# Maxi really does have men trust issues



## MaxisMommie (Jul 30, 2012)

*So, since Maxi has came home we have not had any man come in the house besides my fiance of course. However, yesterday a maintenance guy had to come in to fix our bathroom sink and I felt so bad for the poor guy. Maxi just did not stop barking and growling at him. I mean seriously the whole time he was fixing the sink and I even picked him up thinking that me comforting him would make him realize it's okay... but no luck. Poor Maxi just thinks he is protecting us and himself so this is a very tricky situation. Anyone have any advice? :blush:*


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## shellbeme (Mar 1, 2011)

Honestly I'd like advice on this too, since we brought Tucker home, both my little guys think they have to bark and growl at everything-even neighboors three houses down the street.


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## jmm (Nov 23, 2004)

Most often this is due to lack of socialization and fear, not true possessive aggression. Scaredy Dog by Ali Brown is a great book to start with.


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## MaxisMommie (Jul 30, 2012)

*Well the reason I say that is because Maxi has been abused and I really take him a lot of places with me. He is much better in public than people coming into or even just to the door of our home. On walks, I can easily control his barking with the "enough" command. *


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## spookiesmom (Mar 28, 2010)

Do you know a few guys who would be willing to help you? I'm thinking have them pick up a handful of treats outside, then knock, come in, treating all the while. Might that work?


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## MaxisMommie (Jul 30, 2012)

spookiesmom said:


> Do you know a few guys who would be willing to help you? I'm thinking have them pick up a handful of treats outside, then knock, come in, treating all the while. Might that work?


That sounds like an idea to try. Doing that might make it a little bit better but I am thinking that it is something that will probably never be mended all the way. Thanks for the idea though! We will definitely give this a try!


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## ThatBrunette (Jun 14, 2012)

It may take a few weeks. Harley had a dubious former life and was very barky for the first few weeks. She still gets a bit crazy when people come in the house but, it has diminished since she got here.

Picking up Maxi may make it worse. Now, Maxi is protecting you as well as the house. Harley is growl-ier and bark-ier when she is in my arms. I put her down and the barking ends sooner.

Doggie socialization helps, too. We've been doing obedience training with 10 other dogs and stopping to talk to the neighborhood dogs. Harley has gone from barking like a crazy dog to barking a few 'greeting' barks and then calming down to sniff.

Give Maxi a few weeks to unlearn bad habits. He has a good home and wants to protect it.


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## Michie (May 19, 2012)

I'm having the same problem! Falcon is SUPER Uber attached to me and he likes my boyfriend. He has met two friends of mine but is SUPER skittish around them. Even if they keep their distance. 

I just got a tiny book from a member on here that I started reading today. Its called The Cautious Canine: How to help your dog conquer their fears by Patricia McConnell I also checked out Help for your fearful dog: A step by step guide to helping your dog conquer their fears by Nicole Wilde Its HUGE! You read the first few essential chapters then you can skip to your dogs particular fear and it gives you reasons and guides you through what you should do. I recommend both HIGHLY.

My approach was to do something that is called "Flooding" Which is where you just subject the dog to its fear A TON ALL AT ONCE.. Which is BAD BAD BAD. I've seen the light though. Praise is the way to go... a little at a time without overwhelming will decondition and recondition. Condition the dog NOT to be afraid then condition the dog to LIKE the people. Its getting better already.


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## CorkieYorkie (Apr 10, 2012)

Thank you so much for the book recommendations! Ozzie is DEFINITELY a scaredy dog lol... he is scared of just about everything: people (until he gets to know them), other dogs, sudden noises/movements, etc. just very, very skittish. He is also follows me around 24/7... we are going to enroll in group socialization/obedience classes and possibly a trainer to come work with him on these things... esp. since we live in a condo bldg., when we are at my parents house with his own private yard, he is much more content... our condo association/neighborhood is VERY dog friendly so there are dogs all over the place.... and we are still working on saving up for a house... :-/ (aka not even married yet)...


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## MaxisMommie (Jul 30, 2012)

Michie said:


> I'm having the same problem! Falcon is SUPER Uber attached to me and he likes my boyfriend. He has met two friends of mine but is SUPER skittish around them. Even if they keep their distance.
> 
> I just got a tiny book from a member on here that I started reading today. Its called The Cautious Canine: How to help your dog conquer their fears by Patricia McConnell I also checked out Help for your fearful dog: A step by step guide to helping your dog conquer their fears by Nicole Wilde Its HUGE! You read the first few essential chapters then you can skip to your dogs particular fear and it gives you reasons and guides you through what you should do. I recommend both HIGHLY.
> 
> My approach was to do something that is called "Flooding" Which is where you just subject the dog to its fear A TON ALL AT ONCE.. Which is BAD BAD BAD. I've seen the light though. Praise is the way to go... a little at a time without overwhelming will decondition and recondition. Condition the dog NOT to be afraid then condition the dog to LIKE the people. Its getting better already.


Thanks so much for the awesome recommendations! In public, he is not really bad at all which I haven't quite figured out yet and he doesn't even bark at anything at all when I carry him around in his bag. So with that said, we are still working on figureing out what his fear is exactly. However, I recently found out that his previous owner had kept him in a laundry room and never let him out so he has not had socialization for most of his life so far. I know that is where it stems from, and I am just being patient with him.


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