our new dog seems sad

[higgle]

Does that sound a bit silly? We rehomed a 9 year old Staffie from rescue kennels about 6 weeks ago. He is lovely, kind, mild mannered dog who behaves very well indeed, all things considered.

He knows what living in a house is all about and seems to think he should be allowed on the sofa with us and to go into bedrooms and lie on the beds. We had to take the decision not to allow him on the furniture because he is moulting non stop ( white dog, so very noticable) and also claws as he turns round 3 times to settle. He is allowed on the tatty old sofa in our play room - opposite our living room - where he has the advantage of being able to see outside onto the street.

He tends to sit on this sofa rather than come into the sitting room ( where he has a dog bed) with us and generally looks rather miserable a lot of the time. Sometimes he seems pleased and wags his tail when we come in, sometimes he doesn't look very bothered.
The only health problem our vet has found is that his teeth are totally worn down to the gum, and he has to have them all out once he has settled in with us. I am just a bit concerned that although he is very friendly in some ways - likes to sit on your feet, sometimes climbs up and sits on my knee - a lot of the time he sits on his sofa and doesn't get up to greet DH or DS2 and he seems generally to be a bit sad and tired.

He likes a good walk in the afternoon and gets very enthusiastic about this, but doesn't like going out for his early morning walk at 6am - until it is underway when he is quite happy.

We took him to the local farmers market one Saturday and he behaved really well, sat nicely outside cafe, didn't bother other dogs or embarass me by having a poo

I'm just wondering if, despite having had a pretty poor home in the past, his old owners might have been a lot more fun for him - I imagine him going out in a van with someone, and seing lots of people for example.

Is he sad? just a bit old and tired? still settling in? or worst case scenario in pain from his teeth or something else the vet hasn't spotted?

I suspect this sounds a bit paranoid but I have really fallen in love with this dear dog and want to be sure he is happy.

I think it takes them a while to realise that you're not going to abandon them again to be honest (and let's face it - we'd expect a human kid to have abandonment issues, why's it different for dogs on that front).

We had a horrid time about 2 weeks after we got our guy where the phone went from my mum who was sobbing because a very dear family friend who's basically been more of a dad to me than my real one ever was was dying... of course we were on the road and on the way to see him within the hour (more than his own kids did but that's another story ) and we had to take the dog with us because we had nowhere to leave him and were staying overnight at my mum's. We saw the shutters visibly go back down on him as we went out to the car in quite an emotionally wobbly state and I just wondered if it brought things back to him... I'll never know to be honest, but once we went there, came back and then had to make the inevitable return trip for the funeral he was much much more relaxed that time - as if he'd made the click that people feeling emotional (and he's very very clued in on when you feel wobbly and will immediately deposit a dopey head looking up at you in your lap and lick you in the ear if you're close enough) and getting in the car didn't mean he was being gotten rid of.

Now he's still got the air of Eeyore about him (downtrodden old chap) but there's much more of Tigger in him as well and, like I said before, it's his eyes that show the difference - they just shine now! He still doesn't sleep deeply during the day (and judging from the state of the binbags on a morning - the night's doubtful as well) but he's stopped being hyper on-watch like he was.

They are such complex creatures! It is so lovely to hear from so many people who are doing their bit for dogs who have been through so much. I suspect mine might have thought to begin with that we were just another - more comfortable - sort of dogs home. I remember him making an enormous display of affection to the man who had come to mend our boiler - perhpas he thought he might take him home wit him.