Take it slow… even if everything seems fine!

You can’t go back in time and repeat the settling-in period, so take it much slower than you think is needed.

Many people tell me that their rescue dog settled in very quickly and seemed OK, so they didn’t see the need to take things slowly, yet a few weeks later everything started to go a little wrong and their dog’s behaviour deteriorated; for example, developing reactivity.

So why does this happen? In these cases, I call those first few weeks the “honeymoon period”. During this time the dog is not fully relaxed and is not showing their true colours yet. Problems such as reactivity will often develop a few weeks later, once the dog feels comfortable enough to show how they really feel, often before that they may not show much behaviour at all, their new owners mistakingly thinking their dog is extremely well adjusted and quiet.

Although it only takes dogs a few days to become familiar in their new surroundings, with their new people and to daily routines, it takes much longer for them to feel completely safe and at ease, often months or even years in some cases. Bonding with their new family can be a lengthy process.

There’s a common myth which states that a rescue dog takes three days to decompress from the stress of a shelter, three weeks to learn new routines and three months to feel fully settled in. Nobody seems to know where this originated, but it is not a useful guideline. You need to be led by the individual dog. Just like us humans, dogs are individuals with their own emotional baggage; what one dog can cope with, another cannot. By sticking to the “3 days, 3 weeks, 3 months” rule you risk pushing a stressed dog into situations they are not equipped to handle and that can lead to them forming negative associations, problem behaviour and even into dangerous situations. One dog may take three days to decompress and another may take much, much longer, so following the 3-3-3 rule doesn’t give dogs the individual consideration they need.

Instead of concentrating on these rules with no scientific backing, it’s best to put your efforts into learning more about dog body language so you can understand when your dog is ready to do new things.

The effects of stress

How do you tell if a dog is stressed? They can’t tell us, so we need to rely on their body language and the behaviour they show. But dog body language and behaviour is also commonly misunderstood. This isn’t something we are taught in school and misinformation is all around us. In one of my previous blogs (“Helping your dog to relax” - click here) I explained the different ways dogs express stress. If you are rehoming a dog with past trauma you may see a very shut-down dog to begin with; a dog that doesn’t move around much and just needs to hide (the “freeze” response). A different dog may deal with their stress and trauma differently; they may use aggression in an attempt to keep themselves safe (the “fight” response). Some dogs will be frantic to escape (“flight”), or some will appear hyperactive (“fool around”). Do have a read of my other blog to learn more about this.

When a dog is stressed, they are more likely to make negative associations. This means that if you introduce too many people or go to too many places with them when they are already stressed, they are likely to become fearful in those contexts. If you wait until your dog is relaxed you can introduce novel situations when they are in a much happier frame of mind, meaning they are more likely to form positive associations (or at least adjust better and not form behaviour problems).

The other problem with stress is that it builds up. So if your new dog is stressed (even if they don’t look stressed—remember they show it in different ways), this will have an effect on their entire body. If more stressful things happen (and you cannot predict what is going to be stressful for a new dog), this stress will build up in their system which can cause a bigger problem or a “sudden” outburst. This is often how aggression starts; it appears to come out of nowhere, but the dog was actually chronically stressed and the bite happened when the dog was no longer able to cope.

Stress is just as bad for dogs as it is for us, having a detrimental effect on every process in the body including the immune and digestive systems. Then, if they are feeling unwell, this will cause even more stress.

Behaviour problems which appear later

“My rescue dog shies away when people approach to stroke them, they’ve clearly been hit in the past!” or “my rescue dog must have been abused by men because they growl at men”

People assume this means the dog was mistreated in their previous home. They may have been, but we cannot jump to those assumptions. Many dogs are head-shy and a lack of appropriate socialisation is a common cause of backing away from people. Some dogs just

don’t like being touched (especially on the head) so they’ve learned they need to back off in order to avoid those hands reaching out to touch them.

Dogs are often fearful of things they have limited experience of, so just because your new rescue dog is scared of men, it doesn’t mean they were abused by a man. It could just mean they haven’t met many men.

“My rescue dog was said to be OK with children / cats / other dogs but they are not, the rescue centre lied to us!”

Rescue centres are dealing with dogs in an artificial and stressful environment. They have likely done their best to give a fair representation of what the dog is like, but they can never know for sure how the dog will behave in a brand-new environment or once fully settled in. A dog living in a rescue centre isn’t likely to show their true behaviour. Even a dog that has lived in a home before can show new problems that were not apparent previously so lots of information about how a dog behaves in a previous home doesn’t mean they will behave the same in a new home with new people. A change in circumstances is disorientating and stressful for dogs and this can cause them to behave out of character. We can never know for sure what’s happened in the past so it’s best not to make assumptions.

