Rehomed Dogs New Behaviour.

[rajacadoo]

Ok so not quite a puppy problem, as such...

I have just re-homed a young, (22 months), Basenji bitch from us in Tassie, to a Basenji savvy home, of a single lady, in Melbourne. She has been there since 2nd March.

Was told she was settling in ok, although being a little shy. Eating well, getting on ok with her 2 cats etc.

Just received an email from the lady that Inka now won't let her owner near her, won't even take treats from her at all. The lady has her daughter staying with her at the moment, and it seems that Inka is bonding more with the daughter than the owner. Her daughter is closer in appearance to my daughters, so im not sure if that has any bearing on her decision to bond with the daughter. She will be moving back to her own home shortly, and is unable to take Inka with her. The new owner is concerned about how Inka will be when her daughter moves out. Understandably...

Added to this is Inka's toilet training that she had, has deteriorated to the point that she is just weeing in the house, even with the back door left open??? She was pretty well trained here, used to run to the door, and stand and stare at me/us to let her out. Occasionally she was 'naughty', (or perhaps it was us not seeing her), but was good most of the time.

Another issue is she is pulling very badly on the lead when taken out for a walk, to the point that the daughter has been pulled over. This small, petite young girl has been shown, socialised etc, from a baby. We bred her, so she has been out and about from a young pup. We haven't had issues with her on the lead

I just don't know what to say. I'm absolutely gutted, can't believe what she is doing, what she is putting her new owner through. This little girl has always been very confident, taking everything we have thrown at her, all in her stride. She has been taking out and about a lot, shown regularly, socialised a lot, but is now displaying this odd, out of character behaviour.

I'm waiting to find out where this lady lives, so hopefully we could hire a DOL behaviourist to see this little girl, and give both her owner and myself some answers. Her owner has wondered if some Obedience Training will be the thing to help with bonding between them??? Thoughts??? Recommendations ????

I have asked the owner to hang off doing anything till I get back to her...

Anybody got any idea's on Inka's behaviour????

I'm just stunned, gutted, by her problems, just don't know what to advise her, and I'm hoping someone here can make me see some sense in all this. Apologies for rambling, and I'm hoping I make some sense.

TIA.

[persephone]

can't believe what she is doing, what she is putting her new owner through.

I worry about what the dog is going through to exhibit this behaviour

Definitely get one of teh DOL gurus to visit ... it sounds just awful for everyone

[rajacadoo]

Yes, exactly Perse, just stuns me tbh...

We took this girl to Melbourne with us, and met this gentle, sweet, quietly spoken lady, possibly in her early 70's, but very spritely. She has recently lost a human aggressive Basenji, who came to her that way, and has had many dogs, especially Basenji's throughout her life. So she knows this primitive breed well...

She wants to work with her at this stage, but we are both willing to concede defeat at any time, and then she will come back to us forever...

[persephone]

It must be SO disappointing for that lady as well ...

Hope you get some good help soon :)

[Salukifan]

can't believe what she is doing, what she is putting her new owner through.

I worry about what the dog is going through to exhibit this behaviour

Definitely get one of teh DOL gurus to visit ... it sounds just awful for everyone

Agree. My gut says "get the dog back NOW". For a dog's behaviour to deterriorate so quickly, there is somethign wrong.

I wouldn't care about what the owner wanted to work through. I'd call it and get the dog back ASAP.

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

I can provide my housetraining tips which could help until a decision is made on the dog's future:

HOUSETRAINING TIPS

Ok - first thing to do is decide on the command (I call it “do wees”) you will repeat over and over. You have to really focus on the dog for about 2-3 days to be successful. You have a pocketful of special treats on hand all the time for the first 2-3 days.

Walk the dog several times a day and every time the dog wees, you get very excited and keep saying “Good boy/girl, do wees, do wees” – give the dog treats every time.

First thing in the morning, last thing at night and every time you see the dog eat or drink (both precursors to weeing) whisk the dog into the garden and repeat the command “do wees”. Get very excited and present treats every time dog goes.

The dog’s aim in life is to please you. If the dog should have an accident inside the house – say NOTHING at all. The dog soon gets the idea that when he/she goes outside you are really, really pleased and he/she gets rewarded.

NB: Please note that the smell of urine must be properly removed for any housetraining to be successful. There are products on the market such as “Urine Off” but they are very expensive. A mix of white vinegar and water is a much cheaper alternative and should work for tiles and other surfaces although you should always take care with wood etc. For carpet/rugs, I use either a mixture of Napisan/water or bicarb of soda and water. I completely soak the stain using a dab on technique with a cloth. When it is very wet, I use an old towel to soak up the excess moisture. Again, be careful on any expensive carpet/rug, I have never had any problems but I cannot guarantee any method here.

[RuralPug]

Get a behaviourist to see the dog at her new home, as soon as it can be organised.

There is not necessarily any abuse happening, intentionally or otherwise, but occasionally I have known a perfectly behaved dog to become headstrong and stubborn in a new home, either (a) because they are confused due to a lack of routine when previously their life has been fairly consistent or (b) simply because they could get away with it and NILIF is no longer applied.

