Rehoming a rescue dog

Hills30 · 14-01-2019 10:41am #1

We have a rescue dog over a year and a half, she is a wonderful dog, but is proving a bit too energetic (3 walks a day etc.) and over excited for us.
We’ve tried one to one training and training course with limited success.

Does anyone have rehoming advice as this may be something we need to explore now.

muddypaws · 14-01-2019 10:49am

If the dog came from a rescue, then you need to contact rhem to take the dog back.

VonVix · 14-01-2019 10:51am

Rescues usually have a policy where if you cannot keep a dog you have adopted from them, they will take the dog back.

Out of interest, what breed is the dog?

Hills30 · 14-01-2019 11:04am

VonVix wrote: »

Rescues usually have a policy where if you cannot keep a dog you have adopted from them, they will take the dog back.

Out of interest, what breed is the dog?

They are not very clear or easy to contact on taking her back.

She’s a Labrador cross. Great dog, but with a new baby in the house I think she’s just too much at the moment ðŸ˜ðŸ˜

canonball5 · 14-01-2019 11:11am

Hills30 wrote: »

They are not very clear or easy to contact on taking her back.

She’s a Labrador cross. Great dog, but with a new baby in the house I think she’s just too much at the moment &#55357;&#56877;&#55357;&#56877;

I think it's disgraceful that you took this dog in the first place if you didn't have the time or are willing to make the effort. Just because you have a baby doesn't mean you can get rid of your dog because it's excited and wants to go for a walk.

gmisk · 14-01-2019 11:17am

canonball5 wrote: »

I think it's disgraceful that you took this dog in the first place if you didn't have the time or are willing to make the effort. Just because you have a baby doesn't mean you can get rid of your dog because it's excited and wants to go for a walk.

I dont think that is very helpful do you?

Peoples circumstances change, the poster has had the dog a year and a half, it sounds like they have tried to make things work (just look at their other posts)
I think talk to place you rescued dog from would be a good start.

I came very close to rehoming another dog (to go with one I have), I met with owners, they had a small child (had dog 3 years since it was born) it was genuinely heartbreaking, I could tell they didnt want to give up the dog but they genuinely couldnt cope, its best not to judge imo.

Hills30 · 14-01-2019 11:22am

canonball5 wrote: »

I think it's disgraceful that you took this dog in the first place if you didn't have the time or are willing to make the effort. Just because you have a baby doesn't mean you can get rid of your dog because it's excited and wants to go for a walk.

Happy to hear ‘the effort’ that might help.

Xterminator · 14-01-2019 11:23am

canonball5 wrote: »

I think it's disgraceful that you took this dog in the first place if you didn't have the time or are willing to make the effort. Just because you have a baby doesn't mean you can get rid of your dog because it's excited and wants to go for a walk.

i think you should look at your own life and examine what makes you need to vent anger at strangers on the internet who appear to be good people and who tried to do a right thing and offer a home to a rescue dog.

But perhaps you would rather OP went to a puppy farmer instead?

there are plenty of reasons why it might not work out. i think i would rather people tried to do the right thing, and see if it work out than not even try!!

@OP - contact the people you adopted from, and let them know its not working out.

uck51js9zml2yt · 14-01-2019 1:09pm

We rehomed a dog recently but it just want suited to us. A friend whose a vet took a look at him and advised us rehome him. A more suitable family was looking for that particular breed and took him.
All are happy, including the dog.

sillysmiles · 14-01-2019 1:23pm

OP, looking at your posts, it seems the dog as never really been problem free for you. I couldn't tell your dogs age, as it was 5 in one post then 3yr on another post 18 month later.

Either way it seems that this dog is not working out for you. I'm pretty sure that you have to go back to the rescue as most (if not all) rescues insist on that when you adopt a dog.

VonVix · 14-01-2019 3:00pm

Hills30 wrote: »

They are not very clear or easy to contact on taking her back.

She’s a Labrador cross. Great dog, but with a new baby in the house I think she’s just too much at the moment &#55357;&#56877;&#55357;&#56877;

Try again for sure. Labrador types and their crosses are often quite high energy, so not surprising.

canonball5 wrote: »

I think it's disgraceful that you took this dog in the first place if you didn't have the time or are willing to make the effort. Just because you have a baby doesn't mean you can get rid of your dog because it's excited and wants to go for a walk.

I don't think we can be so quick to jump to conclusions with the OP. For all we know the rescue could have ill informed them about the dog they adopted, by not matching dog to potential owner very well.

It is better for a person to responsibly rehome a dog than keep a dog in a situation where not only is the dog not getting what they need, but the owner isn't happy/stressed by the dog.

sillysmiles · 14-01-2019 3:16pm

Labs can be a bit loopy and high energy, especially as young dogs, but by 5 years old, you'd expect a lot of the crazy to have gone and the dog should have long bouts of chill between bouts of exercise- especially if its getting 3 walks/day as the OP says.

cocker5 · 14-01-2019 5:00pm

Hills30 wrote: »

We have a rescue dog over a year and a half, she is a wonderful dog, but is proving a bit too energetic (3 walks a day etc.) and over excited for us.
We’ve tried one to one training and training course with limited success.

Does anyone have rehoming advice as this may be something we need to explore now.

Firstly OP you must return the dog to the rescue that rehomed her..

secondly have you actually addressed the issues... I mean properly?

