When this family from Yonkers contacted us about their beloved Shepherd mix Oliver, they didn’t know what to do and were on edge all the time. Oliver is a 4 year old rescue who his owners said “was a good dog except when people came over. He barks and has bitten people but he is not nasty, he is scared of everything and took a long time to warm up to us”.
His owners sent him away for training last summer with little results. Instead of giving up, they contacted us at Westchester K-9 and gave training for their boy another chance. Oliver had severe fear aggression and was having a hard time living day to day in his own home because of noises like water bottles being crinkled, pots and pans hitting the counter, and so many other things. Our number one goal with Oliver was to expose him to everything and anything we could! We would muzzle him for safety and went out as if he wasn’t afraid! Soon enough, the scary noises got less scary and he would even fall asleep in the busiest room in our kennel! Facing our fears is not always easy but with a little help from friends can mean all the difference to a dog like Oliver!
Oliver has been home for a couple of weeks now and his mom wanted to let us know that Oliver has been great!! “The few people he met, he was very good and calm and stayed on his bed. He seems much calmer and happier overall. I want to thank you all. I can’t tell you how happy I am for Oliver, hated seeing him scared all the time. THANK YOU!!!”