Need help with my little rescue dog.

[RemsMom]

I rescued an adorable little BC and brought her home on Tuesday. Her name is Mattie and she is 18-24 months old. Mattie is a sweet and gentle girl and everyone in my family has fallen in love with her. Mattie is my first rescue, all my other dogs were purchased from a breeder as puppies.

 

Mattie has been sleeping a lot. Is this from the stress of coming to a new home? She really seems to enjoy all the people in the house and will seek us out for attention but then will find a quiet spot to curl up and sleep. Her eating has been off too. This morning was the first day she ate almost all the food in her bowl. I was so happy to see her with an appetite! However, at dinner this evening she only ate a couple of mouthfuls and then was finished. She is a skinny girl so I worry about her getting enough to eat.

 

Mattie seems to have some fear of strange dogs. It didn't take her long to warm up to my BC, Natasha, but it took a couple of days for her to warm up to my GSD. Whenever my GSD would come close Mattie would curl her lip and show her teeth (she also did this when she met the dog of a friend). I would give her a very soft "No" and she would stop immediately. What can I do to make her more comfortable around strange dogs? Mattie is very shy so I also need help with ideas to build her confidence and to help her understand that her people will take care of her and the world isn't such a scary place.

 

My two BCs. Mattie is on the left and Natasha on the right.

 

[borasaurus]

From my own experience and from what I've heard from others, it takes about three months for a rescue dog to get acclimated to a new home. It's a bit of a culture shock for them. It's like if you suddenly got pulled out of your home and had to live with complete strangers. Suddenly, there are all these different people and dogs to get used to. Some dogs can adjust right away, but I think most need some time. Does she have a crate or someplace cozy to stay that's her own spot?

 

You shouldn't worry about her eating unless she does it for a long period of time. Most feeding guidelines are too high anyway and result in overweight dogs. According to Kieran's bag (Merrick), he should be getting at least 1.5 cups a day. I barely even give him one and he's thriving (he's ~24 lbs). Have you checked her out at the vet? As long as there aren't any underlying health issues, she should be fine. Just make sure she isn't getting too skinny.

 

Kieran didn't like other dogs for a pretty long time. He'd just stand there when they would try to sniff him. Now he's really friendly with them. If she's uncomfortable, don't try to force her to interact. Is she doing a submissive grin or a snarl?

 

I wish you all the best with your new family member. She looks like such a sweet girl and she's going to have a great life, even if she doesn't know it yet.

[RemsMom]

Borasaurus, thank you for your post.

 

Mattie loves to be in my son's room. He has been away at school so my other dogs don't ever go in his room but he is home now and Mattie has decided my son is the best person and she loves to sleep under his desk or curl up in the corner of his room. Mattie has been to the vet and I was told not to worry about her lack of interest in food but I am programmed by many years of being a mom to worry about skinny children not eating.

 

I knew my GSD and the friend's dog would be fine to introduce Mattie to because they both are really easy going and would not react. I am thinking it must be a snarl because she does this even when the other dog is not paying attention to her.

 

I find Mattie difficult to judge because she sleeps half the day and ignores everyone but then will all of a sudden decides to romp and play like any other puppy (like now, after 11:00 at night and both my collies are chasing each other about the living room).

[gcv-border]

Short note because I have to run.

 

Rescue dog adjustment period: can be quite lengthy - or not. read other posts here on the Boards, the most recent being titled similar to "how to be 'the' person to your dog" started within the past week. Again, I recommend Patricia McConnell's book "Love has No Age Limit" for a quick read about the issues that can accompany a rescue dog.

 

Sleeping a lot: I would attribute to her adjustment period.

