Commitment to Foster Dogs

Commitment to Foster Dogs
It’s up to us to create success.  It’s up to us to manage safety for everyone involved.  It's up to use to train them.  It's up to us to help them recover and find a home of their own.  

Bottom Line -  It's up to us.

 

Unsupervised and without knowing both dogs well - this could have been very dangerous.

fos·ter   [faw-ster, fos-ter] 

verb (used with object) 

1. to promote the growth or development of; further; encourage: to foster new ideas. 

2. to bring up, raise, or rear, as a foster child.

3. to care for or cherish.

4. British . to place (a child) in a foster home.

5. Obsolete . to feed or nourish.

Replace Child with Dog – and we’re talking about Foster Dogs.

This topic has been on my mind for quite some time now.   The more involved I get in rescue the more I see of this issue and wonder how it’s possible that someone who wants to help an animal winds up being part of the problem.

Rescue dogs are not perfect.  There.  I said it.  Again.    If they were perfect whoever “owned” them first wouldn’t have dumped them at the shelter, left the alongside the road, or asked for them to be rehomed.   I used the word “owned’ intentionally.   Because whoever owned them did not promote growth and development or encourage these babies in any way!  

You’ll notice that it’s obsolete to say fostering is about food and nourishment – though in some foster dog’s lives, even food was not always provided. Owners of dogs do not really care for them at all, the dogs are property and sometimes treated with less value than their sofa.

Rescue groups are trying desperately to save lives.  And yet the problem grows – but that’s a discussion for another day.  

Rescuers are volunteers.   I can’t say I know of a single one that makes a living, or even a dime for that matter as a rescuer.  They have full time jobs and manage the rescue in their personal time.   Often at their own expense – financial and personal.

Rescue programs simply do not work without foster homes.  Getting a new foster to sign-up means another dog is saved!  Plain and simple fostering saves a life the very minute someone is approved to foster.  

That is until the foster gives up on the dog.  I've seen fosters threaten to put the dog on the side of the road at I485 or take him back to the shelter.    I've seen them demand the dog go within the hour.

Yes, it happens daily.   And when it does, the rescuers who are trying to save lives, are now trying find a spot for a dog who already is in a home.    They scramble to find a new place to send the dog for safe keeping.  These rejections of foster dog create a frenzy for everyone involved and other fosters and rescue directors are spending time that could be spend on new dogs and fundraising programs or their own personal lives “re-saving” the reject.

Remember we said rescue dogs are not perfect.  I don’t know what people expect when they agree to foster or when they adopt directly from the shelter.   Even though a temperament test can be done at the shelter – you have no idea really who that dog is when he’s pulled.      An “owner” is going to lie more often than not about their dog’s behavior when they need to rehome them – after all they want someone else to take him.  

Transitions are hard on dogs!  Some happy go lucky personalities just go with the flow.  But a dog who has not had proper socialization ever in his life, who was abused, neglected, has become fearful, shy, or even potentially aggressive may take a while to warm-up, to settle down, or to become his true self.

As a foster – your goal is to set the dog up for success.   It’s not about just food and shelter.  They may know nothing about living in a home.  It’s up to you to teach them.    Moving the problem to a new foster may not be the answer.  

 Dogs go through at least 3 transition periods – 3 days, 3 weeks and 3 months.   A lot happens in that time and the foster home is instrumental in managing those transition periods and helping the dog through them. 

From a trainer’s point here are a few things I have observations in the scenarios when things go south (this is not intended to be all inclusive)

1.      Precautions were not taken.

2.      Things move way too fast

3.      Pack Introductions were not done properly

4.      Rescue / Trainer Instructions not followed

5.      Foster  doesn't spend the necessary time crate training, house training, basic skills or working on behavioral issues.

Folks, I cannot tell you how important is to slow things down when you first bring home a dog.  Use the crate, more than you think is reasonable. Take time to crate train if necessary.   Take time to house-train if needed.  Take time to build a relationship between you and the dog before you introduce him to others.  Don’t open the front door and give him free reign of the house.  

