# The perfect rescue dog?



## MyMiles (Apr 21, 2012)

I bet she's still settling in and learning about her new world. They say there's a rule of threes when rehoming a dog - basically that you'll see changes as they settle in at 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months. I wouldn't be surprised if she starts opening up a bit more over the next couple of months - getting more curious on walks and testing some boundaries in the home. 

My last poodle (Miles) was adopted as an adult and the rule of threes definitely fit. It took at least 3 weeks for him to initiate any play in our yard, and at about 3 months before I heard him bark for the first time. In the first few weeks with me, I could have walked him off lead, he stuck so close to me. But over time, he started sniffing more and pulling to explore interesting stuff in the environment. Honestly, it was probably 6 months before I felt like I really knew his personality.
He was always one to 'stress down' and look super calm and easy going to most observers, but was much more playful and curious in situations that he didn't find stressful.


----------



## Oonapup (Oct 16, 2020)

Like MyMiles says, she is almost certainly still adjusting. The leash walking and no sniffing could both be part of extra vigilance. But also, maybe she has learned, as a dog who grew up out of doors, to smell the world without sniffing everything closely. Compare with your average north American family dog, who may rush around fervently smelling things because this is one of his three trips outdoors he's getting today, and his brain is telling him he better SMELL EVERYTHING NOW before it's taken away.

The fact that she was a street dog in Greece reminded me of this blog post one of the trainers that runs our training program wrote about different environments that dogs have adapted to. I think it brings an interesting perspective to the growing trend of overseas rescue of street and village dogs: INSIDE OUT — Dog Behaviour Training: Dogs In the Park - Guelph and Area

When we think about the environments that dogs lived in for thousands of years, living in parallel with humans (rather than being kept for working animals or as pets) is certainly something dogs have always done to varying degrees, and is probably how wolves became dogs. So that kind of live is very normal for dogs and some dogs are well adapted to it. I'm not sure what I think about whether or not street dogs should be taken from their environment, but she makes another interesting point that might apply in your neighbor's case, which is the fact that street dogs are genetically selected for resilience, and they are arguably more broadly socialized to different environments, things, and people than many pets are! So a lot of street dogs, especially ones that are friendly and social with people and not really feral, adapt very well to living as pets. I hope your neighbor's dog continues to do well as she comes out of her shell more. 

On a slightly separate note, I think that this could be where the idea of "hybrid vigor" in mongrel dogs comes from - from the times and places when more dogs were strays and so faced true selection pressures on health and temperament. None of that is the case for your average backyard bred mix.


----------



## cowpony (Dec 30, 2009)

The blog post from Oonapup's trainer is similar to observations the late Ray Coppinger made about village dogs he observed. 

I think the behavior of street dogs depends quite a bit on the pressures of the area where they come from. One of my friends spent some time working as a dog catcher in a rural area with a lot of free roaming dogs. In some communities a bounty was placed on loose dogs to keep the numbers down. After a year or two of culls the remaining dogs would be very very timid around people. In other communities the loose dogs were left in peace unless there was som kind of problem. The dogs from these communities tended to be fairly easy going, well socialized around other dogs, and friendly towards people.

My area gets a lot of Caribbean rescue dogs. In my experience they tend to be very skittish and reactive dogs. I assume part of the reason is that they have been traumatized while being captured and transported through the rescue system. However, I think the skittishness also has a genetic factor. Ownerless dogs need to fend for themselves and watch out for humans who may not have kind intentions. When the dogs do have a home, one of their duties is to act as part of the household alarm system. One of my friends, who lived in the Caribbean for several years, fondly remembers his neighbor's dogs alerting everyone when a stranger came up the path. What we would consider nuisance barking was considered a helpful community service in that area.


----------



## Footprints&pawmarks (Mar 8, 2021)

Many rescue dogs who have been through a lot -- being housed in noisy, stressful environments, being moved around a lot, being handed off from person to person, less-than-ideal interactions with people and other dogs -- get depressed. This can make them seem unnaturally calm. As the depression lifts, they act more like dogs again. I always think it's a good sign when a rescue dog does something doggish like stealing or chewing up something, pulling on leash, sniffing everything, barking -- you know, all that normal dog behavior that we don't like. Sometimes saintliness is a sign that the cloud of depression hasn't lifted yet.


