3 yr old shelter dog: ?s for exp.owners

[Magalex]

Attention to all dog owners who have adopted from shelters:

My family(myself, DH and 6 yr old DS) visited a County animal shelter today. It will be our first dog as a family. We went in the shelter informed the care takers that we were looking for a dog that would be suitable with DS. Great! They did have one in mind. (A spaniel/golden ret. mix) Small, cute, 3-4 yrs old and had a great disposition. But until we heard the back story of the dog. She came to the shelter with 21 other dogs from a house that the dogs were found in a room.
Could this dog at 3-4 yrs be house trained? Would this dog panic when we leave the house? Could there be any hidden health problems?

Side Note: The Shelter did a good job of giving health care needed to all these dogs and making them adoptable.

Anyone else have a dog from this type of background?
Thanks!

 

[Papa Deuce]

I can't speak to your dog. But we once took a "few year old" dog from the SPCA. She was BRUTAL to deal with for 3 months. Bad manners in every way. NOT destructive, though.

However, at around three months, she started to come around. And, I will say, that while it took the better part of a year, she became the best behaved dog I ever had. And so sweet and loveable.

I bet this dog can be trained in 3 weeks....

I would do it again.

 

[maxiesmom]

My baby, who is sitting on the gound next to me chewing on her piggy, came from a shelter. She is a great dog! The only thing we knew for certain was that she was abused. She had bald patches from where they had to cut the tar off of her, it wouldn't wash off. At first, she would slink on her belly to her dish, as if she was afraid we would beat her for eating. I would love to find who had her and repay them their "kindness".

With time, she has become a different dog! Emma is a sweetie! She loves everyone, and is sooo excited to see you when you get home from work. And when you wake up in the morning she is thrilled too. I have found that shelters are good at checking the dogs out before they are put up for adoption. It just makes sense for them to place healthy, good-tempered, animals.

I would get some books on the breed/s of dogs that you are interested in. They will tell you which illnesses a breed is susceptible to. There are no guarantees that your dog will remain healthy, however lots of vets have pet insurance that you can buy.

There are so many shelter dogs that need good homes! I am glad you are considering adopting one. I hope I have helped.

 

[KerriMc]

We too got our dog, Abby, from the shelter. It was not a well thought out decision, we were actually going to get another cat, but I saw this little timid dog in her cage cowering and she actually came forward to sniff my hand. I took her out "just to have a run in the yard" ... but couldn't put her back At the time we had a yellow lab, Hunter, at home as well. Abby really took to him and counted on him so much. Abby is a cross b/w a border collie, huskie and shepard. She is very loveable and just wants to be loved so badly.

In the first few months she had some "issues" ... eating was/is a big one ... we are going to put "ABBY EATS" on her headstone someday as we repeated this mantra over and over as we held onto her food bowl. She was terrified to eat. We have gotten past this for the most part, but at times she will still hide under the kitchen table. She is VERY picky about kibble or anything crunchy. She also won't eat any treats or anything chewy, like a toy or a dentabone. She is afraid of them

At first she had a few accidents (pee) when we'd leave the house and she'd grab something, but wouldn't chew it. She'd just bring it upstairs and leave it by the window. She still does this sometimes She was also quite timid around my dh at first, but he has turned into her MOST favourite person in the whole wide world. She totally trusts him and adores him.

She is afraid of the vaccuum and the broom (terrified!). If you are carrying a bag in your hand she runs a mile. If she hears a firecracker or thunder she is terrified too. You can't walk by garbage bags when out for a walk, as she'll creep across the road afraid of them

Abby has a ton of "oddities" and "minor issues", but she is an AMAZING dog with my girls. She follows them around and keeps tabs on them all the time. She doesn't like them out of her sight. If I raise my voice to my girls, she slinks away with them . Abby lives to go for walks. I can walk her without a leash because she listens so well to us. She does everything we tell her.

I too would LOVE to repay her former owners with the same treatment they gave to her. It makes me sick to think what happened to this sweet little dog. To think anyone could look into her big brown eyes and do anything makes me ill. I will, without a doubt, go and pick out another shelter dog. They deserve a second chance on this earth to be treated right.

Good luck with your new addition It sounds like you are getting a wonderful pet

Kerri

p.s Just because your dog may come from a bad background doesn't mean she will necessarily be a "bad dog". She may need to learn a few things, but most times they are SOOOOO eager to please and get some love in return that everything will turn out to be great!

