Hi Steve,
you need to build his confidence back up, some low life human has knocked his confidence out of him & put fear into the poor dog, if you raise your hand near him does he cower?
if yes, he’s been smacked hit etc, you need to teach him your hands will NEVER hit him again, your hands feed him, give him treats, pat him, walk him, etc he needs to gain trust in you & show him not all humans are bad, some are good…
He DOES NOT need any medications like Anon101 always posts, sometimes these anxiety meds can make your anxieties worse, not better, you’ll end up with a drugged up dog, that will never get over his anxieties, there’s better ways to treat anxieties, he will probably always be a stressful dog but in time he will get better, its all up to you & the way you treat him from now on….
He needs a animal behavourist not a vet & meds..
When he stresses about going out your back yard cause he can see a golfer then what about taking him for wee/poos out your front yard?? this is what I do with my boy now, I have a Staffy who suffers with anxieties, we moved about 4months ago & either side of me are little yapper dogs & everytime poor Patch goes out for a wee or poo these dogs bark at him, so now I let him out the front yard for his quick wee when he gets up first thing of a morning lunch time & before bed….
Does he know how to walk on a lead & go for walks?? his old owner might of tried walking him & he was very fearful of humans & wouldnt walk, she never took the time to reasure him & make him feel safe that everything is OK, she probably did what so many dog owners do they force the dog to do what they are very scared of doing, making the dog worse..
Teach him the word “it’s OK” & reasure him, it will be OK, I promise (say his name), then when he does do what you want him to do, you tell him in a very happy voice “Good Boy gee your a really good boy” give him heaps of praise & then he gets a nice small treat, buy those freeze/air dried treats or pieces of cooked meat….
also if you massage around his ears & play with his ears & side of his face this brings a calming feeling to the dog also softly pating & stroking him will calm….
My Patch was very scared of the car & water, baths, hose, Id say someone hosed him, he has IBD & he probably had dirrahea & his old owner probably hosed the poo & hosed him aswell… So I started taking him for a little 2min drive up the rd to the beach he had never seen a beach before & was terrified, I didnt know this at the time, so we would just sit in car & watch all the dogs swimming & playing at the dog beach, then we’d go for a walk away from the beach to the park, he was very scared of the ocean sound it made, after 1 week going to the dog beach everyday same time, he jump out of the car & pull me to the beach & ran along the wet sand & do the things he saw the other dogs doing but he was still scared to go in for a swim & get his ball or stick, then he started to gain more confidence & started to go into the water a little, this all takes time & patient.
Try & find a animal behavourist to help him gain his confidence back & enjoy his back yard when he goes outside, do you sit out your back yard? start sitting out the back yard with him or him watching you out in your yard put a chair he can sit in & watch his back yard then start playing ball with him, doing stuff with him out in the yard, then he’ll see these golfers wont hurt him it could be their golf sticks or hats he’s scared of, maybe start with your front yard everyday same time he needs a routine, my Boxer was scared of walking stick & men with hats & I had a old neighbour who had a walking stick & wore a old mans hat everyday i’d be outside around the time this old man came home from the bowling club 4pm & he would say hello to Angie at first she just stood behind me then after a while she started to greet him & say hello then she’d wait for him & I had another old neighbour who won Angies heart with food he was always giving Angie chicken…
also daily walks to parks where there’s people walking with their dogs even if you have to drive to a park & what I did with Patch when I first rescued him, was routine same time everyday he ate, he went for his walks etc routine helps them gain trust, we would sit at the park & just watch the dogs playing ball, watch people walking by & then Id talk to someone & in time Patch made alot of dog & human friends.. it will take time but he will get better in time, if you dont work then every day go for a little drive somewhere nice you both can sit & watch the world go by, same with your back yard, show him it’s OK if you have a back deck start sitting out there & bring out his breakfast or dinner, if he loves food he should walk out the back door with you & his food bowl sit with him while he eats, but if he wont go out the back then bring back in the food, dont leave it out there he isnt ready yet, think of ways to get him out the yard that are good things & talk in a happy voice & make sure you praise him when he’s done something really good, talk to him in a high happy voice, chase him, play games with him, he probably hasnt been shown what dogs do & play also he mighten have been socialized like Pitlove said…
Keeps us updated how he’s doing & remember baby steps, 2 steps forward 1 step back is OK..
