I've recently been reading a few posts on a facebook page by people who have adopted podencos, and seem surprised that after a month or so the dog is still nervous. It saddens me because it would seem they expect far too much too soon from a dog which has probably lived most of its life in a shed on a chain in the hands of a Spanish galguero. It's now been in a shelter, then on a transport and into a home environment where people speak a different language. Instead of leaving the dog alone to adjust to all these changes, they insist on invading its space to pat it, stroke it...
Those of us experienced in homing a nervous dog know it can take months before the dog settles - it took my galga Carmela over 2 years before she finally became a 'normal' dog. It is nearly 3 years since I adopted Rosely, who spent the first 6 or 7 years with a Spanish hunter and she is still very nervous of my husband, strangers and sudden noises. I don't think she will improve any more.
Here's a weblink to an article on calming a nervous dog.
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