adopting young adult - what to expect?

[Ratvibe]

A little bit of background info, my female GSD passed away in 2010 @ 11yrs & then this past July I had to put down my 10.5yr male GSD due to widespread cancer. I knew losing Zyggi would be hard from the moment I brought him home at 6.5 months & having to make that decision definitely broke my heart. So I wasn't in a rush to find a new dog & wanted to avoid comparing a new dog to him.

Now it's been 6 months & I feel like I need a new dog in my life. I've tried looking at other breeds. I always thought I'd try "something different" since I grew up with a GSD & then had 2 of my own when I moved out. However everytime I come across another dog, it's just not GSD enough for me. lol. I realized I'm measuring them all against the traits of a GSD because that's what I really identify with & want in a dog.

So long story short... I tried to be open minded to other breeds/mixes, but it's just not going to happen. It's gotta be another GSD for me.

Both of my dogs were rescues as older pups (5.5 & 6.5 months). I definitely want to stick with getting another rescue, so I've been keeping my eye open at local shelters. As luck (fate?) would have it there is a young adult male GSD at the small local animal shelter. I'm going in tomorrow (closed today) to meet him & see how we get along, get more background info, etc.

I was just wondering what to expect when bringing home an adult dog? Does the bonding process take awhile? A part of me is worried that I won't connect with him, but then I meet other friends dogs & have no problem being open with them. I plan to spend a lot of time doing obedience training, walks, jogging, etc, with him so I'm sure that will help develop the bond too.

I've never brought home an adult before (he's only about 1 - 1.5 years old though), so there's a little bit of apprehension about the unknown. I've fostered for a shelter a couple of times, but they were puppies that couldn't handle the shelter environment. So this is a first for me...

Any tips or information on what to expect if I end up bringing him home?

Amanda (ready to move on in 2012 & find a new canine companion)

PS. These are a couple of pix of the GSD I'm off to see, maybe adopt, tomorrow afternoon.

[msvette2u]

Wow. He's a beauty!!

Just try to do a "two week shut down" prior to introducing him to a ton of stuff.

If you need help with that, I've got it in a word doc. somewhere. I could probably copy and paste it here.

[Ratvibe]

That would be great! If you want you could email it to me if that's easier? I haven't heard of a 2 week shutdown before so am curious to know more. Thanks!

[brembo]

No worries on bonding, it's what dogs do best.

[msvette2u]

Sent.

Yes they do bond, and can bond quickly but the two weeks is designed to hasten that process and establish firmly in the dog's mind who is the leader in the home.
It's a very good idea especially for a dog coming straight from a shelter where nobody really was a leader and maybe even it never had a good, firm leader in the past.

[Stevenzachsmom]

Adopting an older GSD was the smartest thing I ever did. I don't think I will ever go back to puppies.

Best of luck. (But you really don't need it. LOL!)

[PatternDayTrader]

I adopted my dog Klause and he was just over 2 yrs old. I didnt really know what to expect either, but he picked up basic commands quickly and we had almost no potty training issues, and I dont know how to measure our "bond" but after only about 10days he wouldnt willingly leave my side around the house or yard and wont go more than about 50 ft from my side even at the incredibly high adventure dog park where he is surrounded by complete chaos...

[lorihd@comcast.net]

hey pretty dog!i adopted my sasha (mixed breed) when she was 2. i brought her home and it took about 2 weeks for her to become adjusted. took her to obedience classes and she turned out to be a wonderful dog, i miss her dearly. good luck to you

[katieliz]

wow, that is one beautiful dog! i am curious too about what the shutdown is. i do know there can be a period of adjustment, depending on their prior circumstances, how long they've been in the shelter, and their inherent character and temperment. my well bred, had em from puppyhood shepherds are what i'd call high maintenance. my rescues seem more grateful and less demanding. they all treated as part of the family and all seem equally bonded. even my old guy, who's gone now, who came into my life when he was 7-8, immediately found his place in our home and heart and acted as tho he'd been there all his life. i think you'll know pretty quickly if this is your new boy. great way to start the year, good luck tomorrow!

[Ratvibe]

Thanks for all of the feedback! I went to meet "rocky" (I don't think I'd be keeping that name, no offense to the rocky's out there, lol).

He was picked up as a stray about a month ago. They found his owners, but he was not reclaimed. He's 2 years old & was a yard dog. He was well fed (ie. definitely on the chubby side), but it consisted of a bowl of food being put out in the yard for him. That was as much interaction as the former owners had with him. He was also still intact (of course) when the shelter picked him up, but was neutered 2 weeks ago.

In spite of little direct human interaction he's VERY friendly with people. He was in an outdoor/indoor kennel run when I drove up & never barked upon my approach, even with the other dogs barking. He loves toys & had a big ball in there that he was playing with.

He was very mouthy when they first brought him into the shelter, but that improved with more handling & getting neutered. I didn't experience any of that from him, but he definitely had LOTS of energy. I took him for a long walk & those first 20 feet he was a bit all over the place (and VERY strong, holy smokes, good think I workout, lol!). Once we got going I had him at my side & no pulling, easy corrections if he started to lose focus on "the walk" & wanted to smell the roses. By the time we got back to the shelter I had slack on the line & he was walking very nicely beside me. I found he reacted to corrections very well. He may not know much yet in terms of formal obedience training, but he seems to be a quick learner & happy to do so. He definitely has a very happy go lucky type of demeanor when you meet him.

So I'd label him a PEOPLE dog for sure, at least from my brief time with him & what the shelter manager was able to share with me (it's a small shelter so she handles all the dogs & is a GSD person herself).

Anyway, the not so good... He was reactive to the dog in the run next to him (a small dog, ****zu mix or something like that). He'd do some defensive barking & jumping at the other dog when it was jumping at the end of it's run trying to get human attention. They said he also reacts when meeting dogs outside of the kennel, but listens to correction & then behaves ok. Being that he was a yard dog that part doesn't really surprise me. Definitely needs socialization & learning how to greet other dogs, etc.

I'm going back tomorrow with my parents dog (a very submissive 2 year old female golden retriever who loves other dogs) & see how he reacts to meeting her on neutral territory. If I adopt him then he'd have to meet her eventually, so I thought it'd give me a good idea on his reactions to meeting a new non-threatening dog.

So I have some things to think about tonight & then we'll see how tomorrow goes. He's definitely a "project" with some pros & cons to consider...

One other thing. I'm not sure if it means anything or not, but when I was walking him I noticed that his collar was the exact same that I had for Zyggi. It's not easy to find & I'm always looking in stores to see if they have any (I have a set that has a matching car key chain, collar, & leash). I bought it about 8 years ago, so to see that exact collar on this dog was a "you've got to be kidding me?!?" moment. Is that a sign? I tend to believe in that sort of thing & I always thought that when the right dog came along I would know it. Makes me wonder....

Amanda (and a soon to be 4 legged shedding machine???)