Scared dog....

[roxieandsabrina]

Hi, I haven't been here in a while and was checking for info on a scared dog. We just got a cocker mix. She is 5 months old and came from a great family. They said she was very loving and affectionate. We brought her home yesterday and she is wonderful with my kids. Follows them everywhere. They are the only ones that can get her to go outside. I can barley get her to come to me, but she refuses to go near my husband. His voice scares her it seems. He doesn't have an overly deep voice. The previous owners said she was born with a man around but he didn't socialize the puppies so the girlfriend of the man ended up raising them before they got her. They said they never had problems with her in regards to how she was with the ladies husband. She is very sweet and very calm. Is there anything we can do to help her get over this?

Thank you!

[OntarioGreys]

Give her time, you are strangers to her, being bigger she finds adults more intimidating, plus she has been uprooted into new environment, with no idea what has happened,why, or what you expect of her, or what you want from her when you go near her. If you lean over her, she will view that is threatening posture, squat down instead keeping your back straight, don't look her directly in the eyes, that is also viewed as dominant threatening behaviour, another threatening body language is to walk head on toward her, when you need to approach her curve in toward her shoulder, when she is looking nervous, yawn that is a calming signal used by dogs