New Dog Adoption Guide
Welcome Your Dog Home
A compassionate guide to help your new dog adjust, build trust, and thrive in their new forever home.
Bringing any new dog into your home is an adjustment, but dogs who’ve spent time at a shelter may come to you with more complicated or upsetting past circumstances that can influence their behavior. These experiences do not make them untrainable, but may initially require more time, patience and creativity.
As a dog trainer, shelter volunteer and adoption advocate, my number one goal is to ensure your dog acclimates as quickly and comfortably as possible and stays out of the shelter for good. We’ll talk in detail about your dogs’ individual needs prior to and during our training sessions, but here are some helpful guidelines for you to work with as soon as you bring your new dog home.
The 3-3-3 Rule
This is one of the most well established guides to follow when adopting a dog. It is intended to help you navigate your first three months together, which is when dogs are at the highest risk of being returned or rehomed. Your dog will absolutely continue to grow, change and develop beyond the three month mark, but these guidelines are aimed to get you both off on the right foot.
First 3 Days: Decompression! Your dog is new to you and your environment. Some dogs will express anxiety, fear and shyness; others will bound in with exuberance and tons of energy after being cooped up in a kennel. Take cues from your dog- a timid dog may need space and time, while a high energy dog may need structure and lots of exercise immediately. Safety and routine are crucial, but ideally you’ll wait a few weeks to begin a formal training program. Remember that this is an initial adjustment period- the way your dog behaves today isn’t indicative of how they will behave in the future or who he truly is as an individual. Be patient and curious with your dog as he begins to open up, and try to avoid putting too much stock in any unwanted behaviors.
First 3 Weeks: Your dog is likely beginning to feel more comfortable with you and with his new environment. He will hopefully begin to relax, pick up on your new routines together, and begin bonding with you. This is also the time when tricky behaviors can start to develop, as your dog is probably going to start testing you to see what he can get away with! This is a great time to begin training, as we want to set boundaries early and work on modifying unwanted behaviors before they become habitual and difficult to break.
First 3 Months: You and your dog have likely developed a close bond by now. He’s comfortable in his environment, and he’s begun to see how wonderful life can be with loving owners and a safe, comfortable home. Continued obedience training, behavior modification and training enhancement sessions are wonderful ways to build on your relationship and strengthen your bond.
Dogs in a shelter spend most of their time inside a kennel. A lot of the behaviors they display at the shelter or when you first bring them home are a result of extreme understimulation - both mentally and physically - and a lack of routine and certainty. Common issues that we can work on include:
Jumping
Mouthiness / nipping
Destruction
Housebreaking
Separation anxiety
Leash reactivity
Click here for some videos of Sarah (our founder and trainer) training dogs at the dog shelter where she volunteers—if they can do all of this in the shelter, imagine what they can do once they’re home!