I mean that with entire seriousness.
If a home has stuff in it for PEOPLE to do, so that the place is entertaining and nice to be in (? Why else would you want to BE in it?) - then what does the same place require in order to be fun, interesting, entertaining, and above all else SAFE AND COZY to be in? ~If you happen to be a CANINE

So that it is preferred....

What are some ideas please - AND FAST!

I have a brand new house guest, who has had 'People' before, but somehow lost them within I would say - about a year.



Please welcome: "WOOLA"
*after the dog in the first book of the ERB Martian Chronicles

She has an underbite - that is her normal expression
She still lays down on any piece of clothing that I drop on the floor, if it is convenient to where I am, or if I'm outside for some reason.
She falls asleep sometimes with her head across my feet...

This morning I found out she is good in the woods with my other dog Rufuss (who is near 3 times her size). We went rabbit tracking

 

How big of a dog? What breed?

We "rescued" a 7 pound Maltipoo, and all we really had to do was get a set of doggie steps so she could get up on the bed (and buy some toys, of course).

 

About the size of a "BORDER COLLIE".
~Which from what I can see, means that she is every danged breed under the size of the original golden lab - from what I've seen of strays around here!

I reckon out of all of them - somebody somewhere had a danged stubborn Boxer Dog at their farmhouse




Here she is next to my Chuck Taylors, for scale's sake


She's a pretty Li'l Gal now, I guarantee ya!

The closet door behind her? It's 24" wide
~I guess somebody was trying to save money at that point when this place was built

*Come to think of it - she's just about perfect "LET'S GO TRUCKIN' !!!" size...
not too big - not to be took lightly...

As you can see - I have already provided a large bone to keep her busy, but they only last so long. It is also to get her past the "WILD" eating habits she has gained. She will SCARF DOWN anything eatable - because she believes it may be a long time between still...

I've only had her here in a good place for a few days so far. She had in fact become a "WILD DOG", it was only by chance she was caught and calmed down by some youngfolk that live nearby

 

Having another dog is good. They are pack animals. As long as she doesn't have a dominant personality you will be fine. They should view you as the pack leader.

Keep the garbage behind a closed door. Consider keeping her in a crate when you are not home, at least for a little while. It will help her feel safe, and keep her out of trouble. A new toy every so often will give her something to do.

 

Does she have cataracts?

 

Nope - that's camera flash. Bright eyed as new dimes...

She's healthy for all that she ran feral for a time. Poop stank like I never heard of at first - I think she went through a change of metabolism or something. Possibly having food with a balanced vitamin and all that content was a surprise, who knows. She sure got perky after the first day though - and the long term mental clarity of a good diet may also come into play. In a week, she may act completely different.

I base that on my own recovery cycle studies. Three or four days for serous gym work, ten days for a bad thing, up to 3 months for a nasty injury.

A "HOME" dog, thrown back to foraging in the wilds...

It's a miracle she's here at all, I guess I'd have to thank god for other peoples garbage, truth be said. There are enough homes around here to keep a dog barely alive.

*It's worth noting that she was running in a pack with 2 others. NONE of them would go near a human being
She's asleep in the hall right now -

The biggest adjustment is going to be getting her "I GOTTA GO OUT" cycle in tune

That's going to be a matter of timed feedings, I think


I guess that's the center of it:

1) I HAVE A WILD DOG
2) I AM BRINGING IT BACK HOME
3) She has had people before, plain as day

~I bet parts of this are going to be odd, from the git go

 

Dutch...bless you for adopting this little girl. Wooly will learn the house rules soon enough...Rufuss will teach her.

 

A lot of it depends on the dog, itself.

We once had an English Mastiff/Rottweiler mix that was not very house-friendly due to his size - he'd clear off the coffee table with one swipe of his tail... Because of this, he didn't like being indoors - he knew his size was causing issues for us so, he opted to stay outdoors and he liked it better that way. On the opposite-end of the spectrum, our American Staffordshire Bull Terrior was too hyperactive to care either way...

Is Woola more comfortable indoors or out?

 

You don't need to do anything special. The longer the dog stays in your house the more it becomes the dog's house. I've found that they are pretty good about letting you stay on after they have taken over. I wouldn't have it any other way.

 

You have to put almost everything you don't want the dog to chew on up out of her reach (remote controls, medicine, shoes, food/candy, telephones and so on). Close toilet lids, secure wires (so she don't chew on, unplug, or yank things down) , close closet doors, secure the garbage. Might want to get some child proof locks for the cabinet and refrigerator doors.

Our old dog used to rip through the first floor window screens to get out, something to watch for.

A great toy is a old 2 liter pop bottle. She will have fun chasing that around the house.

 

I use a sock with peanuts (no shells) in it, with the top tied, as a training toy in order to stop a dog from chewing things it should not chew.
I take the thing that it should not chew away and use the sock to distract it.
The dog begins to associate the smell of peanuts with things it can play with.
A smear of peanut butter on or inside of a toy also gives them a clue.

 

A crate will take care of that. The crate should be big enough for the dog to be comfortable and allow her to turn around, but that's about it. A dog won't 'go' where they sleep, so she'll wait until she gets out to go potty.

 

She has a bit of a personality. She has decided for one that a bottom shelf in the computer desk next to my chair is HERS - also the space all around my feet.

This at least looks like neutral territory

~You also forget I have an underhanded advantage from the start:
FIVE YEARS of preserved tobasco and Habernero peppers that can be painted on anything I object to being chewed...


Oh you didn't think I'd go that far... This ain't my FIRST dog


So far she safe