I'm Adopting! (A Dog)

Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share
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After having been up at the local Humane Society twice this week to help out my friend Brandon, who had taken his dog up, then had a change of heart and took him back in, (long, boring, and mostly unrelated story) I decided to go up, and give a needy dog a home. I’ve always loved dogs, and always wanted one, so when I happened across Tasha, looking kind of sad in her pen, I decided to adopt her.

She is one year old, a black lab, and one of the sweetest, most gentle dogs I have met.

I’m going up tommorow afternoon to pick her up.

She hasn’t yet been spayed, that is why I didn’t pick her up today, as they are doing it tommorow. It goes without saying… (so I am not gonna say it. :stuck_out_tongue: )

So, any suggestions from fellow dopers on how I should help her acclimate to her new environment?

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Bless you! And congrats on the new addition to your household.

We are owned by 3 cats and 1 dog. I’ve heard that labs chew everything in sight – invest in dog chew toys!! A comfty dog bed would probably help.
Have we a name for her yet?

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A one-year old lab is still just a big puppy! I second the “lots of chew toys” idea. She’ll probably need lots of exercise when she heals up from being spayed.

BTW, most labs like to chase balls. I understand that tennis balls can cause dogs’ teeth to wear prematurely. (The felt on the outside of the balls is tough for a reason.)

Hope you have lots of happy times together!

Archergal, proud owner of 4 dogs

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Give her plenty of time and attention. Show her where her food and water bowls are, and which door she will be using to go outside as soon as you get her home, then, let her explore, but watch her carefully.

Try not to make her first evening too eventful. Have them bathe her at the pound, if they’ll do that. Unless she has bugs, let her stink for the first night. A bath might be too stressful. Don’t have a lot of people over for a few days. (It would actually be best to adopt her over the weekened so you can spend a lot of time with her.)

She’ll also most likely be very sore from her surgery. Play should be very gentle for a couple of days. Don’t be surprised if she doesn’t want to, though. Spend time petting her, sitting with her on the floor, or letting her snuggle with you on the couch.

Even if she was housebroken before, a refresher course will probably be needed. As soon as you get her home, take outside. Wait until she goes, and then praise her, and give her a treat. Do this every time she goes outside-- it greatly cuts down on accidents. Don’t punish her for an accident, unless you catch her in the act. Immediately, take her outside. When she finishes, praise her.

Make the rules clear immediately. Don’t let her do anything you don’t want her to do forever. Changing the rules down the line will just make it more difficult on her. (For example, don’t let her up on the sofa the first few days unless you intend to allow her to always have access. Another tip: don’t let her chew on an old sock. She will think any sock is fair game.)

You’re going to need to spend time bonding with her. Lots of play, and petting. Building trust takes time, especially if the dog has been abused at any point. (These kinds of dogs take special care, patience and love.)

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Lissa - you must be a vet.
Missed the name in the OP - Tasha! Very cool.
A few more tips: purchase a high-quality collar and leash. Walk her often! If needed, consider attending a low-cost training session - in my area, the local Petsmart offers an excellent class.

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**Blonde, ** I’m not a vet, nor do I play one on TV. I just love animals, and try to understand them.

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Good on you for getting a dog from the humane society. And listen to Lissa. She knows what she speaks of.
We just got our second dog from a rescue group two weeks ago. She is 5 months old so we are deep in the trenches of potty training. But it is all so very worth it…she’s the best!

Well, she ties for best with our other dog.

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Good for you, modro. Be proud you are giving a loving home to an otherwise “unwanted” pet. I can’t give any more advice than what’s previously been offered; however, I just wanted to say on behalf of your new lab, “Thank you.”

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WHOA, WOW and WAY COOL! Many of my favorite posters have already shown up in this thread.

modro, you are to be congratulated upon rescuing a completely helpless animal.

See if someone at the shelter can put a blanket or large towel in your animal’s cage for the next half-day or so. It will bear a familiar scent for your pup to remember as she acclimates to her new environment.

As others have said, some chew toys and an occasional treat will make sure she knows that she is in good hands. Lots of strokes and a lot of monitoring during the first few days will go a long way.

DO NOT give her an old shoe of yours to chew upon. Same goes for any article of apparel or whatever has your scent. Give her one shoe and she’ll think all of them were made for her.

DO NOT physically punish her if you can avoid it. Smack a rolled up newspaper on the floor when you are mad. If you catch her doing something wrong, throw a non-injurious object at her (i.e., nerf ball, etc.). This will amaze her and make her wary of doing wrong without causing her to be “hand shy.”