----------



## WinnieThePoodle (Sep 1, 2020)

Footprints&pawmarks said:


> Many rescue dogs who have been through a lot -- being housed in noisy, stressful environments, being moved around a lot, being handed off from person to person, less-than-ideal interactions with people and other dogs -- get depressed. This can make them seem unnaturally calm. As the depression lifts, they act more like dogs again. I always think it's a good sign when a rescue dog does something doggish like stealing or chewing up something, pulling on leash, sniffing everything, barking -- you know, all that normal dog behavior that we don't like. Sometimes saintliness is a sign that the cloud of depression hasn't lifted yet.


I thought it was very strange that she didn't do doggy things and what you say makes sense. I have been watching her for changes and yesterday for the first time she rolled on her back on the grass. We were so happy to see her do this. Also for the first time we saw a little bit of a tail wag when she saw us approaching. I wonder if Winnie can sense if she is depressed.


----------



## fjm (Jun 4, 2010)

I too hope she will soon have the confidence to be just a bit naughty. The first play bow can be very special, too! Do keep us posted as to how she does.

And I agree that there are huge differences in the backgrounds of different street dogs. I sometimes wonder whether the effort put into recapturing overseas rescue dogs that have escaped - Romanian ones in particular - is entirely in the dogs best interests. For many of them being on the run in the UK must feel like heaven: as long as they are not a risk to livestock no one is trying to kill them, these is plenty of food, and they are street savvy enough to be reasonably safe from traffic. We humans want them in a loving home, but they want as little contact with humans as possible...


----------



## WinnieThePoodle (Sep 1, 2020)

fjm said:


> I too hope she will soon have the confidence to be just a bit naughty. The first play bow can be very special, too! Do keep us posted as to how she does.
> 
> And I agree that there are huge differences in the backgrounds of different street dogs. I sometimes wonder whether the effort put into recapturing overseas rescue dogs that have escaped - Romanian ones in particular - is entirely in the dogs best interests. For many of them being on the run in the UK must feel like heaven: as long as they are not a risk to livestock no one is trying to kill them, these is plenty of food, and they are street savvy enough to be reasonably safe from traffic. We humans want them in a loving home, but they want as little contact with humans as possible...


Yes I will update as she gets to know us and her surroundings better.


----------



## Mufar42 (Jan 1, 2017)

Having a recent rescue myself I think she is still settling in. My guy is only around 5-6 months. Very calm demeanor but I can see poodle beginning to come out. LOL He greats everyone calmly but the other day he started to try to run and go a bit poodle puppy. It was kinda good to see but I got him to calm down and meet my neighbor. Only took a few seconds but it also puts us on the path I want to be with him. He is also meeting children, which I was unable to do with my older poodle. He loved one and backed away from he other until I realized he was afraid of her swinging lunch box and backpack, she put them both down on the ground and he was fine. He has is just hitting the 3 week mark. He has also been very good to just run into the yard and potty, then back inside. Now he is exploring more and getting zoomies.


----------



## lily cd re (Jul 23, 2012)

As pointed out above by others this dog is not showing her true colors yet. In my training work with rehomed dogs and for some family members with rehome dogs true colors took weeks to months to show. Especially for a dog that has been rehomed more than once or has spent time in a shelter and/or foster home the dog tends to try very hard to be quiet, well behaved and very often totally inconspicuous every time they go someplace new. They are smart enough to realize that what gets them tossed out the door will get them tossed out the door every time the place/people they are with decides too crazy for us and sends them on their way (or at least that is what they percieve). They will work very hard at being very decent and sweet until they feel safe enough to show their true colors. I've seen some rehomed dogs display some pretty wowzer behaviors once they feel safe in the new home. I hope the dog the OP is referring to is as nice as they sound but won't be surprised if down the road there is some work to be done.


----------

