A little nervous, but no barking or snapping.

[CassandGunnar]

We've been fostering Chrissy for a month now and since she was in heat when we picked her up and then we had her spay surgery done, we haven't had time to get her out in public more to socialize her.
In the meantime, we found out that she isn't really fond of younger kids (under 10 or so) and anything with wheels. (Garbage carts, skateboards, bikes, etc)
She acts terrified of wheeled things and has growled and snapped at a couple of younger kids.
We've been working hard on both issues and I'm proud to say that we've seen some progress on both fronts.

We went for an hour long walk this afternoon and within the last 2 blocks, we came across some kids walking home from school. We also encountered 2 girls walking home from kindergarden with their mothers.
When the kids got just outside her "red zone" I had her sit and stay. She kept a really close eye on the girls but didn't react in any other way. She was nervous, but no growling or snapping. (I had her lead real short and anticipated a lunge and was ready for it)
We had a mini-party on the spot and she got lots of treats and pets. I even gave treats to the girls mothers for the girls to toss back to Chrissy.
On the street right in front of our house were a couple of kids on Big Wheel type carts. (I had to remind myself to stay calm for that, I was expecting the worse, young kids and wheels)
She kind of went behind me and let out a couple of whines, but didn't shut down or bark and try to run away. Again, she got some treats and another mini-party. As soon as the BigWheels were out of range, she popped back up and was ready to go again.

I'm so proud of her because we're really focusing on the "problem" areas so we can make her as adoptable as possible, as quickly as possible.
I guess what we've been doing is on the right track so we'll keep it up.

[lisgje]

So far, sounds good. Have you tried just walking by a school when the kids are out - across the street of course. Sounds like you are on the right track with getting her used to what she is afraid of. Best of luck!

[CassandGunnar]

Originally Posted by lisgje

So far, sounds good. Have you tried just walking by a school when the kids are out - across the street of course. Sounds like you are on the right track with getting her used to what she is afraid of. Best of luck!

We've been going in our front yard and down the street a bit in the mornings when there are lots of kids waiting for the school bus. It must be having some effect because she was so much better today than even I expected she'd be.
We've also been having my 3 nieces (7, 9 and 13) pitching treats to her and working their way closer.
The wheels thing has just been exposing her to more wheels and the sounds.

[JakodaCD OA]

a suggestion on the wheels thing,,when masi was very very young, we encountered some kids doing stunts on their skateboards,,she was having none of it;(

So I asked the kids to get off the skateboards, (they were more than happy to oblige)...I went to the skateboard, picked it up, and then let her check the board out on her own,,I then pushed it back and forth, kinda popped it..

She was like "duh what was the big fuss about?",,,I then asked the kids to go back and forth while we watched, she was ok, so I pushed it further and had them do some hopping/slamming back and forth..

I'm not saying to go as fast as I did with Masi, I moved ahead because she was fine with what I was doing, and what the kids were doing once she had a chance to investigate it herself...so just a thought)

[CassandGunnar]

Thanks..........great idea. I know I can get my hands on a skateboard. We'll give that a try in the garage and see how she does.