Another how to decide question - choosing a shelter dog

[stephanier.1765]

It's been a few years since our dog died. She was my dog. My constant companion and always right by my side. Because of that, it has taken me a while to be ready for a new dog but that time has come. Our animal control has hundreds of dogs. They have multiple buildings with approximately 50 kennels in each. When you walk in, you are hit with loud barking and dogs leaping at their doors. It's the rare dog that's standing there quietly. I think they go kennel crazy.

When every dog is losing it's mind, how do you choose one? They do let you take them home on a trial basis but I'd like to not have to take a dog back to that situation if I can help it. We have 4 cats so how a dog gets along with them is huge and why we will do the trial basis. There are just so many dogs to choose from. It's overwhelming.

Also, how do you bring a dog into a home with cats without everyone hating each other right off the bat. I really want to make this as easy as possible for them all. I also want to make the dog feel as safe and secure as possible in a strange and new situation. How do I do that? Thanks!

[Catwoman]

If you have a general breed or size in mind, or any special characteristics you're looking for, let the shelter know, and perhaps they can recommend specific dogs to you. Also be sure to let them know which breeds you absolutely don't want, if that applies.

Edited September 14, 2022 by Catwoman

[Frances]

I would ask the shelter workers and volunteers for recommendations after telling them what you are looking for. Does your shelter do assessments? Ours does and they post the results right on each kennel. The one shelter dog we got was based on a combo of the assessment results and asking the regular volunteers for a recommendation. She was an absolutely wonderful dog. In our case, the workers were not nearly as knowledgeable as the regular volunteers.

[Jean in Newcastle]

28 minutes ago, Frances said:

I would ask the shelter workers and volunteers for recommendations after telling them what you are looking for. Does your shelter do assessments? Ours does and they post the results right on each kennel. The one shelter dog we got was based on a combo of the assessment results and asking the regular volunteers for a recommendation. She was an absolutely wonderful dog. In our case, the workers were not nearly as knowledgeable as the regular volunteers.

I agree. Our shelter says if the dog is safe around cats or even other dogs. Also posts activity levels and needs do that you can find the best fit. 

[Scarlett]

I also would not get a dog until you move.  

[Tree Frog]

My dd was looking for a dog that had to be cat friendly because of roommate's cat. One shelter she visited would allow a staff member to take the dog in question into the cattery with the potential adoptor watching through the window. I thought that was such a great wat to see how the dog reacted.

 

[Carrie12345]

Do they post their dogs online?  I’m currently window shopping and waiting for the right dog in the right rescue (or shelter, if they have a dog perfect enough for the long drive.) It’s much easier to narrow down “on paper” than in person.

BARE MINIMUM, I’d expect to be allowed to walk a few outside and get a feel for their temperament. 

[KSera]

Do you have foster based rescues in your area? The foster families will usually have a much clearer idea of what a dog will be like in a home environment than a dog in a shelter. One of my favorite dogs ever was from the local shelter though, so if you see any that seem like good candidates, I definitely recommend that route too, following the advice of people above about asking volunteers and reading profiles.

[Jann in TX]

We chose a shelter dog last Christmas.  Because we had another dog and 2 cats we went with a puppy.  Our house is a 2-story and the cats are free to go upstairs but no dogs are allowed upstairs (we have a baby gate up)-- this way there was always a safe place for the cats.  Cats are still not thrilled with puppy but they tolerate him --they love our HUGE German Shepherd!  GS wasn't thrilled at first but after the first month the became good friends.

The 2 times we brought adult rescue dogs into our home we arranged slow introductions but our cat had been raised with big German Shepherds and was not afraid of dogs!

--We did look at adult rescues first but given we had a toddler and cats in addition to the older dog a puppy worked better for us.  Most of the adult dogs we were interested in just had not been trained-- would have been fine if it were just DH and me but NOT good around the baby!

[cjzimmer1]

42 minutes ago, Scarlett said:

I also would not get a dog until you move.  

This  Absolutely this!  It can take a few months for a dog to be fully settled.  If there is any chance you will be moving in the next 6 months, for the dog's sake, please wait until you move.  It will be so much better for all involved.

 

As far as how to tell "the one".  Does your shelter have a dog friendly cat that they could use for testing?  Our shelter actually has a cat that lives there permanently and has free range of most of the facility and whenever they need to cat test a dog, she's put in charge.  

[Scarlett]

9 minutes ago, cjzimmer1 said:

This  Absolutely this!  It can take a few months for a dog to be fully settled.  If there is any chance you will be moving in the next 6 months, for the dog's sake, please wait until you move.  It will be so much better for all involved.

 

As far as how to tell "the one".  Does your shelter have a dog friendly cat that they could use for testing?  Our shelter actually has a cat that lives there permanently and has free range of most of the facility and whenever they need to cat test a dog, she's put in charge.  

You could impulsively decide to take a puppy based on a photo because your SIL failed to take the one you strongly suggested she take so you  therefore had no choice but to get in the car and drive 4 hours and pick her up.  And now she is your entire world and you never even knew about a breed called German Shorthair Pointer but she is an amazing dog and you think you will die if something ever happens to her.

