 minutes sessions - a few times a day and then a big play session and outside to pee.

At 12 weeks, you baby is still learning about life, people and his surrounding and his brain is very under-developed. He has little memory capacity right now but he will get there as he matures. Keep your home calm and quiet and let him grow and mature and settle in and take it slow. Read all that you can about training and how to handle a fearful dog. There is a wealth of good info online and in expert dog handler/trainers' books.
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