| Archive for Rescue Remedies.myfastforum.org Rescue Remedies Forum |
| xxlynne |
The 'Rescue dog'I have been appreciating what it is to be a rescue dog... It often means that you have been raised in unrealistic families who excepted their pup to just be around in their family as some 'love object' Never getting to grips with what a dogs needs are or identifying with the particular needs a puppy has in preparing them for adulthood in 'their world'.A terrier inparticular including Staffordshire Bull Terriers being the bulk of our dogs need intensive socialisation with dogs as part of their development to gain what I call 'dog fluency' Most of the dogs we 'help' have had the opposite. They don't understand themselves to be dogs; nor do they know how to pitch themselves in with dogs outside as their walks were probably rare or solitary with their owners being dog shy. We see many people coming forwards for rescue dogs expecting to find an all singing all dancing dog matured and well trained 'saving them the purchase price of a puppy and the effort of the 'puppy days'. The Rescue family are the ones who are deligent and prepared to help their dog 'catch up' on their skills which is a difficult task; you have an adult learning how to relax with dogs outside when they are unskilled and apprehensive. They mutter we all have issues none of us are perfect! The rescue family understands dogs and how much their needs will feature in their family activities and regime. They pace themselves and take life in steps. They expect very little and are often delighted with the dogs performance and achievements. Yes we have many questionnaires but the soul destroying fact is most of them are looking for a dog to fit into their lives and our dogs would 'fail at the first hurdle' so why put they through that. A little dispondent currently to see such fantastic dogs sit in our kennels or fail homes in the first 2 weeks who are 'great' dogs just not 100% all singing all dancing. |
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| jm |
Having been through the whole scenario of rehoming a poorly socialised staffie, I must confess that even when you think you are quite dog savvy, it can be a bit of a challenge.
Whilst some re-homings are simply not to be, Is there anything we as volunteers could do to support those with genuine teething problems in those early few weeks? |
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| nickik |
I rescued from R R about 2 months ago, day after we brought her home I was ready to throw in the towel, couldnt cope
Dee called me everyday twice a day for 2 weeks, put me in touch with their dog behaviourist. I cried, laughed and talked all my issues through and now 2 months on we still have a dog that will prob have "issues" all of her life but we can preempt them now and work through them as a family we wouldnt be without her You def would not get the kind of support we did if we had rescued from a large rescue |
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| reclaimingrebus |
some time ago, I persuaded Lynne to take on a little Patterdale, who was a real project. Its a long story, but in short I had her at home for a couple of days, whilst trying to do a decent assessment which would enable me to find a rescue to place her. The list of issues she had was long, and I was quite despairing of finding somewhere. And then I looked at the lsit again. In fact, she didn't do anything that one or other of my 4 hadn't done/didn't do. I already coped with or had already dealt with all of it - so it was all really do-able, she jsut needed someone with the right mindset and willingness to learn the skills. RR was the only rescue prepared to give her the time and input she needed - but she is now a much loved member of her family. | ||
| newforestdweller |
I got my rescue dog. Carol, now Cerys Parsons Jack Russell, from you seven weeks ago.
I knew what to expect from a Rescue dog, my parents and grandparents rescued. Coping with the some of the behaviours though is a different matter. She is probably one of the easier ones. Nice natured, but so poorly socialised. Just found this post after an appalling day with her, the sort where all your gains seem reversed. Her main problem is barking at other dogs, cats, shadows, anything while on a lead. At least I can now walk her on a lead. A lot of training is breaking the habit, but it is slow. It also feels so isolating. A dog who cannot be taken anywhere with much dog contact limits the whole social point of having a dog. Having a thread where some advice can be given on the common problems of rescue dogs would be a good idea. Not necessarily a personal reply to everyone. Just some headings such as how to socialise a dog to other dog contact. Or how to get a dog used to a lead. Not just a matter of a few treats as most training manuals. In Cery's case it was more like cage fighting  We got there though but it was a bumpy ride.
Terriers can be demanding dogs even when nothing has gone wrong. My last one I had as a puppy and he ran through a catalogue of chased cats, optional recall and chewed furniture before maturing into a civilised companion. How does this rate as a suggestion? |
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| Net |
We got our little Lucy in June - after a little blip with our other JR needing to see her as just a good friend  we began to find out what her issues were. She had only been with RR a few nights - and only one in kennels.
