Rehoming Teenage Pup (advice)

[DepartFromTheIllegitimateChild]

Hello everybody,

I’ll confess I’m slightly nervous posting here as I’ve witnessed many a telling off of newbie dog owners on this board but I’m hoping that I’m not doing anything too wrong or awful so (fingers crossed) I won’t be torn to shreds!

I’m getting a puppy tomorrow. Not from a breeder but not from a rescue either. He’s seven months old and is a "no longer possible/practical/lifestyle-compatible" lockdown puppy . I’m not buying him for a large sum and the owner (who I have met - with him) is obviously very upset and has vetted me thoroughly (only mention this to assuage any fears that he might be stolen or similar)

I’ve been planning dog ownership and researching extensively for some time and am perfectly set up for a young dog. I work from home (permanently), have no other real responsibilities or commitments, have a garden and live next to a park, have experience of dogs in my family, love walking and running and the countryside and am very willing to work very hard at caring for and training my dog to be the best dog he can be.

I’m here to ask though, if there are any special considerations that may need to be made as a consequence of his circumstances. Specifically - him being a teenage dog and already bonded to a human that he is being forced to leave (it makes me really sad to think about this!). I’ve read lots about young puppies and even more about rescues (as I assumed I would get a rescue - am on waiting lists) but haven’t found many helpful resources that are exactly applicable to this situation.

What I would really like too, is some sort of checklist of things that I can work through to assess where he is in terms of training and development... And to also have a bit more of an idea as to what habits/behaviours etc will be most difficult for him to learn/unlearn at this point. That sort of thing!

Has anyone brought a puppy from other owners at this stage and if so, do you please have any advice for me?

I will of course be joining the puppy survival thread too!

Here he is - any informed guesses on genetics very much appreciated. If I squint I can see chihuahua and pug but only a smidgeon.

Whatever he is though, I am smitten.

Thanks for that great post InTheNight. Really helpful - I will get in touch with his old vets to get his records for sure (though I think I want to go with a different one long term)

Oh! He's gorgeous! Congratulations and good luck!

Only here for the photo!

We usually work out their daily food allowance and take some out into a separate pot for treats, that way they don't get over fed. Or you could cut up carrot into tiny chunks and use that if he likes it. Good luck!

At 7 months he's not yet a teenage puppy. Probably not even fully grown yet and certainly has not yet reached sexual maturity when hormonal behaviours can kick in.

Even far older dogs can and do adjust to a new home, new location, new name and new owner. "Separation anxiety " doesn't manifest from changing owners btw if it happens it'll be when he's left alone in your house with no human company.

I'd ask if he is housetrained; and if he's used to car travel and happy in a car. If not, those are the two fields where I'd focus early days training. Don't try to train every aspect of doggy behaviour all at once when he's new to you . One thing at a time. Resist the temptation to play lots of exciting active games in the early days or introduce him to all your friends; he will just get over stimulated and struggle to distinguish playing from training ( a tendency to avoid in some terrier breeds). Establish a regular daily routine of mealtimes, walks, quiet lap time, last thing before (your) bedtime pee walk in the garden etc etc; dogs like that security.

Make sure every boundary of your garden is escape proof :-) as he's sure to test it. Don't forget to re-register your details with his chip provider , in case he does escape/get lost.

I recommend "the Dog House" currently on TV for useful examples of how to train/retrain a dog for rehoming.

Nothing much practical to add except to say that pup has landed on all four paws with you (impression gleaned from your careful, considered posts) and I wish you and pup the very best

Obviously use whichever vets you prefer but his old vets will have a list of everything. It also gives you a hint as to if he’s going to be a walking vet bill. So if he’s already been in for eating something, you can prepare yourself to watch him like a hawk and have some money saved for stomach pumping. Our pup is a vet bill waiting to happen, although obviously don’t tell the insurance company that.

He’s gorgeous OP. His body looks like a Jack Russell Terrier. His ears are so big and floppy 😍

2bazookas thank you for the advice. I understand what you're saying re separation anxiety but I actually have a lot of first hand experience of witnessing very bad (whining, howling, watching at the window) separation anxiety in a dog left by its owners, not alone but in my care and this is very much a thing! So my point was that he hasn't done any pining for his departed ex-owners - not that he wouldn't be anxious left alone ever.

Thank you so much limit, what a lovely post. I hope you're right!

And yes InTheNight he is gorgeous and quite JRT like which is actually kind of perfect for me as they are one of my very favourite breeds and probably what I'd get in future if I were to choose "a breed" (though I'm actually completely open/breed agnostic so long as circumstances are right). And you're right about the adorable floppy ears - the only sign of potential chihuahua I'd say...

Your new dog is absolutely adorable,I can see why you've fallen for him.

Take a look at The Dogs Trust for insurance they offer very competitive rates and of course their ethos is to never PTS a healthy dog,which is worth supporting in my book.

Aw I love him! you sound like a very conscientious owner. Nothing to add to the tips etc., but next week check the "chip" has been transferred into your name, register him with your vet etc.

Those ears!

Aw. What a gorgeous pup!
Petplan have a reputation for being a great pet insurer - don’t unnecessarily quibble with vets over treatment they’ve given to try and not pay out.

Get some pure dog pate! Our puppy class trainer recommended it and it has our non-food originated dog doing whatever he can to get some as a reward treat!

He is lovely! He does look a bit like a chihuahua to me but I'm no expert. Enjoy your lovely puppy.

He's very cute.

Mixed breeds don't always look like you'd expect from the parents. The only way to be sure is to get a DNA breed test.

