One of the reasons I wanted to begin this blog was to a)talk about my pets non-stop and b)share Bailey's progress. Bailey is an extremely shy pooch, and has been working very hard on becoming more social. Since bringing her home in August, we've made an effort to bring her with us everywhere. It was actually because of her shy and timid personality that we looked a little further into what her past was like. I didn't like what I found as I began to dig a little further, and simply decided that whether she was from a breeder or a puppy mill, she deserved the right to be properly socialized.
Men, particularly strange men seem to scare Bailey the most. Since the beginning of her life with us, Bailey was able to be around two guys in particular; Scott (her faja) and my dad. Since the beginning Bailey has been head over heels in love with my dad. I think it's because he is a genuine pet person, and she recognized it early on (you should see her reaction when we go for a visit. She doesn't know what to do with herself, she's so excited!). Slowly we've gotten her accustomed to other male family members and have finally seen a few tail wags when they come over. And recently she's really begun to warm up to some of Scott's male friends (yay for progress!). But still, my cute little dog seems to freeze up when a strange man walks by. And so, we continue to bring her to dog parks and other dog friendly public places to help ease her intense fear of men.
And so now, my lovely dog owning friends, I ask you this. Has this ever happened to you? How can I help Bailey get over her fear of the construction site while walking with me? I feel like I've failed her; she doesn't feel safe with me walking that part of the path. And sadly, we HAVE to cross that section to go on our walk and cannot afford to move until the fall. Any tips??