Blog: Transitioning a dog from a rescue to your home
Adopting a rescue puppy is one of the most rewarding experiences you can have. Not only are you giving a deserving dog a second chance at life, but you’re also gaining a loyal companion who will shower you with unconditional love. However, bringing home a new dog comes with responsibilities, like ensuring their safety. Luckily, there are many steps you can take to provide your new pup with added security and give you peace of mind. Let’s dive into what you need to know before and after bringing your rescue dog home!
Before you bring your dog home
Even though you’re eager to bring home your new furry friend, spending just a little time preparing can set you and your dog up for success, ensuring you get off to a good start!
Preparation
Preparing for your new rescue dog is an exciting process! You should start by making sure your home is ready for their arrival by purchasing essentials like food and water bowls, a bed, a leash, a harness, a collar with an identification tag, toys, and any grooming supplies you may need. Since there are so many options for different foods and supplies for dogs, consider consulting your veterinarian for advice to get their expert opinion.
When purchasing the essentials, you might want to consider adding a GPS tracker for your dog’s collar. GPS trackers help you locate your dog quickly with real-time tracking and have useful features like activity tracking and geo-fencing. You can locate your dog immediately, keep track of their fitness, and set up virtual boundaries that will alert you anytime your dog leaves – all of these features will come in handy as you and your pup are bound to have many years of adventures together!
Your home is a whole new environment for your dog, so it’s important to ensure that everything is dog-proofed to keep them safe. Remove any toxic or hazardous items that a curious dog might want to eat or chew on, like wires, toxic plants, and small objects that could be swallowed. Crate training can be useful in keeping your dog in a designated space where they feel safe and secure as they adjust to their new environment. However, crate training may be difficult if your dog has previously had a bad experience with it, so remember to be patient.
Communication
A big part of ensuring that your dog has an easy arrival and transition into your home is communicating regularly with all family members. Dogs thrive on consistency and routine, and a solid routine will help your dog adapt and feel more secure quickly. Discuss roles and responsibilities to ensure everyone is on the same page regarding feeding, walking, training, and playtime.
It’s important to establish your dog with a veterinarian shortly after you bring them home and make sure that they are up to date on their vaccines and preventatives and don’t have any health concerns. When you take your dog to the vet, it’s a smart idea to discuss microchipping your dog. Microchipping is an easy procedure that implants a small chip between your dog’s shoulder blades and can help bring you peace of mind knowing that your dog has a higher chance of being reunited with you if they were to run off. Once your contact information is in PetLink’s microchip database, anyone who finds your dog and has them scanned can contact you to reunite you with your precious child!
Microchips vs GPS Trackers vs QR Tags
As pet owners, we all want to keep our furry family members safe and ensure they can find their way back home if they ever get lost. Microchips, GPS trackers, and QR tags are all methods to improve the chances of reunification with your pet and keeping them safe. A microchip is a small, permanent implant that stores your contact information (please remember to register your microchip with PetLink and keep your details up to date) and can be scanned by veterinarians or shelters to identify your pet and contact you. A GPS tracker is attached to your pet’s collar and provides real-time location tracking, allowing you to quickly locate your pet if they wander away from home. A QR identification tag, also attached to your dog’s collar, can be scanned with a smartphone to access your contact information and your pet’s details. While each tool serves a different function – microchips for permanent ID, GPS trackers for real-time location, and QR ID tags for quick access to information – they all play a crucial role in keeping pets safe and ensuring a quick and easy reunification with you.
Bringing your rescue dog home
While you and your dog are surely off to a great start to live a long, happy life together, the first few days that your rescue dog is home can be an adjustment period, which is completely normal.
The first few days
The first few days with your rescue are very important since they’ll probably be nervous, scared, and unsure of their new environment. It’s important to be patient, provide a calm and supportive atmosphere, allow them to explore at their own pace, and gradually introduce them to different areas of your home and different aspects of your life.
While your new furry friend is getting used to their new space, having them wear a GPS tracker on their collar at all times can give you some extra peace of mind as an added layer of security that can prevent a potentially stressful situation if your dog were to get spooked and run away..
Understanding rescue dogs
Rescue dogs often come with their own set of challenges due to past experiences, but it can be so rewarding to tackle those and give them a happy, safe life. When interacting with rescue dogs, it’s important to approach them with patience and empathy because you won’t know everything they’ve been through previously. Understanding their behavior can help you address any issues that arise.
