Anxiety In A Rescue Dog

[schnauzer]

I would not walk an ex puppy farm dog that far - she would not be fit enough. I initially start slowly (around the block) and work up their fitness very gradually to doing longer walks as they become fitter. Especially with rescues that are very thin, I do not want to strip any weight off them.

[Michelleva]

To be fair, my husband has a huge habit of exaggerating and he doesn't wear a pedometer or anything, so he would only be guessing. They also stopped at several parks along the way.

She didn't just get out of that place, we gradually built up her fitness the first time we had her. I've walked her 4km myself before she was adopted without a problem.

She has had a much better day today, anxiety wise too, which is a relief. Don't worry, we would never do anything to hurt Bonnie Boo Boo.

Edited February 13, 2014 by Michelleva

[Simply Grand]

Hahaha, poor hubby... "I really did walk 8kms!" "yes dear, of course you did" :laugh:

8kms walking would be fine for a fit Sheltie I'd think, and as you say you'd already built up her fitness. As long as she didn't collapse afterwards I'd probably encourage it.

[persephone]

She is in good hands - nice long walks are great for settling an anxious soul :)

[Loving my Oldies]

Hahaha, poor hubby... "I really did walk 8kms!" "yes dear, of course you did" :laugh:

Oh aren't we being awful to hubby :laugh: :laugh: . How long were he and Bonnie gone, Michelleva? In a dim distant time, many years and kilograms ago, I was a morning runner/jogger and my regular beat was 5 miles, ie 8 kms. It used to take me approx 50 minutes and there were a couple of steepish climbs in that. So walking with Bonnie, taking in a few parks ....... out with the calculator LOL.

[Leah82]

Hahaha, poor hubby... "I really did walk 8kms!" "yes dear, of course you did" :laugh:

Oh aren't we being awful to hubby :laugh: :laugh: . How long were he and Bonnie gone, Michelleva? In a dim distant time, many years and kilograms ago, I was a morning runner/jogger and my regular beat was 5 miles, ie 8 kms. It used to take me approx 50 minutes and there were a couple of steepish climbs in that. So walking with Bonnie, taking in a few parks ....... out with the calculator LOL.

I generally manage 6km per hour at a brisk walk

[Michelleva]

On a positive note, I've seen a massive drop in her anxiety levels in the second half of this week, so I feel we're doing alright with her.

And she's starting to interact with the other members of a zoo, which is a huge positive. Because it means she's getting back to where she was when she left.

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

I have an ex puppy farm dog here and they are def. not like the average rescue dog, they have been in far worse scenarios usually.

I can only guess what this boy has been through - 8 months on and he's still improving. At first it was obvious he'd not only never been on a lead but likely not even been far out of a cage. He'd never seen a car/bike etc etc and would scream in fear.

Apart from his health issues which I'm still trying to improve, he screams if anyone visits and moves suddenly and so on.

On a couple of occasions for different reasons, I've had to place him with my neighbour who fosters for me - she has other dogs but a slightly different set up from mine.

The last time he was there 3 weeks - she loves him and loves to have him but both times when he's returned home, he has regressed in his behaviour and screams and barks much more than when he's been settled here.

This makes me wonder if it's the same for Bonnie too, it just takes Dougal a couple of weeks to settle back in with me and then he's OK (well, as ok as he'll ever be).

I'm sure she'll improve but it will take a bit of time.

[Michelleva]

I have an ex puppy farm dog here and they are def. not like the average rescue dog, they have been in far worse scenarios usually.

I can only guess what this boy has been through - 8 months on and he's still improving. At first it was obvious he'd not only never been on a lead but likely not even been far out of a cage. He'd never seen a car/bike etc etc and would scream in fear.

Apart from his health issues which I'm still trying to improve, he screams if anyone visits and moves suddenly and so on.

On a couple of occasions for different reasons, I've had to place him with my neighbour who fosters for me - she has other dogs but a slightly different set up from mine.

The last time he was there 3 weeks - she loves him and loves to have him but both times when he's returned home, he has regressed in his behaviour and screams and barks much more than when he's been settled here.

This makes me wonder if it's the same for Bonnie too, it just takes Dougal a couple of weeks to settle back in with me and then he's OK (well, as ok as he'll ever be).

I'm sure she'll improve but it will take a bit of time.

Poor Dougal sounds a lot worse than Bonnie has ever been. If Bonnie was scared by kids running through the house for example she will retreat to her safe place and be as quiet as a mouse.

I've always paid a lot of attention to her body language and I can think I can read her pretty well now. At times she will still retreat when we go to pat her, my husband was just saying today, I wonder what those mongrels did to her to make her this way. To my mind its a result of minimal human contact and socialisation but how can we ever really know. Either way its horrible what these people do to these innocent souls.