I stupidly tried to help... and now I've made a mess of it... (essay, sorry)

[MindReader]

For a really long time I have wanted a dog (have kept spaniels in past).
I live in a house with a garden but the garden is accessed via a busyish lane (ie dog cannot access safely on own) so I didn't think a shelter would allow us to re-home a dog.

I was on gumtree and saw a dog who needed a new home (owners moving, cant take her). I arranged to go see the dog. My initial reaction was: NO as she was much larger than I had been told and also obese. Her eyes looked sore. I spoke to the owner some more and spent a bit of time taking her for a walk. She seemed a lovely dog living in very inadequate circumstances and I felt very sorry for her. She was with another dog and 3 young children in a small chaotic space. I agreed to take her for a couple of weeks to see if she would settle with us. I paid a small sum which the owner had asked for to make sure 'her new owner was genuine' which seemed fair enough to me.

I took her to our vet who says she is clinically obese and has eye and ear infections which seem longstanding. She also has a cherry eye problem. She is very very clingy and will not leave the house with anyone but me. H cant get her over the doorstep ( she is heavy -6stones) so all the walking is down to me. She wakes up at 5am and wont settle so I take her downstairs and give her a light feed and take her outside to toilet. On quite a few occasions she has refused to go out. This morning she refused (as I stood outside in rain) and toileted on H's newspaper sat on floor next to bag ready to leave for work. This has happened at her night time 'toilet walk' (10pm) too.

She is completely unable to cope alone for even 2 minutes. If I go to the loo she will howl and pace and get upset. She is clearly frightened of men - H is taking time with her and she is very wary. She will not move on the lead for anyone but me. If I step outside the front door or creep upstairs when she is asleep she will howl and bark - very very loudly as she is a hound. I work from home so she would never be left for long, and I realise it is early days - poor dog must be so confused - but I cannot be a prisoner like this forever.

I appreciate I have been really stupid here.
I wanted to help but I have taken on much more than I bargained for.
I have started her on Vet treatment for her ears and eyes and she has already slimmed down a bit. She is not being left alone and is begin given plenty of affection and walks. She is a lovely dog in every way but her needs are quite high.
Her old owner will 'accept her back' but will immediately re-advertise her on gumtree as he 'cannot take her' and is moving imminently.
My feeling is that she would be happier with an older retired couple.
I don't want to re-home her, she is not a parcel to be passed around, and my children adore her. BUT, the old owner now tells me she would howl if he left the house, even when at home with their other dog and his wife and kids, so I am clear (only NOW this is not what he told me at the time, of course) that it is a long standing trait of hers.

Please don't flame me. I have been stupid I see. I wanted to 'rescue' her out of her environment (not bad enough for PDSA but bad enough to want to rescue her, iyswim) but I don't see how we can keep her long term?
I also don't want to damage her further by re-homing her again.

I wouldnt take her on the school run if I were you!
Leave her in a crate (so at least the mess is contained and while she is anxious she can't trash your home - which anxious dogs often do!) at home.

Bassets aren't that common and are expensive to buy, by taking her on the school run you have no option but to tie her outside or leave her in the car.
There is a good chance she could be stolen, if she is spayed the theives might then kill her or just chuck her out on the street.

Another thing to consider is that despite her being good with your kids, it's early days, you barely know this dog.
You wont TRULY know this dog for at least a month or two, she isn't properly settled yet.
We know she is scared of men, we know she has eye and ear problems and is overweight (and therefore possibly sore), if God forbid some children think she is cute and scare her in someway and she bites them your going to find yourself in big trouble indeed.

I also think you are being a bit hard on her and expecting too much.
We don't know what she has been through, she came with a choke chain, scared of men, it's not going to be good is it?
It is far too early to expect a perfect dog.

Dogs rescued like this are a work in progress, her problems are treatable but it will take time, no quick fixes.
Separation anxiety especially will take time.
Her pulling her head out of the harness and refusing to walk could well be fear rather than stubbornness.
We don't know anything of her life remember.

I hope you keep using this thread for support. It's hard but if you think you can do it, do. If you come to the conclusion that it is too much, that's ok too. She is having a break with you and is safe. Maybe regard yourself as her foster? What you are doing now is a good thing. Admitting it's too much is a good thing too.

Loathsome I have been given her full pedigree names but not the breeder name and the papers 'have gone missing' according to previous owner... so I only know what I've been told.

