# Parents of dogs adopted as adults or almost adults



## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

I thought I'd start a thread regarding the special behavior issues and training needs of dogs adopted as adults or almost adults. I hope others will add their questions here, too, so we can vent and share. To the moderators--can we make this a sticky? 

Raising Tucker (brought home at 9 weeks) and integrating Bella into our home (at 1 year) have been totally different experiences. The knowledge I had of training Tucker and Tess was for puppies, and I've had to learn new ways of working with Bella. It's not ALL different obviously, but different enough that I thought it might be helpful to start a special thread on the topic, much like the Parents of Teenagers thread/sticky that has been quite popular.

My first question for those who have ideas, is How do you help an insecure dog increase her security? Bella has various quirks that she brought with her. Most involve barking--at strangers and other dogs, at sounds outside the house, at people walking by our car, etc. I feel these all stem from her basic insecurity and I'm not sure how to address that at the root. I'm working with her to remediate the _behaviors, _ but I want her to feel secure about life in general. Is it that she doesn't fully trust me yet? Can I do anything to help her? My other dogs do not act this way (but they do get caught up in the barking...:doh: )


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

For a dog that's not overly noise sensitive (able to use a clicker), I play the "look at that" click & treat and also introduce "touch" for them to ease into exploring the scarey world around them.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

SheetsSM said:


> For a dog that's not overly noise sensitive (able to use a clicker), I play the "look at that" click & treat and also introduce "touch" for them to ease into exploring the scarey world around them.


I've never done "look at that". Is there a video I could watch?


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

I don't know about a video, but you find what's "scarey" when they make eye contact with it, click & treat--you already have to have them "loaded" on the clicker so that they know the click is marking a desired behavior and results in a treat. I know others don't rely on clickers--it's just what I learned on and has worked with me & the rescues I fostered. I used this technique with both feral pups and a fear reactive adult golden.


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## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

Take her through a training class. It's the fastest way to bond and build confidence. Then go through a second time, so she can feel like she is just the smartest dog there.


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## SheetsSM (Jan 17, 2008)

Found a video


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

Outwest, 
I feel for you. You don't know what their life was like, so you don't always know what they will react to.

My Hunter was about 1 year old when we got him. He had been wandering the streets for a few days at best guess. No idea exactly how old. Integrating a dog into a highly active lifestyle was difficult at times. We were trail running, hiking, camping, and off on multiple day rafting trips. So quite a change for a dog that seemed to be completely out of shape. He would get tired just walking around the block. Can you imagine taking a dog rafting that had never seen water or been swimming before. He was never terrified, but he also wasn't super excited to go on our trips. 

His biggest problem was his complete lack of socialization as a pup. He was and still is dog aggressive. Any large male or female dog he puts his hackles up and wants to push up against them. I have to watch him closely. He's gotten so much better with a lot of work.

I think with any rescue that lack of socialization is pretty common.
It would be interesting to see what rescue groups have to say about what they see.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Claire's Friend said:


> Take her through a training class. It's the fastest way to bond and build confidence. Then go through a second time, so she can feel like she is just the smartest dog there.


Thanks--we are in the middle of basic obedience. I had a hunch that it would help her confidence level.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Alaska7133 said:


> Outwest,
> I feel for you. You don't know what their life was like, so you don't always know what they will react to.
> 
> My Hunter was about 1 year old when we got him. He had been wandering the streets for a few days at best guess. No idea exactly how old. Integrating a dog into a highly active lifestyle was difficult at times. We were trail running, hiking, camping, and off on multiple day rafting trips. So quite a change for a dog that seemed to be completely out of shape. He would get tired just walking around the block. Can you imagine taking a dog rafting that had never seen water or been swimming before. He was never terrified, but he also wasn't super excited to go on our trips.
> ...


Bella clearly had inadequate socialization, which I didn't pick up on at first because seh and Tucker hit it off right away. I took that as a sign that she would be good with dogs overall, but I was wrong. How did your other dog take to Hunter, or did she come after him? How did you integrate them?


