8 Week Puppy Scared of Everything -Help

[IZZYjax]

I brought home a beautiful baby girl a couple of days ago and she is so scared of everything, from a sneeze to the telephone ringing, it is worrying me. I have had many Rotts in the past and they were never scared like this. When I picked her up she was one of the smallest in the litter, however was playing normal and was very social towards her brothers and sisters. Will she grow out of this? Is there something I can do to help her overcome her fears? Do I give her tough love? or lots of love?

Thanks in advance,

Izzy in Jax

[spidey]

Have you spoken to her breeder about this? Were the puppies evaluated with a proper puppy test?

This is not normal behaviour for an 8 week old puppy (cautiousness, startling and even being nervous for a couple of days in a new home can be normal, but this sounds more serious than that), you may have a fearful, weak-nerved puppy. Speaking as someone who has owned a fearful dog, if she is fearful I would return her were I in your shoes, a fearful dog is a project not to be undertaken lightly by any means, and it can end up being dangerous (seriously fearful dogs who are not managed properly can bite and this is going to be a large, powerful dog who may well grow up to think the world is full of dangers she needs to protect herself from - what if one of those "dangers" is a child?). A dog with weak nerves is never going to be anything else, the best you can do is work VERY hard (with a professional behaviourist) to equip the dog with skills to manage the fear, and manage the environment constantly. A dog with weak nerves will never be normal, you will have to change every plan you have for this dog, you will have to make every single decision with her fearfulness in mind. I do mean to scare you, this is definitely something you are right to be VERY concerned about, and seeing as how you just got her, I would seriously consider returning her, a fearful dog is a lifelong, serious and expensive project (moreso than any normal dog will ever be), and while it can be rewarding, it can also be frustrating and heartbreaking. I'd opt to save yourself the trouble and find a sound-tempered puppy.

Being "tough" is going to make the problem much worse. If you choose to keep her, you need to start doing some research right now ("Scaredy Dog" by Ali Brown, "The Cautious Canine" by Patricia McConnell and "Fearfulness" by Ian Dunbar should be your first stops).

[BostonRott]

How old is this puppy? Where was the litter raised (house/kennel?)

[Sharon Marples]

This is NOT a well socialized, confident puppy. Did you get her from a breeder who guarantees temperament in their contract and who has good references and who socializes their puppies and uses the noise desensitizing process thoroughly before they leave their home? A timid or fear-wrought puppy is no fun and can bring a multitude of problems as they grow. I too would also consider returning her if she continues to exhibit this behavior.