"Paul E. Schoen" wrote in message:

I'm not sure why I'm bothering, but here goes.

That is not
"total shutdown", which would be, essentially, a coma.

This dog sounds like it is highly stressed and barely interactive. He
appears to have made some progress since he's been in foster care.
Regardless, this dog does not fit the "my dog Muttley is rather aloof and
independent, as this dog seems to be" comment.

So far, except for myself and Sparrow, only JH has attempted to supply
some
actual advice and encouragement.


Riiiight. Then I must be seeing things, 'cause both Mary and Chris, both of
whom know what they're doing, have offered good, solid advice.

I don't pretend that he is well-trained, but he
is reliable, non-aggressive, and happy.

Who knows, really? As far as I am concerned, you don't have a good track
record when it comes to reporting events related to your dog. You've
yourself admitted to embellishing for 'dramatic effect'.

Muttley was a "projects" dog, as that is where he was found, running wild
and free with his "pack".

You're really doing your dog a disservice by romanticizing his "wild" past,
roaming with a pack and romancing bitches. I happen to have a project dog.
He was found as a stray, running with two other dogs. His ear tips are
bitten off (it looks like someone took pinking shears to them), and he was
afraid of everything except other dogs when he came to us. It took daily
work for over two years to get him to be somewhat normal and trusting with
people, and I still work with him daily on his socialization, because he
still has a tendency to backslide if we slack on it. He was also aloof,
independent, stubborn, and very much his own dog.

We don't go around making up stuff about what may or may not have happened
to him in the past, because it is utterly and totally irrelevant. We put
actual work into this dog to make him one that is acceptable to have in just
about any company. He has turned into a very good dog. We were novice dog
owners that hadn't signed up for this kind of dog, but I'd like to think
that we've done a pretty good job with what we were handed.

Suja