When Rasputin was a puppy he shied away from people, and when that didnt work he got a bit nippy. That went on for awhile, i tried to socialize him but nothing i did seemed to make a difference, seemed that he was just a timid mass of fur. After a while i just worked with it and made sure to SUPER socialize him to people when they came to our house and controlled him when we went out. Somehow, now, its not a problem anymore. I wonder if it was just a faze. He does great with kids and most adults now without any help from his mom!!!