I am having contact issues with my recently rescued Pom

by Kristina M.
(St. Louis, Missouri)

I have recently rescued a four-year-old male Pomeranian that we have named Jax. He is house-broken and crate trained, so even though we do not have much history on this dog, I am sure that he has been house owned prior. He was said to be found roadside as a stray when he was turned into a Pet Rescue location over this past summer.

We are a family of five including three children ages 6, 9 and 12. Jax is eating well, plays outside in our large back yard, loves other animals and looks to be a healthy weight. Everything from the vet checks out fine with him. He was just recently neutered in the rescue in September. The only issues that we have with him are with personal handling of the dog. He runs from us as if he does not want to be held or touched. When we do pick him up, he seems relaxed and falls asleep on our laps. Our first dog that we rescued was abused. It took a long time to gain her trust but when we did, she became a wonderful pet that we had for 13 years. I see some similarities in Jax with him showing fear. He seems to shun away from woman, including myself, more than men.

How can I best assure him that we are providing him with a loving, nurturing and safe home? He does seem to let down his guard a little tiny bit more each day. I can sense that he wants to be loved, as he follows me around the house and wants to be near me, just not touched. I am so in love already with this cute little guy. I just wish I could help him be less fearful. Help!