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## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

OutWest said:


> Thanks--we are in the middle of basic obedience. I had a hunch that it would help her confidence level.


That's great, I think you will be very pleased. In most cases, my adoption fee includes a basic training class and the adoption isn't complete until they graduate. I have never had one of those dogs come back.


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## Alaska7133 (May 26, 2011)

Outwest,
It was tough integrating Hunter. At the time I had 2 females that were super attached to each other. One female hated him until she died about 6 months later. So it was a bit of a relief when she died and things calmed down. Hunter got along fine with the other female. That socialization thing is huge.

Claire's Friend,
I agree, that is a great idea combining the class with the adoption. Getting someone into the synch of meeting with a good trainer and other new owners is a platform for success. Good for you!


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## Claire's Friend (Feb 26, 2007)

The other thing is time. It has been my experience that with adults dogs, esp. Goldens, it takes close to 6 months for them to truly trust that they are there to stay. Even with my own foster failures, it seems that they just don't want to hold your gaze, just won't give up their already broken hearts until a certain time has passed. But when that day comes, when you look at them and they don't look away, look right back at you with all the love in the world, now that is a GREAT day !!


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## dborgers (Dec 7, 2011)

We've adopted 4 adult goldens, ages ranging from approx 2 to13 (not sure about exact ages). TLC, training classes, and especially pot roast won them all over pretty quickly. We also made a point of letting them know they were welcome to nap or lounge anywhere they chose. Two of them had been chained up on 6-8 foot chains and left in the dirt previous to their adoptions. Talk about a heartwarming experience watching them feel the softness of the bed for the first time, laying on or near an AC vent, or chomping on their first bites of pot roast.

Our 2nd rescue, Trevor (12 or 13), had finally been surrendered by an owner who kept him chained to an 8' chain his entire life at the urging of a rescue volunteer. He climbed the fence a minute after the volunteer left and ran off. I found him cowering in the back of a pickup truck in a neighbor's yard. He'd been chained up his entire life, skinny, and had a coat that felt like straw. I gently coaxed him to me and took him home, where my wife was cooking a pot roast for his 'welcome home' first meal. 

We were all unaware he suffered from leukemia, which wasn't properly diagnosed by all too many vets we took him to until we found a wonderful vet who's also a golden owner (and still watches after our fur kids well beings). I can remember a particular turning point when, during one of oodles of tests to find out why he quit eating and drinking water a week after adopting him, he lay in a cradle getting an ultrasound of his tummy. While nervous when he first got up there, you could literally see him relax and go "Hey, this isn't so bad"as four of us had hands on him, gently petting him as the ultrasound tech examined him. From that point on he'd get on his back at any opportunity for a belly rub. Pot roast was definitely something that helped him warm to the idea of being here too.

He lived for 7 more months thanks to our wonderful vet's palliative care and was a happy, shiny, trusting boy when he went to the bridge swishing his tail. Remnants of his neglected past came back to him as he went behind a shed to die alone. One of our girls, Daisy, alerted us as she was in the back of the fenced in area urging him to come out, which he did before we got there. He went to the bridge on his own in our arms, gently swishing his tail. We cried many tears at that moment. Partly because he was gone, but mostly mourning the fact so much of his life had been spent alone on a short chain. We were honored to have been given the opportunity for him to know what it was like to be loved.

Here he is a couple weeks before he went to the bridge, looking all handsome as he enjoyed dipping his feet in the water Sorry to ramble on about him, but he really touched our hearts, and your thread immediately brought him to mind. The most profound transformation of a rescue we'd seen in 25 years of adopting strays and rescues. Aw, Trev, you were a wonderful boy. Sorry about writing a novel! LOL 

Thanks for the thread, OutWest. Great for people interested in adopting adults


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## Bentleysmom (Aug 11, 2012)

Wonderful for Trevor that he found you before it was too late to know love! I love hearing rescue stories, just wish I could read them without crying.


