Rescue dog tips please

Parent Cafe
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<p>We’re bringing home a rescue dog on Sunday and I would appreciate suggestions on how to make her transition as easy as possible. She’s a young Mama dog who had pups 8 weeks ago. She’s in a foster home with her puppies now and they will be given away to different homes. They are really cute and we considered getting one of them but I didn’t know if I could go through puppyhood again.</p>

<p>We met our girl, Ginger just a couple of days ago. She seemed very even tempered, friendly and pretty docile. A couple of people had mentioned that she’s probably going to be stressed, not only from the new location, but also from not having her pups. </p>

<p>We’ve always had dogs and our last one was the same breed she is, at least partly. He was a golden and she’s a golden mix. We have a good size yard with an underground fence. I’m guessing that we’ll have to wait a few weeks to train her to that. She’s to be spayed in about 2 weeks. She is crate trained now but we don’t have a crate and used a gated laundry room with our last dog for a sleep area. I thought of borrowing a large crate from someone to keep things similar but don’t know if it’s better just to start off with the doggie bed in the laundry room, as we’re used to doing.</p>

<p>We will use the same dog food that she’s eating now. I think we have all the other things we need for a dog including bed, bowls, leashes and toys. We can keep her confined to part of the house with gates and doors if that’s a good idea. While she is house trained, that’s only been since she’s been in foster care - about four weeks. The foster Mom thinks she was kept outside before. :frowning: </p>

<p>Any suggestions?</p>

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<p>A lot depends on the environment she was in before fostering. Do you know anything about her history? Where was she rescued from? That can impact her reaction to people, places and events. We have had 2 rescue dogs and our children have rescue dogs. The biggest thing we all have learned is to take time with the dog to get to know her and let her get to know you. Do not expect her to immediately behave like a beloved pet that grew up with you. Introduce her to other people and animals slowly since that can be sources of stress from a past you don’t know. All of our dogs became loved members of the family but some took longer than others to adjust and for our little minipoodle we had to understand his triggers and learn to avoid them until he finally figured out the past was over. </p>

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<p>Thanks for replying Singersmom. We don’t really know about her history. She was rescued from a high kill shelter in North Carolina and brought to our PA rescue place. She didn’t seem scared of either my husband or adult son, which I was concerned about.</p>

<p>Our neighbors dog has always had access to our house and was our old dog’s best friend. She’s probably our biggest worry. She’s old herself now though and doesn’t come over as often. She has done really well with our friends adult kids dogs, who she met when they were puppies. I’m hoping they become buddies in time. </p>

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<p>We have a rescue dog too. Got her 7 years ago this month; she was already full-grown. She spent most of the first day curled up behind a chair next to the wall. My husband laid down on the floor with her for a long time, just talking to her and petting her. When we took her out in the back yard, we kept her on a leash for the first several times; just let her walk around where she wanted to go, but we didn’t want her getting under a bush where we couldn’t get her out! </p>

<p>It might be a good idea to borrow a crate for a week or two; put it in the laundry room and let her sleep crated at night so she gets used to the room. Then after she’s acclimated, you could probably just let her sleep in there without the crate. As long as she can’t jump over the gate!! :)</p>

<p>Hopefully on the first day or two that you have her, people will be home all day to be around her. It sounds like she’s going to be a great dog if she’s already friendly. </p>

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<p>If you’re worried about her taking off, consider a pet tracking collar. You can find her with that instead of hoping someone picks her up and reads the chip. </p>

<p>Show her the territory on walks, giving her different routes so she can find her way home if she wanders. If you live around traffic, show her where to cross. She doesn’t know the area but will learn fast. And introduce her to some other dogs so she has friends and knows where they can meet - and can look for their smells on your walks. </p>

<p>This may be really obvious. Sorry if it is.</p>

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<p>My parents have adopted shelter dogs from the South and they were shipped to New England on a special bus. One hid under a long table for a few days then decided we were good people - now he sleeps on the sofa. The other one was probably mistreated before entering into the system but ALL THEY WANT IS TO STAY. If an adult dog survives the system then it usually means it is already house trained. Ours never had any desire to wander and just wanted to make sure they did not get into trouble and get sent back.
Both loved staying around people and the family. We never isolated either one during our absence or the nights, and we have cats! They observe a lot in the beginning and rely on their instinct to try and figure things out. The moment they relax because they realize that they really hit the jackpot and found a forever family is amazing.</p>