Or you know—-what the others suggested. 😉

 

[Jean in Newcastle]

53 minutes ago, Tree Frog said:

My dd was looking for a dog that had to be cat friendly because of roommate's cat. One shelter she visited would allow a staff member to take the dog in question into the cattery with the potential adoptor watching through the window. I thought that was such a great wat to see how the dog reacted.

 

Our shelter takes select shelter cats who had lived with dogs before (and thus weren’t terrified by them) and each new dog in for a highly supervised and leashed introduction as their assessment. A lot of dogs don’t pass but no cats are traumatized by the process. 

[Innisfree]

3 hours ago, stephanier.1765 said:

It's the rare dog that's standing there quietly.

Three great dogs, over the years, have come home from shelters with us because they *were* the ones standing quietly while chaos erupted around them. And, of course, because their temperaments checked out upon further acquaintance, and they fit our criteria at the various times regarding size, energy level, and general demeanor. 

I agree about asking staff, especially if you’re looking at a shelter that does temperament testing. Do make sure that you’ve really thought through what sort of dog would fit into your life best now.

Edited September 15, 2022 by Innisfree
Clarity

[Innisfree]

One more thing: don’t rush. You don’t have to choose between the dogs at the shelter at any particular moment. Wait until you’re comfortable that you’re choosing the right one.

[Tree Frog]

2 hours ago, Jean in Newcastle said:

Our shelter takes select shelter cats who had lived with dogs before (and thus weren’t terrified by them) and each new dog in for a highly supervised and leashed introduction as their assessment. A lot of dogs don’t pass but no cats are traumatized by the process. 

Their cattery was a large room with lots of high places for the cats to go. There were a few cats in cages, but most of them were free roaming. There were a lot of kittens who were curious about the dogs. The dogs were held on a short leash until it was known how they reacted. The dog she really wanted had a very high prey drive. As soon as they saw that, the dog was taken out and a note was put in her file. The other dog they took in 3 times, once for dd to get see and twice for roommate to see, and while he was curious about them, he didn't try to chase the kittens approaching him. Dd and I were both impressed at what a great shelter it was. 

[Carrie12345]

11 hours ago, cjzimmer1 said:

is  Absolutely this!  It can take a few months for a dog to be fully settled.  If there is any chance you will be moving in the next 6 months, for the dog's sake, please wait until you move.  It will be so much better for all involved

Agreed. We passed up great dogs while waiting for the house. (Because i can’t quit browsing dogs any more than I can quit browsing houses, lol.). 
Even just moving the dog we’ve had for over 7 years was stressful for him. He’s still extra clingy almost a month in, even though he’s picked up on the new routines and cues.

He spent a lot of extra time crated and got less exercise while we were busy setting up house. 

[shawthorne44]

4 hours ago, Carrie12345 said:

Agreed. We passed up great dogs while waiting for the house. (Because i can’t quit browsing dogs any more than I can quit browsing houses, lol.). 
Even just moving the dog we’ve had for over 7 years was stressful for him. He’s still extra clingy almost a month in, even though he’s picked up on the new routines and cues.

He spent a lot of extra time crated and got less exercise while we were busy setting up house. 

I agree.  Particularly with a shelter dog.   I am convinced that our dog knew that she was going to die.   So every time we left the house she was convinced we were taking her to die.  Once we got to the house and she saw our stuff, she was fine.  But that trip was horrible.  

[stephanier.1765]

When we move, our plan is to go slowly. The house we are in now will be paid off in the next couple of months and we don't need the money from it's sale as a down payment. It would be easy to take a dog back and forth with me as I slowly take things over. It could hang out with me there as I do things in the new house and then we'd go back home. Eventually, we would reach the point of sleeping in the new house but going back to our old one to to finish things up and puppers could do that with me as well. I think that would just about be the easiest move a dog could make. At least I hope so, whether we get one now or later.

Thanks for the suggestions about the questions we should ask the staff and volunteers. One of the nice things about this place is that you can take a dog out for just an afternoon. That way if the dog's prey drive is present right away I can just take it out for a nice long walk, pick up a puppocinno, and then take it back. I may start doing this anyway even if we decide not to get one right now just to give a dog a break from the shelter. They say even afternoons out are so good for the dogs that it increases their adoptability. They let you take them home for a afternoon, over night, for the weekend, a couple of weeks or even hold on to it until someone wants to look at it for adoption. Truly anything to help give them time out of the kennels.

[shawthorne44]

I heard that the shelter at Vail has the most dogs adopted which are taken home in private planes.   People vacation there and then borrow a dog and fall in love with it.  

[stephanier.1765]

The ears on this guy! 😂🤣😂 Good thing they have him tied down or he'd fly away.

[Kanin]

5 hours ago, stephanier.1765 said:

The ears on this guy! 😂🤣😂 Good thing they have him tied down or he'd fly away.

Oh my GOODNESS! So cute!!!