Christmas is here again, which means lots of people will want to get their kid a dog as a present. Most dog trainers will advise people NOT to do that. I agree. Because for most families, this is going to be an impulsive gift. Not a well thought-out decision. Which is what bringing a very sentient being into your home for about 15 years should be. Despite the fact that shelters will be taking advantage of people making impulse decisions right now.
Which brings me to my thoughts on how to adopt a dog:
#1 Think about it for at least 3 months. Foster some dogs. Dogsit for a friend for a week (they will love you). Write out the daily routine of the dog and make sure it includes at least two 20 minute walks a day and NOT being left home alone for 8 hours five days a week. Research what to feed the dog. Kibble and canned food are being discovered to not be very healthy to feed dogs. Research dog trainers and dog training programs. Research dog walkers, boarding kennels, vets, and pet insurance. If you have kids read about how kids and dogs should be monitored and allowed to interact. If after all this, you still want a dog, read this before going to the shelter:
#2 A lot of privately run shelters are shelters that rely 100% on donations from the public or from money given to them through grants from foundations, which are usually foundations owned by private citizens or a group of private citizens. This means these shelters want to appeal to donors. They do this by having nice buildings and saying they are “no-kill” shelters and pushing their numbers of adopted dogs. However, these private shelters only accept the dogs they want to accept, which means of course they don’t accept dogs with behavior issues or medical issues that would warrent euthanasia. They also are notorious for pushing dogs onto adoptors without doing much work at all to match a dog with a family: not disclosing vital information about that dogs potential size or discussing behaviorial issues. I know this because I’ve worked at a private rescue and I have many clients that end up with dogs that they adopted from a private rescue that does not fit their family or lifestyle well. This just creates a situation where a family is stressed out, potentially spends a bunch of money on a trainer that doesn’t use prong or ecollars, so can’t help them, and ends up returning the dog, which causes the dog more stress and makes their behavior problem worse.
#3. Once you find a dog you are interested in, ask as much about that dog as you can. Observe it accutely. How does she react to other dogs and people? How is she on leash? How does she take treats from your hand? Does she pull? Does she jump? Is she whining? Is she fearful? Is she growling? Is she barking a lot? Has she chewed up her bed in her kennel? Does she like kids? Does she like cats? Does she like being pet? Can you handle her ears and feet and teeth? Where did she come from? Is she still growing? Dogs can grow MUCH more than the shelter staff will tell you. Get simply as much info as you.
#4. Buy everything you need BEFORE you adopt the dog. Pet gates to keep the dog contained, a crate, kongs to stuff and freeze, tug toys, a raised place bed, 5 foot strong leash, interactive toys, etc. As well as dog training! Have that all set up and ready to go. Do NOT adopt a dog until this is all ready.
#5. Your new dog will need calm and structure the first week. Do NOT take your dog to a dog park or have people over to the house or let your dog run around the whole house. Walk your dog quietly around the neighborhood on short 10 minute walks 3-4 times a day. Keep your dog in the crate, in the kitchen or small room, or tethered to you. Provide lots of attention and Yes and No feedback. Your dog needs to learn how to correctly behave in your home and be a part of YOUR pack, of which YOU are the leader.
#6 It’s okay to make mistakes! Just keep your intentions on communicating with your dog and creating a deep relationship and everything will be fine! There are answers to ALL your questions out there, waiting for your to find them!