1/2 Husky 1/2 Spaniel

[wags1992]

My Girlfriend and I recieved out new dog Rolley, she is 1/2 Husky and 1/2 Spaniel. She is about 1 1/2 years old. She is a great dog, but her previous owner(male) beat her, and now she is affraid of men. She has warmed up to me and isn't affraid of me anymore. My other roommate(male) she hasn't warmed up to and she is still affraid of him. I dont know what to do to get her to not be affraid of him and be more comfortable around him. She also will follow my girlfriend all around the house, obviously my girlfriend is Rolley's favorite.

My other concern is Rolley is an active dog, she really enjoys running around but she doesn't really want to play at all. She wont even play around with my girlfriend.. I was wondering if you guys have any suggestions on how to get her more comfortable with my other roommate, and how to get her to play around some.

[tenderfoot]

Your roomie needs to step up to the plate and start attaching her to a leash and building a relationship. She can't learn to trust your roomie unless she has actual experiences with him. The more he can ask her to do things and help her feel safe the better. He should try to use soft energy even when he is praising her. Too much energy in any direction can put her on guard, so keep things calm.

If this dog was truly abused then she might have been reprimanded for what she thought was play so now she is trying to actually be good by not playing with things so she doesn't get in trouble. It could take some time for her to watch, learn and trust.

Watching you play with toys can help and definately watching another dog play with toys (and not get in trouble) can help. Using toys as part of her training is good too. Teach her to go get a toy and bring it to you. She doesn't have to play with it just interact with it in a comfortable manner.

As time goes by she will probably start to open up and try to play - in the mean time just enjoy her fun energy and help her feel safe to explore and experience her new life.

Oh, and feel free to call if you want to chat - we are in the same neck of the woods! 9am to 9pm 7 days a week - no charge.

[wags1992]

Thank you so much for the advice.. She is coming along great now.. I have a new question now though.. We dont want Rolley to get on the couch at all.. She has tried a couple times with us around and we told her no. After that she has not tried to get on the couch, but in the last couple days while we are gone or sleeping she has gotten on the couch with her bone.. Is there anything to do about this? I know not to disipline her about it unles I catch her doing in but I can't catch her doing it. Thanks again in advance

[Winston]

welcome...this is a tough one.

my guy still trys 9 yrs later! I think he thinks we get comfy on the couch so can he!

perhaps try directing him to a nice comfy bed of his own? put it near the sofa..? or what I do is put up a baby gate in the doorway and it keeps them out. I used them when my boy was real young to keep him out of certain rooms and it worked well.

good luck