The video which I can’t embed here does not tell us the backstory behind the image of this sweet dog looking so fearful of the presence of a rescue worker who wants to help. The distrust of humans is very strongly evident in this female dog’s facial expression. Her name is Piper. It is an expression which caught my eye. So sad. So horrible that people have done this to this dog who was dumped on a property in the US.
“From the moment she got here [the shelter] she went immediately to the corner.” She refused to approach the woman who was trying to gain her trust. She cowered all the time in the safest place she could find no matter where she was.
She was removed from the shelter to improve her environment and taken to a foster carer who had other dogs in her care. Piper was so reluctant to move. She wanted to hide by pancaking herself against the floor or wall. The foster carer said this after she arrived at her home with Piper and decided to try something to alleviate her fearfulness: introduce dogs into her life.
“The way we got her to come out [from hiding in the foster carer’s bathroom] was we let our other dogs in”.
Piper was transformed by the presence of the other dogs. Within a short time, she was bounding around the backyard with her new dog companions and playing. A transformation in her emotions and personality. She trusted the dogs. Enjoyed being with them.
She was terrified of humans. We don’t know her story but this fear of people was learned and it can only be learned through bad experiences which must mean some form of abuse. This is how it manifests itself in dog behavior.
Can you imagine how hard it can be for animal shelter workers who’ve got to try and encourage dogs like Piper who’ve learned to be scared of people but are great, loving dogs, to present to potential adopters in a good light?
These sorts of dogs can end up being ‘put to sleep’. A horrible euphemism for being killed. I am sure that millions of dogs and cats have been unnecessarily killed at shelters because they did not have the ability to express their true character due to abuse and the environment in which they were placed.
The Guardian newspaper in the UK reports (4th Feb 2023 – Troy Vettese): “The equivalent to 6% of the American cat and dog population (8 million animals) are abandoned at shelters every year – half of whom are then killed.” And how many are excellent dog companions are there who’ve not been given the chance to show it? He wants the whole concept of pet dogs and cats to be disbanded. He claims that “Pet ownership is bad for pets”. I think he is exaggerating! But PETA would possibly agree. It is healthy to question from time to time the whole concept of cat and dog domestication and ask: “Has it been successful?”.
Click this link to see The Dodo video of Piper and how she came out of her shell to live again after he bad experiences.
Below are some more articles on dogs.
