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Comment by Melisse Fowler on August 5, 2010 at 6:19pm

Something I heard a trainer state one time: Always pet from under the chin so the dog is lifted up.......it's not shying away by hiding it's eyes and looking down. Even the smallest thing like that can help to build confidence. When she does something you want, with or without the clicker (although as everyone else has stated, clickers can be a great way to get them to understand how to perform) - have a party. Lot's of praise and "yay, you did it, look how good you are" and treats. Find something that's like doggie crack to her......something she really, really wants. Good luck, she's a beautiful, foxy looking girl.

Comment by Cindi on November 20, 2009 at 11:05am

It does take time. Our Dundee was terrified of EVERYTHING. It took several months to get him to tolerate a collar and leash. He's still a bit of a scaredy-dog, but does quite well. We socialized him, slowly, to help him be more confident. We participated in a hospice program and would bring him to meetings. We told all attending to NOT touch him or address him. That way, he got to experience it on his terms and become more confident without feeling threatened. And, with time and patience, it has improved.

I've had dogs in classes who were fearful (and not aggressive) and just let them experience the class on their terms. All in class were told to not acknowledge the fearful dog and explained why. I've only had a couple of folks that I had to "talk to" outside of class so they wouldn't try to "fix" the dog. One dog in particular was an aussie and I had the owner come to the store, sit a small chair in the front, and asked people to just walk by his dog. When the dog would have a positive response, he was rewarded. Once he was comfortable, the owner had people the dog showed interest in, give him a treat. Now, a few months later, he is a happy dog, very obedient and comfortable with strangers.

In many cases, these dogs have simply not been properly socialized. Take your time. She'll do well as long as nobody forces her and she's reinforced for the good stuff!

Comment by Anne on November 20, 2009 at 10:55am

I thought I would add to this with my experience with a very shy and when we got her fearful dog. I found that Le-Le could not tolerate the clicker so we just work on the 'good, good, good....' and lots of high value treats. High value for Le-Le is chicken or any meat, cheese though I go easy on that treat. She will not take a biscuit or even a dog treat that she likes in the house outside in the 'scary world'. I did obedience training with her where people just gave her meat mostly throwing it at her and she would eat off the floor. She would last about a couple minutes with this before shutting down again. The trainer felt the clicker would not work for her so we worked on praise and treats. This was about 6 months after having her. The first months having her she was so scared of every noise, very gesture I did, seeing people even if they were 1/2 mile away and getting her to go outside was even hard sometimes. We walked her at a local outdoor mall and gave treats to her when we saw people to distract her and make it seem a good thing. Time really is the best thing along with patience, love, and praise. Now she has been with us for 20 months and she is a totally different dog. Still very shy and scared of strangers which I don't think I can ever get her over. I think there is some great advice here. Good luck and hope for an update.

Comment by Sean McCollum on November 19, 2009 at 9:22pm

Wow, wonderful advice all around thanks everyone so much!

Comment by Sky and Lyla on November 19, 2009 at 3:08pm

Everyone here has given you some very good advice. I agree, if she is not even taking treats outside, then this is a dog who truly is terrified and you're going to have to start with really small, simple baby steps. My little Corgi, Lyla, is also on the timid side. I work hard to expose her to new experiences, but I have also had to learn to accept her limitations and that she might never be a dog that truly enjoys new things. She has gotten to the point where she will tolerate most things now though and I praise her immensely for that.

Clicker training is great and I do recommend it to anyone. Karen Pryor has a great website and some excellent books on the subject that I would suggest checking out. Good luck!

Comment by Jane Christensen on November 18, 2009 at 11:51pm

My Livvy is more shy and we have been to obedience and agility the # 1 thing we learned is not to push her! Try to let her feel comfortable...example as Beth said can you play close to the door? Maybe take a soft tug toy and sit around the corner...pull it a little at a time and she if she will follow it. Clickers work great! The 1st thing you would need to do is the click/treat. So this shows her every time this thing clicks...I get a treat. This alone will take a few days and lots of small pieces chicken or cheap hot dogs. Then you might want to go to every time she gives you eye contact you click/treat...and this needs to be immediately so she starts catching on...I do this I get this.Do not push her to go beyond her comfort level...it needs to be baby steps. Let her small things...if she runs away but comes back to smell...click/treat. Sit on the outside of your room and slowly move further out and when she comes to you click/ treat. I hope this makes sense.

Comment by Bev Levy on November 18, 2009 at 9:37pm

Not all corgis are bold. My Buffy (died a few years ago) was afraid of a lot of things. If she will play tug, that is a good way to build confidence. Let her win the tug o war. If she likes your room mates dogs taking her out with them on walks may help. Start with small steps like walking leashed around in the house with two dogs and build up to actually going outside. Look for a good positive obedience instructor too.

Comment by Sunni A. on November 18, 2009 at 9:08pm

It's like when you take a 3 year old to a play date with a stranger-child and he just stares in shock at all the playing child and his bedroom and toys, and doesn't leave his mom's pant leg... But then as soon as she says, "Ohh look what's over here, what's this, a model airplane, and look at all these dress up clothes..." and distracts him, he forgets his initial shyness... Is there any way to incorporate a favorite toy, new game, new frisbee, etc. outside to help him build confidence and trust in strange environments?

Comment by Beth on November 18, 2009 at 8:09pm

Just another thought, but clicker training might help too. I haven't done clicker training myself, but you can reward very minute behaviors with it. So you can click if she goes near the door on her own, for example, or click if she looks out into the hallway with her ears up in interest instead of back in fear.

Comment by Beth on November 18, 2009 at 8:05pm

How long have you had her? I would give her a good month from the time you got her to see if she starts improving, and if not I would ask around to find a very good positive trainer and try to get a few one-on-one sessions.

If she is not taking treats when outside, then she has "shut down" and is not at that point open to learning from new experiences. A shut down dog can't really be conditioned, so you want to do little baby steps and keep it very positive. Don't cuddle or stroke her when she is scared, but do be positive and quietly upbeat. Maybe try inching her food dish closer to the door of your room, just a few inches a day, and hopefully you can get her to the point where she will eat right in the doorway. Try sitting outside the door to your bedroom while she's inside it, and do something quietly interesting. Pick up things and look at them, eat a little snack, and do it all sitting on the floor. See if you can rouse her natural curiosity and get her to venture out of your room on her own. If she does, very quietly tell her what a good girl she is. With most dogs, exuberant praise is in order but with a fearful one, you want to keep everything calm and on an even keel.

In the meantime, start working on some basic obedience commands within her comfort zone (your room). Teach her sit, work on stay. Once she learns a few little tricks you can practice NILIF which supposedly will make a shy dog more confident, as it will make her trust in your leadership.

But if the issue doesn't start to resolve on its own, I would definitely bring in a very positive trainer to observe her in her own environment. If she is that fearful. a group class might just scare the bejeesus out of her.

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