dog afraid of other dogs in dog park

[sarmenhb]

hi,

i take her to the small dog section there is a big dog and a small dog section. she is afraid of dogs half her size most of the time. i dont have a backyard though i wish i did. i live in an apartment and thankfully after hell she is potty trained. in the apartment there is grass so i take her there at times when i step out. the dog park i go to so far the dogs are good. i am on full watch just in case. and dogs that are aggressive arent allowed in the park so everyone keeps an eye out for anything. i live in los angeles,ca i'll check that site out and see if there is anything around me thanks. what my dog has against dogs half her size or same size is it normal? i thought maybe it had to do with something that happend to her when she was a child but i cant think of anything since she's pretty much been in my family since day one except that she was with her mother for 3 months breast feeding. her father is very very agressive so it can maybe be from him yet im unsure.

[Freedom]

Just like humans, not all dogs are comfortable with many new "strangers" around. Some see it as a great time to meet new friends, others find it scary and overwhelming.

Since it is a small dog area, maybe after a few visits, when she gets to know a couple, she will feel more comfortable!

[IRescue452]

Try the same park consistently instead of a new park each time. She should get to know the area and some of the frequent visitors over time and come out of her shell. Don't coddle her either. When she chases another dog away and then turns around and comes to you just let it go. If the other dog reacted well by leaving her alone it will help with her confidence that she can tell other dogs when she want to be let alone and she's not in any danger. She may soon realize the other dogs aren't interested in her when she does that and then she will have to go initiate a greeting if she's curious about them.

[sarmenhb]

thanks, i'll try to go every other day at a certain time so that i can catch some of the same people. hopefully it works thanks