[jojogal001]

So I'm talking about Stella. I got her February 13, 2019. So it's been almost 15 months. She was a wreck when I got her! She had been given no routines, boundaries, etc, and I am not sure she had ever been told no. I was so patient with her the first 3 days as she played, and barked at me to play with her, for 14 hours a day. On the fourth day I decided it was going to stop. So that day I initiated a break in her play. She fought it and tested and tested me not wanting to give in, and I thought it would never stop. So in lieu of going back into all of that again, by the end of the first 4 weeks, she was a different dog. Not only was taking breaks, but was taking them on her own.

So in talking to a friend yesterday, we realized that some"thing" or whatever had given me the patience to deal with her as I am not at all a patient person. It is very strange how I would lose patience with little things, get it corrected, then lose a little more in another area, and get that corrected. It took a year, bujt there is just nothing left to change. I can't think of a single thing.

I'm really curious to know, especially from those of you who adopted or rescued adult/older dogs, and the types of issues you faced with them. If anybody doesn't know about Stella, I'm happy to go into more detail for you. But most adult and older dogs come to their new owners with issues/baggage. How do you find the patience for it until behaviors can be changed and the true personality brought out? I just don't know how I did it for a year but I would definitely do it again. She is an amazing dog now..... like none I've ever had.

 

[Dechi]

How do you find the patience for it until behaviors can be changed and the true personality brought out?

You did an amazing job with Stella !

To answer your question, I’ve had lots of adult dogs and lots of puppies, and no matter how many issues the adult has, I find it’s almost always easier to deal with than raising a puppy from scratch. Puppies take so much time to mature, and you’ll have work to do until they are 18-24 months old, sometimes more.

Whereas an adult will often be very good after 6-12 months. I like adult dogs a lot. Puppies too, but it’s a totally different ball game...

 

[jojogal001]

Thank you Dechi. Honestly, almost everything I did was through pure instinct and not experience or knowledge. I’ve just never faced the problems I did with her. I got some good ideas from lots of folks here, and a link to an ad from a friend for an ultrasonic unit (pretty much don’t use it anymore), but for the most part I was kind of flailing lol.

 

[Michigan Gal]

I have fostered several dogs. I've had a couple from puppy mills, lived in a cage their whole life. I have had a couple that simply were not wanted. One was never completely housebroken, the others all learned. Some males marked my furniture. Two had owner possession (not adoptable), and so on. You just take what is handed to you and try to figured it out.

I think you were able to be patient with Stella because you had a plan. You knew she expected total attention and had a problem settling down, so you initiated a behavior of your own to counterbalance. Good job!

 

[PeggyTheParti]

It sounds like Stella has a beautiful temperament and you helped it blossom. I'm so happy you found each other.