<p>We also heard that sometimes mama dogs and cats are kind of relieved if they become “single” again, or just have one baby to take care of. Mostly just because they are probably overwhelmed - especially if they gave birth as stray, or inside a shelter cage. I would not worry too much about her missing her litter for long.</p>

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<p>I have a rescue doggy too. I wouldn’t feel obligated to feed her the same food. Depensding on the foster system/shelter, the food may not have been good (most dog foods aren’t, in general, and most rescues probably won’t have money for good food). Mine had no issue with the food transition - I started him on a new food from the very beginning, and it was absolutely fine with him.</p>

<p>I would also not feel obligated to crate her. My family has never crated dogs (except for airplane travel), and I never crated my rescue. He adjusted wonderfully having the run of the apartment, although I do think it’s a good idea to doggy-proof the area until you can make sure the dog won’t get into anything that can hurt her.</p>

<p>Good luck with her!</p>

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<p>I’m all ears and appreciate any suggestions. Thank you very much Fiorucci for reassurance regarding the puppies. and how she may not miss them like we humans would miss our babies. </p>

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<p>We took in a rescue last August, he was 1 and 1/2.
He acted out for a while as he got acclimated( his behavior became worse before it got better).
He was reactive to innocent things. Keep in mind she may have been abused and so could be touchy.
She may have relapses of other things like house training.
Sorry to say, ours had very loose stools, and I even went back to the shelter to see what sort of food they had been feeding him. They weren’t able to tell me, because they just fed him what ever had been donated.
So I was very careful with food until his insides healed.
However since yours has been with a family, its a good idea to use the same food and transition slowly if you want to change it.
Take introduction to new experiences slowly as well, even if she hadnt just given birth.
The fostering family should be able to give you more information about sleep patterns etc.</p>

<p>Ours is now becoming a good dog, but he was very high needs for a while and we were thinking about taking him back, so keep that in mind.</p>

<p>A tired dog is a good dog, and a young golden will likely need much more exercise than what she can get running around the yard.</p>

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<p>Speak softly and calmly…give treats and praise for anything positive she does. Let her explore the house but please put anything worth pilfering away. When you walk by the dog (Not when sleeping) give her a scratch. And when guests come over give her a mini treat from the guests. She will learn quickly that guests are friends, not an objects for guarding against. Talk her on leash for walks…several times a day. She will meet her new neighborhood and you will see if she enjoys other dogs or if she is terratorial. Many dogs don’t know how to play. </p>

<p>Good luck and enjoy her.</p>

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<p>I think the most important thing is to keep things calm, quiet, and positive for a while. She has had a lot of huge transitions in a short time, and she isn’t through with them yet, since she will be spayed after you get her. I’d keep her gated into the kitchen or whatever area has flooring that can take the punishment of housebreaking oopses and where you can spend time with her. I’d remove things that are attractive nuisances: remember not to leave shoes or other chewables around. I think that using a crate, if that is what she is used to, is probably a good idea for times when she has to be left alone. Having it available as her den may make her feel more secure. (I personally haven’t used a crate past young puppyhood, but some dogs really like it.) Take her on leash walks and frequent potty breaks, as if she were a puppy being housebroken. Avoid predictable failures. :slight_smile: I would be inclined to avoid canine visitors until she has had the opportunity to settle in and feel relatively confident that this is <em>her</em> home.</p>

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<p>I would consider borrowing the crate, since she is used to one. Our first rescue really loved her crate, and felt more secure in it. If we left her out of it while we were out, she would pace the house, maybe worrying that she had to protect it, or worry about being hurt? You could set it up in the laundry room and then leave the door open and let her decide if she needs to be in the crate or not (in the wild dogs would seek out a small den. so she might prefer the crate to an open area for awhile).</p>

<p>That rescue was a really sweet and submissive lab. We had an unfenced yard with that dog, and all we had to do was walk her around the perimeter for a few days, letting her mark it, and after that she never crossed the border into the neighbors’ yards. You may want to put up the flags for awhile before turning on the power for your underground fence to see if you can teach her the border before inflicting the shocks.</p>