 

'Snarling' at another dog: is she of an age that she might be going through her 2nd fear period (in addition to dealing with being rehomed)? I also wouldn't force interaction with another dog - regardless of whether the other dog is 'good' with other dogs. It is her perception that is important, not yours. I would not correct her at this point for her negative reaction to other dogs. She is just telling you that she is uncomfortable. Just calmly remove her from the situation and go on with life. She will come around. You could also try interacting with her (treats, petting) when another dog is in the background - at a distance where she doesn't feel threatened and can place all her attention on you. As she gains confidence and gets used to the other dog, the distance can be decreased. Try to build an association between 'good things' and another dog.

 

As you said, she needs to build confidence. Again, go back and read topics dealing with confidence-building, but I would take it very slow at first.

 

You don't say how old she is. My 15 month old still looks like a skeleton.

 

Good Luck with Mattie!

[GentleLake]

^^ What Jovi said.

 

Especially about not correcting Mattie for the growl. It's a communication. She's telling the other dogs she's not comfortable with their approaching. The problem with correcting a dog for communicating like that is it can suppress the communication and then the dog can escalate to a bite without warning when a warning growl may have sufficed to get the other dog (or person!) to stop what it was doing that concerned her.

 

It sounds like her warning growls are both appropriate and very well controlled, i.e. that she's using the lowest key communication to convey her concerns instead of starting out with something more dramatic. So it sounds like she probably has good dog skills, as do your dogs, who respected the communication politely and without incident. Good job all around.

[RemsMom]

Thank you Jovi and GentleLake. I want to make sure I handle this correctly. I will tell people with dogs that Mattie needs her space and not to get too close.

 

Mattie's foster mom thought Mattie was around 16 months, my vet thinks Mattie closer to two years old. Mattie was found wandering alone in farm country and was dropped off with the foster who had her for seven months.

 

I have ordered the Patricia McConnell book, thank you for recommending it.

[WetBlackNose]

RemsMom,

 

My Lucas is also new to our home (less than a month) and displayed much of the same behavior you are seeing with Mattie. Don't be discouraged!

 

Lucas especially has been wary of many other dogs, particularly dogs who have a higher energy level it seems. He growls if he feels uncomfortable. I'm attributing at least some of this to him being anxious and cautious of his new surroundings, and of his people (not knowing if he has to protect himself). We have been taking it easy with intros to other dogs outside of the home. Inside the home, with your shepherd, I would not correct a growl, but would simply redirect ("Hey guys, over here!" Who wants to go outside?"). It can help break the tension to insert yourself, but also helps Mattie to realize that you're there watching over the situation.

 

As far as sleeping, Lucas slept a lot his first week with us, but now has become more comfortable and likes to look out the window instead of curling up on the floor. Just time and patience with the sleep and the eating. If you're concerned about nutrition, feed other high value treats (like chicken) throughout the day. This can help with training and also let her see that good things come from you.

 

Edit: I also just read that she had been with her foster 7 months. That's quite a while so she likely formed a closer bond in that home. She may well take a bit longer to warm up to you and show her true personality. If she's already playing with one of your other dogs, I consider that a great sign.

[mbc1963]

I am listening with so much empathy - I should be bringing a new rescue dog home within the month, and am trying to anticipate the challenges he or she will face.

 

My old guy was very fearful of other dogs, and would always growl if he thought they were approaching too fast or with the dreaded "direct gaze." I could always feel the growl through the leash, and would just walk out in a circle to avoid the other dog. I really think feeling protected from unwanted contact made my boy feel less fearful, and then he would growl less, feel safe, growl less, etc.. I'd say let the new dog seek her zone of safety wherever she needs to. The GSD is a big, strong stranger, and your Maddie is a shy wallflower at this point. She might not be up to many interactions, even if he's a great dog.

[WetBlackNose]

I am listening with so much empathy - I should be bringing a new rescue dog home within the month, and am trying to anticipate the challenges he or she will face.

