Introducing a new dog to your home & How to Avoid Problems

When a dog arrives at your home for the first time, you have a unique opportunity to guide them on where they are staying, how they should act, and show them that you are advocating for them in this new environment. Depending on how you do things, you can build a great foundation OR can have a disastrous outcome! It is important to build relationship and trust through consistency and training (not just hugs and kisses) because these dogs have lived a life of uncertainty for a while and need to be shown how to live appropriately in a home. Not to mention, if you have current animals/other family members it is important to take precaution and set rules for both your current pets/humans as well as the new dog on how they will live together. Being casual about a new dog in your home can lead to behavioral issues, fights, anxiety, and aggression down the road.

Most behavioral issues develop during the couple of months in a new home, because owners/fosters are not sharing the right information with their new dog, teaching boundaries, and showing the household that you have control of the chaos :) After a dog decompresses from shelter life and gets "comfortable," without proper guidance will begin to display behaviors you may not like.

Allow your new dog to decompress and work on building a working relationship through training and boundary setting (not just cuddling, sitting on the couch, and feeding treats!), so they can learn how to be successful members of your family--and ultimately someone else's family if they are a foster dog! Always, always stay safe and reach out to a trainer if you are concerned about any behavioral issues, like aggression.

Check out this video where I disucss what to do and what to look our for! You can watch on YouTube at: https://youtu.be/KMOH9libFiw