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”How are shelter dogs different when they come into our homes?”
Good afternoon folks, I was reviewing my notes from the recent Houndtable Chat on Shelter Dogs and noticed one of the member questions that we didn’t have time to address while we were together, ”How are shelter dogs different when they come into our homes?”
This question could be read in a couple of different ways; I am hoping whoever submitted it will chime in, join this conversation, and give us some more clarity as to just what they were asking.
In my experience, the environmental pressures of living in a shelter environment tend to either suppress or aggravate certain behaviors in dogs. This means that behaviors that might not be seen in the shelter environment may seem to suddenly appear in newly adopted dogs or behaviors that were seen at the shelter may disappear once an adopted dog settles into their new home. Some of these seem to be resource guarding, leash reactivity, elimination issues, the specific ways that a dog solicits attention, chewing, and toy play.
Because of this common phenomenon, I always counsel new adopters that the dog they have in their home three days, three weeks, and three months from now may seem like a very different dog than the one they adopted. The keys to building this sort of relationship are patience, respect, and responsiveness.
The difference between living in a small, sensory overloading, kennel, where choices are very few and being adopted into a home is immense. Taking things slowly and managing expectations are integral. Understanding the expressions of Fear, Anxiety, and Stress in shelter dogs* can be literally lifesaving!
In your experience, how do you monitor and work to alleviate FAS in newly rehomed dogs? How can we translate that knowledge to their owners (our clients)? I tend to narrate what I am seeing in their dogs body language and use of space, but that doesn’t seem to engage the people as well as I would like.
Below are picture of shelter dogs I’ve know. What do you take away from each of the images?
*Fear Free Shelters is a self-paced, free, online course filled with an in-depth exploration of shelter pets’ emotional needs, body language, and how people can support them through their shelter stays.
@steph @juli @jenz @rocco @adriennec @debbie @denny @annteak9
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12 Replies
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@jenwalker
“In my experience, the environmental pressures of living in a shelter environment tend to either suppress or aggravate certain behaviors in dogs.”
I whole-heartedly agree with this statement and have experienced it personally.
You may have read some of my posts about Titan, whom I saved from the euthanasia list ( after being adopted and returned) at a shelter I volunteer at. He was a 6 month resident and the favorite of staff and volunteers due to his “laid back”, “mellow”, “whatever”, “so chill” type personality. The only time we saw him become aroused was when the harness and leash were picked up. He turned into a bucking bronco, and full of excitement! His only documented behaviors was a potential for resource guarding due to a single incident when he first arrived and, multiple car chasing incidents.
We were all stunned and in disbelief that he was returned after 2 days and placed in the medical wing for a behavioral euthanasia for “barking, growling and lunging” at the adopters grandparents, twice. He never showed any type of aggressive display with anyone in the shelter. Fast forward to when I was approved to adopt him as a “dangerous dog” (to help him). He immediately displayed general anxiety once in my house, in the yard, on walks etc. There were times I would explain some of the things I saw as confinement anxiety. He also offered extremely polite affiliation, play solicitation and social behaviors that were never seen in the shelter. I was able to look back, understand and, offer the possibility that he was likely emotionally shut down in the shelter. It took about 1.5 years to work on his anxiety concerns to get him to where he could cope better with his environment and another continued year of DS/CC just to make sure he had positive experiences in all contexts. After all that, what was left behaviorally was assumedly genetic. A DNA test revealed 20% Chow. That 20% explained the territorial type aggressive displays I was seeing on property only and, in my opinion explained his temperament/personality (independent, confident to name a few). Today, 3 years later at age 12, he still plays by rules of polite dog behavior and expects others to do the same, his circle of people has expanded, he is less anxious and makes better choices.
I do not think he was ever a “dangerous dog”. In my opinion his in shelter behavior was sadly mis-leading to to anxiety, confinement anxiety, the possibility that he could not engage in specific behaviors and that he had no choices; that this combination of factors led to suppression of most of his emotions. Understanding behavior literally saved his life!
Thanks to everyone who has ever spent any time in a shelter to help these dogs and, to the ones who adopt shelter dogs!
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Thank you for seeing through the tangle of behaviors that living in a shelter/kennel environment threw over Titan, and standing with him through the challenging transition afterward!
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Wow – this is such a great conversation. @jenwalker thank you for starting this important topic.
I always counsel new adopters that the dog they have in their home three days, three weeks, and three months from now may seem like a very different dog than the one they adopted. The keys to building this sort of relationship are patience, respect, and responsiveness. – Jen Walker
@jenz I’ve read all of your posts about Titan and have learned so much from you about how you care for him. I knew a lot of his background story from those earlier posts, but the way you summed it all up here – just wow.
