Be aware of the emotional (and sometimes physical) baggage your dog may carry when interacting with you. Try to be a tranquil, calm, and unthreatening presence.
[header] How to become close with your dog [title] Be calm around your dog. [step] It's not always easy to tell whether your dog came from a place where it was cared for or a place where it wasn't, like a puppy mill or kill shelter. If you adopted from a shelter then you know at one point it was left alone.