Depressed puppy :(

[piggie916]

Recently me and my Girlfriend have been looking for a puppy. We already own a cat, and found our selfs wanting another pet. We came across one of her friends giving away a 3 month old Border Terrier, and we read plenty of breed characteristics and this was one of the breeds that we would accept into our household.

So, it has been about 1 month now since we have had Stout (our puppy). Since day 2 he has been getting all his shots and being fed puppy food fit for a king. At the end of week 1, i noticed that he acts weird around us. The first couple of days i played it off because getting vaccinated will make your pet tired most of the time. But after 5 days i was suspicious. I have owned an abused pet before (adopted) and i know how they act.

After 3 weeks i have come to the assumption that he was abused very early.. 1-2 months old which is horrible. He is SUPER healthy, but he never plays. He will only eat once a day. And when he eats, he tries to do it so secretly that we will never know (we can hear him crunching). When ever ANY person approaches him, he instantly goes into a cowering position. He has never played with us, never have felt his little teeth nibbling on my fingers. All he wants to do is sleep all day. He absolutely loves to cuddle with both of us. He ALWAYS wants to be WITH us, but he never wants to PLAY with us.

We have kennel trained him since day 1 with out no success. He knows its "bad" to pee on the carpet, but still does it. He shows us no signs thats its potty time. We take him out every time he drinks, eats, gets excited. He knows his command to go pee, but sometimes he just wont go. He will Secretly go behind our backs as soon as we are distracted for not even 1 min and pee on our carpet. We can NEVER catch him doing it, which is why its so frustrating.


Now, on a lighter note. We have been taking him to friends houses, and outside for walks. He LOVES my cat period. It is his best buddy in the world right now and they will play for hours, then cuddle up together and take a nap. He how ever wont play with humans in general. Only other animals.

If somebody needs anymore information on his activities please let me know!! We do love this puppy and we want what is best for him, but there is something very wrong and we really cant afford to consult to a pet adviser.

[Shaykeija]

Just make sure you give that puppy a lot of love and attention. What a super cute baby. He looks like my HRH Missie the Poo when she was a puppy. Have you tried a toy that plays a tune? My Tyra will not play with me if I am using just a squeak toy. But play with the musical monkey and I get some serious play time with her.

[aslan]

Aaaw poor baby. The best you can do is teach the little sweety that not all hands hurt. I know it's gonna be a bit of a pain but every 20 mins to half hour take him outside, each time he pee's make a huge fuss about what a good boy he is. Scolled him when he has accidents in the house, but no bum smacks. It's gonna take time but he'll learn you love him.

[chico2]

I have no advice,but OMG is he sweetit's great that he has bonded with your cat,that's an adorable picture.
I am sure,with a lot of patience,love and reassurance,his fear and trustissues will resolve.
I am assuming he has no other healthproblems,since he has seen a vet.
Eating once/day is probably not enough for a growing puppy,maybe he at one time had to compete for food with stronger siblings.
Finding him a calm and quiet spot to eat,might calm his fears.

[piggie916]

Ty for the advice! but we have done all that!

I know its only been 1 month, but he has not showed 1 sign of improvement since the first day we got him.

He has 3 food bowls to pick from, Front room, by the kittys, and in his kennel.

And ty for the complements!! we just want the best for our little stout!

[jessi76]

wow, what a sweet pup!!! oh I could just snuggle that little scruffy cutie!

Sounds to me like you are devoted to this pup, and are doing everything right... my only other advice (most of which you probably already know and do so bear w/ me)

eating - yes, the pup needs more food. Have you tried different foods? wet foods? do you own a KONG? my dog never ate breakfast - but I knew as a growing pup, he needed more food. so I put some kibble in a KONG, then layered some really tasty wet food in there as well. it was a toy that had layers of new yummy food in it, and he couldn't resist! basically, I just tricked him into eating by making it fun and new. There are plenty of canned (wet) foods for puppies, try to add scoop or 2 to his kibble to entice him to eat more. Wet food isn't BAD by any means - simply choose a quality brand - and mix it with the dry food. (by the way - what brand of dry do you feed? you may be able to find a better dry food that he'll WANT to eat more of)

accidents - I wouldn't scold this pup at all. since he's already cowering and afraid, I'd simply work on PREVENTION rather than correction. as already mentioned, take this pup outside ALOT - every 20 min if necessary. Keep a baggy of super good treats by the door to grab on your way out, so when/if he goes outside - REWARD him handsomely! try tiny bites of turkey hotdogs, or mozzarella cheese. use a very high value treat and only use that for going potty outside.