Even if you don't use NILIF consciously, you might at a subconscious level, especially with a breed that is super bonding to individuals and is therefore extremely alert to body language.

It might just work out that this is NOT the right home for this dog unless changes are made. I would be letting a decent behaviourist assess what changes would be needed and then the new family can decide whether or not they are willing to make those changes.

[rajacadoo]

Thanks for the replies... I'm still waiting to hear back from the new owner, (have had issues with emails not getting through to her, so I've resent it early this morning), re where she is living, so I can get recommendations about a behaviorist...

Haredown, I see your point, but, I just want to give both the owner and Inka every chance to work out, and I'm hoping a behaviorist assessment will give us some answers, about her behaviour. It may be issues that she can't /won't overcome, then she will be on the next plane home.

RuralPug, you bring up some really interesting points. Yes she definitely had a routine here, quite a strict one actually, (Basenji's need and do very well with a strict routine), so possibly this is something she's not getting, leading to her being quite confused. I really don't believe there is any cruelty or nastiness at all. I'm usually very good at picking people at first meeting and I did get very good vibes, meeting Inka's owner. Yes they are very intuned to body language , they may ignore it, but they do understand it, lol... Thanks for gour input, you have given me a few things to think about, and to ask her owner as well... NILIF is also something to possibly introduce, perhaps after the behaviorist appointment.

[rajacadoo]

My apologies Her Majesty Dogmad, I forgot to answer your reply...

I will be copy and pasting this great info to the new owner, and I can only hope that Inka's bad toilet issues will improve with this routine... Thank you :)

[Her Majesty Dogmad]

My apologies Her Majesty Dogmad, I forgot to answer your reply...

I will be copy and pasting this great info to the new owner, and I can only hope that Inka's bad toilet issues will improve with this routine... Thank you :)

No worries, I was wondering if perhaps she'd been a bit harsh with any toileting accidents and that it could have started off the behaviours.

With my method, there's no punishment at all, only rewards for doing the right thing and it builds the relationship with the dog!

[Salukifan]

Thanks for the replies... I'm still waiting to hear back from the new owner, (have had issues with emails not getting through to her, so I've resent it early this morning), re where she is living, so I can get recommendations about a behaviorist...

Haredown, I see your point, but, I just want to give both the owner and Inka every chance to work out, and I'm hoping a behaviorist assessment will give us some answers, about her behaviour. It may be issues that she can't /won't overcome, then she will be on the next plane home.

RuralPug, you bring up some really interesting points. Yes she definitely had a routine here, quite a strict one actually, (Basenji's need and do very well with a strict routine), so possibly this is something she's not getting, leading to her being quite confused. I really don't believe there is any cruelty or nastiness at all. I'm usually very good at picking people at first meeting and I did get very good vibes, meeting Inka's owner. Yes they are very intuned to body language , they may ignore it, but they do understand it, lol... Thanks for gour input, you have given me a few things to think about, and to ask her owner as well... NILIF is also something to possibly introduce, perhaps after the behaviorist appointment.

Fair enough. Hope things work out.

[Dogsfevr]

I would be getting her back now ,she is still young & if this behaviour is so out of the nor it may simply not be a good match .

[mumof4girls]

Doesn't sound like the pups fault if this lady has so much experience she should be able up assist in the lead training , sounds like the pup isn't getting any ? Pulling her daughter over She should be stepping I and training the daughter also lol

Something seems off to me , hope it gets sorted soon..

[~Anne~]

Are there any updates on this?

I was thinking the same thing as RuralPug.

When I ran my rescue I was often told of behaviour problems in dogs being surrendered. Indeed, one was even on sedatives to stop his hyperactivity and to stop him biting his tail. He had actually bitten the tip completely off!

I took him off his meds because I wanted to see what he was like without them. He was fine. He did attempt to chew his tail one or twice and I corrected him. He was on his own at his former home and the owners worked long hours and he had little routine. With me, even though we worked long hours, he was with other dogs and we had a set routine. He was with me for a couple of months before being rehomed. He had no problems in his new home either.

I concluded with him, and with a few others who allegedly had problems with inappropriate toileting and similar, that it was a lack of leadership, routine or attention and activity in each case.

[rajacadoo]

Ok just an update...

Well things were starting to look more promising, she was beginning to walk a little better on a Halti, (mmmm not my choice), starting to 'get' toilet training, and appeared to be 'coming around' with her new owner...

Then................. A huge step backwards in the last few days, when the rain came, any toilet training was completely forgotten, (she had to clean up after her 6 times yesterday alone, with the back door open all day), as well as 'turning off' the new owner again, has led to us both believing that she will be better off coming home to us.

I just don't get her, but will be welcoming her back to our pack, as soon as we have organised her flights back home. I know her brother will be very happy to see her again.

[~Anne~]

6 times?!

Has she been checked for a uti?

I have a bitch that has had two bladder surgeries and is on a specific diet that makes her drink and she only urinates, on average, 3 times during the day.