timidness/semi gun shy

[Old Guide]

gspman, have you heard of anyone using the cure your dog of gunshyness in one month tapes? If so did they work? Anyone?

[gspman]

I can't say that I have so I can't really give any feedback on it. I've never had a gunshy dog either so I don't have much experience with it. Maybe someone else can chime in.

One thing I would caution you on is that a month to cure gun shyness seems too good to be true to me. I'd personally take it slow and easy. You've got all winter, spring, and summer to work with.

gspman

[fish4ed]

I have a female wirehair that I spent two years dealing with this. When I had given up hope and was working on my wife to let me get a new pup, my vet told me to take her (the dog, not the wife) to the "pet behavioral clinic" at the U of M. An hour and a half and $150 bucks later I was the proud recipient of two things - the diagnosis of a dog with a "soft" personality and a CD with fireworks noise - bangs, whistles, pops, etc. And, oh yeah, they offered to write a script for Valium to get my dog through the Fourth of July. I made an honest effort to desensitize the dog; let if suffice to say I now have a new male wirehair that just spent a first great season in the field.

The female I got from a breeder in Wisconsin as a "started" dog, the male I got as a pup and trained myself from the ground up. Socialization, bad experiences while training, hard-wired traits, I can't say, but my limited experience taught me this is a really hard thing to overcome. I still have the densensitization CD, if you want it...........

[Old Guide]

fish4ed, thanks for the input. Ihave a 13 year old female wirehair.I got her as a 7week old pup. No problems (those wirehairs do it all!). A friend sold me a gsp for a replacement for when the whp retires. The shorthair was a year old when I got her. She is slowly coming around but I guess time will tell. As gsp said I do have some time before the next bird season. Sorry to hear that your first one didn't work out so well. If the pup doesn't calm down around my wife I may have to get that perscription for valium from you (for me not the dog)!!!