I need a bit of advice from the rescue experts. My local HS (who relies completely on foster homes for housing, but only has 6 or so full time fosters) just had 16 puppy mill dogs and pups dumped on them They are Chihuahuas, Poodles, Japanese Chins and crosses of the mentioned breeds. I have agreed to take 2 of the 6 month old Chin pups (not from the same litter), as they are the least phased by this traumatic event out of all of them and seem to be 2 of about 6 that were unphased by my kids and the large dogs today.
Any advice about small rescue dogs, potty training, isolation and anything else you can think of or links you know offhand would be greatly appreciated. Rescuing a 10 week pug-jack russel cross is the only small dog experience I have and I normally wouldn't take this on if they weren't absolutely exploding with dogs. I may be temporarily insane here, but NEED to help these poor guys out. Thanks everyone!
I'd start at square one and treat them like they were 8 w/o pups when it comes to house training especially, but probably just about eveything.
I'd have regular crate time, take them out on a regular, frequent schedule, rotate having one or the other tethered to you (while the other is crated) so they learn how to interact/learn from a human. Then a couple playtime sessions with each other thoroughout the day.
Too late to ETA: but I have 2 small crates for them to separate, but may go about that slowly, as right now they are crated together. I don't want to cause undue stress, but was thinking of short seperations and crating beside each other if things are going well. (Don't have them yet- waiting for vet checks to be done.)
Now ETA: Thanks Mara! That was kind of what I was thinking. Little dogs are just a foreign thing to me...They feel like another species all together Esp. ones with such a crappy past.
You are right Mara! This is going to be a learning experience for me for sure. I am going to have to resist the urge to turn these boys into furry live purses. I have a tendancy to still carry and hold my Aussie when the mood strikes and he's 40 lbs, not 4! They are DOGS, Amy just littler than normal!
Are there any specific health issues that I should be watching for with Mill dogs, or any behavioral issues that are likely at 5 months? (Vet says they are a little younger than I thought) Any tricks to making transitions easier for pups who have likely lived a very secluded and dirty life so far? (I am sort of anxious about the lack of personal hygene I have seen from Mill dogs even after they have made it into homes.) I am probably way over-thinking this and doing my normal freak-out mode thing- I even have the Golden on alert tonight with my having the zoomies and all
Edited by Amy VandeWeerd (12/29/2011 10:20 PM)
Edit reason: tried to add link to the chins- didn't work.
Your main difficulty may be housebreaking since they've spent their lives in cages doing their business where they eat and sleep. But, as someone said, treat them as if they were 8 weeks old and just expect the housebreaking to take longer. They can be housebroken as long as you remember to treat them the same as you would a larger dog except for the allowance for size if you correct them.
And don't let their size fool you. I have a 5 lb Toy Fox Terrier (currently visiting Texas with her other owner)who not only rules over a 200 lb Mastiff at Grace's house, but who at 6 months of age and about 2 lbs at the time, stole a bird from a cat 3 times her size and had herself a nice luncheon.
From what I have seen with the puppy mill dogs that our rescue has taken socialization can be a big one along with the housebreaking. Just treat them like dogs and don't baby them and you should be fine!! We have a couple of people in our group who normally do the puppy mill dogs so if you have any specific questions once you have them let me know and I can ask the others in the group.
Ok. I think I must be the luckiest foster ever! One of the puppies was adopted immediately when the shelter opened, so I brought home the other 5 mo. male and a 3 yr old female (Chin as well) They are doing great! No accidents except a bit of car sickness from the youngster, very, very good with the kids- Trace (male) spent a majority of his day snuggled in the recliner with all 3 kids. - I know, not very good pack structure there, but I was thinking along the lines of socialization since he showed no signs of stress or avoidance. He did have crate time and didn't make a peep. Terrified of a leash though. I'm thinking he may have found a home with my sister which is really great!
Rea (F.) spent today pretty groggy in the crate after being spayed, but tonight she is a kissy, gentle dog who does much better on a leash than her friend. Taking her to meet family friends who are interested tomorrow (fingers crossed!) Boy, I really hit the foster gold mine with these two!
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Need some advice on puppy mill rescues
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Esp. ones with such a crappy past.
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