Tips For Transitioning From Shelter To Home

If you are new to dog ownership, here is a general run down of easy tasks you can do in preparation for your new friend. Agencies might require applicants to provide care information such as the name of their Vet, or a desired dog walking business. This guide will not only help you get prepared for the day your dog comes home, but also provide tips on setting your dog up for success with a new local dog walker.

Your Bring Home Day

Moves can be traumatic! If you are adopting a dog from a rescue situation, it is worth considering your new dog might have moved around a lot, or come from an otherwise unstable background. That being said, your new pup might not be totally sure if their new environment is a permanent home, or another temporary space. Dog’s thrive on routine and positivity and often times they are being rescued from unstable negative backgrounds. Try to get a history of your newly adopted dog to gain insight on their potential triggers. Also Try to time your bring home day to coincide with a vacation where you can be home with your pet. That way you can provide a lot of consistency and help with the move into a new loving environment. If you can’t afford to take time off then aim to bring your dog home on Friday.

Creating consistency.

This is probably the most important item on this list. It’s important that the owner decides on dog rules for the shared dwelling, before ever bringing a dog home. Rules such as feeding times, beds are off limits, no jumping or other particulars specific to your situation. If you are the only owner it’s up to you to maintain the consistency if you expect your dog to learn. If there are multiple owners you must work together as a unified front so that the dog’s experience is the same with every human. You can’t have one person sneaking scraps under the table while someone else works to establish a boundary around human meal time. In summary it is of indescribable importance that you think about what your life is going to be like with a dog in your home, and set up some healthy house rules.

Correcting and Enforcing rules

Remember that dogs respond well to positivity, and don’t do well if you dwell on undesired behavior or use excessive negative tonality. A lot of times indifference to poor behavior combined with overt praise for good behavior, is a good framework to get you started. If an explicit vocal correction is needed a quick adjustment in your sternness and volume is usually sufficient. Be sure to move on from the moment, as you will have made your point and it is not healthy for you to dwell on it. If you would like more granular approaches to training and correction issues, it is advisable to enroll in a local accredited dog training class. That is the best way to discover what your specific training regiment should be, not to mention having a well trained dog can be a lifetime pursuit!

Dog’s and Crates

This section of the guide is focused on dogs that have been house trained and are ready for adoption. Stay tuned for a more in-depth post regarding healthy ways to use a crate to assist house training. For the purposes of this general guide, it is important to provide your adopted dog with a place they feel safe from chaotic elements they can’t control. Loud children for example or thunderstorms. New dog mothers and pups also choose confined areas to nurse and teach, only exiting for food and water.

Therefore it’s important to provide your new dog with a safe area they know they have access to. You also do not want to crate your dog unnecessarily. A good balance must be struck between your dog learning what their new safe space is, using the crate to assist training, and giving them a life where they are free to live the life of a dog! The humane society recommends a few hours a day in the crate to orient them sufficiently.

Petco has a great chart which is included below. If it’s metal, inspect your crate to make sure there are no sharp nicks on the interior left over from the metal cutting or manufacturing process. If it’s plastic, most likely any potential snags would be in the latch or front area. Make sure all those edges are smooth and sanded down as they should be. And of course all crates should have a soft bedding on the bottom such as a thick blanket or other soft padded material to make it cozy and comfy.

Have your pet supplies ready to go!

Before your new pet ever arrives you should have already budgeted a bit of your income to provide them with a positive structured love filled life. Make sure you take a moment to reflect on what the basics are, in addition to what treats and extras you can afford.

Basics:

Non-retractable leash

Dog food

Dog bed

Crate

Baby gate – ( handy if you have off limits areas of your home )

Toys

Food and water bowls

Identification tag

Poop bags

Acclimating to a dog walker routine

It might take a bit of time for your dog to acclimate to their new environment. He or she may not be sure if their new home is permanent or not. Therefore it is very important that your dog begins to establish you as a stable source of love and structure in their life. Sometimes the transition period from shelter, to home and then dog walker can be tough. Especially if you are trying to pursue a career that affords you the means needed to take care of a dog, your job needs you in the office! That’s where a good dog walker comes in.

An invaluable first step is to take as much time as you can to get to know the personality of your dog. And as mentioned earlier, it would be ideal if you could schedule the take home day over a vacation or holiday. Your goal is to be home as much as possible during that initial adjustment period. It is also recommended that you chat with the adoption service and make note of what your pet’s triggers might be, and also pay close attention to what your pet responds well to. When you get started with a dog walker that information should be provided so they can navigate those issues safely.

It is preferable to delay any dog walking service until your pet has had at least a week and a half to adjust to their new home. If for whatever reason you are not able to wait that long ask your employer for a week when you can work from home. That way you will be present when your new walker comes. Your pet will be more likely to acclimate faster to a new caretaker if they see their owner positively interact with them. After about a week of this your pet should be in a good spot to create a life full of positive routines and exercise with whatever dog walking service you choose.

References:

https://www.humanesociety.org/resources