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## dborgers (Dec 7, 2011)

Bentleysmom said:


> Wonderful for Trevor that he found you before it was too late to know love! I love hearing rescue stories, just wish I could read them without crying.


Some of us wish we could write them without doing so


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## vcm5 (Apr 20, 2011)

When I got Riley he had been abused and was so anxious and nervous. He has blossomed and people now say they would never ever know. Honestly, I think it just takes patience and time. Do lots of fun things together and keep everything positive. I found doing obedience class, CGC, agility, rally, etc has also really helped to make us partners!


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## mana (Feb 20, 2012)

We adopted our boy at 4 years old. Our dog was never socialized and 3 years later is still dog aggressive. He did not know how to walk on a leash but after hard work, he has learned. Lucky for us he was house trained. In all other respects he is the perfect dog. We couldn't imagine life without him!


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

I love the idea of pot roast therapy... 

we are off to our training class. Thanks all...!


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## dborgers (Dec 7, 2011)

> I love the idea of pot roast therapy...


It's been a sure fire winner around our house to win hearts and tail wags. They love the carrots with all that extra yummy flavor too.


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## Guybrush (Apr 17, 2012)

We brought home Kaylee the 9 month old terror yesterday. She is lovely just a little jumpy and excitable but that is understandable as she hasn't been walked or been outside the house since she was 4 months old. I'm sure more issues will come to light as she settles in.

Guybrush and Kaylee hit it off straight away, they played bitey face and romped around as soon as they met. I was a little worried that Guybrush would get annoyed at Kaylee when she touched his toys but he let her carry them around and try to help her hold them.

Since she has been with us she has been on 2 walks (with Guybrush) which must have been amazing for her, she pulled and bounced for most of the way but shyed away from some bigger cars. We meet one of Guybrush's friends on the walk and Kaylee was polite and didn't get over excited.

Kaylee is starting to love her crate. We are feeding her in there so she doesn't eat Guybrush's food and to get her to associate the crate with yummy food time. She had a good sleep in there last night, we moved the crate into our bedroom and Guybrush was not crated.

So all is looking good for our family.


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## OutWest (Oct 6, 2011)

Jay, I'll be interested to see how she does around dogs as time goes by. Bella's insecurity emerged in the form of being over assertive with other dogs. I don't think she had much socialization at all. She doesn't seem to know what to do, so she gets right in their face and barks. My two cents: keep Kaylee home with GB for a week or so except for neighborhood walks. I suspect the larger world is a bit scary to her right now. Are you feeding her the old owner's food or have you switched her to the same one as GB?


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## Guybrush (Apr 17, 2012)

To answer those questions, we have a small amount of her old food and we are going to slowly transitiion her over to the new food. She never got treats before so we are slowly going to start those with tiny training sessions.

I totally agree with keeping her home for at least a week, except for her walks. Then we will introduce balanced dogs that we know on lead, before any off lead play sessions.

We are taking her to the vets on the weekend for a general checkup and she will stay for a quick spey. We have an intact male Alaskan Malamute next door who could knock down the fence if she went into heat. Plus we might be dog sitting him in a months time, we don't want any accidental pregnancies. She is up to date with her vaccinations, her ears are clear and she has lovely teeth. We have vet checks on both her parents and we meet her mom who was healthy.

If anyone has any tips, they are very welcome.

Thanks Jay


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## Guybrush (Apr 17, 2012)

So Kaylee has come into heat, she's been with us for less than a week. Her surgery was booked for later this week and we've had to call to cancel it :doh:. So far she has been very clean about it lucky for us. We have been by the neighbours to warn them about her (they have a very big Alaskan Malamute who is very friendly and intact), luckily we don't hve to dogsit as they will be moving out before their holidays.


