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. 😁

I really love this thread OP. I've been following from the start. He looks such a lovely lovely boy who has had a really tough start in life. You haven't given up on him. That is so precious.

OneNapPod sounds just ike my useful idiot at that age.... Runs around the house at breakneck speed, battering everything he encounters in his path? Does he jump, bite, bark? Spins around and chases his own tail? Does he have madness in his eyes, tongue out, and it's hard to stop him? In our case, phases of doggy zoomies occurred practically every day until he was about 10 months old, so in the evenings I felt like calling an exorcist. He even bit into walls, and our skirting boards are shredded in one or two places.

After the first three months of our life together with Bert, I was able to tell practically every evening that the hour of madness was approaching. You will learn to spot it. The moment when, from a state of relative rest, Bert was turning into a monstrous creature that no force could stop. I tested various techniques for discharging this explosion of energy and, as is to be expected when working with an temperamental puppy, what worked one day, did not necessarily work the next.

As a consolation to you and all those who are struggling with this at the moment - it passes. At first, the rage phase will last shorter, and you will find it much easier to point Pod to activities that help him calm down. Biting and chewing helps to reduce tension - may be why he is so focused on soft furnishings, are his teeth all out at 8 months? He might prefer something soft if he's still teething, it itches and makes them even more frantic. You can ask your vet to have a look at his teeth.

All it takes at the end is time. ZoomiePod needs to mature to this stage and it is the role of the human to understand that every age has its own rights and that we cannot demand from the dog something that we have not taught it before. So just stay patient and just... Breathe. Deeply. A lot. Wine helps. Vodka helps. Cuddling the tired dog helps best.

What a lovely post Dynamo🙂😁

Having 2 retired racer, rescue crazy hounds, love and patience really do go a long, long way!

Pod is obviously part of his perfect family now 😎

This, btw, is Bert now, three years old. He's the chilliest dog we've had and people don't believe it when we tell them what we went through when we got him as a rescue at 5 months. Our second dog (18 months old now, we got his as a puppy from a breeder) was an angel in comparison except for his weird, brutal and unhealthy love of shoes

Edited to actually add the picture, because I'm an idiot.

For some the puppy stage is difficult, but they eventually calm down. Puppies love to chew, so you need to get them things they like chewing. I did not read the thread in detail, but what made our puppy days easier were letting our dog play with other puppies in the park and letting her get her energy out. She would come home and I would give her these dog chews (like dried sweet potato or dried pig ear etc). There are so many different dried chew toys that are tasty and dogs love to chew. Our trainer said it helps them calm down. So she would mostly chew those and sleep when at home, take her out for playing and repeat. Maybe your dog also needs some more stimulation.....some dogs like those dog puzzle type toys that release treats.

Bert is a bit of a stunner too isn't he? 😍

Pod has been super today. In return for me going training and out for dinner yesterday I was with Pod all day while DP went off to do his sport.

Pod and me had an epic 90 min nap on the sofa in the sun.

He had a challenging second walk because he met loads of dogs which over stimulated him a bit... Came home, did twenty laps of the garden, attacked the sofa for 15 mins and, after several shark attacks on the hand the literally feeds him, has the nerve to pass out of me so I can't get up 🤣 Prick.

I’ve been following Pod since the night before you collected him. He’s adorable. Just thought I’d share our girl’s efforts. She was very snarky and a chewer as a pup, remodelling various pieces of wooden furniture, the stair newel post etc. She settled a bit until we moved house just after her first birthday and it must have really unsettled her. She did this to our brand new (well, 5 days old) sofa. DH wanted to make her into gloves but I successfully argued her case. She did eventually stop and by about 3 became pretty bomb proof. So, just to say, really, that it does get easier and you’re doing a cracking job!

Oh, he is so lovely, and has so landed on his paws with you.

We have an over-tired routine also, which usually involves (pretending) he wants to go outside, taking shoes, taking blanket out his crate etc. We usually have to ‘herd’ him towards the sofa or his mat when he will usually settle.

@just What breed is Bec-Boy? He’s gorgeous.

Thank you She’s a Hungarian Vizsla. She’s my world (don’t tell the kids!) and turns seven just after Christmas.

Yes he is until you see him tripping over his own tail
He's also coincidentally a Vizsla mix (at least according to his papers, we've never tested him)

Sleeping in top of you means he trusts you not to hurt him (and that he doesn't want to miss the moment when you get up, but still)

Can definitely see Viz features in him. Especially the tripping over his own tail ditsyness!

MontyDonsBlueScarf
Please could you post the recipe?

One thing I was advised to do and stupidly ignored
was
never give your dog human food
so wish I’d listened!!!

We don't as DDog was severely obese by the time she came to live with us though. I do have to keep an eye on DH though, he was giving her the end of his coffee the other day

Runs around the house at breakneck speed, battering everything he encounters in his path? Does he jump, bite, bark? Spins around and chases his own tail? Does he have madness in his eyes, tongue out, and it's hard to stop him? In our case, phases of doggy zoomies occurred practically every day until he was about 10 months old, so in the evenings I felt like calling an exorcist. He even bit into walls, and our skirting boards are shredded in one or two places

We had virtually every one of these tonight. He finished with another thirty laps of the garden and a big poop. He's now fast asleep.

Liver cake is basically liver, plus a flller such as flour, oats or breadcrumbs because otherwise it's much too rich, plus an egg to bind it together. You can make pilchard cake the same way.

I use 150g liver, liquidised with the blender. 1 egg, also liquidised. Add 150g flour. Add enough milk/water/home made stock to make a thickish batter. Thicker than pancake batter but a bit thinner than a sponge cake. Pour into a flat dish so it's about a quarter of an inch deep. Can be baked in the oven if you have it on anyway (though it will stink the house out) or microwaved for a few minutes. I use the lid from a Pyrex dish. Bake till set, if you're using a glass dish take it out and look from underneath to check. Turn out on to a chopping board. I find the easiest way to cut it up into suitably miniscule pieces is to use a pizza cutter.

As you can infer from this it's very forgiving!

Once cut I just freeze it in a plastic bag. Best treat ever.

Man - the dog farts on this thread. Epic.

A treadmill when the weather is really dire can be an activity that some dogs love.
This pic is from someone who lives where it is very deep snow for much of the winter, so his Whippet is trained by the Village Cat whom they adopted on the treadmill.

Dog is not tethered.

We had virtually every one of these tonight. He finished with another thirty laps of the garden and a big poop. He's now fast asleep.

Mines much older but she still gets a bit like this if she needs a wee or poo sometimes.

I am not sure I have ever rooted for a rescue dog and their new family as much as I am rooting for you and Pod.

What a lucky, lucky boy to have found such a great new home.

Ahhh that's so kind of you! I thought this thread would die out quite quickly but I might start another when it's full because it might be helpful to someone else in the trenches at the beginning.

Pod walked really well this morning until we got to the bit with the the recycling all left out for for collection where he stole a dominoes box in what I can only described as a fit of moaning ecstasy.

Really do love that about Pod, he doesn't hold back showing his emotions. When he's enjoying something he sings at the top of his voice. If you've ever seen Jurassic Park its a bit like the sounds the tricerotops makes.