[Deb]

On 29 November a power surge hit our house, arced and set the attic on fire. We lost almost everything. It took seven fire departments to put out the fire. Shayna appeared to be taking everything in all right. She was three months old then. She was scared, but appeared to be handling the sirens, loud noises, flashing lights and men in strange costumes. The fire happened at dusk, so the fighting of the fire was in the dark. She and I stood next to the expen with the Papillons and Phalenes on one side of my property, which is out in the country. The firemen all took their breaks coming over to the the 'pen of puppies' as they called the Papillons and petting them.

The Papillons are used to dog shows and loved the attention. Shayna took her attitude that night from them. After the fire she and the Papillons stayed at a friend of my son's house. It is very small. One son stayed there and me, my daughter and two other sons stayed at a motel. We went over several times a day to visit with the dogs and put them in and out. She went from quiet country living to noisy town living. An added stress. I was able to buy a small doublewide and put it on the property until we can rebuild and we moved back out.

But now I'm seeing new behavior. Before the fire she was initially cautious around strangers, but then accepting them. Now she is terrified of them. When a male friend of my son's came over to see the new doublewide, she was in her crate in my bedroom. She barked. When they left and my other son tried to put her out he had to drag her, peeing in terror out of her crate and my room. Once she realized no one was there, she was fine.

When a female friend of my son went to his trailer which is behind mine, she saw Shayna in my back yard. Shayna growled and barked, her back to the door. I'm working on helping her. Yesterday I had friends over and put her out before they came. Once they were in we had lunch and I asked them to stay at the table and not get up or even speak to her. Then I had my son let her in. They ignored her and she ran around, tossing toys. So we are making progress slowly. I'll continue to do this and then let them toss her treats. But it's so sad to see her so scared of people. I know it will take time and I thank God she isn't one who bites when she's scared. It was a horrendous experience for a puppy and now I will have my work cut out to help her rebuild her confidence again. Hopefully with time and work she will get over it.

Deb

 

[SkyBreeze]

Im sorry to hear about the fire. I hope your recovering from it now.

How old is she? Maybe a fear period?

Why not ask other people to give her some treats to show they mean no harm.

 

[Mrs.K]

Oh my god Deb. That is horrifying that you have lost everything and your house to a fire.

I am glad that the doggies are fine. Your girl will come around, no wonder she is terrified, it was a traumatic experience for all of you and she is still very young. Sounds like she is recovering quickly which is a very good thing.

I hope you can rebuild your home fast and that things get back to normal.

I am so glad that nobody got hurt.

 

[1sttimeforgsd]

So sorry for the loss of your home, but thank goodness you nor your any of your fur babies were injured.

Sounds like you are working with her and with time she will come around, but I'm sure this has been very tramatic for both you and your pups.

Wishing for you good luck for the future, and that everything will turn out ok.

 

[vat]

Thank goodness you are all ok. I am sure with time and some work she will come around.

 

[Wolfiesmom]

I'm so sorry that you lost your home. You, your fur babies, and your family are all ok, and that's the most important thing. It sounds like a terrifying experience for all of you, and I'm not surprised your pup is having some issues. Probably like post traumatic stress disorder. It sounds like working with her is setting her back on the right track.

 

[Deb]

The kids and I are doing better. We did lose some dogs, (three adults and a litter of four Phalene puppies) all but one cat and all three of my parrots (two greys and an eclectus). One of my older sons' who was home and I had smoke inhalation from trying to get all the animals out. It's been very hard. But we're concentrating on the positive now.

I'm not having people give Shayna treats yet as she's not ready for that yet. Any attention to her puts her into fear mode. Ignoring her right now appears to be helping. We've only been in the house less than two weeks now, so the new house is also another new experience. I don't want to overwhelm her. She's five months old, so I need to go slow and not push her too fast and hard.

 

[pyratemom]

I'm so sorry for your loss of your loved furry family members, but glad you were able to save some. I think taking it slow with Shayna is the right way to go. She probably remembers strangers being there when her home burned up. Let her take it at her own speed and only introduce new things one at a time.

 

[Stosh]

My husband's hotel room caught on fire and he suffered some burns but the worst was the smoke inhalation. He says that it took practically a year for him not to feel the effects...so tell your son to take it slow, it's not something that goes away overnight. I'm so sorry about this tragedy, but glad you and your sons are ok. I agree with everyone else, let her Shayna set her pace