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Help with Maremma male 12 months


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Hi, I am very new to this, however am looking for some advice. We have just adopted a 12 month old male maremma. The pup has been in a paddock for his entire life, born in the paddock, left by humans. Lived with his mum, dad and 7 other sibling pups. Now, this dog is scared. And scared is an understatement, this boy is terrified. He is with our chooks/ducks (we have a hobby farm) after all my research on Maremmas I know that this breed is for us. We have lost a lot of stock to wild dogs and foxes over the past few years, our alpacas did a terrible job. My question is this. Through love patience and understanding, is this boy going to pull out of this scared anti-social behaviour. Or is this a job that will not end well? He is also sooo skinny, iv never seen anything like it, although he does love food.. I think perhaps he hasn’t really gotten food in his short life. (Apparently mum fed him and the other 7 for 6 months). I feel like we have rescued this boy, but again, he is unlike any dog iv ever known. He is gentle, but I can not even pat the pup. He is so scared. Help.

Edited by Farmyfamof7
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:(  You basically have a 'wild' dog . 
I do not know much about Maremma. These are just some of my thoughts...I'm sure you'll get wise advice from someone. 
If he has had nothing to do with humans up close , patting him will be a way down the track, and the least of yr concerns .
 Coming from a pack, to being a singleton in a strange place - gosh ...poor dog. Feeding him is a great start :)> Work on eventually getting him to eat from your hand . feed him TOP QUALITY food  to help him recover from his poor start . 
 do NOT TRY to approach HIM to pat/cuddle etc . His reaction may be instinctive and painful. :( ..let HIM make overtures to you . 
I am also thinking he will never have had any vaccinations or health checks? 
Do you have absolutely DOG PROOF FENCES? 
Hopefully he will bond with your stock ...do not take this for granted. It is NOT automatic. Dogs need to be trained from puppyhood with the appropriate stock . He will be feeling absolutely abandoned/confused and scared, and will certainly not be ready to "work" .
Those "breeders" are not who I'd buy a dog from :(:(   

:mad   

 

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2 hours ago, Powerlegs said:

When you say adopted -  via rescue/shelter?

If so you need to contact them asap. They need to know you are struggling. 

 

No, privately from the owner. I didn’t realise exactly what I was buying. He is microchipped. And have transfer papers. However no vacation or other care at all.

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3 hours ago, Rebanne said:

Time is the only thing that will really help. Perse is right, you have a wild dog. Maybe approach some livestock guardian breeders for in depth advice.

I also feel it’s a ‘time’ thing.. perhaps I just persist.. for an indefinite period of time? I just actually feel so bad for him.. and it saddens me.. iv never met/seen a dog or pup that doesn’t even want to be touched. Although, he does wag his tail briefly when he sees me, but I can’t get too close.

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6 minutes ago, Farmyfamof7 said:

No, privately from the owner. I didn’t realise exactly what I was buying. He is microchipped. And have transfer papers. However no vacation or other care at all.

Oh dear. They won't be of any help at all by the sound of it. :( 
Have a Google for Companions For Life which is Andrea at Maremma Rescue. She's awesome with the breed. And there's a couple of FB groups that are Maremma specific too.
The idea of contacting a breeder is a good one, they may be able to help also. 

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8 minutes ago, Powerlegs said:

Oh dear. They won't be of any help at all by the sound of it. :( 
Have a Google for Companions For Life which is Andrea at Maremma Rescue. She's awesome with the breed. And there's a couple of FB groups that are Maremma specific too.
The idea of contacting a breeder is a good one, they may be able to help also. 

I actually don’t have fb.. I know ‘shock, horror’ lol. I will have to contact someone as I have no experience with a dog that you ‘can’t touch’ He is super super skinny tho.. like, I feel like crying. I was told that they had to ‘fast’ and that they were only fed a couple times a week because “you don’t mess with nature” basically.. this beautiful boy is starved.. I just feel that is perhaps the way to his heart and to earn trust.. to get feed him, and get some bones covered.. he does wag his tail when he sees me. But nothing much else to report..

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6 minutes ago, Farmyfamof7 said:

I actually don’t have fb.. I know ‘shock, horror’ lol. I will have to contact someone as I have no experience with a dog that you ‘can’t touch’ He is super super skinny tho.. like, I feel like crying. I was told that they had to ‘fast’ and that they were only fed a couple times a week because “you don’t mess with nature” basically.. this beautiful boy is starved.. I just feel that is perhaps the way to his heart and to earn trust.. to get feed him, and get some bones covered.. he does wag his tail when he sees me. But nothing much else to report..