Butt - school run - we walk on the pavement. I then stand with her outside the playground and wave the children in (hard to describe but we are behind a low stone wall on the edge of the playground. She isn't being left. I take your point about children. She came from a family of children and I have 2 but I am being careful. She seems to LOVE the walk normally - her tail is going the whole time. She just clearly hates the rain

I am sorry you think I am being hard on her. I certainly don't expect perfection, or even a 'good' dog, but I do want to know that I can offer her what she needs and she can fit in with family life and be manageable in time.

ghost - yes, these are my thoughts exactly. If I return her to previous owner he will put her back on gumtree and has about 5 days to find someone to take her before he moves. Cant do that. She is being well cared for, and getting the treatment she needs. If, in time, she cant adapt to us, she may have to go to a home where she can get what she needs to be less anxious. Meantime, I am fostering her (and hope to keep her - she is a lovely lovely girl). thanks.x

If you PM me her name I can do a bit of digging and see what I can find.

Loathsome thank you.x

I think you've done a great thing in giving her a chance, and I hope it works out for you.

FWIW, just before xmas I took on a dog that my cousin could no longer have. He's also overweight and was in bad condition,and we have a 6st Malamute cross who was none too happy at the new (her)space invader!

I did wonder several times in the early days 'What the F have I done?!' etc. But all's fine now, his health is improving and he's no longer terrified. I'd do some good reading and be firm with her and you could have a lovely pet .

If you really can't cope and know she'll be better off elsewhere, then that's okay too.

My dog hates the rain aswell, I don't complain!

All i am saying is that the issues she has will take time to heal, and by time, I mean 6 months plus really.
Possibly even a year.
There is no reason why you wouldn't be able to fix her and make her compatable with your family, but it won't be a quick process, that is all I am saying.

Buttholelane - I don't mind if she doesn't go out in the rain but I live in Scotland so it rains a LOT. also if she wont go out when I am walking anyway I cant then leave the children in the house when the sun comes out to take her for her exercise, or tip them out at homework/dinner time.

Judy - yes, of course it's early days.

I took her out of a situation that wasn't good for her, and am committing time and money to her treatment and have every intention of keeping her if we can iron out these glitches.

She deserves it and I luffs her already but it is good to come on to vent / get advice here too!

Ooof. Just took her out for a 1.5m walk. She came home. As I was unclipping her she flooded the hall

Each time she's flooded in the hall I have towelled up 95% of it then mopped thoroughly with bleachy / fairy liquid water.

do you think she could be going back to her scent?
the hall smelled clean to me. It was mopped after her flood this morning and there was no newspaper around.

I don't want to tell her off but how do I let her know this is wrong without making her fearful?

Is it excitement that makes her pee? Excited to see you, excited to being home? Does she pee outside at all?
It's definitely about finding the 'tone', firm but not scary.

She does pee outside but only on wet grass so far (which is tricky as she doesn't like rain...).
I wonder if the rain thing is to do with her sore eyes.
She seems to spend a LOT of time asleep. She isn't really keen to go out but once she has gone a 100 yards or so she seems to get the hang of it. I wonder how much she was walked in her last home?
We went up to Cubs likety split but she had plenty of time to amble on way back. She was on pavements, however.
Sigh. Just as H was beginning to like her a bit more

OP, you need to use biological detergent or special dog pee cleaner from PAH.
Bleach and fairy liquid don't work, leave enough traces of urine smell for dog to assume floor is his regular "pee place".

It's tricky. Best start from scratch with her. I think you are worrying too much about the dogs feelings. Meantime she is settling in as top dog. There is lots of free advice re training on google.
I sound really knowledgeable don't I? Truth - I know my dog is going to pee with excitement when DH comes through the door!

You did a kind thing taking her on but for everyone's sake get a behaviourist out to help you or return her. Separation anxiety is a tough one to sort out and by the sound of things it's a long term problem.

Try a coat on rainy days? Try making a paved or sandy area for her to toilet outside, some dogs dislike grass and mud.

ender - that makes sense. I will get some at PAH tomorrow. Or would bio wash powder dissolved in hot water work?
Was thinking of finishing off with Zoflora too as that is such a strong floral smell ( and I like it!)
She has always pee'd in the same place, to within an inch so I did wonder if bleach/fairy wasn't enough to kill the smell to a dog's nose. Fortunately it's a hard floor but it's still a pain, esp with kids in house.

ghost she does NEED to fit in with us in time, and that includes being clean and going out when we say so otherwise it's going to be miserable all round. I know it will take time for her to settle - she must be miserable missing her dog companion but I need to know that I am doing the right things...

