hello /an/, I recently took in an old dog (idk how old he is but he's big) and i've been having trouble getting him to like me. the only way i've been able to pet him is with a treat and any sudden movement he'll jolt. he always has his head down and will barely wag his tail and it's really sad. i've had him for over 3 months now and thought i'd have made headway by now but no. just looking for suggestions on how to bond, really idk if he was abused but to me it sure seems like it. thanks
>>2163871
The fact that he is wagging his tail is a good sign. See if he likes walks; that's how I got my hoarding case dog to at least start equating me with some small joy in life. Get a harness where you can clip it to the collar, so if he freaks out you will have two fail-safes if he manages to wiggle out of the harness or back out of the collar. If it won't freak him out, also add a slip lead in case the dog does get out of the collar and harness, but use it as a last resort because it will tighten as a choke chain.
If your dog won't allow you to touch him or put a harness on him, try spending time with him in a fenced in yard. Make it interesting for him. If he is food motivated, make wobblers and Kong's and ice buckets. You can put treats in flipped over boxes and let him work to flip it over. You can get a kiddie pool (if he likes water), tennis balls, rope toys. Basically, if he's been devoid of nice things all his life or he associates people with bad things, you want to be a part of the nice things in his life.
>>2163905
thanks for the reply anon but these things didn't make sense to me
>also add a slip lead in case the dog does get out
>make wobblers and Kong's and ice buckets
i get what you want me to do and am willing to go overtime being around him, I just want him to be happy.
>>2163916
Slip lead is a kind of leash used without a collar, wobbler and Kong are interactive toys. Those can be googled so you know what they are. Ice buckets is my bad; an ice bucket is where you put food and treats in some container filled with water (I usually use chicken broth or beef broth to give it flavor) toss it in the freezer, and hand out the ice (not the container; use some hot water to get it out of the container) once it's frozen. The idea is it's fun to break away the ice and it's tasty. You can also add toys to the frozen bucket, or have a chain half in the bucket so you can hook the chain to a fence or crate and he can play tug of war with it.
I'm not saying to hang out with the dog all the time. In fact that may not even help as much as you'd think. I'd suggest setting up a schedule for him if there isn't one already, it may help him open up now that he knows what he will get and when. And when you do give interactive toys or bring him outside, try to be there with him and interacting with him. You just want to associate yourself with good things.
>>2163871
time heals all wounds in a dog's world
just keep at it
Have you tried hitting it?
>>2163924
Too add onto the kong idea. Putting peanut butter into the kong will keep the dog prioritized and maybe get the dog to chill out a bit. I normally put a small treat in, peanut butter, then some more treats to really stuff it in there. Dog will be at it for a while!
