# Rescue Beagle



## whitknee (Dec 13, 2011)

Hi everyone! I am brand new to the site, and am hopeful someone here can give me some advice on my recently rescued beagle.

He came to us through a high-kill shelter in West Virginia. They estimate he's about 2 years old (our vet agrees) and was picked up as a stray. They believe he came from a certain gentleman who owns a hoard of beagles he maltreats and abuses. This little guy came to us scared as all get out. He is especially terrified of men.

He has warmed up to me in a snap, but is still pretty afraid of my boyfriend. Unfortunately now I am worried we might be suffering from a bit of separation anxiety whenever I leave the house. He follows me everywhere I am when I am home, and is almost insufferably excited/crazy when I get home and let him out.

Our biggest problem right now is crate training. We started him in a crate when we would leave the house, and for a while he was fine and not messing in it, but for the past few days we have come home to poop and pee all over the crate. The crate is appropriately sized for him (enough room to lie down, stand up, and turn around, but that's it) but he keeps messing it.

Any suggestions on how to better acclimate this guy to 1) the crate, and 2) my boyfriend? He's better from where we started at the beginning, but we're stuck on these issues. I would like to take him to training or obedience classes, but he is fearful of anyone who isn't ME. I don't think he would do well in them yet.

Any advice would be appreciated!


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## kaelti12 (Oct 9, 2011)

Not sure on the crate thing, but we have friends who have a rescue great dane who was also terrified of men. She had every male who came into the house toss really yummy treats to Gaby(who wouldn't come near them at first) Treats like bits of cheese, or liver, something strong smelling and special. After awhile she would come and take the treat from their hands. None of the guys ever tried to pet her during this, only when she would come up to them and greet them as soon as they walked in the door, did they start petting her. It took a little over 2 months for her to comfortable, but now she is just fine.
You could of course have everyone who comes over(not just men, so inlist the help of friends) feed yours bits of tasty treats, hopefully it will help him associate strangers with something positive.


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## WheatenDaneMom (Nov 4, 2011)

I've never had luck with crates... I am a crate failure. You can train your dog without a crate... not always easy but doable.

And I agree with treats, they're a lifesaver  We used them on our Dane with strangers too


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