Often people wonder if adopted dogs are hard to train. The good news is that an adopted dog is neither harder nor easier to train than any other dog! However, it’s important to recognize that change can be stressful for animals, and your forever friend may experience nervousness as they acclimatize to their new home.  

Here are a few tips that’ll help you and your new dog transition into your new journey together.  

Expect a Period of Adjustment

The stress of being relinquished to a shelter, along with whatever else the dog has experienced in their past, can make them lack confidence in their new surroundings. Give them some time to decompress and explore their new home. In the meantime, you can help them to feel more comfortable by offering them treats, toys, a cozy blanket in their crate, and by safety-proofing your home.  

Get on a Schedule

Dogs like having a routine. As much as we love and care for our animals, a shelter is not a home.  A dog who has spent the last few weeks or more in a shelter may feel stressed because their life has been unpredictable. By establishing a routine for feeding, walking, playtime, and bedtime, you can begin providing some stability for your dog. This will also help you to strengthen the bond between you and your new dog.  

Enroll in Toronto Humane Society’s New Rescue Essentials Training Class

Do not delay in enrolling your newly adopted dog in a training class shortly after they are adopted. Regular training sessions can help get dogs into a routine and help them learn polite behaviour right from the beginning.  

Toronto Humane Society’s New Forever Friend Essentials Training Class focuses on helping your new dog settle into your home and learn essential skills as you strengthen your human-animal bond.   

The class covers strategies to address flight risk, stranger danger, calm and low stress greetings, environment fearfulness, leash reactivity, resource guarding, and alert barking. These classes are small which allows for a lot of one-on-one time with a certified trainer. 

Each class starts with a topic discussion, finishes with hands-on training exercises, and includes extensive handouts for studying on your own time.  

The new class starts on Wednesday, October 19th at 8:00pm. Enroll here today.