<p>In one way, spaying her in two weeks could be a good thing. When she comes back to your house after a night at the vet’s, it will be reinforced that your house is home, and she’ll be glad to get back from that place that hurt her.</p>

<p>The first rescue came home in the midst of a 12 year old’s slumber party and loved the attention. The only rough day we had with her was when her first family came to visit, confusing her and tearing her between us and them. She came to us from a divorce situation in which no one could keep her, but loved her.</p>

<p>The second lab, all we had to do was walk around the block about an hour after the first time we brought him home, and he pulled me back up the driveway to our house. I guess he REALLY liked getting out of the shelter. He had been starved and confined in a basement. He loved us, but even after 7 years in our house would not go near the basement steps. He was very friendly with everyone right from the start.</p>

<p>The third rescue was the toughest. She’s been beaten and kicked, and was timid for quite a long time. She would cringe every time we put her harness on, for years. She never got over her fear of Hispanic voices or darker skinned males - fortunately our vet practice was good about that, and we let the dark-skinned Hispanic vet know it was the dog and not us that was prejudiced. She was a good dog, but we just had to adjust to her nervousness over the years and comfort her around loud noises and such - I’m glad she died just after the Hispanics moved next door, because that wasn’t going well.</p>

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<p>We had a rescue dog too–she was always ok with me & my husband but didn’t like little boys or other dogs much. We had no idea of her history but it looked like she had been abused at some point–a raised voice or hand would really make her cower. She looked slow and sleepy but when left alone she could be anxious and tried to escape, once broke down a door with a weak frame and destructive, completely shredded a towel that was on top of her crate. In my experience the best way to proceed is with caution, finding out what your dog’s triggers are, what sets her off.</p>

<p>Good luck and enjoy–my husband never liked our rescue that much but she loved me and I loved her too and still miss her 3 years after her death.</p>

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<p>I second the no crate and new food. I believe they usually appreciate this “new chapter” so much that they actually appreciate the fact they get a new food - provided it is healthy ones without presevatives and colorings :). My parents use Science Diet dry food and add home-made chicken soup withsome chicken.
The only time we slowly add new (better) food into their familiar brand until they get use to the new food is for equine to prevent colic.</p>

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<p>If she was acclimated to a crate she might like it. I have two rescue dogs. One must have had bad crate/kennel experiences because she hates being confined in any way (she is also a big girl–Pyr mix). The other, a Chihauhua, LOVES his crate. It is his “safe place” and he goes into it when there is too much noise in the house or he is uneasy about something. Why not give Ginger the option of the bed in the laundry room or the crate somewhere else?</p>

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<p>We don’t know why this dog was abandoned or surrendered. I imagine it was because she was pregnant or had just given birth. She may not have been abused at all. Or she may have been abused-- we can’t tell.</p>

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<p>About their maternal instinct: do not get me wrong. Dogs, like cats and most all creatures, are wonderful moms and would die for their young. But after so many litters (strays can start quite young!) and hardship, sometimes they turn the page and truly appreciate a new chapter. Guess they like to believe that their babies are as lucky as they are :)</p>

<p>@crepes - adopt a new dog! Ask your husband to choose one with you. Adopt-a-Pet and Pet-Finder sites are both great. You can have emails sent to you when specific criteria are met.</p>

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<p>Right now Ginger can eat whenever she wants. She’s underweight and not a gulper. I bought her a bag of her current dog food, thinking that I would introduce food that we would like to feed her gradually. We had been taught with our other dogs that it was best to feed them twice a day. Would it be okay to switch her to a schedule right away, or should we wait a week or so? </p>

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<p>Between my two daughters, they have rescued three dogs. They have had consultations with our dog trainer (who is also our dog sitter) when they were home. One very, very important thing to remember is that, it takes about six weeks for the true personality of a rescued dog to come out after placed in a new home. So just because the dog does or doesn’t engage in a particular behavior in the first few days or weeks, it doesn’t mean you’re home free, or doomed forever. It’s really about the six-week mark that you will see the dog’s true personality to come out. This has been true for both of our daughters’ dogs. They were different dogs at six weeks than they were when they were first brought home.</p>

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<p>Six weeks? I really liked the dog I met - now you’ve got me worried!</p>