Quote: steve strom

Hey Simon, its important now not to rush things. It can be easy to think everything is ok when they begin to respond to you but take your time.

I have to re-iterate on this point.

Remember to be patient before trying to move onto something new with this dog.

I would take a few days with doing things just the way you are before trying to do too much "contact" with him right now.

if you rush things with him, it's going to set you back.

Some rescue dogs bounce right into a new home with a "hey look at me im here" kind of attitude, others prefer to slowly ease into things until they are sure of whats going on.

slow and steady always wins this kind of race.

 Quote: wendy lefebvre

 Quote: steve strom

Hey Simon, its important now not to rush things. It can be easy to think everything is ok when they begin to respond to you but take your time.

I have to re-iterate on this point.

Remember to be patient before trying to move onto something new with this dog.

I would take a few days with doing things just the way you are before trying to do too much "contact" with him right now.

if you rush things with him, it's going to set you back.

Some rescue dogs bounce right into a new home with a "hey look at me im here" kind of attitude, others prefer to slowly ease into things until they are sure of whats going on.

slow and steady always wins this kind of race.

Thanks for the reiteration and reminder! I certainly do have the urge to move onto something new when I see progress, so I appreciate your words.

I can only imagine how hard it is not to rush this process.

Glad you're getting such good advice.

Quick update with a question about tethering/crating/leashing:

Louie is starting to get used to his new surroundings slowly, eating regularly (although not much... he is skinny and underweight), and hasn't had any accidents (unless you count the time on a wall in the lobby of apt building.. which is our fault). He still likes hanging out in his crate the majority of the time and that's cool. My wife and I are being patient and not trying to pressure ourselves onto him. At the suggestion of one of the earlier posters, we have been leaving the crate door open when we're in the living room and can supervise him. He's come out on a few occasions and would come to us/follow us around/explore the surroundings.

Here is my question, should we be putting a leash on him immediately after he comes out of the crate? Sometimes he'll come out and go right back in after we put on the leash. Then that leaves us with the decision of whether to let him stay in the crate with the leash on or take it off and then have to put it back on if he decides to come out again. A few times yesterday I didn't put on the leash when he came out of the crate and nothing bad happened, but I keep thinking back to the groundworks dvd and how ed says to keep the leash on at all times outside of the crate. I have ordered a 20 ft cotton long line that's coming in later in the week, so should I just keep that on him when the crate door is open and he would be "leashed" but have more room to wonder around? What are y'all thoughts here?

Do you offer him a small very high value treat everytime you put the leash on?

I am not expert, but I think that if it were me, if the leash caused him to retreat back into his crate I would wait until he was slightly more comfortable before I started putting it on him when he came out.

I would in fact totally ignore him when he ventured out and just keep a watchful corner of my eye on him to make sure there aren't any problems. You can manage his ability to wander out of site with doors, gates and well placed furniture.

Another option is to buy a cheapo cotton clothesline from the dollar store or biglots. Tie it to a clip and put it on him while he is in the crate then leave the door open and go about your business.

They weigh next to nothing, are cheap and can be tied back together if they get chewed.

And have you read about clicker training..with this dog I would go for an actual clicker and go about the loading process from across the room clicking and tossing a nibble of chicken to him.

It is so non confrontational and has such amazing results!

 Quote: Jennifer Lee

And have you read about clicker training..with this dog I would go for an actual clicker and go about the loading process from across the room clicking and tossing a nibble of chicken to him.

It is so non confrontational and has such amazing results!

I have read about marker and clicker training. Also watched the groundwork and basic dog obedience training dvds from LB. Since I'm trying to take things slow, I haven't tried charging the mark or anything like that yet. Are you saying I should reward the dog for coming out of the crate? Marking it when he comes out and tossing him a high value treat?

Well first you have to load the clicker.
To do this with a dog this sensitive to everthing around it I would sit at a comfortable distance for both you and the dog and click then drop toss a treat and repeat over and over again.
You aren't rewarding anything at this point, just making the connection between the weird noise and a yummy treat.

You want to use very small pea/bean size bits of food, and I would go for something smelly like bacon or liverwurst.

Once he looks for a treat when he hears the click you know he has figure that out.

The next step is making the connection in the dogs brain between behavior-click-treat.

Normally I would start this by using luring to get them into a sit.

With this dog I think it is going to be more like free shaping at first. So he comes out of the crate click and toss a treat, he takes a step towards you click and toss a treat.

The trick is to get your timing right and and click at the exact second of whatever action you are marking and then get the treat to them within three seconds.
I practice on people or with a dog who has some experience with the process.

The beauty of it all is that it is so non confrontational, teaches the dog to think and learn, and really builds confidence through such clear communication.

Hi there

I have now had case my rescue Shepherd for 5 weeks. maybe my experiences can be useful

I have learned to be very patient and move step by step with him. One of the major pieces missing for me is wagging tail (which is very infrequent) and displays of affection. However, case now follows me round the house everywhere, particularly to the bathroom!

I used to tether him to the table, but was advised by members here to tether him to my leg. It worked great and he really started to blossom.

We're doing well. The main issue at the start was the handler's lack of patience. The handler, being me.

All the best
Rob

 Quote: Robert Holloway

Hi there

I have now had case my rescue Shepherd for 5 weeks. maybe my experiences can be useful

I have learned to be very patient and move step by step with him. One of the major pieces missing for me is wagging tail (which is very infrequent) and displays of affection. However, case now follows me round the house everywhere, particularly to the bathroom!

I used to tether him to the table, but was advised by members here to tether him to my leg. It worked great and he really started to blossom.

We're doing well. The main issue at the start was the handler's lack of patience. The handler, being me.

All the best
Rob

I can definitely relate to what you're saying. The affection and wagging tail issues are definitely present and on my mind. Hearing what you've gone through encourages/reminds me to be patient with Louie. Thanks for sharing Rob. It is much appreciated.

 Quote: Simon Tai

... The affection and wagging tail issues are definitely present and on my mind.

My most recent rescue has been with me about three years. It took many months for his tail to just stop being tucked under.

It was around the one-year anniversary when his tail turned into a flag.

It took around eighteen months (although there were certainly measurable improvements all along) before he became the non-dog-reactive dog he is today.

I'm not saying this to be discouraging. Rather, the reverse: Don't be at all discouraged about what you see as slow progress.

You know what else? The bond between the owner and the dog who needed and soaked up a ton of encouragement is very strong.