if he has an accident, clean it up quietly, with a really good cleaner made for animal accidents to eliminate the scent. unless you can catch him in the act, don't scold. if you do happen to catch him, say aht! aht! or no in a firm, not loud or angry, tone. gently scoop him up and take him outside to finish. granted, you need to catch him to accomplish this.

playtime - just start slow, with a simple toy. don't overwhelm the pup w/ a ton of toys or fast moving objects. dogs need to learn how to play, even if it's just sitting on the floor together and gently patting him. any positive and loving contact you can give this pup will work wonders.

[ancientgirl]

I've got no advice but I wanted to say how absolutely adorable he is. I love the picture with the kitty. It's nice that they are such good friends. He most probably was in need of one.

[BMDLuver]

You don't say where you are located but I would suggest going to either of these two sites:

http://www.borderterriercanada.ca/

http://clubs.akc.org/btcoa/

I've worked with both of them on a rescue bases and they are very helpful and knowledgeable folks who love their breed. They would be happy to hear about Stout and his beginnings and are a great resource for you in understanding him better.

He's cute as a button btw!

[Frenchy]

omg he's so cute !!!

[rhynes]

Is he ever cute

Years ago my sister adopted a beagle whom she found out was abused as well... He was a beautiful dog but didn't like anyone come near. Go to pet him and he'd cower, shivver and usually pee where he lay. It was so pitiful.

It took a couple of months before any signs of change. Remember, you have to gain his trust and it's not an easy job. Give him room to breathe, give him his space but give love whenever you can or whenever he accepts it. He'll come around. Try not to scold, that can make matters worse and make the issue take more time. Be patient.

We took in a bichon pup back in October (I think), he wasn't abused but it was home number 5 in his 9 month life. Took 3 months for him to finally settle in and realize it's permanent. Now he's like a pimple on my arse, always there, can't seem to keep him off me

[rainbow]

Don't have any advice to add but just wanted to say I think he's adorable too.

[Love4himies]

He is so adorable and I am happy he and your kitty bonded.

Do you know the people who raised him from birth, could he be from a puppy mill with no positive human interaction?

I am sure with lots of love and patience he will soon be totally comfortable with you.

[piggie916]

Ty for all the positive feedback! I will be trying some new things, 1 is the food. But sometimes me and my girlfriend are away for 3-5 hours during this crucial time to be potty training. He knows its bad to pee on the carpet, he will pick up a towel and cover it up, or a piece of clothing.

I am heading to pets mart to pick up some wet food to mix in with his dry.

And yes!!! hes cute :P

Edit : And to where he was from

He was basically born in a litter of other dogs at her friends house. All the other puppy's were given away and he was left. They left him outside with out his mother probably VERY early, 1 month.. And it is obvious that he was beaten or hit.

[TKW]

These are all good advises you've got.
What we did for ours was we kept him in an exercise pen in the kitchen until he's 6 mo old. We paper-trained him in there and took him outside after he ate and woke up from his nap. It didn't take long before he got the idea as where and when to conduct his business. And he soon learned to do it on command.
My dog's buddy across the street was an abused puppy. He won't even come near any man when we first met. With time and lots of love, he's come around. I'm sure yours will be OK!

[cheribob]

Try using belly bands when you are unable to watch the dog. Believe me they are lifesavers!

Belly Bands are strips of cloth with velcro at each end. Place a sanitary pad in the band & wrap around dog's stomach. Secure it across his back with the velcro.

They saved my life & my dog's life!