NEW TO THE BOARD SMALL CRISIS

HELLO IM NEW TO THE BOARD. I HAVE A 8 YEAR OLD MALE ROTTIE, SAMPSON AND A 8 MONTH OLD FEMALE CHIHUAHUA/BEAGLE MIX, NINA. MY ROTTIE IS A GREAT. WE CALL HIM MR BIG STUFF. NOW MY NINA IM HAVING SOME ISSUES WITH. I RESCUED HER FROM A LOCAL FOUNDATION HERE IN CONNECTICUT AND WE WERE TOLD THAT SHE HAD PREVIOUSLY BEEN ABUSED SO I AM VERY PATIENT WITH HER. THE PROBLEM IS THAT SHE HATES EVERYONE EXCEPT FOR ME AND MY HUSBAND. MY 13 YEAR OLD DAUGHTER WAS LIVING WITH HER DAD WHEN I GOT NINA AND SHE IS HOME NOW THAT SUMMER IS HERE. WHENEVER MY DAUGHTER GETS TO CLOSE TO ME OR MY HUSBAND NINA GOES APE. SHE HASNT BITTEN HER YET BUT SHE GETS MAD..WHENEVER ANYONE COMES TO THE HOUSE, EVEN MY MOM, NINA IS NOT ACCEPTING AT ALL. SHE GOES RIGHT FOR THE ANKLES. ANYONE HAVE ANY ADVISE ON HOW I CAN GET HER MORE SOCIALIZED WITH FRIENDS AND FAMILY SO SHE ISNT SO VISCIOUS..

SOunds like a classic Chihuahua to me!! Chi's are known to become very attached to ONE person and become territorial whenever anyone else comes around. First advice would be to take her to some puppy classes. They will help you with that and other issues. Secondly I would advise you to turn over daily care to other people in the family. She is viewing you as "leader of the pack". By allowing others to feed and walk her, hopefully she will warm up to others as well. Good luck!

@ade this post a while ago but I thought I would add my 2 cents. I got a yorkie under the same cir****tances, and it has been 3+years now and she hasn't chnaged. She is fine with me and my family but anyone else she go crazy, she ussually just barks and charges but once in awhile she will bite peoples ankles. It has been an impossible behavior to fix Good Luck Laura

my terrier mix charlotte , was also abused , she is very frightened of (and gets aggressive with ) tall people , males , and children. ( she was abused by children and a tall man , go figure lol) I find that when i ask the person to sit down in a non - threating position , I.e. hands down, low to the ground , and let her come to them , one she sniffs and stops growling , I ask them to put thier hand out and when she ALLOWS it , let them pet her. and say soothing things, once she knows that they are safe , she has not had a problem with the person since. my sisters BF is 6'6' and it took a couple trys with him , but give it time . she is just trying to protect herself hope this helps xoxo sara

Thank everyone for all your advice. We are trying really hard to work with Nina, she hasnt had much of a chance in life and I refuse to give up on her. Just yesterday she bit a friend, almost took her fingertips off. We do warn everyone when they come in the house to watch out for the dog. Well we have this one couple who just dont seem to understand the concept of knocking, they just let themselves in and Nina is not going to allow anyone to just come in. So here I am in the kitchen preparing dinner and I hear my husband screaming, "Shut the door, quick shut the door", so I come out and there are our friends standing at the door scared..When I went to get Nina she ran in a circle around my chair, jumped on the chair and got by me. Nadine (our friend) tried to beat feet to the bathroom but she wasnt quick enough for Nina. Nina jumped up and bit her fingers. She is ok, just nicked a little but the problem is that I dont know what to do. I love Nina and I dont want her to bite the wrong person ya know. Jeanine

Hi everyone, Along with my two papillons, we have a 14 lb chi who rules the house...so I agree that they have pretty dominant personalities. I also have a rescued dog (the one with the white face) who had a lot of issues. Separation anxiety, housebreaking issues, etc. When he first came to us, he would do a lot of resource guarding...toys, dog bed, food, people, etc. I would recommend a book called, Your Outta Control Adopted Dog by Eve Adamson...I think I found it at PetsMart. If you decide to go to a dog obedience, I would try to find one through your local animal shelter. They can refer you to someone more familar with rescued dogs. I took all of our dogs through classes with these folks....(www.animalsense.com) they might be able to refer you to someone closer to where you live. (they have a small dogs only class that was really helpful) It sounds like Nina's reaction to the situation was to protect her "pack". And it sounds like she is a very lucky dog to have found you and your family. Best of luck to you! Paula T

You are right to be concerned. People that do not own dogs, will NOT understand. My advice to you: Crate your dog when ppl come over. That is the answer right there. Crating your dog is not cruel. Dogs are den creatures and they actually like to be in a crate. I have 3 dogs and I crate one of them when I leave the house because she is just "bad"...lol (she likes to sneak into the garbage....or tear my pillows apart from the sofa! brat! ) That is my advice to you. Good Luck with your pup! Eve