Oh my giddy god......

[HangingOver]

I can't actually believe I'm finally typing this... I think I'm getting a dog!

I've wanted one of my own my entire life. I had one growing up and look after friends and neighbours at every available opportunity as I adore dogs so much. A rescue came up locally and I thought he looked lovely, he was snapped up immediately, but came up again yesterday! Me and DP are meeting him this afternoon.

Any tips for meeting a rescue for the first time? Other than being gentle and calm? He's 8 months so a bouncy chap.

ARGGGH! So excited. 😁

Following for pics also ❤️

This is sooo lovely! I volunteer at a dogs' home walking the residents and it's lovely to see the other side of an adoption. I hope all our pups go to people as excited and prepared as you (though I know they don't - we've had some returns for spurious reasons too 😢 ). I love seeing rehoming posts and really like it when we get an update from an adopter. We really live all the pups - the more boisterous and difficult the more we live them to be honest! Pics of a couple I've walked who have been recently adopted.

How exciting.

We are now on our third rescue dog. Our first was a Collie aged around 4 who lived until she was 14, our second a Lurcher who we got as a very young pup and lived to the grand old age of 18 and now a mad mongrel who we think is about 2 years old. He is a Romanian street dog so needing lots of patients but is so loving.

Main thing to remember is to have patience. And remember the 3 3 3 rule. It takes around 3 days for your dog to decompress from travel, 3 weeks for them to learn your routine and around 3 months for them to feel truly at home.

Give them their own space - we crated our Lurcher and she loved it. We had young children then and she saw that as her space that no one bothered her in. The door was rarely locked but it was her safe space. Our new dog (Kenny - who is far too big for a crate) has made behind the dining table his space and we know that if he goes there he wants to be left alone.

Try and bring something from the rescue centre home with you so he has something that smells familiar. Try and stick to the same diet for at least a couple of weeks and if you are going to change it do it slowly (lots of rescue centres feed a raw diet). Try and socialise him as much as possible. As he's your first dog I would definitely look at some sort of training class - more for you than the dog.

And throw any of the rules you have in mind out of the window - that pup will end up sleeping on your bed, sprawling out on the sofa and being fed titbits from the kitchen.

Good luck, but most of all enjoy your new doggo.

@AutumnTimeForCosy24

Plenty of 'walking harness' but not car crash tested ones for heavy dogs (45kg lab in particular). he's not mine (obviously) he's on a restricted eating plan & well exercised. He's just a huge, powerful, chunk of a lad!!)

I need to see a photo of this chonky man

This is Kenny.

@Frenzi
Wolfhound pup? Gorgeous ❤Big dogs are the best!

We think he’s some sort of wolfhound but also resembles a Romanian Mioritc Shepherd dog. We are pretty sure he’s got more growing to do - his feet are huge.

He is bone idle! I have never known such a lazy dog (although we have had a collie and a Lurcher before so they were manic). Yesterday because it was raining he went for 10 hours without having a wee as he refused to go out. I ended up having to drag him!

@AutumnTimeForCosy24

Have you looked at Ezydog for harnesses? Quite pricy but good quality and they cater well for larger dogs.

Pretty please can we have a pic soon, excited for you and dying to see your new dog 😊

Can someone please explain to me why I'm dusting for a dog

Might be the last chance to dust for a while.

Be calm and kind. Mainly kind.

It's also the first time I've dusted in a while 😂

This thread has brightened up a fairly crappy morning. Your enthusiasm is wonderful, @HangingOver - he's a lucky boy to have found someone so keen and motivated.

I wouldn't walk him at all for the first couple of days. Let him decompress, bond with you and start to realise he's home, and then take him out very locally at first, double-leashed (we also attached harness to collar for total belt-and-braces!), and let him sniff sniff sniff. Sniffing is very calming and surprisingly tiring. We use lots of snuffle mat type toys and 'treasure hunts' around the house and garden for our rescue spaniel.

We need to see photos of his first trip to the beach. He's going to love it!

What a lovely thread this is! Love all the doggy pics and general dog chat. We've recently adopted a galgo (Spanish greyhound) and after a month he's starting to come out of his shell. Good luck with your pup and yes, please share photos! Here's my boy...

Placemarking for updates.

Bella’s excited, too. She says, ‘being adopted rules.’

What did you lovely lot do the MOMENT you got yours home? Do I give him a tour?

I am so excited for you, it’s magical when you bring your furry best pal home.

We rescued our beautiful girl in March 2023, she was so timid and shy, needed lots of space and time, she is now such a different girl.

You are going on the best journey, enjoy.

My girl threw herself under the dining room table and didn’t really come out for about a week, there was no tour for a while.

I am loving this thread and all the photos of gorgeous dogs! OP I am so excited for you and cannot wait to see him and find out his name. My 4 month old flatty is Fox and here he is with his big brothers 8 year old flatty Joss and 2.5 year old working cocker Ziggy.

What a beautiful big gangly lollopy pup!

Hahaha you can tell who the poser in the family is 😅

The Facebook group Dog Training Advice And Support is a fab group with qualified force free behaviourists with loads of free guides to help you settle your dog in - they have sections particularly around rescue dogs. Go have a look while you're waiting for the next few hours to pass - using these guides really helped me settle my rescue dog in and gave us a good grounding in how to train a dog positively.

Be guided by him, although I'd whizz him straight out to the garden on-lead to make sure his all-important first wee is in the right place. Ours was very frantic and mostly just paced in circles for several hours (puppy farm rescue), stopping only to poo in the hall. We encouraged her out into the garden, on a lead because she was a flight risk, but other than that we just let her suss the place out and she eventually came and melted into our DS on the sofa and slept for ages. They don't sleep well in kennels, so you may find that once he clicks that he's somewhere safe, he'll conk out and sleep really deeply.

Your excitement is palpable OP. You are going to be a fabulous dog mummy and your pup is so lucky getting a second chance. What breed is he?

Here she is looking super pleased with herself on her first big-girl off-lead walk.