This may be a somewhat longer post, so please bear with me! I recently bought an APBT. I bought him from a friend who was keeping him chained up in his back yard. Not only is he an absolutely gorgeous dog, I don't believe animals are lawn ornaments and strongly disagreed with the way he was being kept, so I basically begged my friend to let me take him off his hands. He's about 6 1/2 months old and I'm impressed with him so far. He's a complete sweetheart, loves people, gets along with my other three dogs great, but we have one problem. He's terrified of everything else. People he's great with, animals he's great with, but if I take him out in public, say the park to walk around, he refuses to walk. He'll get out of the car and lay down just watching his surroundings, if he does get up to walk its a very low walk, almost like he's belly crawling and it makes me feel terrible to walk around with an APBT hunkered over like that, because we all know what people are going to automatically assume. I know he can walk, he gallops all over my yard just fine, but as soon as we get in public everything changes. At the vets office I had to carry him in the door, then carry him to the room. I thought it may be the type of floor, but I've discovered anywhere public he acts that way. Its numerous other things also, like when I take pictures of him, especially face shots, he flinches away from the camera. So I was wondering if there was any advice on how I can get him used to going to the park to walk around, help him realize its a fun environment and there isn't anything to be afraid of. My second question is about his size, he's 6 1/2 months old and 45 pounds. I'm not too sure he's going to get any bigger than he is already, and he's quite small for his age. I've attached a picture to see if anybody has any comments on his size or weight.

Oh, he's a handsome boy. He may have a little more filling out to do, or even get just a tiny bit taller, but he looks almost fully grown to me-- what did the vet tell you?

As for his fear-- this is more common than you realize in any puppy that has not been well-socialized. My own dog had similar isssues. It has taken a lot of work over the years (she's five now). At first, only walk him in very quiet areas, with minimal activity, and at the least busy times of the day/evening. Don't try to take him out to the park just yet. If you go to walk him down a favorite street, only to discover a foot/bicycle race will be coming through, leave and go somewhere else.

For now, just work on getting him to enjoy walking on the lead-- in a quiet area-- forget "public" places until he is more comfortable simply walking on lead. Then you can very slowly, and gradually, introduce him to more stimulus. Start at a time when there would be a few people out, but not a lot-- in my area, that would be Sunday evening (everyone has work/school in the morning, so they are getting ready for bed early). Then, take him past at a good distance, like clear across the street, rather than on the same sidewalk as the location of the group. He can see/hear the people, but they are far enough away that he does not worry that they are going to try to approach him or pet him, or hurt him. Practice this for a couple of weeks. When he can walk past from that distance without seeming to take notice, you can try walking past a little bit closer. When you can finally walk him past the park or whatever on the same parallel sidewalk, up the ante by actually walking through the park-- you are still going during a time of least activity, though. When he can handle that, you can try going at a busier time-- Saturday evening. Again, start from a distance, and gradually get closer and closer as the weeks pass. This will take months and months of gradual desensitization, so be very, very patient, and don't rush him. If at any time he becomes stressed, turn around and leave the way you came-- do not force him to "face" his fear.

As for going to the vet-- my dog still isn't comfortable once we get into that little room. I always take her for a nice, leisurely walk before we go, to help her relax. And she's fine until we get into the exam room-- then I end up with a 60 lb lap dog, lol! But that works out, because then when the doctor comes into the room, I've already got her in my arms, and I can then just stand up, lifting her onto the exam table for the doctor. She cooperates well enough, and the doctor recognizes that she is stressed and nervous, and he is sympathetic to her. But she is always plenty eager to leave when we're done! Unfortunately, there are just some uncomfortable circumstances we simply have to subject our dogs to, for their own health-- like vet visits and ear cleanings. We just have to try to lessen the trauma of the event to the best we can, and end it on a positive note.

When I took him to the vet they said that he looked pretty well for being kept outside on a chain, he has several baby teeth that are still sitting on top of his adult teeth that have to be removed, but that will happen when he's nuetered. As far as his weight he's in the perfect weight range for his age, but he is small to be a male APBT. When he was a puppy, around 2 or 3 months old, his previous owner was basically going to let him die. He had worms really bad, he had no meat on his bones at all, a huge distended tummy, all he did was lay around, no energy, ate like a vaccuum but was getting no better. My mother is a vet tech so I went and talked to her about it, we gave him two rounds of drontal and a revolution, I also brought him a huge 50 lb dog of puppy food. His previous owner really couldn't afford to take care of him. So I think him being smaller has to do with him being so sick as a puppy, it may have stunted his growth a little bit, and it may have to do with him not getting all the adequate nutrients he needed as a small puppy. I'm fine with him being small framed, his health is whats important to me.

I've been walking him on a leash around my yard, I have a huge front yard and a huge back yard with alot of land. He does great on the leash, its just being in public that makes him nervous. So last night I decided to walk down the road just a little bit. I walked him all over the yard, ran with him, played fetch, then we walked down the driveway to the road, he acted fine, so we walked a short distance. He did great and really seemed to enjoy it. I guess I just started out too big by taking him to the park. We need to work up to that.

There ya go, then. I'm sure he will be very happy and grateful for his new life with you-- enjoy him. : )

[Kingsbridge Cav]

Mydogiscute has some great suggestions. I would do everything suggested but couple it with positive reinforcement. At first you will probably need to do so with everything he is doing right! Try keeping a treat bag strapped to your waist, especially when out of the "comfort zone". Distract your pup whenever you anticipate anxiety especially, but all through the walk. Very small bits of treat will do the trick, just something to let him know that you are pleased with him. Couple the treats with a positive voice response, such as "yes!" When anxiety hits, 1)treat then 2)"Yes!". When you notice that your pup is not responding to stressful stimulus, gradually minimize the amount of treats and voice response. He will cherish the times that you do give him the reward and work to please you. Good luck and be patient. It may take longer than you hope, but a true companion is worth the effort!
Your pup is still growing at the age of 6 months even though you may not be able to measure any additional height. Don't be surprised if you see him get taller. I'm sure he will put on a lot of muscle\bulk even after the age of 12 months. Keep him on a puppy chow for at least the first year and you might be surprised how much he grows!
Good luck with your little champ and bless you for talking the friend into surrendering him to someone who will give him the best!

Oh he is a looker. I have to agree that he has missed out on social behaviour. Thats why it is so important to get you dog used to noise, people and all sorts of situations as soon as possible. It's best to start him off slow. It's very good that you took him in, well done. He will have a happy life now x

hey everyone uhm well my dog is being slightly agressive and over playfull i love playing with him but he dont know when enough is enough so what can I do to calm him or train him to chill?

When he starts getting rough or out of control, or if you are just tired of playing, turn your back on him and fold your arms. Walk away. Be boring. He will persist for a several minutes, but don't give in. Stay boring. He will get the message and give up.

Very cute... First off, he is normal size for an APBT (they are NOT giant dogs like some people are trying to breed) I had a foster APBT female who at great weight toped out at 38lbs.

I think you need to hire a trainer who can help with the socialization and training. Make sure it is one who has worked with the breed and uses positive methods.

Also since he missed out on a good diet as a young puppy is it VITAL that you feed him properly (ie: No Purina, Iams, Eukanuba, Science Diet). Get him on a quality food and i am sure you will see big changes!

He is cute! I have to agree with what others have said...he was not properly socialized so it will take a lot of hard work on your part and patience, so he is allowed to 'catch up' on the vital training he missed out on when he was younger. Good luck!