We adopted a young dog from a foster home/rescue group a while ago. She is a lovely looking medium sized dog and we adore her although she does create her share of drama here on the farm.
Recently I scrolled through a dog breed site and there she was, a “Carolina Dog” in every way possible. Looks, behaviour - everything was on the nose!
So I would be curious to hear other’s experiences with these interesting dogs.
I’ve got one. Got her back in Feb 2012 straight from a rural shelter. She came heavily preggo and had her pups shortly after arriving. She has also picked up of distemper while at the shelter. Lost all but one pup. Almost lost her. She is still ‘feral’ acting most of the time but very sweet. Definitely a different dog all around. She will mimic sounds (kind of creepy at times) and learns by watching the other dogs.
CDs are just different from other breeds.
Thanks for your input Logical. I was having trouble understanding her strong bonds with us and shyness with others. She is very aggressive with dogs outside her normal social circle which is difficult but manageable here on our own property. Definitely not the easy lab, terrier behaviour I am familiar with.
She doesn’t have separation anxiety on a short term basis but will build anxiety as she sees us packing the horse trailer. We have wonderful dog people that come to feed, exercise and hang with her while we are away but by day 2 she won’t go near them and even runs away into the forest and doesn’t return.
So we have booked her into a vet clinic kennel where at least I know she will be there when we return. Have never done this before and feel awful.
For disclosure, what I know is talking to a friend who is passionate about the breed, not direct experience.
Based on conversations I had with her, what you describe doesn’t surprise me. She said they tend to bond pretty tightly within their pack but take a while to let anyone else in–so you are part of her pack, but she will distrust anyone outside it. They haven’t been bred for centuries like so many other breeds to see extend the pack acceptance to most people/dogs generally. Obviously there are individual differences, and nurture/socialization might help overcome that, but she did mention it as something she’s seen with her dogs and the ones she’s rescued/fostered.
Also–is your dog an only dog? Because that pack mentality is pretty strong, she said they often do better in groups. It might (total conjecture here) help her out if she had another dog to bond to, so she wasn’t alone when you left on longer trips. And if that dog was a socially outgoing dog that loved people, it might help her learn to welcome others more easily than she does now.
I had what I think may have been a Carolina Dog, but was probably just a completely feral yellow dog. I got him from the shelter, and he was the most unusual dog I’ve ever owned. He was very shy but very, very sweet. I was the only person who could touch him.
I recently read an article in the NYTimes (I think) about a recent genetic study of dogs in America, and their conclusion was that the European dog had completely displaced the indigenous America dog; the Carolina dog may have some indigenous genes, but is mostly European in its mix.
Yes Halt at X, she does have another dog - an outgoing, hilarious terrier mix and they are very close. Both my vets and friends leave their dogs here several times a week for “fun days” and hikes. She plays well with them and enjoys them but we are not willing to risk introducing new dogs as she has sent two for stitches. So that’s not happening.
I can’t leave the terrier out with her while we’re gone due to coyote population here.
Viney, it is amazing how incredibly sweet they are. I feel better after hearing others’ experiences with them and now consider myself lucky that she has as many (four) people she adores and a healthy group of buddies.
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