Understanding behavior literally saved his life!Understanding behavior literally saved his life! – Jen Zatorowski
For adult dogs especially, the dramatic contextual change of being housed in a shelter and the resulting emotional baggage cannot be understated. It’s hard on them. It’s really hard. The dogs who can successfully remain affiliative in spite of those circumstances show a kind of resilience we can all aspire to.
Thank you both, for sharing your experience and thoughts – I hope to hear more stories as this discussion continues to develop. Anyone else have examples of dogs who have experienced a time in shelters, and what they were like on the other side? I’d really like to hear tips for the new owners, too…
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@programdev
To add some tips for new owners, I mention to them that need to keep an open mind about the dog or puppy they are adopting, that the dogs are experiencing changes due to environment and brain development and need time to grow into the dog they will be. I ask them to support them and participate in as many positive experiences and pair them with treats, regardless if they think the dog is showing fear or not. I emphasize the importance of noting any small changes and reach out to shelter or, a qualified trainer or behavior consultant sooner than later.
Additionally, in my experiences I am also using this education type info for the dogs in foster care for rescues. I have been seeing more dogs and puppies from “other areas” with similarities to shelter dogs. I have been hearing from rescues that “she/he did not do “this” at the fosters but, it appeared “now” in the adopters home.
This is a whole topic we can chat about in length too but, I think there are some behavior similarities that are worth being aware of and prepared for just the same.
To circle back to Titan, I was in college for Applied Animal behavior when the circumstances arose with him. I wrote a science based email to one of the shelter board members, explaining behavior from everything I had just learned then, showed up at her door Monday at 9 am to discuss in person. It was both scary and rewarding for me!. If his life is the only life I ever save, the time I’ve spent learning about behavior was well worth it!
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They need to keep an open mind about the dog or puppy they are adopting, that the dogs are experiencing changes due to environment and brain development and need time to grow into the dog they will be. – Jen Z.
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Wow @jenz, this is incredibly interesting and helpful info and shared experience.. I’ve volunteered for 2 shelters over the years (and about to start at a 3rd one) and I have always suspected that SOME of those “laid back” “volunteer favorite” dogs were not truly mellow in nature but, having experienced this very overstimulating, socially frustrating and all else, environment they had no choice but to adapt and that meant to suppress these innate drives or anxiety/ fear or even anger for the ‘duration’. Though not being a staff person, I never had access to any follow up with the dog & new owner, on that hypothesis, and it would’ve definitely been a different ‘coming out’ situation with each dog and adopter situ. There just really isn’t any way (that’s at all HUMANE) to measure a pup’s RESILIENCE and, absent knowing something about a dog’s history (which is rare unless the shelter also accepts Owner-surrendered dogs/ cats, and even then it might not be accurate) , it’s usually/always a ‘gamble’ when you adopt the dog.
My one question about this all is: (and I’m asking it for both ‘prof. educational’ reasons and because I am very sure I will be being a Foster volunteer for one of a few shelters/ rescues sooner than later, so interest is also personal) If this dog is in a shelter, and is lucky enough to have a chance to be fostered by an experienced (or not-so- experienced, but open minded & caring) person or people, how is it that some of these suppressed behaviors I mentioned above would NOT appear when in a foster home, and then suddenly when they’re adopted it’s “Houston, we have a problem” big time? That’s a big part of the foster parent’s role, isn’t it? besides relationship-building, socialization and stabilization, they’re looking out for any behavior that is, or is likely to become, maladaptive or more. The dog obviously believes that this is her/ his new home so after appropriate decompression time, I feel like at least anxiety or reactiveness to certain novel situations would be coming up. Just like with Titan’s generalized anxiety states. (though he didn’t come from a foster situation) Anybody with some behaviorist knowledge/ experience want to have a shot at what OVERALL drives this? I know, I know, it ‘depends upon a lot of variables‘ of course – just going for the generalization of the issue, Thanks in advance. NS
P.S. Jenz, what you did with, and for, Titan took a LOT of confidence in your (newly -acquired) knowledge – and in your ability-, amazing presentation skills and… sheer guts! It’s so inspiring to hear this. And I’d add to these qualities determination and persistent willingness to ‘contextualize’ (and LOTTSA patience), for managing & engaging in the years-long, complicated ‘afterstory’ – and of course big props for Titan too!) Woo-Hoo, take a bow!
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Hi @beaglemania !
Thanks for your kind words and support! I am glad sharing my experiences can be helpful, in any capacity!
Thank you for your dedication to animals, volunteering at shelters and soon to be a foster! A huge task to take on but so worth it!