Most of all, be consistent when you give her commands. Avoid going back on or neglecting to follow up on any sort of discipline. This sends the absolute wrong message. Being equivocal sends a confusing message that deters proper behavior.

Teach her how to “sit,” “stay,” “heel” and “come” on command. A combination of these individual instructions will enable you to develop a more sophisticated vocabulary for her. These few simple commands will make it possible to save her life by stopping her from running into the street.

I’m tempted to bring Aloha Aloha in here to make sure you know how important it is that you have done this. In fact, I think I will … so there.

[Arnie]

I’ll be back!

[/Arnie]

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Good for you, modro. All of the advice here is good; I’d emphasize not giving her an old shoe or something similar to chew on. If she turns out to be a strong chewer who shreds dog toys quickly, get her toys made of something called nylabone; it costs a little more, but will literally last at least ten times as long.

She’ll want her own “safe place” as well; I suggest either putting a dog bed in a corner or someplace somewhat closed in, or getting a dog crate and feeding her in there (do NOT lock her in the crate). Before long she’ll feel she can go to her place when she’s feeling overwhelmed or scared, and she’ll love it.

I’m jealous; my dog is old and kinda lame these days, and this thread reminds me of when she was a puppy. Enjoy!

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Wow, Thanks all of you for the excellent advice.

I especially appreciate the advice about taking her outside after getting her home, and waiting for her to go, then giving her a treat and some positive reinforcement. I would not have thought of doing that right off, and I highly appreciate it.

I also plan to have as many chew toys handy as possible. I also thank you all for the advice about old shoes/socks/clothing. I might have let her take an old shoe found lying around, without thinking about how she probably wouldn’t make the distinction between old and new.

She’s gonna be my first dog, so I’m keeping this thread bookmarked.

After going up to the humane society for the first time this week, I just felt so bad for the animals, knowing what may happen if someone didn’t take them in. Since I had been wanting a dog pretty much my whole life, it just seemed like a common sense thing to do.

I am quite excited to be picking Tasha up tommorow, I can’t wait to get her home. I’ll try to keep her first weekend here as stress free as possible, especially considering that she will be fresh out of surgery from getting spayed, on top of the change of environment.

Thanks again for all of the advice and suggestions, I truly appreciate it. I knew there were some animal lovers here, so the SDMB was the first place I thought of for advice.

If anyone has any more suggestions, I appreciate it.

I have this thread bookmarked.

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Oh, before I forget.

I highly reccomend adopting from the Beaver County Humane Society. The people there are extremely nice, and from what I gathered, they have a really good adoption rate (something like 73%).

What else I thought was really nice, was that they don’t set a definite time for animals to get them out, it is based on space instead. It’s really great what they are doing, and I kind of feel bad for not having paid any real attention to their operation until this week.

I thought it very nice that they were willing to work with me as far as current vaccinations on our cats went too. Our younger one is getting them up-to-date tommorow (friday, and since neither cat goes outside, so I never thought of it) and while our older cat Ming had been vaccinated before, now he is 17, and has weak kidneys, so they waived the need to get his updated since it might pose him a health risk, which I really appreciate. They also went so far as to schedule Tasha in to be spayed tommorow (Friday) morning, even before I got the appointment set to get Nightmare, our little cat, up-to-date.

Just so that I could get Tasha home tommorow afternoon, instead of having to wait till monday.

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[QUOTE]
*Originally posted by jackelope *
(do NOT lock her in the crate).

I have to comment on this point; I have good friends who have “crate-trained” their dogs. I certainly don’t think it’s anywhere near animal abuse, but I’m not convinced it’s superior to simply being there for the animal.
I am blessed with a tiny Siamese kitten sleeping on my computer as I type these words. And, Zenster – it is good to hear from you.

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modro, good for you! And please tell your friend, Brandon, thst there are many classes and resouces available for whatever made him surrender his dog in the first place. If I can be of help, let me know.

Having been in the Animal Care and Control profession for more than 25 years, I must say you have gotten some excellent advise on this thread. I do want to echo the advise that a Lab is a “puppy” until the day before they die. Then they get geriatric!

The challenge with Labs is that they do need a lot of attention, as well as exercise. Summer is coming…pay a neighborhood kid to take Tasha for a walk or jog mid-day while you are at work.

Train her to a leash (or better yet, a harness) right away. Even if you have a fenced yard, take her out several times on a leash to make her comfortable.