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## MikaTallulah (Jul 19, 2006)

My vet compared Buddy to a puppy when I brought him home- Even though he was over 2.5 years old everything was new to him. He was a giant baby and in many ways still is! The only thing I didn't need to work on with him was not chewing things up- He would chew himself raw though


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## Cricketfur (Oct 10, 2012)

We are still working. We've finally hit that point with Pandora where she doesn't think we're going to get rid of her. It's been 6 months and the vet assumes she is about 3. She will rip up toys and romp around the house without constantly checking to see if it's ok. Although she still acts like a starving dog and we now refer to her as "Fatty" since she would eat her dinner, her sister's, the cat's, then still come beg for more. Hopefully that is the next thing she grows out of.

As far as socialization goes, we sort of put her in a sink or swim situation at the dog park. She stuck close to us at first and would only play with her sister October. Now she is much better, she will even initiate play with other dogs. She doesn't get nearly as drooly around other dogs anymore either, unless it's an intact male. Then she's like a fountain, I just assume that has to do with having been a backyard breeder.

Our main problem we have is house vs park vs outside. She knows several commands, sit, off, lay down, shake, cage, come, stay/wait, and no inside and at the park she at least manages sit, off, and come but when we are outside and it's just her, she acts like she has no brain at all. She literally will not sit unless you (gently) push her butt down, she even tried to climb into the dumpster while I was trying to toss the poop bag in. I would expect this at the park, but it's the opposite, the more dogs around the better she listens.

This is a dog that can be let out off leash and won't stray more than 20 feet from you, but loses her brain on a leash. We have yet to take her to formal training classes with her being sickly, then in heat, then spayed, then us moving, so that has to happen yet.

Any tips or any other rescue owners experience this?


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

A lot of dogs with questionable pasts garner 'security' - courage (if you will) from the company of other dogs - they feel safer (as more often than not they have had few if any negative experiences with other dogs) and less anxious - so have an easier time paying attention to commands. 
' Just her, she acts like she has no brain at all' and 'loses her brain on leash', suggests that she is extremely stressed in these situations. Stress can be displayed by hyper active behavior or by 'shutting down' doing nothing- in either case she cannot think or respond to cues. Does she get more 'animated'? or does it seem like she is 'ignoring' cues slows down or stops moving? Either way, she is telling you that she does not feel safe being 'alone' and on leash with a person..
To help her over come this. Start in the house where she feels 'safer', spend some time in a room with just you and her, block the other pets away. Sit on a chair or on the floor and over time, move to standing up. Don't ask anything of her, and avoid eye contact, just reward with praise and food rewards any behaviors you like. Toss her treats, feed her from your hand, walk around, just let her be. Attach a leash, but don't hold it, continue with the treats, over time, pick up the leash and just hold it and feed her more treats. Avoid putting any tension on the leash, move with her if she moves. Even if she is fine with this, continue reinforcing with calm praise and food rewards, the goal is to create positive associations and reinforce to her that with being alone with you and on leash is a good thing.
Then take her out in the yard, just the two of you. Start over, have her offleash and reward and praise, for her approaching, following, moving with you, anything 'positive'. Gradually build to where you can have her on leash and she is comfortable with that. It is very important that she have only good associations with being with you and on leash - avoid any type of physical (leash) or harsh verbal 'corrections', 'mark' a mistake with a verbal cue such as 'oops' or 'wrong' to let her know she made a mistake, and show her what you want her to do.
When you take her for a walk on leash, if you haven't been doing so, go 'solo', (short walks to start with) yes, she will be less anxious with another dog along, but she will benefit from the experience of doing it 'by herself' with you.
Trust and confidence in us is earned, through creating and reinforcing positive experiences with our dogs. It takes time, patience, and compassion - understand that her previous experiences with one-on-one interactions with people may not have been all good, understand also that you can change how she feels about those situations by ensuring that only good things happen when she is with you.
My rescue came to me, afraid of the collar and terrified of the leash, it took me six months to help him learn that just having the leash attached to his collar was not the end of the world. My other dogs helped teach him that people were okay, but learning to feel safe - one-on-one with me, took a lot longer, it is ALL about trust.