 

My old guy was very fearful of other dogs, and would always growl if he thought they were approaching too fast or with the dreaded "direct gaze." I could always feel the growl through the leash, and would just walk out in a circle to avoid the other dog. I really think feeling protected from unwanted contact made my boy feel less fearful, and then he would growl less, feel safe, growl less, etc.. I'd say let the new dog seek her zone of safety wherever she needs to. The GSD is a big, strong stranger, and your Maddie is a shy wallflower at this point. She might not be up to many interactions, even if he's a great dog.

mbc1963, I'm curious to know whether your boy ever got better with time? My new guy seems to have similar issues. We're trying to work on it. He growls at some dogs, but not others. Sometimes on leash, sometimes off. It's been difficult to pinpoint the trigger. I think it might be related to interactions he witnesses that he thinks are inappropriate - similar to 'putting the dog in its place.' Anyway, just wondering if you might have recommendations on that.

 

Best of luck with the new rescue! I think bringing a new dog in can be a little stressful for both parties as they try and navigate the new situation, but I've found that rescues bring so much joy!

[simba]

Rem'smom, I know you know all this, but it might be helpful for other people, and good luck with your new dog!

 

My dog used to vary from occasionally attempting to play, to often growling, barking, or having a hysterical fit when she saw other dogs. We used to have to walk down the street away from them, dragging her, and she got into more fights...

 

She's an old dog now, and she has calmed down a lot.

 

One thing I found really helped was when I was willing not just to pull her away or scold her, but also to stick up for her as I was advised to do on these boards. Once she knows that I can also see the crazy dog up ahead and I will move her out of the way in advance, or that I will stomp my feet at the bigger dog trying to stand over and intimidate her, it really helps her stay calm. She knows I'm paying attention, 'scanning the horizon', and so she doesn't have to, she just has to listen to me and I'll tell her when it's okay and I'll tell her when we have to go get out of the way. Now instead of barking she's more likely to tap me on the leg to alert me. You wouldn't have thought it, but there you go. I searched through a load of old threads reading about it, there's some really useful stuff.

 

Okay, it's mostly probably because she's old etc. But I brought her to the park off-lead for the first time ever without needing to leash her when another dog approached. I got her to sit off the path if the other dog was one she'd be worried about. She didn't growl, she didn't snarl, she didn't snap, she didn't bother anyone. Because she knew no-one would bother her.

 

Keep an eye out for teenage dogs, dogs who stare and strain at the leash, dogs who are a bit 'pushy' or off-lead dogs who run up to other dogs. The more of these you can keep her away from, or reassure her you can deal with, the less likely she is to feel she needs to defend herself.

 

Yeah, yeah, it is completely just because she is older and calmer. But don't tell me that, I am so proud, I'd like to keep my bubble un-burst!

[D'Elle]

Hi Rem's Mom,

I would like to weigh in on how important it is not to scold or correct for a little lip lifting or even growling at other dogs. she needs to know that she can set her boundaries, and that she has your backup. I had a little foster dog once who was massively reactive to other dogs, far beyond what you are describing. I was her third foster home in three weeks; everyone else had given up on her because she was so aggressive to other dogs. She would snarl and snipe non stop if another dog were even in the same building with her, whether or not she could see the other dog. The book Click To Calm changed her life (and mine). It only took a half hour of working with her using the concepts in that book to change things around. After that, she could co-exist with my dogs peacefully. I recommend that book very highly.

[RemsMom]

Thanks again for everyone's input. I didn't know how to handle Mattie's little snarl and I knew I could get help here. Mattie has been eating well for the past two days and even showed interest when my daughter was training Natasha (we gave Mattie some treats and praised her). Mattie even tried to get my GSD to play with her (It didn't work, Rem will put up with a collie but doesn't want to have to play with them).

 

D'Elle, it is funny that you mentioned "Click to Calm". When I was ordering "Love has No Age Limit" I saw that book and almost ordered it too. I guess I will go ahead and order the book since you recommend it. I want Mattie to have the best life I can give her and I know I am going to need lots of help!