When a new dog arrives at my house – it is about a week before they are integrated into my pack, have visitors or go for outings.    For some fosters, it might be several weeks.   The first days he’s crated the majority of the time – coming out only to potty and take a walk.   After a few days he’s allow some play time in the yard alone with me – no other dogs or kids.   When I do move to pack intro initial meetings with other dogs are brief – very brief.  Controlled.  On-leash and outside.  When I do give him some time in the house – my dogs are in a different space.      Some dogs progress faster than others – but it’s all about knowing you can read that dog, control your own dogs, and manage the situation - -you simply cannot do that in the first few days in most cases when a dog doesn’t have skills, doesn’t understand your language, and may not trust you.

Supervise!   Don’t give him opportunities to pee in the house and create frustration for you.  Don't give him an opportunity to eat your shoes or sofa.   Eyes on him.

Supervise!   If children are in your home or visiting, it is not negotiable that you supervise with eyes on the dog at all times that child is present.   Crate the dog as needed. 

Supervise!   After you have done proper pack introductions – supervise them together in the house for days!   Watch out for resource guarding over toys, food, beds, etc.  Watch out for play that escalates too far or a dog that doesn't heed warnings or doesn't want to play.  Especially with different size dogs and different age dogs.

Supervise!   Interact them with 1:1 to train, socialize and otherwise address any issues they may be having.   We have to teach them the things they don't know.  Being frustrated because they don't already know them does no one any good!

If you cannot supervise – that foster dog needs to be in his crate!  Period. 

As they settle into your house and family – issues may arise that they have previously not demonstrated.  Your own dogs may respond differently.    If you are not certain how to resolve the issues you’re experiencing - -please ask someone for help. 

Your rescue director will do everything possible to give you the support you need.   Inexperience, inaccurate or incomplete assessments  and assumptions may lead you down a path that makes things worse.   Most things don’t get better own their own without training from us.  It’s not always difficult – when you have the right information.  Be open to following instructions and be patient.   Behavior don’t change overnight and they do require us to change sometimes and to be consistent.  Be open to learning something different – especially if what you’re trying isn’t working.   Sometimes what worked for 1 dog won’t work for the next.     Be willing to invest some time and effort, maybe even a bit of money for toys, training tools, a crate, etc – if that’s what will make things better for everyone.

Please know that most problems will NOT get better on their own.  But that with proper guidance, proper response from you as the handler, they can often be resolved quickly and easily if addressed early and are not allowed to escalation or become rehearsed behaviors.

Before you agree to foster – consider what you are truly willing to do and truly capable of.  If your foster dog has issues – what are you prepared to do?  If it were your own personal dog – what would you do? Would you abandon your own dog and kick him out of the house?   Above all – don’t fail the dog again.   Don’t be part of the cycle that finds them shuffled to yet another home.   It confuses them.  It frustrates them.  It creates setbacks.   It may make problems worse, especially for dogs with fear, abandonment, or anxiety issues.  

Severe behavioral issues will be addressed through training, medical treatment, or other means the rescue director can advise you on.     The rescue will support you to provide support to that dog.  With a little direction and willingness to implement it – even if it’s somewhat inconvenient – you can create a resolution and see that dog transform right before you in a short time.

What doesn’t work for anyone is demanding the dog be kicked out of the home again that night.   When that occurs – it’s not fostering – it’s perpetuation of the problem.   Tire him out with physical exercise and mental stimulation (training, food puzzles, games, etc).   Crate the dog apart from other dogs or family members he may take issue with.   Take a training class with the dog – ask your rescue director about it. 

Discuss your expectations and non-negotiable issues with the coordinator before you become a foster or before the dog is pulled.   No one expects you to keep a dangerous dog or to put family members at risk when severe issues are present.   If as a foster it’s not a good match for your experience, your kids, or your cat – there isn’t a rescue coordinator out there who will insist that dog stays with you.   Know that a few days of crating may be necessary to give the rescue group a chance to respond to the request.  In an all foster program – there is often nowhere to move the dog immediately.   Each foster vacancy is typically filled with the next pull from the shelter.  Everyone should want what is best for the dog.    

Be willing to promote the growth or development of; further; encourage: to foster new ideas

I hope every day that more fosters (and adopters) are found.   I also know it is work.  It can be tiring.  It could be expensive.   It could be risky.    It’s up to us to create success.  It’s up to us to manage safety for everyone involved.

See article on Pack Introductions

Someone told me today about a potentially off-color joke from Chris Rock.   It’s said that he speaks about the tiger incident with Siegfried and Roy  -- “The Tiger went Tiger” – why is everyone surprised by this.