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## GoldenCamper (Dec 21, 2009)

OutWest said:


> My first question for those who have ideas, is How do you help an insecure dog increase her security? Bella has various quirks that she brought with her. Most involve barking--at strangers and other dogs, at sounds outside the house, at people walking by our car, etc. I feel these all stem from her basic insecurity and I'm not sure how to address that at the root. I'm working with her to remediate the _behaviors, _ but I want her to feel secure about life in general. Is it that she doesn't fully trust me yet? Can I do anything to help her? My other dogs do not act this way (but they do get caught up in the barking...:doh: )


It takes time. Training a insecure dog is a whole different world than raising a pup, god knows what their life was like.

Fiona barked a whole lot more when I adopted her, rarely happens anymore. 

On the other hand Tucker was my doorbell, woof woof, and I loved it. Every dog is such an individual.

It can take years for a bond/trust to develop. Learn to read body language, set them up for success and appreciate their characteristics. They can only change so much sometimes.

Training is a life long thing, rescue or not. Dogs can revert to unwanted behaviors and it is up to us to nip it in the bud.

Classes are wonderful but I have always done real life. I've thrown the world at my kids one baby step at a time.

Fiona was super glue to the extreme. Had to move my feet back and forth inches in front of her to teach her to stay. Back up a foot and so forth.


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## Brelywi (Apr 5, 2013)

Oh wow, the stories about rescue dogs (especially the ones who spend their whole lives on a short leash) make me cry! I'm so happy that you all are taking the time to work with them and make their lives better, you guys are doing a great thing 

We just got our first golden a couple weeks ago; luckily, we haven't really had too many problems with him. He does have a little bit of separation anxiety, he HAS to be in the same room (and even the same part of the room) as we are; if I step outside or into another room for a second and shut the door, he whines. Luckily, I like him next to me anyway, so it's not hurting anything except when we have to go run an errand and we can't take him. Ours is at least the fourth home he's been in so far (he's only a year old) so it's understandable.

He still jumps up and mouths on people, but we're working on that. I'm just so glad that the people who owned him before us were nice to him (apart from not teaching him ANY obedience whatsoever!), because it would be so hard going through what you guys are!


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## Guybrush (Apr 17, 2012)

Congrats on the rescue goldens everyone.

Just here to give a short update about Kaylee. She has settled in really well now that she is over her heat. If we put aside her medical issues with spaying, infections, lumps she is awesome. She is really food motivated much more than Guybrush she will do anything for a treat, we are back at training every Sunday and we start dancing with dogs this Wednesday. SO far she knows the commands sit, drop, up, down, stand, heal, touch and crawl but only when we have treats.

The only problem at the moment is her excitement when I let the dogs in when I come home. She jumps and grabs my arms, its excited mouthiness which I'm kind of glad that she feels comfortable enough to do but it leaves bruises. On a normal person it wouldn't bruise but with my connective tissue disorder it looks like I have been attacked! At the moment I am taking out treats with me and having them sit and calm down before they get rewarded. Does this sound like the right way to get through to her? I'm only having limited success.

Hope everyone has a wonderful time with their golden bundles of joy!


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## Charliethree (Jul 18, 2010)

Guybrush said:


> Congrats on the rescue goldens everyone.
> 
> Just here to give a short update about Kaylee. She has settled in really well now that she is over her heat. If we put aside her medical issues with spaying, infections, lumps she is awesome. She is really food motivated much more than Guybrush she will do anything for a treat, we are back at training every Sunday and we start dancing with dogs this Wednesday. SO far she knows the commands sit, drop, up, down, stand, heal, touch and crawl but only when we have treats.
> 
> ...


Sounds like it is going well.
Preventing her from jumping up by getting and rewarding for the behavior you do want, teaches her what to do. Kaylee has likely practiced those 'inappropriate greetings' in her former home, so it is going to take some practice and consistency to train a new 'habit' for her. Suggest that when she gets it right, 'jackpot' her, occassionally (feed several treats in a row, fed one at a time) high praise and pets. Remember to reinforce Guybrush's good behavior as well! Practice 'sit to greet' in other situations as well, at times when she is not over excited to help instill and reinforce the 'habit'.


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