Help with rescue dog

Misa-san

Hi,

We got a rescue dog on Monday, he's a Shiz Tzu cross. He was very placid in the shelter, my mum walked him and fell in love. We brought him home and he started settling in well, curious and smelling everything. He gave a bark at the gerbils in their cage and kept staring at them so we moved them out of the room. My sister is a bit nervous how he is when they're in the room, he's just fascinated. Maybe getting a little brave.

Today he was brought for a walk in the park and a westie approached him, the dog was not on a lead but he was, they were sniffing away at each other and without warning they went for each other. We don't know if this is a one-time thing or if he's not good with other dogs. Without knowing his history it's hard to tell.

The important point is, we regularly mind my granny's dog, who is also a rescue dog but still a little nervous, he's not bothered by other dogs at all and more often than not ignores them.

How is best to make sure they are good together, or with other dogs at all - how is best to resolve the situation if they don't ...

Any advice welcome thanks

Melion

Any shih Tzu I have come across is the same. They are just narky little ***** IMO along with JRT and yorkies

barbiegirl

A rescue dog will always take more work, but when they come good the rewards are just brilliant. Dogs need to be heavily socialised in the first 5-6 months if he missed this then you, like us have a lot of work to do. I started with getting my guys attention, as he went mad at all dogs when on leash, so for this I used corrector spray. When he then stopped, looked at me and we walked on I gave him a treat, to encourage the good behaviour. It took time and patience, time outs at the dog park, work with people who were willing to help, but now he loves meeting new dogs, well most of them. :rolleyes:
The dog park can still be an issue if he thinks another dog is in anyway threatening to me or his big sister. But time outs where i hold him by the leash, beside my legs and ignore him for 30 seconds is being effective.

falabo

where did you get this dog from ?

I'm astonished that a rescue centre would not assess dogs to find out how they are with others !

Westies can be snappy little things also.

cjf

It takes time for any new dog to settle into a new home and during this time it's important to lay good foundations for the future. Establishing the house rules and building a relationship.

Its not uncommon at all for dogs to react negatively when they are on the lead towards another dog who is off the lead. This is not an indication of an anti social or aggressive dog. Dogs are fight or flight creatures and in a case where they feel insecure or threatened most will opt for the flight option but when on a lead this option is removed for them and as a result they can react negatively. It's their way of communicating their unease with the situation. Off lead socialisation in a safe environment allows dogs to interact naturally with each other and allows your dog the option to "flight" if uncomfortable. It's important to bank positive experiences with your new dog especially in the first few months. If a dog runs over when you are on lead maybe try to avoid this by walking the other way. It can be frustrating when trying to walk your dog on lead and other dogs run over off lead as straight away this is putting your dog at an unfair advantage as they are on lead and forced into a social interaction they may not be comfortable with.

No matter the dogs background or where the dog came from patience, trust and time are the key things your dogs needs and by buying/adopting/rescuing that dog you are making a commitment to them.