Therapy dog

Hello everyone. 
I have a 13 year old girl who’s traits include being obsessed with dogs of any nature. She has to see them, pet them, collect things to do with dogs and has always gone on and on about having one. 
five weeks ago I decided to get a puppy, one that can grow with the family and help her with emotional issues. She gets angry a lot, has little interaction with others and likes to be on her own. 
bUT it hasn’t gone down as expected. She was angry I tried to surprise her (no surprise), she doesn’t seem that bothered with him and shouts at him when he doesn’t want to be cuddled continuously by her. She wants to sit on the sofa watching TV or being in her phone and is coming across like it’s a chore to have him.  I am the one getting up at 430am, toilet training him and cleaning every day. 
will this get any better? Was it the right decision? Twill she grow with him? 
many advice would be gratefully received 

Parents
  • Hi - it was a nice thought but I don't understand - why didn't you include your daughter in the whole process?      Instead, you've dumped a life-changing situation on her with no prior notice and you're expecting her to fine with it and to accept *your* choice of breed and personality of dog.

    She's actually doing the same as dogs do - if something enters their personal space that they don't like, they turn their head away and ignore it - and if it gets too close, they snap at it.        Can you see the parallels?.

    We crave predictability, calmness and controlled situations - and you've accidentally injected a whole load of unplanned four-pawed chaos into hers.

    With big changes like this we need to be gently introduced to the idea - "Do you think a dog would help you?"     "Do you think you would want to look after a dog?"         "What type of dog would be the best fit for you and why?"         "If we had a dog, where would it sleep?"      "Would you clean up after it?"    etc.  etc.      Only when she's processed all these issues would she be prepared for going to look at dogs with the view to eventually selecting one.

    I have to ask - did *you* want the dog and are blaming the bad decision on your daughter because she has her own opinion?

  • Hello. Thank you for your reply. I appreciate coming back to me. Sorry I think I didn’t word it correctly in my above statement. We had the dog 5 weeks ago, didn’t just decide to get one there and then. It wasn’t a quick decision and took over a year to implement.
    firstly she was involved in the process. We discussed most of what you said about sleeping, cleaning, routines etc.  We looked at size, training abilities and even colours and names. 
    secondly I didn’t necessarily want a dog. I am allergic and have to take antihistamines every day to curb the reaction I get. I solely went into this with the backing of her and her brother also family members.  

  • Aaaah - well that's a different thing - I think what you've got is a 'nose out of joint because she didn't choose the dog / didn't get to see all the puppies / we hate surprises and unplanned changes / and typical teenage strop about it all'.      A terrible combination.    She missed out on all the things she would have wanted to be directly involved with.

    Depending on how wilful she is, she might just ignore the dog forever.       It wasn't done on her terms so it doesn't exist - someone else's problem.    She might come around when the dog is obviously not going away - when it's part of the furniture - and the least socially demanding thing in her life - 13 is a tough time for girls - just give it time.

    What sort of dog is it?     What temperament?   How old?

  • give her a while  i bet you she will like him. Get her involved in doing his hair ( washing then cutting )  shih tsu's are harder to train but when u achieve something  with them its awesome ---- "give u paw" is the first trick to train them, then "hi five" which is one paw then other paw. They are pretty funny dogs very bossy full of character u can tell i adore them :)

    Every time my daughter comes home my shih tsu gets a hair wash and hair cut of some sort they both love it. 

Reply
  • give her a while  i bet you she will like him. Get her involved in doing his hair ( washing then cutting )  shih tsu's are harder to train but when u achieve something  with them its awesome ---- "give u paw" is the first trick to train them, then "hi five" which is one paw then other paw. They are pretty funny dogs very bossy full of character u can tell i adore them :)

    Every time my daughter comes home my shih tsu gets a hair wash and hair cut of some sort they both love it. 

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