She pulls really hard on a lead - it's only been in the last couple of days I've seen any progress with this but there are small signs that this is getting a tiny bit better. She makes a unbelievable noise when she sees other dogs and goes even more overboard when she sees a cat - we drive up the road now so as not to annoy the neighbours
She is unpredictable with other dogs - gives a nip with no warning, mostly to other bitches. Our other dog is not friendly with most male dogs .... ah well, at least they have each other 
I have started dog training with her, hoping to improve these problems - she is not very food orientated so this is slow progress, but our trainer believes in her and me. And in doing this I've found out just how trainable our first dog is - who says you can't teach an old dog new tricks 
The first time she caught and killed a rabbit changed how I felt about her completely ..... but not for long. I know now she needs to stay on a lead and wear a bell. But none of this matters when I see how much she totally and utterly loves me - like no other dog I have ever known. She so desparately wants to please me and is the sweeeeeetest little thing at home. As agile as a cat, as cuddly as a teddy bear and so so affectionate and she has given old Billy a new lease of life. And there is more to come. She is still settling in and still learning it's OK for her to express herself and is more confident of her place in the family every day. I didn't expect a perfect dog, I already had an imperfect one Just wish I could fit a few more in .....
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| Bud |
Our rescue SBT Bud was no angel when we got him...we had nothing to go on as the Rescue centre basically gave him to us took our money and said bye!! no backup, no info, nothing....I wish I had the help that RR give out when I got Bud...we spent a fortune on books, videos and training classes...even told to leave and not come back from one class because he went for another dog...trying to socialise him is hard as I walk him at 5.30am in the morning and there aren’t too many dog walkers then....BUT he has a made friends with another SBT and a JRT, which we see every now and again...It is hard work and yes there are days when I think “why can’t you just be nice to other dogs”....as my trainer says “we humans don’t like every one we meet why should we expect it from our dog?” | ||
| Spellbound |
When I first had Tre (now Pickle) arrive in my lap for what was meant to be 2 days before turning into 9 weeks, I was told he was housetrained, good with everything blah blah blah, all the stuff that people want to hear. The rescue that said they'd help me turned around and basically told me to get lost and I was stuck with this thing that had no manners, used my living room as a toilet, stole all my food and was an absolute nightmare.
I figured it was teach him, or throw myself off the roof. Clearly, I didn't do the latter but with a little time and a LOT of patience on my part, he stopped using the house as a toilet and finally learnt that if he wanted something, he had to sit down and shut up whining. ALL of his 'issues' came from the people who got bored of him and basically were going to throw him out like rubbish. They didn't walk him so he pulled like a train, he never got to even go to the garden so went to the loo in the house, he did what he wanted and was never given instruction so it's no realy wonder he was the way he was. Thankfully, RR stepped in and offered to help find him a new home, and they found him the best home any pooch could want. In the end, its always the people, if they don't put the work in then why should a dog do anything you want it to?? I know I wouldn't. Regardless of where a dog comes from, it needs to be worked with and in a new setting from the one it's used to, it's bound to try and see what it's allowed to do. I think you always have to start at the beginning with a rescue animal regardless of what it knows and doesn't and if you don't offer it socialisation and training then you can't blame the dog for not fitting in! |
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| NikkiL |
I look at taking on rescue dogs as "rehabilitating" them
For example, we were looking for a new pack member who would spend all his time with us, go everywhere with us, including horse shows, agricultural shows, sponsored walks etc & sleep upstairs with us and our other dog Because of Karl's destructive tendancies, this couldnt happen straight away, there were times he needed to be crated esp overnight because we couldnt rely on him not to damage something I didnt see crating him as a long term strategy, but simply another tool in the toolbox that we could use to assist Karl's development. Oh, and Lynne, give us about 18 months and we will be back for a terrier....... |
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| newforestdweller |
The Rescue Dog A Practical GuideAfter admitting I was having a battle with Cerys, I had some very helpful advice from Reclaiming Rebus. This made things seem a lot easier and now they really are. Today she walked for an hour without a struggle and coped with meeting two other dogs.Another friend lent me a book she had been sold by the Blue Cross when she adopted a dog. This is the Rescue Dog by Gwen Bailey. I found this very useful, because it covers making a relationship with an adult dog, plus a wide range of behaviour problems. Re training a dog who's early training was bungled or non existent is also included and really relevant. This book is difficult to get hold of as it is published for rescue organisations to sell as a fundraiser. Would it be practical for you to sell it? |
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| cobden28 |
Re: The Rescue Dog A Practical Guide
Or maybe you could try and see if your local public library has a copy? |
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| Fred R |
http://www.amazon.co.uk/s/ref=nb_...rescue+dog&sprefix=The+Rescue
The book is readily available on amazon. See above link. HTH |
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