Dogs That Hate Their Owners

A lot is said about the tight and special bond between humans and dogs. They call a dog “man’s best friend“. However, recent studies have shown that not everything that glitters is gold. There are some dogs that hate their owners.

This might seem impossible to believe, as throughout history dogs have shown us unconditional love and loyalty. There’s a lot said about the positive feelings and nothing bad could ever be in their hearts. How could they ever claim that there are dogs who hate their owners?

Are There Really Dogs That Hate Their Owners?

Nicholas Dodman from Tufts University in Massachusetts believes so. In his book, “The Conversation”, he gives a real-life example of a man named Rick and his terrier.

Rick adored his Irish dog, but it seems that this love was platonic. The dog, Ruckus, would often respond aggressively. He began marking his territory everywhere and sometimes Rick had to call his wife to help him lock up the dog because they were scared he might attack.

With this uncommon example, Dodman wanted to demonstrate that there are some owners in this situation. They’re situations that should be ignored, as for Ruckus, things didn’t turn out be so nice.

When Rick was cutting the grass one day, Ruckus pounced on him and animal control agents had to intervene. Sad but true. It’s a good reason to try and find out what triggered this behavior.

Reasons Why Dogs Might Hate Their Owners

The story of Ruckus is not an only case. There are some dogs that can respond in the same way due to a variety of reasons. Let’s take a look at some of them.

Trauma

Although it seems that Ruckus hated his owner for some unknown reason, other dogs may react like this for specific reasons. For example, dogs that have been abused simply don’t want to live with new owners because they’re either not interested or they’re nervous.

Remember, dogs have their own personalities. Just like people, not everybody gets along with one another. Animals have their preferences too. A traumatic experience could make them negative and believe that they can’t be happy living with people.

Their reaction could be aggressive, although others might be apathetic or indifferent. It all depends on the dog and the seriousness of their experience.

Fear

In his book “The Dog Who Loved Too Much”, Dodman tells a real-life story about a German Shepherd who was scared of his owner. Whenever he returned home, the dog would run and hide.

His owner had never done him any harm, but the dog had been abused previously. This made him frightened of humans. However, this story had a happy ending.

The owner’s wife suffered from episodes of hypoglycemia which the dog attended to quickly. When he saw that she needed help, he went straight to his owner. His owner in turn took advantage of this moment to show the dog some affection and let him know that he loved him. Over time, their relationship improved.

Bravery isn’t about being fearless. Bravery is about being afraid and doing it anyway.
– Anonymous

Be patient with your dog if he has  similar behaviors. An animal who has had traumatic experiences needs to have fun, go on walks, and have good memories with his owner. Only then will they get over their traumas and lose their fears.

Always use positive reinforcement and kind words. As we’ve said before, with love, affection, and perseverance, nothing is impossible!

Source of Main Image: Tonatiuh Mendez Carrizosa