3 walks per day? how long are the walks? 3 a day is excessive for any dog, one long proper walk would suffice (one hour)...

in terms of hyperness.. what are you feeding her? diet can play a HUGE part in over activity and hyperness

what mental stimulation exercise do you do with her?

on the one to one training it takes MONTHS of consistency and patience for training to pay off... and when it does they reward you a million times over... dogs are 100% the HUGE effort it takes to get them where they need to be... but boy are the WORTH it.

sillysmiles · 14-01-2019 5:23pm

The other thing that I think is important is routine, that the walks are spaced out and s/he gets off lead time. But seeing your previous posts you've obviously been trying lots with this dog - which does make me wonder too about the food.

canonball5 · 14-01-2019 5:38pm

It think it's clear that judging by this thread and the previous threads from the OP, their mind that the dog must go, has already been made up.

Threads about a fear for their baby around the dog and excessive barking, does not bode well for the poor pooch.

Hills30 · 14-01-2019 6:50pm

canonball5 wrote: »

It think it's clear that judging by this thread and the previous threads from the OP, their mind that the dog must go, has already been made up.

Threads about a fear for their baby around the dog and excessive barking, does not bode well for the poor pooch.

If you have advice on what methods I could employ to help my dog I would be happy to hear it.

Currently she has off lead time at 7am.
Walked by dog walker at 1pm
Goes on a run at around 7:30pm.

We have done a training course with her. We’ve bought books and watched videos.
We also had a dog trainer devise a program for her which we’ve done with her for over a year.

She visits the vets regularly.

She gets her food (dry food mixed with fish) from a Kong for mental simulation.

We socialize her with her dog walker every day, and where possible we take her to the dog park.

We have family in the country so we bring her down there every two to three weeks.

She had her own bed in the house and spends time both inside and outside the house.

Happy to hear any additional suggestions you may have.

DBB · 14-01-2019 8:41pm

Thank you to those who are trying to help the op.
To those of you who chose to write judgy, critical posts, two things..
a) please be aware that there is a requirement on this forum that posters are respectful towards one another, whether you agree with each other or not.
and
b) try to harness your fury by trying to actually help the op.

If you're unable to fulfil the terms of a) and b), do not post in this thread again. Any more of this sh!teology will result in an instant ban.
Thanks,
DBB

cocker5 · 14-01-2019 10:41pm

Hills30 wrote: »

canonball5 wrote: »

It think it's clear that judging by this thread and the previous threads from the OP, their mind that the dog must go, has already been made up.

Threads about a fear for their baby around the dog and excessive barking, does not bode well for the poor pooch.

If you have advice on what methods I could employ to help my dog I would be happy to hear it.

Currently she has off lead time at 7am.
Walked by dog walker at 1pm
Goes on a run at around 7:30pm.

We have done a training course with her. We’ve bought books and watched videos.
We also had a dog trainer devise a program for her which we’ve done with her for over a year.

She visits the vets regularly.

She gets her food (dry food mixed with fish) from a Kong for mental simulation.

We socialize her with her dog walker every day, and where possible we take her to the dog park.

We have family in the country so we bring her down there every two to three weeks.

She had her own bed in the house and spends time both inside and outside the house.

Happy to hear any additional suggestions you may have.

How ling are these times walked / off lead?
Time? Please?

What actual dried food are u feeding her? Brand?

U mention training .. have u done this daily , consistently for a year?

Richard tea · 14-01-2019 10:49pm

Op what type trainer have you used and what type of training? Positive only or balanced training?

tk123 · 15-01-2019 1:25pm

Have you tried any supplements/cbd oil to help calm/take the edge off her? You sound like you're going above and beyond for her as it is so I'm sure rehoming isn't something you're taking lightly OP.

Choc Chip · 15-01-2019 2:03pm

That's a good amount of time off-lead / running OP. I vaguely recall a theory that because dogs acclimatise to physical exercise (become fitter), over time in order to tire them out with physical exercise you have to do more and more to get the same result. If he's running that amount every day, it won't physically tire him so he'll still be bouncing around when he gets home.

My terrier is just wired by smells and the excitement of being out - the more walking and running and playing outside he gets, the more likely he is to enter the house like a hurricane, running into the place full pelt and throwing himself at people. He slept one day after a walk up and down Ben Nevis, but that's not something I can provide every day.

I find that training and making him use his brain works better for me than physical exercise alone. Could you swap half a walk for training time, maybe teaching him to settle in the house or working on noise acclimitisation?

Also, do you play with him in the house? I've had to instigate a rule that we're all settled in the house because otherwise my terrier and the foster will run mad around the place (I have taken one of them off the kitchen table on several occasions). I encourage everyone to a bed when I'm working - they can have a bone, kong, a soft toy, but I interrupt any over-exuberant play and ask them to settle down if things get out of hand. Teaching him a "settle" command might tire out his brain, killing two birds with one stone?

I know this is all advice that would take time to see results (if there were results) and I'm not sure how much time you have to give to this. The rescue I foster for definitely has a requirement that you must send the dog back rather than rehoming yourself, so I'd definitely try contacting the rescue again. It is post-Christmas puppy season so they are likely rammed full, but they should be able to give you some advice or help with rehoming, even if they can't immediately take him.

Choc Chip · 15-01-2019 2:03pm

Oops! She! Sorry!!

Rehoming a rescue dog

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