My dog is afraid of everything!

[peyton&rudi]

Hey guys, I'm new to the forum, so I'm hoping this will be an enjoyable experience...
I understand dogs are like us and diff. from one another, but my dog is afraid of everything! Our oldest is a 2 year old Golden Retriever named Peyton, he is funny, active, very loving, and not afraid of anything. Rudi is a 7 month old Great Dane, 3 times his size, but shes afraid of everything. We've had her since she was 6 weeks old, and she's been socialized more than Peyton was, but the results are greatly diff. She is terrified of all other men except me. My wife and I can do anything with her and she is loving, just as long as noone else is involved. She won't let strangers (neighbors) pet her, she's afraid of my moms mini-dogs (unsure of breed, but they are like 8 lbs. and Rudi is 135 now) She loves Peyton and plays well with him, but no other dogs. She is afraid of any little sounds, close baskets, boxes, you name it. What can I do to help her break out of this?
Please help!

[coco-bean]

go check out my thread about my dog being scared of EVERYTHING...some other PT'ers had some really good tips for me!

[peyton&rudi]

thanks, did you ever purchase that book?

[GreyhoundGirl]

A lot of people seem to have this same issue. *ponders for a moment* I never really thought of it as a big issue. Jenny's been like that for years. :(

*shrugs*

[agilityk9trainer]

thanks, did you ever purchase that book?

I'm the one who recommened that book, and I recommend it for you as well. It's an easy read full of good advice, and it will make you feel better about your dog, too.

Shyness in dogs is caused by several factors including (but not limited to) lack of early socialization, neglect, abuse, a tragic experience, etc. But, as apparently is in your case, it can also be caused by genes. Unfortunately, many breeders will breed very shy dogs, and they pass on the defect in further generations. I find many of the shyness issues in dogs are due to poor breeding.

It's too bad many breeders don't take personality into consideration as much as they take in looks. Personality and health should be on the very top of a breeders list - not things relating to looks - in my opinion.

I'm not meaning to put down your dog. I know you've got a great pet at home who is very loving. I have the same thing with my Eskie. She was bred by a BYB, and I got her from a shelter. She came with papers, so I was able to contact her breeder. If more care had gone into the breeding, the litter would not have suffered these shyness effects. I'm really generally bashing breeders who don't pay attention to personality, and then produce these terribly shy dogs. I'm glad yours found a loving, understanding home.