Home > Out of the Cage! > May 2005 > Behavior & Training: Now that you've adopted your new dog from a shelter…

Behavior & Training

Now that you've adopted your new dog from a shelter…

by Stacy Alldredge, Trainer, The Dog Run – NYC/Who's Walking Who

Every dog deserves a second chance! I am a great supporter of rescue work and have been involved in some capacity since I was a wide-eyed 11-year-old cleaning kennels at the local shelter. Suffice it to say that that was many years ago.

Rescue is the real deal. It is the heart and soul of the animal world. Motivated by a deep compassion for those who cannot speak for themselves, many in the rescue world can see beyond the matted coat, the skinny body, the broken bones, and the anger and sadness, to the happy, healthy, well-adjusted companion that the dog is meant to be. This is the vision of the rescuer and should be praised and respected.

While an adult shelter dog might require retraining in some areas, such as housetraining, the level of training will be far less than that of a new puppy. This is why many people prefer to adopt an adult dog, and recognize that there are many wonderful dogs available from shelters and rescue groups.

Following are two scenarios that some new adopters might find familiar (although they do not apply to all dogs adopted from a shelter).

I recently adopted an adult dog who was trained to go on wee-wee pads, but I want him to go outside only. Is that possible?

The good news is "Yes!" You can re-train a dog to go outside, even if the dog was originally trained to go only on paper. The bad news is that it can be a long process. With regards to housetraining and re-training your dog, you have to think of the dog as a puppy. You are essentially starting over!

Without knowing your dog's history, there are a couple of challenges with regard to housetraining, particularly your dog's response to the "great outdoors." Some dogs who are/were trained to go only indoors have so little experience with the outside world that training them to go outside can take longer than expected. If you have adopted a dog that was once a "house dog," or treated as such, then you are not just housetraining the dog, but also socializing him, sometimes for the very first time.

The main things you will need to do are:

My dog seems sad. I rescued her from a shelter about a month ago, but she doesn't seem happy. She's lethargic, won't play with her toys, or even chew on a bone. What should I do?

I am so glad you rescued this dog! Congratulations! How many of us would take every dog in the shelter if we only had the space!

Your dog almost certainly is sad. Dogs have emotions and feelings. This dog has lost her home at least once, was in a shelter, and fortunately, now is with you! Whatever else she has endured, we will never know. All dogs suffer from depression and sadness when given up and placed in a shelter or any new home. Most dogs work through these emotions, but it takes time. It takes most dogs 3–6 months to really settle into a new environment. It is no different than humans, when we suffer great loss and change.

The factors that determine how quickly a dog will acclimate to a new home are the dog's age, breed, health, time in shelter, the quality of the new life, companionship from other dogs, and last but not least, diet. Be patient and try to give your new dog the best possible life. Continue to try to teach her how to play, and give her bones to chew on. Keep in mind she may never have played with, or even had, a bone to chew on!

One of my dogs, John, who is a rescue, sat on my couch for months wanting nothing but to be petted and fed. Then one day I bought my cat a new toy. John flew off the couch and started playing with the mouse toy! I was so happy I couldn't believe it! To this day, it is the only toy he will play with, and thus I have mice toys all over my house. My cats have no interest in them, but John's enthusiasm for this toy and only this toy has not wavered. So continue to try and find things she might enjoy and hopefully, one day soon, she will be the happy dog that she is meant to be.

Stacy Alldredge is a professional dog trainer and behavioral consultant who owns The Dog Run – NYC, a one-of-a-kind doggie day care and service center in Manhattan, and Who's Walking Who, an obedience and behavioral service. Stacy provided the location for the filming of the breed identification DVD currently in production, and stages fundraisers for the Mayor's Alliance/Picasso Veterinary Fund at her Chelsea location. Stacy and her businesses were featured in the November 2004 issue of Out of the Cage!

If you have a behavior or training question or topic you'd like to see addressed in this column, please e-mail it to us at info@AnimalAllianceNYC.org.