 

[bballmom56]

We adopted a 1 1/2 year old dog from a rescue group who had rescued this dog from a pound. He is absolutely the best!!! They had actually adopted him out 3 times prior to us adopting him because people said he had too much energy (part shepherd, part St. Bernard). We have a 17 acre farm with room for him to run. It was perfect! All he ever wanted was a family with kids and he is so grateful. He was housebroken and never misses (unless he is sick which is rarely). We didn't know any more about his background and you kind of take a chance especially with kids (mine were 4 and 8 at the time). He is now approaching 15 years old and is just awesome.

 

[Mickeyroks247]

I would say with patience and training any dog can become a great family pet

 

[The Mystery Machine]

Here is what I recommend for you...go get Cesar Milan's "People Training for Dogs"
http://www.dogpsychologycenter.com/aboutdvd.php

You will learn so much from this guy!

We rescued 2 dogs 1 year ago, they were 4 months old. Gracie is a gem. She is a collie mix and loving, friendly, etc.
Butters is an insecure male dog, a golden/spaniel mix. He is 100% better but still everyday presents a new challenge to him.

Rescue dogs are challenging, they come with baggage you have to undo. Thankfully walking the dog 2 times a day at least, does wonders!
Exhaust the dog in the beginning to release his pent up energy and bring him to a healthy state of mind.

 

[janey99]

We rescued our pitbull at 9 mos. He had been confiscated during a drug raid, and had been used as dog fight "bait" by his previous "owners."

The first night, he pooped in our bedroom 5 times. Even when we were able to rush him outside, he went on the cement patio. We figured out he had probably been tied on a porch his whole life and had no training whatsoever. He used to eat at 1000 miles an hour, with his foot in the bowl so no one could take it. He was terrified of men, uniforms and sticks.

That all said, he is now (at 6 years) the best dog we have ever had. He loves his big sister, the boxer, and worships his boy (DS) and generally thinks he is a 70 pound lap dog.

His residual problems are fear of uniforms, men of a certain race, and sticks. He is also dog aggressive with all but our dominant boxer. These aspects of his personality require some handling, but we able able to manage them.

I would certainly recommend a rescue dog, but please be careful with your children, and always supervise until you are entirely sure of your new dog's personality.

Good luck!

Jane

 

[hiwaygal]

The two basenji's in my siggie are from a rescue.

Buddy (the red and white) was so desperate for love it was heartbreaking. He was quick to adapt and make my home his. He was spoiled in his previous life, so that just continues.

Sally (the dark brindle and white) took almost a year to really come around. I only know that she was in four different homes before coming to mine. She was never in the same home for more than a year. She is very mellow and gentle.

Shelter dogs somehow seem to know they've been rescued. And they will show their appreciation in some way.

Yes, this dog you are considering can be housebroken (I would recommend crate training) if you are consistent. The crate training will also help make sure the dog isn't destructive when you are away from the home.

There could always be hidden health problems, there are no guarantees even if you were to get a dog from a reputable breeder. You might consider pet insurance if that is something you are really worried about.

Please keep us updated if you decide to bring this dog into your life!

 

[Magalex]

Thanks so much for your responses. They are great Love stories.My DH and I are still discussing it tonight and tomorrow(the shelter is closed on Sundays). Two positive things we did remember about the dog: 1)Out of the 21 abandoned dogs the volunteer could of picked out a few but the volunteer picked this one dog for us. 2) Sometimes I noticed that when visiting shelters some dogs shake nervously, this one didn't.

We are visiting a different rescue tomorrow. Will keep everyone posted. Oh someone did mention about what breed we are interested in. We are definitely pro-shelters/rescue centers and crate training. Leaning towards the medium size Lab/Golden/Collie mixes.

 

[JustHolly]

Most dogs from shelters have "issues" but turn out to be wonderful dogs.

Having accidents and separation anxiety are probably inevitable at first until you get used to each other's routines.

Read some books on dog training and dog psychology. I like Cesar Millan's book, but there are many other good ones out there.

We took in a puppy with "issues" and it was almost disasterous. We almost broke down and brought him to a shelter It was that bad!!!!!!

It is a lot of work, but after a full month of intenstive work and a personal dog trainer coming to the house once a week, our dog is finally a great dog!

It is a big commitment, but very rewarding. Please realize that your dog NEEDS to be walked twice per day, at least 30 minutes each time, EVEN if you have a big back yard. As soon as we started doing this, our puppy calmed down, became less aggressive and was focused enough to train him. It is VERY hard to make that kind of commitment to walking. But, it's good for both of us, and I very rarely skip walks. When we do, we notice an immediate difference in behavior and anxiety.

Good Luck! I hope you and your family give this dog a wonderful, safe, nurturing place to live! You'll be rewarded with much love and LOTS of excitement!

Post pictures when you get the dog, pretty please!