Ignoring the behavioural issues.. Is she spayed? I remain worried about the financial bits. Bassett get, eye, ear, orthopaedic and skin issues. They are not a healthy breed. How old is she? Insuring her will be costly but may help future issues but they will exclude all eye problems as you know. Crate training may help but would have to be done sooooo slowly to avoid negative associations with the crate. You need expert advice for sure. I agree you don't tell her off for puddles but you almost need to go back to puppy training and reward all positives, so when she does wee outside praise and reward. Clicker training may help. Keep an eye on treats you use for training as she needs that weight off. I think a local training class would have some experienced people but the Bassett owners are passionate about their breed and would fall over themselves to help you I am sure. Some clubs even have meets and group walks - imagine 30 bassetts in the park! Use their experience.

Oh and is she vaccinated up to date?

Ps I think you can sort this dog out, I am just not sure with a busy life and not lots of money if you are going to have the time and money to do it. Not meaning to be negative, I like the foster home analogy. Take the pressure off, get advice and see how things go.

Best thing to use is something like Simple Solution. You can buy it at most pet shops and definitely at PAH. It's biological and breaks down the bio matter. If you anything other than a biological cleaner they are unable to remove every trace and she will just return to the same spot to go again.

Re letting her know it's wrong. You don't - you reward her whenever she gets it right and make sure you clean up any accidents thoroughly so she's not encouraged to revisit the same place. House training for an adult dog is exactly the same as it would be for a pup, although things will be a bit more difficult with her aversion to rain. I have Lurcher with the same aversion and we get around it by employing a warm waterproof coat for him and if necessary, a large umbrella as well. That might be worth a try. she may not like it at first, but when she realises she's not actually getting wet anymore, she might start to come round.

You've done a good thing, albeit not in the most ideal way and the majority of issues will improve with time and consistency, as well as you getting to know each other a bit better. Your biggest problem is always going to be the Separation Anxiety, which can be improved or even cured, but involves a long, slow process. Hounds are particularly prone to SA, as well as - unfortunately - expressing their distress vocally ... at volume!

My younger lad has SA and I do understand the feeling of being trapped at home by it. I have been unable to go out (unless I could arrange for someone to come and sit with my dogs or they can come with me) other than 10/15 minute school runs, for 15 months now and it is really hard to cope with.

I would highly recommend reading both Don't Leave Me, by Nicole Wilde and Treating Separation Anxiety to give you some idea of the problem and what you will need to do to improve it.

Just read back and caught up again. Yes, bio powder will work to some extent until you can get some proprietary cleaner, but please don't use Zoflora, it can be toxic to dogs.

She is not settling in as top dog at all. She's most likely confused, upset and trying to make some sense of her new situation. The idea that dogs want to dominate us or take 'top dog position' in our household was scientifically debunked years ago.

As others have said, I'd advice contacting one of the Bassett Clubs for advice, as they really will be the experts on the breed and will have all sorts of tips on how to manage their traits etc. Ideally I would also recommend a qualified behaviourist. It shouldn't cost you much more than the cherry eye op quote you've been given for the initial consult and there should then be a certain amount of phone/email back-up which should be included in the price.

Thanks again, everyone. Very useful advice.

No Zoflora then. Will use in loo instead (she's too stumpy to reach to drink from so safe enough!).

She is 5 (I am told) and Vet thought likely enough given teeth condition. She is not spayed but has not been bred from. She is having her jags this week as her last ones are nearly 2 years old.

She is quite 'in need' of affection. When I read to my dd at bedtime we sit on the stairs and Dog pushes in and nudges my arm very forcefully to get her head under my arm. I just sat on the floor to dry dd's hair and Dog tried to sit on my lap, the daft thing. She doesn't go on sofas and her bed is on floor in my bed doorway as leaving her in hall didn't work in terms of volume.

Ok so she will need to be spayed so factor that cost in too (would be several hundred pounds here, your vet is about half our prices but would not think less than £300). Good advice on this thread. Hope all works out.

I know bog All about dogs, but have a house rabbit. I was always told that most cleaners and disinfectants have ammonia land therefore smell like wee to rabbits, so they return to that patch.

Using fabric softener to clean up any mishaps really helped when housetraining.

I'm guessing it might be similar for dogs.