Picking Your Pup: What We Wish We Knew When Choosing a Rescue

Sunny at our wedding.

It's been almost three months since we walked out of the Yakima Humane Society with a big-eared, severely-underweight border collie, Australian shepherd, blue heeler (plus who know what else?) mix. They had picked him up as a stray, so we knew nothing of his backstory. All we knew was that he loved being pet, loved being outside, and loved giving us his you-know-you're-taking-me-home look. We were smitten.

The first time we ever saw him.

Our adoption day photo.

Then, he got home.

Surprise 1: We thought our fence was high enough, but as soon as a loud truck went by, Sunny was gone. He had hurdled the fence and was sprinting down the street after it. We had a car-chaser who was deathly afraid of cars.

His fear of cars extends to our own car.

Surprise 2: He managed to escape from the yard (again) one morning a few days later and immediately attacked the neighbor's cat. Fortunately, the cat was fine, but we learned that his prey drive was incredibly high.

Surprise 3: We got a kennel to put him in. After it was all set up, I decided to put him in there as a test while I mowed the lawn. He went in with no problem, but all of a sudden he was standing next to the lawn mower, somehow having managed to escape a six-foot chain-link kennel. We had a crafty escape artist.

One of his more impressive escapes.

Surprise 4: We have some good friends with a couple dogs that we hike with a lot, so we figured that it would be good to have them meet. Sunny immediately attacked one of them as soon as it made a sudden move. We had a highly reactive dog (which we have since learned is very different than an aggressive dog).

With that, we learned we had a car-chasing, prey-obsessed, Houdini-like, dog-reactive monster. This was starting to feel like a nightmare. 

To be clear, we still have a dog with a fear of cars, a strong prey drive, a knack for escaping when left unmonitored too long, and a fear-reactive socialized behavior with other dogs. He's not perfect, but he's getting better.

He's even taken up our love of hiking.

However, there was a moment where everything seemed hopeless. There were definitely moments of tears and frustration where I figured we would have to bring him back, and once they learned that he attacked other dogs, we were afraid they would only have one choice. So we committed to working with him. Our lives have completely changed, and it has absolutely been an insane amount of work. Yet we know we have even more work ahead of us.

We went into this blind. We had no idea what we were doing in choosing a dog, and as a result, we have a lot more work than we expected.

So, I wanted some answers to what we could have done differently. How do you choose a rescue pup that will work for you? Every dog has its challenges, but how do you check to see what those challenges will be while you're at the shelter?

Here is some of what we've learned:

1. Learn to read dog behavior signals and body language.

Dogs give clear signals when they are stressed, aroused, fearful, etc. Learn to read those signals PRIOR to going to the shelter. They can help you identify problem spots with dogs. While not incredibly comprehensive, this link is a good primer to dog body language.

2. Identify dog breeds that will fit well with your lifestyle.

If you live in an apartment and like to spend a lot of time lounging and relaxing, know what dogs enjoy doing that. If you want a dog that enjoys being outside, research breeds best for that. The sad reality is that a lot of dogs end up at shelters for doing what they were bred to do. Is your German shepherd barking? Well, that what they were for. Is your terrier digging? Is your cattle dog too hyperactive?

Knowing the breed's tendencies is important because dogs will rarely show their actual personality in a shelter. They are out of their comfort zone, fearful, and unsure how to act. Once they get home and feel comfortable is when the breed tendencies start to show up.

Need a place to start? Try this list or this dog quiz as a starting point.

3. Take them on a walk and watch them closely.

Hopefully the shelter will let you take them out for a walk. This is incredibly important because it gives you a chance to expose them to common fears and see how they respond. Obviously, do this with caution. Do not walk up to every dog and push them together. Start at a distance and pay close attention to body language. Most dogs will exhibit a small amount of fear (because shelters are hard on dogs), but it should be a very small amount.

Here are a few common fears to expose them to: 

• Other dogs: Sit at a distance from a walkway or park where there are other dogs. Do not let the dog approach other dogs, but watch how they react when they can see another dog. When the dog moves away or out of sight, the dog should settle down. If it doesn't at all, you might have a reactive dog. Make sure to expose the dog to multiple types of dogs, as it may have had a bad experience with a specific type of dog (large, small, color, etc.).
• Males (especially in hats): Sadly, many dogs in shelters have had negative experiences with males. If you can, try to have the dog near a male in a hat prior to making a choice. If the dog cowers, barks excessively, lunges more than usual, etc., know that you may have some behavioral modification to do if you choose that dog. 
• Cars: Try to walk the dog near a road. Again, start at a pretty sizable distance from the road, gradually decreasing the distance, if the dog seems comfortable enough. Pay close attention to how the dog reacts to large trucks or loud cars. 
• Loud noises: This one can be tricky. I've heard people say that you should bring a pot or pan into the shelter and drop it to see how the dog reacts. You don't have to do that. If needed, clap your hands loudly or kick an empty food bowl. If the dogs jumps or reacts but then settles back down fairly quickly, that's a good sign. If they continue to be fearful, hide, or be obsessed with the object, it's a...less good sign. 
• Squirrels, rabbits, cats, etc. Hopefully you can take them somewhere with small prey. Obviously, every dog is going to be interested in a small animal, but if the dog pulls and pulls, paces back and forth, pants excessively, and will not pay attention to you at all for a while after the animal is gone, know that you have a dog with a strong prey drive on your hands and will need to be careful around cats and small dogs. 

Final Thoughts:

Obviously, no dog is perfect. Don't expect the dog to walk next to you on a leash without pulling, sit on command, or greet every dog and person perfectly. Don't expect that. 

The other thing I want to emphasize is that finding a problem in a dog during this process isn't the end of the world. It's just a sign of how much work you will need to put in with a dog. Take it from us. We have a dog with every single issue listed above, and we absolutely love him. The problems are tough to handle, but watching the little bits of growth we're already seeing make it completely worth it.

We think he's starting to like us...