Adopted Dogs – Helping them through their Adjustment Problems

Adopting a dog is a wonderful thing to do. You are giving a helpless dog a second chance in life, taking them out of a life in cages and holding pens, or worse, a fate that may involve them being put to sleep. Taking in an adopted dog to a new home usually calls for minor adjustment problems, both for you and your family as well as the new pet. However, some adopted dogs have been through a lot of abuse and suffering. Even if the animal shelter says that the dog is cleared for adoption, they may not have looked at factors that could cause the dog to feel fear, anxiety and even extreme hyperactivity when they move it with their new owners.

So how do you deal with your dog’s odd behavior?
Just let it be. You can simply keep it calm and make it feel that it’s going to be fine. Try to make it feel that it’s not such as big deal. He will soon find out that his fears and worries are just for nothing. However, sometimes this is not enough.

Professional intervention

If your dog has a tendency to want to escape or run away from the house, act violently and snarls or bites,  constantly keeps on hiding away from other people, does not eat even if you try to hand feed it, or gets seizure attacks, then you will need to get a professional to help you with the problem. This could be either a health or behavioral problem.

Talk to a Veterinarian

Make sure that it’s not a health issue that’s causing the dog to act strangely. If the dog constantly shakes, have it tested for illnesses like degenerative myelopathy or other nerve problems. If he does not eat or vomits, check if his stomach and digestion is ok. They could also be suffering from internal damages, so have a few tests run on them just to make sure.

Ask Help from a Trainer
You can definitely ask help from a trainer to modify your dog’s behavior. Choose one that concentrates more on positive reinforcement then punishment. It may take the dog a longer time to learn, but he will not feel threatened if he does not follow orders.

Family

Make sure that your family knows how to deal with the dog. Younger children need to be watched over very careful around the dog since they might place themselves and the dog in harm. If you adopted a dog that is already ill with a progressing illness, such as arthritis or degenerative myelopathy, you will have to make sure that you and the other family members can actually give time to help the dog recover and get better. 

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