Chew…gosh, can they chew! I have 2-10 year old black Labs (Thelma and Louise) laying on the floor by me as I write…the only thing they have not been able to destroy are the “Kong” line of dog toys. But they are sisters and very competitive (they came from Lab Rescue in Los Angeles when they were 8 months old) so they tend to destroy things faster! No dog bed has ever been safe.

NO TENNIS BALLS–for any dog to chew!!! In addition to not being good for their teeth, the fine “hair” of the tennis ball can wreek havoc with their intestines!

Commands: WIth any dog, say what you mean and mean what you say. Did you mean “OFF” or “DOWN”??? Go to obedience classes (PetsMart was a great suggestion) as soon as you can. Local Park and Recreation Depts. usually have them in summer months, too.

I would encourage you to crate train the dog. While I do not 100% agree with jackelope, we are on the same wavelength (no offense intended, jackelope). The girls were trained to go “in their house” when we first got them. It was treated not as a punishment but as a safe place. When guests would come for over and we were serving dinner, we jsut said, “In your house” and there they went and we did not shut the door. Of course, the crates were in the living room so we could see them and vice versa. However, the crates worked well when we went on vacation and left them in the hotel room, or rented a houseboat on a lake (gosh, do they love to swim…at 3:00 a.m.!). Get Tasha used to one now…I recommend the type with welded metal “bars” so she can see all around her, as opposed to the type you would put on an airplane. It is also a great way to house train a dog, as they will not soil where they sleep. Why do you think the neighbor’s dog poops in your yard???

Some common medical problems of Labs: #1 problem is hip dysplasia (HD so I don’t have to type so much). My chocolate Lab, Murphy Brown (who has gone to the big dog park in the sky), was diagnosed with HD att he age of 8 months. I would encourage you to always have your vet do a thorough exam on her yearly.

#2: Entropia can be a problem, depending on the breeding. This is where the eyelashes look like they are growing toward the eye instead of away from the eye. This can cause blindness very fast so keep you eye out for problems (no pun intended). T & L do not have entropia, but I know of others that do and have seen my share inthe past 25 years.

#3: Torn ACL. The Anterior Cruciate Ligament (ACL) is a ligament that connects the tibia to the femur. It serves to prevent the tibia (leg) from moving forward relative to the femur (thigh). The ACL is in the center of the knee. Because Labs like to play and play hard, this can be a common injury (and it can happen with any breed). Thelma just had surgery on June 2 for a torn ACL she aquired while playing frisbee…it is a 12 week recovery period and a very EXPENSIVE surgery–she now has the bionic leg with a steel plate and 8 bolts!

Well, I have rambled enough…good luck with Tasha!!

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Thanks for the clarification, alohaaloha; that’s pretty much what I meant about the crate. By “don’t lock her in there” I meant don’t lure her in there with food and then lock it behind her, or you’ll risk her becoming afraid of both the crate and food.

That’s what I get for posting fast when I’m in a hurry at work.

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Wow! I did NOT know that!

Also dangerous are cow hooves and rawhide chews . . . just so everyone knows.

The Kong is a great item to have. You can keep the dog occupied for hours by filling it with penut butter and then freezing it overnight. (Only let her have it on a washable floor!)

A crate never worked for my dog, because she has clausterphobia. If cooped up, she * screams * to be released. Even getting her to go into a crate would involve overpowering her physically. Don’t coop your dog up if she has a sever anxiety as mine does-- it’s cruel. For most dogs, it will work, but each dog is different. Their personalities vary as widely as people’s do.
You need to know a few things about your dog’s personality in order to train her properly. First, turn her over on her back, and gently hold her down. If she struggles for a moment, and then gives up, she has a “average” amount of dominance. If she gives up immediately, she’s more passive, and may need more tender and gentle training methods. If she keeps on fighting and won’t give up, she’s a dominant dog. More strict training will be required in order for you to establish who is Alpha Dog. (Please let me know how your dog reacts to this test, and I can tell you more based on her “type.”)

Secondly, how short is her attention span? Jingle your keys in front of her. Lift them above her head, and side to side. How long does she pay attention? Does she get active, trying to catch them, or does she just sit and watch? The quicker she loses interest, the more brief and exciting you should make your training sessions.

Third, how timid is she? Make a loud noise when she’s not looking, and see how she reacts. If she jumps, or barks, or just looks around in a surprised manner, timidity will not affect your trainig. If she cowers, tries to hide, or wets herself, then you have a timid dog who will need gentle care.