People manage to survive without fb :laugh: lol

Fully understand about welling up with tears when you can feel every bone in their body. :( 

 

I think you're right about food being the way to his heart to start with. And lots of time, and some breed specific guidance. :) 

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15 hours ago, persephone said:

:(  You basically have a 'wild' dog . 
I do not know much about Maremma. These are just some of my thoughts...I'm sure you'll get wise advice from someone. 
If he has had nothing to do with humans up close , patting him will be a way down the track, and the least of yr concerns .
 Coming from a pack, to being a singleton in a strange place - gosh ...poor dog. Feeding him is a great start :)> Work on eventually getting him to eat from your hand . feed him TOP QUALITY food  to help him recover from his poor start . 
 do NOT TRY to approach HIM to pat/cuddle etc . His reaction may be instinctive and painful. :( ..let HIM make overtures to you . 
I am also thinking he will never have had any vaccinations or health checks? 
Do you have absolutely DOG PROOF FENCES? 
Hopefully he will bond with your stock ...do not take this for granted. It is NOT automatic. Dogs need to be trained from puppyhood with the appropriate stock . He will be feeling absolutely abandoned/confused and scared, and will certainly not be ready to "work" .
Those "breeders" are not who I'd buy a dog from :(:(   

:mad   

 

Hi, thank you for your reply, it’s a good way to put it, I guess he kind of is a ‘wild’ dog.. that is sad. I actually have him in a Quite large duck pen (‘fox proof, dig proof, climb, fly proof) and have moved my ducks to a smaller pen. (Still as big as some people’s backyards tho!)  he is up against the ducks/chooks/pigglets. I feel coming from where he did he at least had chooks, so there would be some type of familiar here being with them. He cry’s all night (very sad sounding) as I mentioned I can not get close to him, he is terrified. He is gentle tho, I can see it is his eyes, and he does wag his tail when I’m with him. You mentioned about ‘a pack’ we have a girl pup purchased already from a Breeder but we do not get her for a month still, will this help his pack issue, or will it give our new puppy ‘issues’? I don’t want her to see that he is so scared and stand offish and react the same way.. any help will be so great. Thank you 

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4 hours ago, Farmyfamof7 said:

we have a girl pup purchased already from a Breeder but we do not get her for a month still, will this help his pack issue, or will it give our new puppy ‘issues’?

I would be VERY wary of introducing the new puppy to "wild boy" ...she may bond with him and adopt his ways :(

I hope you have taken lots of photos of this boy's poor condition . It almost sounds a RSPCA issue :( 

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I was told that they had to ‘fast’ and that they were only fed a couple times a week because “you don’t mess with nature” basically.

What a load of .....BS . Pups/dogs can not develop into their healthy selves with limited food :( I believe in one fasting day a week for our dogs ...that does no harm , and is usually only in the warmer months - they need their dinners in Winter ( we have working sheepdogs -Koolies) Puppies/young dogs up to 12 mths NEVER get fasted - they need all the nourishment they can get. I hope you are feeding this lad a puppy food(or fresh/raw)   to provide maximum nourishment  . :love:   Does he have a name ? 

Edited by persephone
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Andrea from Companions for Life is definitely the person to contact.  One of my friends had Maremmas when she had acreage (she had adopted some from Andrea).  They have special needs and are very sensitive to loud noises.  I used to house sit for her and the dogs were fine with me, as we were introduced correctly.  However one time I banged the soles of my shoes together to get some loose grass off and they wouldn't come anywhere near me all day!  So keep everything calm, keep the dog contained and please ring Andrea.

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6 hours ago, persephone said:

I would be VERY wary of introducing the new puppy to "wild boy" ...she may bond with him and adopt his ways :(

I hope you have taken lots of photos of this boy's poor condition . It almost sounds a RSPCA issue :( 

What a load of .....BS . Pups/dogs can not develop into their healthy selves with limited food :( I believe in one fasting day a week for our dogs ...that does no harm , and is usually only in the warmer months - they need their dinners in Winter ( we have working sheepdogs -Koolies) Puppies/young dogs up to 12 mths NEVER get fasted - they need all the nourishment they can get. I hope you are feeding this lad a puppy food(or fresh/raw)   to provide maximum nourishment  . :love:   Does he have a name ? 

His name is just ‘pup’ but I seem to call him ‘buddy’ a lot.. so perhaps that will just stick. Yes I am feeding him 3 small meals per day. I will try my heart out because he deserves it. But, I will also think about it strongly because I’d hate for him to not accept the new girl we will get next month, makes me wonder.. non stop. The last thing I want is for a little pup to be hurt.

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6 hours ago, persephone said:

I would be VERY wary of introducing the new puppy to "wild boy" ...she may bond with him and adopt his ways :(

I hope you have taken lots of photos of this boy's poor condition . It almost sounds a RSPCA issue :( 

What a load of .....BS . Pups/dogs can not develop into their healthy selves with limited food :( I believe in one fasting day a week for our dogs ...that does no harm , and is usually only in the warmer months - they need their dinners in Winter ( we have working sheepdogs -Koolies) Puppies/young dogs up to 12 mths NEVER get fasted - they need all the nourishment they can get. I hope you are feeding this lad a puppy food(or fresh/raw)   to provide maximum nourishment  . :love:   Does he have a name ? 

I agree with RSPCA issue.

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