Ok somehow I ended up with this poor little dog. He's about supposed to be about two but I'm thinking he's an older dog. He has never had a name so my sister has talked us into naming him Butters. I was told he is a shih tzu but I'm thinking he is part pekingese. (Maybe he's a mix of both) Ok he's always been a breeder he has always been in a two foot by two foot crate and he has never been socialized. He doesn't want to be held he doesn't come running when you take out food. Actually he tries his best to get away from everyone. I've been taking out treats and he will come close but not close enough to eat from my hand. He only comes close enough for me to toss it to him. I had him in a 10 foot square kennel and I thought that was mean since he's been in a little cage his whole life so now he's free in the yard. So how do I get this little guy to not be afraid of me. He is so happy when I look out the window he runs with his little tail curled all the way to his back. He chases butterflies its adorable. But when I go out he only wants the treats and if hubby or the kids go out he tries to hide so they just let him be. Do you think he will ever be part of the family? Is it ok as long as he's happy not to have human companions? What do you think we should do to get him socialized?

Love, time and plenty of patience will bring the little guy around. If he was a breeder dog he most probably never had loving attention. He doesn't know how to respond to human contact in the manner you are trying. Just be patient with him. He WILL come around. After all, he is starved for affection but he just doesn't know it. I hope you will be able to give him the time he needs to trust you. That's his biggest obstacle right now. You will be rewarded for sure. I have had 5 Shih Tzus through the years and they are sweet loving little dogs. Give him time and you will have a great pet.

Teresa is right, he needs A LOT of time and encouragement. I would compare it to when you bring a new bird home, that hasn't had any interaction for awhile. He's afraid, and doesn't know how to be around people.

I would take a good book out to your yard and sit and read quietly, hold your hand out with a treat from time to time and whenever he comes close to you, PRAISE him verbally like mad: "GOOD BOY!!! What a good boy! You're so handsome!" Things like that. Be very enthusiastic. It will take time, and eventually you should be able to pet him.

Keep your eyes averted, don't look him square in the eye, this is dominant behavior and at this point you want to be submissive so he will feel more comfortable.

We don't know Gigi's history -- she was a stray who just showed up in the driveway and moved in under our deck and never left. But she was JUST like that at first, for about a week. She'd run when she saw us. She'd stand at a safe distance and we could talk to her but she wouldn't even take food if we tossed it to her. We had to put it down and go inside. If we made any move toward her, she'd run off. So we'd sit on the deck with George and pet him and talk to her without looking at her and I kept telling her what a GOOD girl she was. She WANTED to come and be petted so badly but she was just terrified. We're sure she was abused and ignored.

Then one day I was on the deck and she was in the driveway and I said "hey, G.G." (that stands for "good girl") just to be saying something to her, and suddenly she RAN up the deck stairs and sat down on my foot. Apparently, she decided that since she had a name, she must belong here, so we were sort of stuck with calling her "G.G." but I changed the spelling to Gigi so it would be more like a name and less like an afterthought, which was what it was to begin with. It took a couple of days after that to coax her into the house and even then she'd only come into the kitchen at first, but she would let us pet her and she'd lean against our legs.

Now, of course, she's attached to my leg everywhere I go and I often trip over her or she yanks my slippers off because she's so close behind that she's stepping on the backs of them. I can't even go to the bathroom without her.

My point -- and yes, I do have one -- is that if you're very, very patient and don't push him and keep talking to him and use his name A LOT, he'll soon figure out what's what and he'll be sitting on your foot, just like Gigi sat on mine. There is no loyalty and undying devotion like you'll get from a dog who's been starved for affection. Use his name at every opportunity, no matter how silly it sounds. Say "Butters is a good boy. What a good Butters he is. How's Butters today?" and stuff like that, working his name into everything you say to him. It won't take him long to figure out that's his name and after that, he'll probably be in your lap stealing your food.

Do remember, though, that he'll probably be very nervous and shy for a while even after he lets you pet him. We've had Gigi for almost three years and she still jumps at sudden noises and freaks out when you drop something and runs if you raise your voice, even if I'm just calling Hubby to the phone. Don't make sudden moves and speak to him very gently so he feels safe and secure with you.

Oh yes, Butters will come around. You'll soon be seeing appreciation in his eyes instead of fear.

My Savannah was a brutally battered puppy before I adopted her. The man who had her mother kicked the puppies and mother all over his back yard. A neighbor saw and called the authorities. They took the dogs away from him and put them in a no-kill shelter. When I got her, she was fearful of everyone she saw. Now she is only afraid of men. She adores babies and small children.

She's a little shy of women for about the first 10 minutes they are here. After that, she will go to them and even let them pet her. I ask people to never look at her nor speak to her when they first arrive. I ask them to act as if she is not here and then she will come around.

She is so appreciative of a good place to live with good food and people who adore her that you wouldn't believe it. She minds like a charm and wants to be right beside one of us at all times. It's as if she knows we will protect her from all she has been through in her past.

Talk sweet and low to your new doggie and whether or not he ever likes strangers, he will eventually adore you for it. Just give it time. He'll figure it out.
Bless you for adopting him.
Best wishes.

You know, you gotta wonder if some people acquire helpless animals just so they'll have something living to be mean to. Why in the world would you get a dog or cat or bird or anything else if you're just going to abuse it? I hope there's a special circle in the underworld for people like that, and that they spend eternity small and helpless while a huge dog kicks THEM around. Preferably they would also be locked in a tiny cage with no food or water while this is happening to them.

