Shorty

Shorty is 6yrs old and was surrendered to QBSDR in June 2018 for severe dog aggression, guarding people, and extreme levels of anxiety, and separation anxiety.  He was rehomed by his first home due to there being too many dogs in the household and was kept locked in the bathroom, away from the other dogs until he was rehomed. In his second home, he was aggressive with the other corgi in the household, with other dogs, and guarded the humans by charging at any dogs that came near. He had extreme levels of anxiety and was on daily Fluoxetine (doggy Prozac) for his anxiety and dog aggression, which according to his owners, didn’t do much to help his behaviors. He was said to be constantly on edge, never able to relax. He was okay with having his head pet, but was not comfortable with having other areas of his body touched. His second home worked with a behaviorist to address Shorty’s behavioral issues, but didn’t have much success due to Shorty not being able to stay focused. At one point, euthanasia was thrown on the table as an option due to Shorty being “untrainable.” During vet visits, he had to be removed from the exam room away from his owner in order to be examined, otherwise he would exhibit extreme levels of anxiety, attempting to guard his owner from vet staff. Once at QBSDR, to help Shorty get over his dog aggression, which resulted from him guarding people, and address the root cause of his issues (nervousness and insecurity), rules and boundaries were implemented to establish a clearer human/canine relationship, and he was taken off the doggy Prozac.  He was taught to just coexist with others dogs around. When Shorty got clingy (leaning against legs, sitting by feet, sitting under the chair we occupied), he was asked to move away to give us space, and physical affection was withheld so that he would not be inadvertently praised or rewarded for physically guarding, as well as not having his anxious state of mind rewarded.  When he cried/whined and jumped up for attention, or leaned his body against us showing signs of being anxious (whining, heavy panting, salivating, repeatedly licking lips), he was never “comforted” with pettings or coddled with baby talk, telling him he was okay. He was instead asked to give space, given the opportunity to make a different choice other than attempt to guard, and learn to self soothe through his feelings of anxiousness with us nearby as his rock and foundation. He eventually started to relax and learned that he didn’t need to guard people because each person didn’t allow him to guard them. He wasn’t being praised or rewarded for being in an unhealthy state of mind and began understanding the humans were there to look to for direction and guidance, not resources to be possessive over. This in turn helped build his confidence in himself and around other dogs, helping him realize the humans were in control of the situation (aKa his leaders), not him. Shorty is easily one of our favorite dogs at the ranch. He’s a sensitive soul with great instincts and an endearing personality. The real Shorty (with dog aggression and anxiety removed from the picture), is a very sweet, loving, and affectionate boy. He’s a dog that enjoys lounging around, sunbathing, herding his buddy Eljay, and is gentle when playing bitey face with the blind twins, Brie and Cam. Our biggest priority when it comes to Shorty, is making sure his old behaviors are kept at bay to maintain his mental wellbeing. He needs a very specific home that will be diligent and mindful of the rules and interactions needed, to help him succeed. He is not a dog that can handle being showered with over affection, or be treated like a kid. Until an appropriate match is found, Shorty will continue to patiently wait for the right home to come along.