If you notice your dog having a big reaction to anything like an object, animal, or person, it’s important to keep a note to identify any fears or triggers and discuss this with your veterinarian. The best method to overcome these challenges is for you as the owner to show you are in complete control and be as encouraging as possible – so they can see that nothing bad is going to happen if they step forward rather than try to pull away! Make a huge fuss of them as they make progress, no matter how small.
Building a bond with your rescue dog
Now that you and your new dog are off to a great start and you’ve helped your dog get acclimatized to your home, it’s time to work on building a strong bond between you! Building a bond is arguably the most fun aspect of owning a dog!
Positive training techniques
Building this bond with your new dog is a joyful and exciting journey, and it starts with using positive reinforcement training techniques to establish trust and communication. Using treats, praise, and affection to reward good behavior will make training sessions more enjoyable and effective.
When training any dog, consistency is key. It’s best to keep commands short and simple and reward the good behavior you see. The behaviors that get rewarded are more likely to be repeated, ensuring your dog is on their way to becoming the best girl or boy! Training doesn’t only help your dog learn good behavior, but it’s a fun way to spend quality time together and helps strengthen the bond between you and your dog.
Socialization
Socialization is crucial for rescue dogs, but for those who may have had bad previous experiences, it’s best to take it slow and easy. Gradually introduce your dog to new people, pets, and environments to help them feel more confident. You can try taking your dog on walks in different areas, experiencing new sights and sounds, and arranging playdates with other dogs. When you feel they are ready, take them to noisy and more busy environments – you want your dog to cope and stay calm in all situations.
You always want your pup to leave feeling happy and confident, so supervise all interactions and be ready to intervene when necessary. Since each dog is unique, their socialization skills will vary. By using positive reinforcement techniques, you can help ensure your pup has a good socialization experience.
Enrichment activities
Similar to people, it’s important to keep your dog mentally and physically stimulated with enrichment activities1. Puzzle toys, interactive games, agility training, and trick training are all easy ways to keep them engaged and happy. Not only do enrichment activities give them a fun outlet, but they also can prevent boredom and reduce destructive behaviors.
The more time you have to set aside for play and exploration the better! This keeps your dog entertained, but activities like fetch, hide and seek, and even obedience games are all great ways to have fun together and reinforce your bond.
Addressing common challenges
Just like with children and toddlers, all dogs may experience some sort of problem here and there, but patience and positive reinforcement training techniques can solve almost any problem your pup may encounter.
Housetraining
Housetraining is a big concern for new dog owners. Establishing a routine for your dog to go outside every few hours, especially after eating and waking up from a nap, can help teach your pup that it’s only appropriate to potty outside. Once your dog goes to the bathroom outside, reward them with treats and praise so that they learn going to the bathroom outside is the right thing to do.
Accidents will happen, so remember to be patient and consistent. Clean any indoor accidents with an enzymatic cleaner to remove odors and prevent repeat offenses. Consistency and positive reinforcement are the keys to successful housetraining!
Separation anxiety
Many rescue dogs suffer from separation anxiety due to their past experiences. When you bring your rescue dog home, it’s important to gradually acclimatize your dog to being alone by starting with short periods of time on their own and slowly increasing the duration. You can even provide them with toys and treats to keep them occupied while you’re away.
Barking
Excessive barking can be a challenge, especially for rescue dogs who might be anxious or fearful. If your dog is barking because they’re stressed, you can work with a trainer to address those issues, again with positive reinforcement techniques. If they’re barking out of boredom, try increasing their exercise and enrichment activities.
Training your dog to respond to specific commands like “quiet” is important. You can use positive reinforcement to reward them when they stop barking on command. This can be a tough habit to work on, so once again consistency and patience are key.
Bringing a rescue dog into your home is a joyous and life-changing experience. By preparing adequately, using positive training techniques, and ensuring their safety by having them microchipped and registered in PetLink’s microchip registry plus using a GPS tracker collar, you can create a loving and secure environment for your new furry friend. Embrace the journey of building a bond with your rescue dog, and enjoy the endless love and companionship they bring into your life. Remember, every effort you put into their well-being is rewarded with wagging tails, happy barks, and a loyal friend for life.