To answer your question “how is it that some of these suppressed behaviors I mentioned above would NOT appear when in a foster home, and then suddenly when they’re adopted….” In my opinion, you did kind of answer it yourself with “it depends upon a lot of variables”. One question I have is, how much time has elapsed from the foster home to adoptive home? I think some dogs are in foster too short of time to ever be comfortable. Another thought is simply environmental changes and specific stressors. The foster may be more of the ideal home where the emotional state driving the fear or anxiety is never reached. For example, the foster is a singe person in a quiet home with a couple of walks a day and now the adoptive home has 2 kids, is noisy, no time for walks, living room/space set-up/confinement etc. For Titan, simply changing his environment was enough for him to respond with immediate stress and anxiety and he showed it in a big way. Others may show it in subtle ways and it may be possible overlooked or perhaps still emotionally shut down. Another possibility is how the foster handled behaviors vs the adopter. As with all behavior, there may be a genetic or biological component to it that is only “turned on” during contexts or situations or when a releasing stimuli is present. For example Titan chases cars, but not all the time. Sometimes he orients, gets in a prey bow position, stares and just launches as the car goes and, I can not interrupt it! His (likely) genetics initiate a sequence that has to be followed through to the end. Other times, he may orient, stare and freeze and just let the car go by. He shows some impulse control or, the likely innate behavior was never fully “activated”- I am not sure and I think sometimes we may never know or, there may be someone with more education on this than me who can explain it further! I know all my DS/CC work on car chasing was not successful likely due to his herding/livestock genetics.
I think we have to look at everything and understand that the information we have may suddenly change therefore, we have to be prepared to change training plan to help the dogs.
Thanks for this great thought provoking conversation piece!
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I’ve asked that question…
how is it that some of these suppressed behaviors I mentioned above would NOT appear when in a foster home, and then suddenly when they’re adopted it’s “Houston, we have a problem” big time? “- Nina Sobel
…so many times before myself @beaglemania!
As @jenz says in far more detail, answering that question generally revolves back to “It Depends”.
When we try to untangle the complicated weave of environmental effects with the nature and nurture foundations of a dog’s behavior, so much of it can seem like guesswork or just Monday Morning Quarterbacking but I think these sorts of reviews are important as educated guesswork that help us create better plans for the next dogs we are helping to place in Foster and/or Adopted Home.
How has seeing these sorts of changes in post-adoption behavior changed the plans you put together for newly adopted pets and their people, or for when the dogs are in foster care?
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I am actually trying to “untangle” a dog’s behavior who was returned to the adopting rescue after 2 years. He showed a list of behaviors in the home, another set in the rescue’s home after being surrendered, now he is showing similar (to the original home) and new behaviors in the temp foster. The foster will be bringing him back to the rescue on Saturday since she can not commit to his emotional needs and risk having him in her home.
Behavior definitely keeps us thinking and changing plans.
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Wow, very eye opening. I knew there is an adjustment period for the dog and the new owner however I was under the impression that once dogs leave the shelter they are just so happy to leave there, I hadn’t considered that now there may be a range of emotions and behaviors that were not seen in the shelter environment. I’m not even sure if there is any information given to the new adopters regarding an adjustment period or how to handle it. I am a dog walker or sitting in kennels with the dogs and occasionally helping someone locate or do a meet and greet with a potential adoptee. We have quite a few dogs that are returned to the shelter within days of adopting even though it was listed on their kennel card ” not good with kids, cats” etc which is definitely not beneficial for the dog because now their kennel card reads “owner turn in”. I plan on taking the Fear Free Shelter course , I had not heard of it before and if allowed to share it with other shelter volunteers. Thank you for all the information this group provides, it is such a blessing to be a part this dog-lovin community !
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Awesome, @juli – with every change comes mixed emotions, right? Change is good. Change is hard. And for the dogs who don’t understand when or why change is happening, it can be downright disorienting. Add to that the stress of new owner expectations, the possibility of incompatible social networks, dietary change, fatigue (who sleeps in a new place, easily?) the fact that ANY of the dogs make it through the first week astounds me. The ones who need more settle time, who constantly are returned… it can be such a terrible cycle. So glad that so many folks here are working together to help mitigate the experiences of the shelter dogs by offering compassion and education. Thank you!
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Thank you for exploring the Fear Free Shelter program @juli! I’ve seen it prove very insightful to people with a wide range of prior experience, volunteers and staff alike!
There is a also broad and growing library of user-friendly materials for pet owners through Fear Free too. Maybe those resources could be made available to the new adopters at the shelter where you volunteer.
It is great that you are able to do some match-making with shelter dogs! Are you doing that as a shelter volunteer or a trainer?
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