It Doesn’t Mean She’s Been Abused

“She must have been abused.” I hear this so often from people whose dogs cower or otherwise express fear in response to certain objects or certain types of people. It’s natural to think that reactions to seemingly innocuous stimuli must be indications of previous abuse. It’s easy to imagine that a dog who is scared of children has been teased by them in the past. Similarly, it’s perfectly understandable to imagine that the only reason a dog would react so aversely to a broom is because of a previous terrifying experience with one.Many clients have told me that their dog immediately cowered the instant that they picked up a broom, a mop, a stepstool, or even a garbage can.

 

The behavior that most commonly elicits concerns of abuse in a dog’s past is that the dog is only scared of men. While it is always possible that a man has harmed the dog, it is a fact that fearful dogs are often more reactive to men than to woman or to children. To dogs, men are generally more intimidating due to factors such as larger size, broader shoulders, deeper voices, and facial hair. It is very rare to meet a dog who is more afraid of women than of men. Is this because the sickos out there abusing dogs are all men? No! It’s because of fearful dogs’ natural inclination to be more afraid of men.

 

A variation of the assumption that a fear of men results from abuse by a man is that fear of people with hats, or backpacks, or carrying clipboards indicates past abuse by a person sporting those same objects. While this cannot, of course, be ruled out absolutely, it is much more likely that the dog is simply not used to people with these extra objects. Dogs don’t seem to understand about removable parts and many are frightened by anything that changes the overall silhouette of a person. Instead of seeing a person with a hat and backpack for example, dogs may see a strange shape that they can’t identify. In fact, many dogs have shown fear towards a person they know well and love until they remove the hat, at which point the dog stops appearing fearful.

 

Not every dog who exhibits fearful, reactive behaviors was a victim of abuse. Certainly, and most regrettably, there are dreadful people out there who abuse dogs, and there is no question that dogs who are abused are reactive to objects and types of people with whom they have had bad experiences in the past. However, for many dogs, other explanations are much more likely. I do find small comfort in knowing that there are many dogs out there who people suspect of being abused that were not likely victims of it.Dogs often react to sudden movements or anything that is unfamiliar, especially if they are genetically prone to develop neophobic tendencies or they were not exposed to many novel experiences as puppies.

 

I’ve had many lovely clients who have had a dog since the dog was only weeks old with these fearful, reactive behaviors and they say, “People are going to think we’ve abused her, but I swear we’ve never hurt her.” It’s a pleasure when I can reassure them that I do believe them and for very good reason.

 

--Karen London

 

Comments

[Ivy]

I have rot/ lab mixes male that is going to be 2 in December. He cowers a lot but has never been abused. I have had since he was 3 months old or so. I just really don't understand why he cowers. My other dog is 3 and I rescued her at 6 months and she doesn't act scared of anything. If there is a reason my rot cowers I would love to know what I could do to help my dog be more confident. Thank you.

[Ronda Andersen]

We got our dog Loki 2 years ago. She is a basenji/shepherd mix and was 6 months old when we got her from an animal shelter. She had a broken pelvis and was malnurished which we were told was from living on the streets...she might have been hit by a car. We took her home and she thrived. She does have extreme separation anxiety and because of this, we had to put her in doggie daycare while we work. She absolutely loves the place and I know she isn't being abused there. My husband and I have never abused her and she has been a joy for us until just recently. Within the past 6 months or so, there has been a change that is driving us crazy because we don't know what is going on. She cowers from us and she cowers right before eating like she's afraid to eat. Sometimes she starts shaking so bad that her teeth chatter. This just started out of nowhere...we try not to say 'it's okay' or 'good girl' or anything like that because we know that could make things worse. We just try and pretend that nothing is wrong and walk away or whatever. Some days she runs to her bowl and gobbles it up, others, she acts like she's scared to death. It's not just the food. We'll go outside with her to play and she used to run all over the place like crazy..we used to have a blast. Now, she'll cower and slink towards us when we call her. We are really frustrated and confused. I'm sure she can feel our frustration at some level, but I know that our neighbors probably think we beat her or something and I assure you, that is not the case. We love her and would never hurt her. The lady at the daycare thinks it's just her basenji personality, but I don't know that I agree..not with the things I've read on basenji's. They're very independent animals and very smart. Loki is quite intelligent and has always been very gentle and a very good dog. I've actually had to do very little training with her because she just naturally seems to know what to do. From the day we got her, she never left the yard. She stays within eyesight of us all the time. Always has! Could you please help me out here? We are at a loss as to what to do with this cowering problem. Thank you!!

[Holly Green]

Our rescued dog had separation issues for about a month after coming home with us. So much as step out the front door to check the mail and he would pee!! It didn't take him long to figure out his life was stable, we weren't giving him away, and that we would be home to let him out soon no matter where we went. I firmly believe that positive reinforcement and routines can teach them anything. Bailey RUNS for his crate when I put my shoes on because he knows that he goes in the crate when I go to work and crate time is treat time. He also loves to "go to bed" because that's a time he gets major amounts of affection. He knows that after I shower, it's time for breakfast and this is when he drags himself from the bed. He knows (and this is my favorite) that when the garage door opens at night, it's his momma coming home to him and he is ALWAYS waiting by the door for me, mouth hanging open and wagging his tail so hard that his whole body shakes. He isn't afraid anymore of a hand being raised to him because instead of aggression, this means "I have something for you if you sit nice," even if it's just a scratch behind the ears for exhibiting good behavior when prompted. They follow us... They can be taught to react how we need them to, no matter what happened in the past. I like to think that the four and a half years he has been mine have wiped away anything sad or frightening that happened in what I call his "previous life" with his first three owners (in three years!). He's my world and I'm his. Everything that is good or bad in his world is up to me... I try my best to rain love and praise and structure on my best friend.

[Brenda]

I GOT THIS LITTLE Dinmont Terrier from the shelter. I wondered for a long time why a pretty and rare dogn would be at a shelter. Well now i know, he began to stink, and it about overwhelmed. So i talk with a person that experience in this type of thing, he has a skin yeast infection. So i purchase the natural food, the yogurt, the expensive shampoo, and other things. Now the problem is at this time, my house begin to smell like urine, he sited out different spots to pee. That it he going back to the pound.

[cheap pet insurance]

yeah, even though its true not all dog are victim of abuse but i can sasy most dogs that express fearful behaviour like whimpering and shaking in the presence of people, 80% of them are victim of abuse.

[Eva Hawthorne]

we came across a female chihuahua mix about 3 weeks ago, have yet to locate an owner, she is a sweet little dog, but is insanely clingy to my daughter and myself. She wont even go outside to go potty by herself, even with our other chihuahua going with her. I can not even stand up from the couch to place a book on the table 3 feet away without her standing up with me. What can I do to help her?

[Ajlouny]

There are some dogs that are just skittish from birth, which doesn't mean that they were abused.

[Susan Kuchinskas]

I know our rescue dog was not abused, but I just nod when people say that. It's better than, "He's really screwy."

[Estelle]

Dear Karen

Do not you think that men smell could be also intimidating for dogs ?