If your rescue dog is showing fear, anxiety or other behaviour problems, it’s important to get help sooner rather than later. Time and love isn’t enough.

First introductions

How do you greet a new dog? You don’t. The best way to introduce yourself to an unfamiliar dog is to just hang out together. If a dog wants to interact with you, you’ll know about it.

A dog that approaches you for a sniff does not necessarily want to be touched, so keep your hands to yourself to begin with. Allow the dog to sniff you and gather the information they need without feeling like they are having their personal space invaded. If they nuzzle into your hand, you can give them a little stroke but make sure you stop after just a few seconds to see if they want more or if they move away instead.

Resist the temptation to encourage a nervous dog to approach you. And don’t get the food out to tempt them closer, be patient! Some nervous dogs will approach to take food from people but feel more uncomfortable when coming closer and this can cause more issues in the longer term for those dogs due to feelings of conflict. If you’re meeting a new dog who is food-motivated, you can throw food towards them so that they get the good stuff without needing to come closer to you and this can help them to form a positive association.

Avoid approaching the dog, don’t stick out your hand for them to sniff, don’t loom over their head and don’t try to hug them. This dog doesn’t know or trust you and this invades their personal space. These are good rules to follow with any dog, not just rescues.

The first few days in their new home

Remember: you know that you are kind and are giving your rescue dog a great home where they will be very well loved. But to them, you are a total stranger and they have no reason to trust you yet.

You know that you have a safe and comfortable home for your new dog, but they have no reason to believe this yet. They may not have experienced the simplest and most normal things to us; such as carpet, furniture, household objects and even doorways. Many dogs that travelled from overseas had previously been street dogs where they never learned to cope with confinement. They need time to learn that this place is safe and predictable.

As a general rule, try to just leave your rescue dog alone so they have the chance to learn all about their new surroundings at their own pace.

Tips:

🐾 Have no expectations of your new dog.

🐾 Be calm and consistent in your behaviour.

🐾 Keep everything quiet (avoid things like vacuuming, lawn mowing, using the hairdryer or doing laundry). Even noises such as your phone can be scary for a dog who hasn’t heard these things before.

🐾 Allow your dog all the time they need to observe and explore their new surroundings.

🐾 Let your dog decide whether or not to approach or interact with you. Don’t be offended if they don’t, or if encounters are brief. Being patient now pays off later!

🐾 If your dog initiates touch (by nuzzling your hand); keep it brief (3 seconds is a good rule of thumb) and then pause. What they do next is very telling, and don’t touch them unless they are explicitly indicating that they want more. A dog rolling onto their back is not an invitation for a tummy rub in most cases.

🐾 Ensure children leave them alone.

🐾 Leave them alone with their food.

🐾 Give them some options of sleep locations, but don’t be offended if they choose to rest elsewhere.

🐾 Don’t expect them to follow instructions or be obedient.

🐾 Avoid putting them into stressful or scary situations.

🐾 If something scares them, allow them to move away and ensure the scary situation ends.

🐾 Don’t try to introduce walking equipment straight away. Avoid car journey to begin with, you may need to build up to these slowly.

🐾 Build trust. Trust is built by being safe and predictable, not by force, coercion or punishment.

🐾 If they want to hide, allow them to.

🐾 Some dogs will not cope with being alone at all. When a dog moves home they can form a “trauma bond” with a certain person, struggling to be away from them. Don’t force separation.

🐾 No guests. Your friends and family may be keen to meet your new addition but nobody truly needs to meet your dog yet. Waiting a little bit too long is better than not waiting long enough. Those first introductions have a lasting effect on how your dog will react to strangers in future.

🐾 Watch their body language carefully, looking out for changes. A growl is the final warning that a dog is feeling uncomfortable. A growling dog is not a bad dog; it’s a dog that is desperately trying to communicate with you that they need space. If your dog is growling, please get professional help from a qualified and regulated behaviourist.

🐾 Keep their world small to begin with. This is the time to learn all about your dog and for them to learn all about you. Remember, dogs are good at masking how they really feel when in survival mode and it’s easy to misinterpret this for a relaxed dog. This is not the time for outings.

Remember, you have the rest of your rescue dog’s life to introduce them to new things, to go on adventures and share fun times together. By being cautious now and taking longer to settle them in, you’ll get off to a better start and will make progress faster in the long run.

As time unfolds, your dog should become more relaxed and you’ll learn all about their sensitivities and what makes them tick.

How long does it take? How long is a piece of string.

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Blog written by Claire Mcknespiey of Educating Paws

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