The Dog is a Dog.   And you have to teach him to live in our world.  

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The K9 Coach
980-339-8064
www.thek9-coach.com
info@thek9-coach.com

Notes from a Postivie Trainer's Conference

I just returned from a Dog Trainer’s Conference. I won’t name names, but it shouldn’t be too difficult to figure it out, if you really want to know. I must tell you that I had some pretty significant concerns and I want to share them with you. There are some things you as a pet owner, seeking a trainer should understand.

Within the organization there is a sub-group typically called “All Positive” or “Purely Positive”. As I listened to what was being said, as well as what was not being said, there was a pretty clear message: never correct a dog and avoid aggressive dogs.

I went to this conference specially to learn how to work an aggressive dog using all-positive methods and clicks and treats. Seriously, I wanted to figure this out. In forums online where I have expressed questions about being stuck, I was railed upon and told either a) I was moving too fast, b) the dog didn’t understand or c) I was stupid (well, they didn’t quite say that but sure inferred it )

There was a distinct absence of session related to aggression and reactivity. I found this most curious, since this seems to be one of the primary calls I get daily. I started listening a bit more carefully and asking a few very careful questions.

Some of these folks typically run from aggression & reactivity and in some cases don’t experience it at all. Many of these folks are breeders, service dog trainers, competition trainers or show-dog trainers. The select their puppies very carefully and then put them in to training programs with the end in mind. When they do encounter aggression, they would often rather euthanize a dog than to try a method that even approximates a correction or +P / Positive Punishment.

That’s right – some of them will counsel you to get rid of your dog or even to put your dog down before they would ever consider a prong collar or an ecollar. Some of them won’t even consider a martingale! And some, won’t even consider any sort of verbal “no”, or touch at all.

I even had one trainer tell me it would be such a waste of time to spend on an aggressive dog since there are so many others that could be trained during that time, and shelters are full of non-aggressive dogs. You must be kidding me – right? Well at least she got the shelter part right. But what if it’s your dog showing signs of aggression? You're scared, heartbroken, and typically overwhelmed by what to do next.    Are you ready to put him down before you would consider trying training method that is a bit more correction-based that treat-based? Remember, I attribute my own Great Dane’s life to an ecollar.

Do I use prongs and ecollars on every dog I train? Absolutely not. Not even almost. In fact, I don’t even use it on Vinnie anymore. We’re past that now. In the year and ½ since I opened my own business, only 4 dogs have gone to ecollar and that was at their owner’s request.

This whole thing makes me sad. I look back at a number of dogs I have known over the 13+ years I have been doing rescue and I think how many of them would not be here if we hadn’t used some form of correction when treats and other rewards were failing. Vinnie would not be here today if some of these trainers had been his evaluator.

So, as I sat there truly troubled, and really trying to understand the founder made some interesting points in his lecture and closing remarks.

• A dog is not trained unless and until s/he can perform the requested skill at distance, without food, without a training tool, and under distraction. (That’s always been my goal for training dogs)

• You cannot train a dog with only positive methods. There must be a consequence (punishment). Consequences should not be those that inflict pain and fear. (I agree – and know for fact that used properly or certain dogs with certain temperaments, prong collars and even ecollars meet this criteria)

• How can trainers call themselves “All Positive” when in fact they speak with hate, anger, hostility and overall negativity to anyone who has an opinion different than their own? It is hypocrisy to claim to be all positive and yet not be able to educate and communicate with their human peers and clients. (My favorite remark)

Now mind you – he is probably never going to support an ecollar on any dog. And of course we agree that no dog should be hit, intimidated, screamed at, or otherwise harmed. But he is saying something very important and controversial in his own organization. All-Positive doesn’t always work and may have been taken too far towards treats and clicks only.   He's open to the fact that a type of correction may be needed. (Gasp!)

While there are many common solutions and scientific studies supporting behavior – each dog is unique. Training is not black and white. For every average there is an extreme. No method is 100% for every dog, handler, or scenario. We must figure out what is going to work for the dog and the owner.

A good trainer is open-minded and well versed in all methods and can apply the best of all things to solve the problem with your dog.

Certainly we need to exhaust all options before we start talking euthanasia, IMHO.

So with that in mind – Happy Gotcha Day Vinnie 10/30/2010

The K9 Coach
http://www.thek9-coach.com
980-339-8064