A rescue dog’s many transitions leading up to landing in their permanent forever home can be stressful, confusing, and mentally and physically challenging. After being picked up as a stray and transferred from a Louisiana rescue into a Texas rescue foster home, Jackie proceeded from her initial temporary foster into her foster mom and dad’s home near Fort Worth. She had recently undergone spay surgery and heartworm treatment, and had to be on strict activity restriction for three months. Now she was ready to meet us, her new family, and make yet another huge transition.
With all of that in mind, we wanted to make the passage for Jackie into her new home as smooth as possible. The plan I’m following is to stay as relatively quiet and close to home as possible the first several days, establishing a consistent routine of mealtimes, walk, and play with just Jackie’s new immediate family. We’ve purposely gone for a few small strolls during the day, avoiding interacting with any neighborhood dogs or people outside of Jackie’s new immediate family.
Jackie’s foster mom provided me with her current food and I will follow that diet for a week before slowly beginning transitioning her to the new diet. I’ve kept Jackie on her previous diet in order to avoid any tummy upset or other issues. Since her foster family fed Jackie in her crate, we have continued that routine for her.
I was careful from the moment Jackie arrived onward to take her to the appropriate “bathroom” in the backyard and reinforced her with lavish praise and high value treats each time she went potty. This means taking her out every hour or so especially at first, and limiting her access in the house until she knows exactly where the “bathroom” is (and by default is NOT in an unused room, closet, or upstairs where we hang out much less often). A dog that is in a new environment has to be educated properly where the facilities are and what the house rules will be. For a new rescue, even one that has been previously very well house trained like Jackie, it’s best to follow the potty training protocol much the same as you would for a new puppy for at least the first several days until the new dog understands the new routines.
Jackie’s first night we established her in her own crate equipped with an individual water dish that clamps to the bars of her crate and a comfortable bed in our bedroom, and were deliberate in keeping our existing dogs out of her space. After another stroll and a running play romp, we were ready to wind down for the evening. I provided a couple long lasting chew toys as well as a kong stuffed with some yummy freeze dried lamb treats and peanut butter. Licking is a soothing act for a dog, and giving her something interesting like a stuffed kong in her crate helps to build value for being in the crate as well as helps her to settle in comfortably.
We like these Omlet Fido Studio crates with Brindle orthopedic memory foam beds with waterproof and washable removable covers. The dogs are comfortable inside and they make a low credenza when placed side by side, or can be used as a nightstand or sofa end table:
We made sure to have multiple comfortable beds around the house; the dogs love these plush donut beds and the Orvis tempurpedic bed in the living room.
Gunner is sweet to share his bed with new sister.
Pearls for early success with a new dog:
- Keep schedules simple and low-key the first few days a new dog is adopted
- Make potty training and establishing the basic house rules a priority, preventing access to remote, less-used areas of the home
- Crates, ex pen panels, and baby gates come in handy to control the amount of living space the new dog can access
- Stuffed kongs or other hollow toys are excellent to reinforce good behavior in a crate, and licking peanut butter or other soft treat has a relaxing effect for dogs
No comments:
Post a Comment