Oliver's Home and it's Not What I Expected!

[drlisaort]

I've been bonding with Oliver for the last 10 weeks and had all kinds of fears prior to bringing him home. My biggest fears started with Oliver biting, screaming, inability to get him out of his cage, not staying on his stand, and on and on the fears went. And to be honest from the second I put him in the car in his carrier on Monday to today he's been amazing. He steps up most of the time, he loves to be held and pet, he's trying all the new foods I'm introducing to him, he is more quiet than not, and he's not afraid of my sweet German Shepherd Sage.

Okay, all good, but there's one problem, Sage is terrified of Oliver! She won't eat, she dives into the closet, under my desk, or any dark corner she can find every time Oliver makes any noise. We all feel awful. Has anybody ever experienced this? If so, what suggestions do you have for me to make a happy union here?

 

[ruffledfeathers]

I think sometimes it takes dogs a while to get used to having a bird in the house. My dog had a bird in the house from the time he was a baby, and i still put the thundershirt on him in the beginning because he is high strung.
When i first bought Georgie, my avian vet had warned me he has heard of dogs taking a while and even some dogs needing temporary tranquilizers to get used to the parrot. My dog was fine, but i have had friends dogs go crazy when they see the bird. I think in time it will work itself out but maybe something calming like the thundershirt may be helpful. Maybe even especially long walks with the dog to release some of the energy and then calm time at home with the bird.
and CONGRATULATIONS on your new baby. Love the name of course (my Gilbert is "Gilbert Oliver")

 

[94lt1]

Idk what to tell you about the dog.. other than to be careful.. if the dog is scared of the bird, it might lash out... if a dogs tooth punctures a bird(or a cats) they are lethal in very little time..(saliva)
I'm just giving you fair warning.. good luck.

 

[Joshuwaaa]

When Claude, our staffie, used to live with us he was always a little frightened of the bird. Thankfully dogs are much easier to calm with strokes an fuss.

I would suggest letting him sniff the cage, see the bird an such, but all under your strict safety measures. Try an keep the pooch involved, he will love the bird too.

Have fun

 

[MikeyTN]

It will take your dog some time to get adjusted to birds. At the beginning Alexis does like what sage does when we first brought her home, Willie was already here. But over time they got adjusted to one another and she learned that Willie feeds her treats so they got to be great buddies over time.

 

[drlisaort]

I think sometimes it takes dogs a while to get used to having a bird in the house. My dog had a bird in the house from the time he was a baby, and i still put the thundershirt on him in the beginning because he is high strung.
When i first bought Georgie, my avian vet had warned me he has heard of dogs taking a while and even some dogs needing temporary tranquilizers to get used to the parrot. My dog was fine, but i have had friends dogs go crazy when they see the bird. I think in time it will work itself out but maybe something calming like the thundershirt may be helpful. Maybe even especially long walks with the dog to release some of the energy and then calm time at home with the bird.
and CONGRATULATIONS on your new baby. Love the name of course (my Gilbert is "Gilbert Oliver")

Thank you Ruffledfeathers! This has certainly been a "kill joy" for sure. I love my dog and now she's not eating and very, very sad. And of course Oliver can feel my emotions and he's now misbehaving...almost bit me but I moved quick and startled him because as I moved my hand instinctively went up to block the bite and accidently tapped him on the head. I feel awful. I think he thinks I was trying to hit him. So, at first he didn't want to remain on his stand. I worked with him practicing step ups for both of us to move past. He's a wonderful bird and my "nervous nelly" self is not good for all three of us.

Thank you for your suggestions. If it continues I'll call my vet. Sage is now just staying in her crate with the door open instead of roaming about. Oliver is a very quiet bird compared to what I expected. So, perhaps it will work itself out. I had to use drugs and I never even thought about the thunder t-shirt which could be doubly useful as she's afraid of thunder too! Where did you get yours?

Thank you again!
Lisa

 

[drlisaort]

Thank you MikeyTN your note is very reassuring!

 

[ruffledfeathers]

I got my first thundershirt from a local dog store and then i bought a 2nd one because i was so pleased with how it works on my dogs. i got the 2nd one cheap, used, after doing an online search. one of my dogs (the one i used it on when Gilbert came home) is AMAZING in that shirt. He is just like the commercials for it. He can go from running back and forth, barking and panting, to just walking to the sofa and hopping up to snooze. I also use it for nail trimming because 2 of my dogs are so scared of nail trimmings and it seems to keep them calm enough to be still and get it done quickly.

 

[Kitty]

Hi there,

I'm a real doggie person and I managed to help my dog with her phobia of fireworks..

Every time Oliver makes a noise, reward Sage. Sage will begin to associate Oliver's noise with something positive, like fuss or a yummy treat!

My dog is very nervous and fireworks would really upset her, after a bit of positive training she's now totally fine when the neighbours have bonfire parties

Hopefully Sage will get her confidence back in no time

 

[momto3]

When my first son was born my Yorkie freaked out every time the baby cried or every time I held him. My Yorkie had previously been my baby and hadn't been around a lot of kids or noise. My vet recommended a little bit of peach snopps (he is a well respected vet and people travel from other states to see him) soaked in bread a few times a day to take the edge off. This did work, but not enough so my dog was put on a low does of Prozac for a while. After a couple of months my dog no longer needed it and it was fine. We spent LOTS of time just sitting next to each other, petting the dog, giving treats for good behavior around the baby, letting the dog sniff the baby carrier, etc. If your dog is really bonded to you, bringing another pet or person into the household can be stressful.

I would recommend that you try and get the dog near the cage so that you can pet, play, give treats etc. in the vicinity of the bird and try not to give the bird any attention at first. I would try and focus more on your dog--could be some jealously going on and it could just be scared from the change in its environment. I am happy to say that all of our pets now get along--and we have a bunch. Sometimes it just takes time and patience and a bit of creativity to get to a good spot.

 

[drlisaort]

Thank you for the wonderful advice Momto3! Sage is doing much better. We've been spending tons of time with her and we did get the thunder-shirt that was suggested in a previous post. I think we're making headway. And Oliver couldn't be sweeter. He is a wonderful baby boy--very smart. He's already trying to say words and is understanding potty and it's significance. All is good!