[Dailydrool] Fearful Hounds

[lea pierce]

I don't have any tricks to "cure" fearful hounds, and the resources and
advice given have been excellent. I write only to add my voice to
"patience, patience, patience" as the necessary ingredient. None of my
bassets have been fearful (I have only had bassets for 2 years, although I
have fostered 10 in that time plus my forever hound), however I have had
Claire the Timid, an aging beagle, since August 2010. It is only now,
nearly 4 years later, that she is starting to come out of her shell and go
up to me and other people for pets.

Claire would run like a shot at ANY sound until the last year--and if it is
an unknown sound, she still rockets out the dog door for the bramble bush
in the back of my lot.

But she is getting better. The poor dog had been pulled from the streets of
Branson, MO during a blizzard and found her way out here. The theory is
that she had been a breeder bitch and then dumped on the streets after her
usefulness in throwing litters was over. She really had no socialization
and is still much happier with other dogs than humans.

However, Claire is never going to be a cuddle bunny. She is absolutely
terrified to be up above the ground, she hates sitting on the couch with
me, she does not know how to cuddle. In that respect, she's not a fun dog
to have around--however, she is very sweet, and I am glad to give her a
good, stable home.

So, for those with fearful dogs--patience. They can and do get better with
time.

Lea Pierce
HMS Santa Rosa & the Bridge Crew
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