Hi, I am new to the forum. I have recently adopted a rescue dog, he is an 18 month old border collie called Rusty, apparently he was found as a stray. He is the most lovable dog and so affectionate, He is now putting on weight and his coat is looking a lot better now that i brush him at least once a week. The only problem that I have with him is that he is so so timid, he is frightened of anything and everything, even if I sneeze or cough he jumps in his bed, when I take him for a walk he is very nervous and jumpy. Although I must say in the four weeks we have had him I have seen a little improvement. My Grandson who is only 4 goes up to him gently and gives him a little treat, but Rusty won't move out of his bed or eat his treat until my Grandson has gone out of the room. It makes you wonder what this poor little animal has been through. Any advice or direction would be appreciated. Thanks in advance.
RustyB's Mum

Firstly welcome to the site

As for advice, I'm sure you are already but be very patient, tollerent & reward the dog for every thing good.

The dog has obviously been through hell & needs to learn to trust again!

hth

Its very easy with a dog as nervous as rusty to believe he has been beaten and neglected prior to you getting him. It is just as possible that he has just had no experience of things, so he sees everything as a hazard. He was probably a farm bred collie, so didn't see much of life in his early days, he may have then gone to an owner that didn't get him out and about seeing things.
Unfortunately a dog of 18 months needs to experience the same thing again and again to gain confidence of it.
If you have a garden, I suggest you take your dog and grandson out there so rusty does not feel trapped. Get your grandson to throw high quality food that rusty likes away from him and let rusty run to get it. This must always be done under your supervision, a dog as scared as rusty, may bite.
Try to get him playing, chasing a ball, tugging. if you can get him to grab a toy, let him win all the time to build his confidence.
It will be a long slow progress, he will never be a lion, but I have seen many dogs like rusty, gain a good quality of life.
Contact a behaviourist in your area to help with confidence building, if they suggest classes, look for outdoor ones, not one in a hall, he will probably freak.

i agree with the above, lots of love and in time he will improve, at least he has a caring owner now,

Thankyou for your replies, obviously you are all experienced dog owners and I will be happy to try what you suggest, who knows given a couple of months Rusty will be as happy with me as I am with him and he will at least be a little more confident, thanks again.

RustyB

I'm sure he will

Welcome to the forums. I'm a newbie to them too. It's great to hear that people as caring as you are giving adopted dogs a second chance. This forum certainly seems like the people care and have good advice to offer. I wish you all the best and look forward to hearing how the rehabilitation efforts go.

__________________
The reason a dog has so many friends is that he wags his tail instead of his tongue.
-Anonymous

Hi I have three border collies a 13 year old a 1 year old and a 6 month old pup. The pup I have was also a rescue he was kept in a shed with no interaction. He was extremely anxious and timid at first and would cower when a hand came anywhere near him. But with plenty of walks play and rewards he is slowly coming out of his shell I also took him to dog training whitch gave him confidence. I was lucky that I had other dogs at home whitch helped him feel more at home as he was kept with another dog previously. I know at 18 months this may take a little longer but the end result will be well worth it. Border collies are a lovely breed of dog. Good Luck and hope all goes well.

Thanks for the reply, I'm glad your little pup is gaining confidence. Rusty is getting better day by day he is such a lovable dog, I am enquiring about dog training classes in the area and hopefully with a bit of time and effort he will gain confidence too.

hope everything goes well, keep us posted