A dap collar for 8 weeks and a dap plug in defuser is what a lot of vets recommend for new puppies nowadays so could be useful for your older pup too.

any informed guesses on genetics very much appreciated
JRTxChi for my money, possibly more JRT than anything else (poss one JRT parent and one Chi x pug or similar).

Cute for sure. If there is JRT in there he will keep you on your toes. Have fun with him.

No specific experience of your situation, but strongly advise you hand feed at least part of his meals. Great bonding exercise and opportunity to get the pup's attention on you. Google/YouTube for info but start with basic commands and instructions, wait for dog to look at you before giving some food, work on impulse control. Good luck!

Saying hey as another person who has rehomed a lockdown puppy.

Puts is a pointer crossed with .... something big! He was living in a flat in Glasgow until he was 7 months and it became clear he was a big bouncy boy but they at least did the right thing and turned him over to a rescue. He is 9 months now and getting a pup in the teenage stage is hard work.

It is very clear our pup has never had any boundaries or been told no so the past few weeks have been hard!! But I am starting to see glimpses of the adult dog he is going to be and I cannot wait!

Oh hello copper! It is very nice to meet a fellow ill advised lockdown puppy taker onner. Sadly, I'm sure there will be ever increasing numbers of us over the coming months but I'm also very glad that at least there are people like us out there waiting in the wings!

First night with the little one was... interesting. I was determined to keep him out of my bedroom as he's not very well toilet trained (yet!) and I have carpet and am in rental and I also just thought it would be good for us in the long term. I knew it would be tricky but I was set on seeing it through but my God! He almost took down the door! He didn't bark but whined and then scrabbled and then thumped and thumped and I obviously wasn't going to let him hurt himself so I ended up sleeping on the sofa with him. I've ordered a crate now and will be trying that route - I'll sleep in the lounge room area with him until he's settled and slowly, slowly get him happy with the crate and then take it from there. I don't mind if it's slow progress and I'm not set on anything but I am pretty certain that I don't want to just relent and let him in my bed from the start. This is what he's used to though (i asked the owner yesterday) so it might take a while.

The other major "point to work on" is the barking. He is very barky and I worry that if it doesn't improve I might start to be a nuisance neighbour. If anyone has any helpful resources for this specific issue I'm all ears! I've already got in touch with a local trainer for some one on one lessons (and then puppy classes too) so that we can make up for lost time. I find the barking thing really difficult though (even 24 hours in). I ignore it and don't look at him and then reward when he is quiet but I can already sense that I might not be doing this right and that he might be too clever/not clever enough (can't work out which) and that he's making the association between the barking to the stopping barking to the treat. Like he will bark, run around, bark and then come and sit quietly with an expectant look in front of me, all "I barked but stopped, give me a treat please!"

I don't know how to reward the stopping without him making this link!

Anyway, sorry for the rant! I really do love him very much already and am very happy I made this decision. It was so nice just having him smushed up in my face all licky this morning (even on my rock hard sofa, covered only by a thin rug!)

Thanks everyone who has given advice or recommendations - I've been Googling everything.

@DepartFromTheIllegitimateChild You're probably right, that he's twigged the way to get treats! I have a clever 7mnth old ESS who worked out that she was rewarded for jumping up, being told 'off', then gleefully waiting for her treat when front paws back on the floor! And repeat :)
Ignoring the barking completely - unless it's linked to wanting to go to the loo or being hungry. Treat when he's off-guard and being quiet! - worked for us.
For night-time - I spent two weeks sleeping near pup as she got used to being away from her mum and sisters, and her new crate, which helped me reassure her I was close, and I was able to take her out to the loo every couple hours. After that, and her trusting I would be there if she needed me, I slept in my own bed with her in her crate downstairs, and set my alarm for every three hours to get up and take her to the loo, for another 2-3 weeks, then up once a night (four hours after last wee) for a couple of months. She will now sleep 11-6, will quickly settle, barks politely to alert me if she does need to go for a wee, and comes back in from the garden quickly and straight back to settle again if necessary.

If he's got used to being in his owner's bed, you will likely need to go back to the start with sleep and night-time toilet training until he settles, feels confident, and understands his new boundaries. I don't envy your labour of love (I was up at 2am myself last night)

What’s he barking at?

I’ve got a barker, it’s not fun...

Also the barking - do you think he might also just be a bit sensitive to everything about his new environment? Familiarity with sights, sounds and smells should help him be much more relaxed with time?

A little bit of reassurance - assistance dog puppies are almost always “uprooted” at least twice between their first home and their ultimate recipient. And they all settle well enough in each new place to continue their training to the required high standard. So I’m absolutely sure your new puppy will settle with you in no time.

The barking may also settle as he settles; stress barking is very much a thing and inevitably he will be stressed just now. My current dog was very barky when he arrived but it was immeasurably better within a month. You’ll find things that make it better - in our case it was avoiding getting him “over wound”, and if all else failed I found it worked well to attach him to my waist on a lead and just potter about the house. He had to concentrate on staying with me and couldn’t dash off to bark at the window, then dash back to me etc etc.

Ps his claws are very long which might suggest he hasn’t had much walking - one to tackle as soon as he’ll allow it 😉

My last foster was a barker, and it was all anxiety related. It massively improved after putting him on scullcap and valerian tablets and looking for the drivers in his barking - he didn't know how to ask nicely for things, so would bark because he wanted to sit on the sofa with me but the other dog was there. So I moved to the middle seat so he could be the other side. Another trigger was eating - he was anxious that we were getting something he wasn't - so he got something at the end, barking or not, and that stopped the worry

He definitely looks like a Jrt mix, really cute!

Terriers are quite barky, I think exercise will help with that.