Fourth, how smart is she? Start by teaching her to sit. Give the command, and then push down gently on her rump. Praise and treat. The next time, repeat the command and hold the treat above her head, until her neck tilts back. For some dogs, this will make them sit automatically. If not, do the gentle push again, and then give a treat when she does. Soon, she should connect the dots and sit on her own. This should give you an indicator of how quickly she will learn. Be very patient, and cogicent of when she begins to get bored. My dog learns a new trick in just a few minutes-- some take longer. Remember, your dog WANTS to make you happy-- she’s just not sure what you want. It’s your job to help her understand.

All dogs will make mistakes, and try to test the boundries of the rules. There are many methods of punishment, but they vary in efficacy.

First of all, punishment must be * immediate. * Dogs have an extremely poor grasp of cause and effect. Even a delay of a few moments can cause them to disassociate their behavior with the punishment. Nor can you punish the dog for a long time. “Time Outs” don’t work for dogs. They forget too quickly what it was that earned them this punishment.

Secondly, physical punishment can lead your dog to fear you, rather than focusing on the bad behavior. There are much better methods.

Submissive or timid dogs can usually be corrected by a sharp “NO!” or a loud clap. For average dogs, such as mine, I’ve found that a water pistol works wonders. When you catch her doing something wrong, shoot her with it. The shock is enough to make most dogs drop what they’re doing in surprise. Hide the pistol at your side so she doesn’t know it came from you. In her little doggy mind, she’ll then associate the behavior with an unpleasant experience, leaving you totally out of the picture. (Which means she won’t think she can get away with it while you’re gone.) Before she goes back to doing whatever was bad, give her one of her toys, or a command she knows well and praise lavishly when she behaves correctly.

You cannot praise your dog enough. Every time you catch her being a Good Girl, tell her so, and pet her. The more praise and rewards she gets, the more she will want to do those behaviors in order to get them. Just make sure there is a clear association in her mind between the reward and the act.

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Congratulations in making such a wonderful decision. We adopted one of our dogs from the humane society. I had been to about 5 different ones in the area and it was so disheartening to see all the unwanted animals. Very bad. I would come out of the places crying. I did found what I wanted though and that was a shih-tzu. Her name is Gizmo. I often wonder what happened to her sisters and mom. Hope they all found good homes. Believe me this one is queen of the hill here.

I visit a dog chat forum and one of the mods has this as their signature Don’t breed or buy while shelter animals die.

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What a wonderful thing! Thank you for adopting a doggie from a shelter (((((((((Hugs to you)))))))))) :slight_smile:

I think you and the cutie pie will do just fine.

Enjoy your lives together!!!

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[slight hijack]In my ignorance, I adopted my first two cats from pet stores (one died at 1.5 years, the other is asleep on my desk as I type this). My 3rd cat I adopted from a no-kill shelter, but I decided from then on to always adopt from a full service shelter (or breed rescue), after I had to take a cat that kept spraying my back porch to the humane society.

I want to get a Great Dane, but my husband thinks 2 animals are enough.

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I volunteer for our local humane society and do rescues all the time for animals so I get a lot of different pets in and out of my home. Just remember every animal is different and she has been through a trying time in the shelter. A shelter is a sscary place for a pet.

Give her a lot of love and attention to begin with. Let her know what you expect with positive reinforcement and lots of praise.

Labs do require a lot of exercise and they are very, very loyal and smart dogs. They are great family pets. I am a big fan of crate training just so that the dog has a special place for her to go when she wants to feel safe and protected and when she feels overwhelmed but if you don’t wnat that, at least a bed, or some other place that is just hers to go to when she wants to be left alone.

A leash and freqysnt walks, probably at least twive a day. I’d try to t4each her to fetch or play frisbee. Chew toys, like rawhide, and if she is still chewing (her teeth should already be in but she may have never nbeen taught appropriate chew habits) remember if she chews something inappropriate to tel her firmly “no” and to give her what IS appropriate to chew.

Remember to keep a routine. Feed, walk, bed at roughly the same times. That helps a dog settle into her new home much easier because she knows what to expect and understand what you expect of her. Use the same kind of commands "sit, no, down, etc…

Main things are just lotsa love. You are doing an awesome thing. You will probably be surprised how fast she bounces back from her spay though. It doesn’t hold them back too long. There are so many dogs put down every year, I encourage anyone who has room in their home and heart to get a rescue pet and spay and neuter them responsibly. BEst of luck with your new family member!!