Sunday's "Living With Your Pet" Tips: The First 30 Days After Adoption

    Fabulous photo of me by John Clark of Clark Creative

Parental Unit wishes she'd read these strategies from our friends at Petfinder before she brought me home from our local shelter. Believe it or not, the woman who has become fanatical about promoting pet adoption and rescue had never adopted until she brought me home in 2008! Although she was prepared with the usual suspects like a crate, food, collar and leash, and even a few new toys, she really didn't know how to introduce an (almost) adult dog into a new home. 

Petfinder's recommendations hit the mark, and they're expounded on with links to additional information, like crate training your dog and introducing dogs and children. But we'd like to add two from Cesar Millan's first book that we believe (with hindsight) would have been helpful: before you even bring your new pooch into your home, tire him out a bit and let him use the outdoor toilet facilities by taking a walk around the new neighborhood.Then walk him though each room in your home while still on his leash, rather than immediately giving him free rein like Parental unit did. 

And perhaps most importantly, be very careful when you open doors, at least for the first few weeks. Within a day or two of my arrival, I ran through the front door when Parental Unit opened it to get the mail-I didn't even have my new name yet! I promptly slipped through a narrow opening in the fence and dashed across the street. Needless to say, I could have been hit by a car right then and there. For some reason,when Parental Unit screamed and ran after me I chose to stop and let her bring me safely back indoors -whew!

  That's the last time I tried to run away from my happy home...

Share