[mbc1963]

mbc1963, I'm curious to know whether your boy ever got better with time? My new guy seems to have similar issues. We're trying to work on it. He growls at some dogs, but not others. Sometimes on leash, sometimes off. It's been difficult to pinpoint the trigger. I think it might be related to interactions he witnesses that he thinks are inappropriate - similar to 'putting the dog in its place.' Anyway, just wondering if you might have recommendations on that.

Yes! He got much better with time. But he was completely as you describe here: the FUN POLICE. Turid Rugaas has a great video of a BC policing the play antics of other dogs - watching that video made me calm down a LOT about Buddy and just not put him into a group of active, playful dogs. He didn't like it, didn't want to let it go on. There was no point to trying to get him to play with more than one dog at a time. When he was young, he'd play one-on-one with very specific, chosen dogs... but never with more than one. He was, as they say, "Not a dog park kind of a dog."

 

I will second and third what recent posters have said: once Buddy trusted ME to help him avoid confrontations, he let down a lot of his guard.

 

One of my favorite memories is of him out-thinking me. I began taking him off the street/trail and having him do a "lie down" when I sensed he was nervous about other dogs approaching. I had been using this trick for a couple weeks. One day, we were walking and two big bulldogs were heading at us. Buddy moved himself off the street, up onto someone's lawn, and did a lie down all by himself. He had so fully internalized the lesson: "When scared, move away and lie down, and the scary dogs will leave you alone." I was so happy and proud of him that day! I hadn't even known he'd been learning; I thought he was just following my orders.

 

Also, identifying the triggers was huge for me. Before I knew what set him off, he seemed like a loose cannon to me. Scary stuff! But after I realized what the triggers were (direct approach, eye contact, certain types of dogs, certain types of play), Buddy became predictable, and I stopped being scared. I would just call out, "He won't be friendly" and people would leave us be. After some time (3 or 4 years?), we were able to walk in crowded parks just like normal folks, as long as I made sure no dogs got in his face. (Note: there are always going to be stupid people who let their "friendly" dogs run loose and charge everyone else. I figure if those dogs get a nip in the face, there's no one to blame but them. I can control my dog's behavior, but not mine AND yours!)

 

One last thing - the most important lesson I got was about keeping the dog under his threshold. Once he was over it (dog too close to him, noise too loud, too many scary stimuli at once) it was too late to train him or manage his fear. Early on, it could just be a bicycle riding by us. He'd shake, his tail would go between his legs, and he'd do that panicked, hunkering walk. So, for your dog, pay attention to how close you can get to each specific dog before the growling starts. Back him up if he starts to tense. Then you can do the rewarding for good behavior and stuff. I read ALL the books: Patricia McConnell was my #1, and Suzanne Clothier, and Ian Dunbar. They all teach a lot about threshold. But if you Google an image for "dog training threshold," you'll get a bunch of cool online posters that explain the concept really well. It was THE idea that helped me more than anything else.

 

Sounds like your girl is really just new to this world, more than terribly scared or reactive. I look forward to hearing a lot more about her adventures.

 

Good luck!

[RemsMom]

I am happy to report that for the past couple of days Mattie has been cleaning her bowl at mealtimes. She has also taken a huge interest in my daughter's training sessions with Natasha and has started to learn a few tricks.

 

My daughter and I took Natasha to agility class and Mattie went along. I was very careful to watch Mattie. When we first entered the building there were two Golden Retrievers in a crate that had just finished from the previous class. Mattie didn't like them and I quickly, but calmly moved her far away from them. Later during class there was an American Bulldog next to us and Mattie didn't respond to him at all. In fact, when he was running the agility course she was very alert watching him run, ears up and wagging tail.

 

After class I talked to my daughter about Mattie's very different reactions to the dogs and she said, "Mom, the Goldens were staring at her." I was so focused on Mattie that I hadn't noticed but I am glad my daughter did.