Thank you for all the words of encourgement. I'm hoping he will come around eventually.
I didn't know that breeder dogs were kept in small crates like that. All the breeders that
I've ever bought dogs from were just small back yard breeders. I always saw these little happy
dogs that had just had puppies. (except for Crush and Dori and I didn't buy them)

Even if he was just kept in a crate wouldn't he be happy to see his human bring him food everyday?
This little dog was at a flea market. He was in his small crate with a big sign that said "FREE SHIH TZU"
The man said that he wasn't a good breeder and if he couldn't make money off of him that he
couldn't feed him. I thought that was so sad so I brought him home with me. Hubby wasn't so happy
and he informed me that "We can't save them all." But I just couldn't leave him there.

Even if Butters never comes around to be a lap dog at least he has total run of the yard and has
fresh food and water everyday, and of course those treats I keep trying to lure him with.
He has the sweetest personality. Even though I only get to see it through the window right now.

Kathy,
I rescued a little chihuahua in Dec of last year. He has been a real challenge. He has been afraid of EVERYTHING, including my Husband. The hard thing is it is sporadic about my Hubby. It is like one minute Poncho (his name) is ok with Hubby and the next minute he isn't and is barking at my Hubby. I have had him now for 7 months and I have to say that he is turning in to a "sweetheart" of a dog. I had decided when I got him, no matter what, I was going to keep him, because I was his 3rd home and he was only 8 months old when I got him.
We still have issues, but nothing, absolutely nothing compared to in the beginning. So I definitely agree with the others.......give him time, love, patience and overall understanding that you Love him just the way he is. I always have thought if I gave up my dog, I have no idea where he would of ended up and I couldn't stand the consequences, so he is ours forever and so far things are working out wonderfully because of our patience, dillegence and LOVE.....Best of Luck to you.....

This is to sad poor dog. I hope one day ppl will/should go to jail for treating any animal bad and lock them up in a box. Like all said some patience and love hopefully butters will be fine

Good Luck to you as well. Butters will remain here for the rest of his life. He's not going anywhere.
I think he will come around its just right now he doesn't know how were going to treat him.

Do you want to know the saddest part? He stays out by the steps at night behind a grate that went in the bottom of Sidneys old cage. I guess instead of his dog house he feels more secure behind a fence like thing. I'll try to get pictures some time when I think he's ok with it. He really is a cutie.

he will come around eventually. I have been doing dog rescue for years and unfortunatly we get a lot of puppy mill dogs and that is exactly what you are describing. It can take months for a dog to come around and trust someone and it usually starts with just one person - usually the quietest and not always the person that feeds him. If you give it time he will eventually warm up to you. We have a 3 yr old beagle with the rescue right now that was like that it has taken 3 months for her to finally trust her foster mom and she is just starting to trust a few of the other volunteers that she sees every week at the adoption shows. Just go slow with him and he will realize that you are his friend. I do suggest you take him for a daily walk - it can be a short one to start with but that helps with the bonding and is a way to show that you are in charge without being overly dominant.

Good Luck!

I hope you will keep us updated often on Butters' progress.
The shelter where I got Savannah wants me to send them her story with pictures so they can post it there on their "Success Stories" wall. I will be doing that soon. I hope we will be reading more and more of Butters' success story as time goes on. (like the success story of Dolce elsewhere on the forum)

Kathy, something else you might try is to take a piece of old clothing, a shirt or something that has your scent on it and put it out there for him to sleep with. It will give him a sense of security and when he realizes that you smell like that item he'll be more likely to accept you sooner.

Can't wait to see photo's

Awe...poor guy. It sounds like he is going to need some serious TLC and patience. Give it some time and the little guy will start warming up to you. You might setup a place for him to snuggle into. I know its hard to think about the crate thing since he came from an extra small world, however; a dog raised in a crate sees it as a safe haven. You can setup up a slighly larger one and add blanket for bedding. Also you might include a couple items of clothing you have worn (this allows him to get used to your scent). No one said you had to shut the door on the crate - it can be left open or off. (My one dog runs to his cage to hide when he scared because we taught him this is a "safe haven" for him.)

Work with him each day. Using treats and verbal rewards to award interaction. You can feed him some of his food by offering pieces and trying to get him to come up closer to you. You might also try sitting nearby and doing something quiet like reading (with a few treats close to you) and see if he will move closer while you are reading. I use this approach with some of the rescues I work with at the humane society. I go into their kennel, sit down near the door and talk softly and read a book. I find a really scared dog will start moving closer if he/she doesnt think I am noticing. Laying down for a few minutes to rest can sometimes encourage them to move closer too.

You can also try adding a little Bach Flower's Rescue remedy to his water or food. This is a natural anxiety remedy and I find it works with really scared or stressed animals to calm them down a bit without the nasty side effects of the drugs out there that can be prescribed. There's another product called B-Calms that works fairly well too.

If you have other dogs, make sure he gets to see you petting and loving on them a bit. This "shows" him what attention is like. You can also do this with a stuffed animal or dog toy. It sounds silly but animals watch interactions carefully and with dogs, understanding "pack" interaction helps with a psychological side of this. Most likely he wants the interaction but he's very scared & will need reassured. The more he hears you talk to him and watches you, the more interested he will become and eventually you will have a break-through.