[zettaiunmei]

Hello all, I have just adopted a 3-year-old brown and white basset hound. Well, technically I have her on a "trial" for a week. I have wanted a dog since I was a small child so I was very excited to finally get a dog. I didn't really have a breed preference, just wanted a dog that could be quiet and somewhat calm/lazy since I live in an apartment.

The name she came with is "Stimpy" which I really don't care for but I haven't decided on a new name for her yet either because I am having some worries. She is a very sweet dog but she has been very clingy and whiny since I got her yesterday. It is very disconcerting to have a dog following me and whining because I feel like I am doing something wrong/not noticing something. The only time she seems to be calm is when she is sleeping on the couch (with me) or sleeping in my room. She slept on my bed last night, but I don't think I want that to continue since she just takes up too much space (I toss and turn, so I felt cramped). Any tips on to how to get her off the bed and help her stay off? I tried to take her off repeatedly last night, but finally just gave up because I was so exhausted from the day's events.

Also, I have taken her on several walks since I got her yesterday and she has not peed once. I am starting to get concerned. She did poop, but unfortunately it was on the floor while I was away. (Luckily the kitchen floor though).

Lastly, she doesn't ever seem to bark except for when I leave the apartment. This is obviously a huge problem for me. By the time I get back though she isn't barking anymore, so I hope this is a good sign?

I have been feeling very guilty and stressed out because I have been having second thoughts about how compatible we are. Is this normal for new dog owners? I am definitely going to giver her until my trial is up but I am just looking for some reassurance.

Any tips for a new dog owner or reassuring words are appreciated! Thank you!

 

[bubbad]

Realize nothing comes easy with a rescue.Do you know what her past was? She is very insecure right now ,you are her sole companion,and she doesn't understand what to expect from you at this time. She may follow and whine the whole time you have her simply because it may take more time than that for her to settle in. You need to treat her as a new puppy where her bathroom habits are concerned. Take her out after she eats and about every 20 min. there after,and before bed time. Keep her confined to a certain area of the house when you go away or get a crate. Put a dog bed in your room ,if you want her to sleep there teach her that is where she goes when it is bedtime.The trick to keep her off the bed is not allowing her on it to begin with. Repitition in training ,persistance,and concistance, will work. Explain to your neighbors that you are doing this and tell them there may be times she barks ask them to alert you to it so you can take steps to deal with it,also explaine these things take time and you don't want to make it unpleasent for anyone but you would appreciate their patience.We'll try to help you but the work falls on you.Good Luck

 

[zettaiunmei]

Thank you for your reply bubbad, I know a bit of her history. I know that she was surrendered due to a divorce (I guess neither of them wanted her) and lived with another larger dog and 5 cats. She has also been around kids of various ages, so she is friendly to pretty much anything, which is a huge plus for me. I am pretty sure her previous owners had had her since she was a puppy though, so I am sure she is very stressed out, and I know she is, I am just worried about everything, being a newbie at this. She also apparently likes to chew, though she has not displayed this yet to me.

I need to take her outside every 20 minutes? Wow, that is a lot. I can do that for a few days but I have to go back to work on Monday.

I try to keep her confined to my kitchen when I leave. Since I am living in an apartment there is no door to the kitchen so those standard length pet/child gates don't work, but even if they did I can't be screwing things into a wall anyway. So, I got her one of those exercise pens to confine her to the kitchen. It worked pretty well yesterday, but today after I got back from an errand she had escaped from it. So I guess I need to figure out how I can affix it to the surrounding area (there's a pantry and a cabinet on each side).

And now that I have checked the kitchen I see that she has finally peed....All over her bed. She has only gone to the bathroom while I have been gone so far. So...I am not sure what I am doing wrong. When I take her outside do I just stand there and wait? Do I walk around? I have done both but she just doesn't seem interested in doing anything except sniffing.

 

[vonny01]

I am not going to sound very helpful but I do not think that one week is long enough to see if you and the dog are suited.
When I have adopted mine from Rescues it takes at least a month until they start to feel settled and start showing their personality.
I would guess that your girl is feeling very stressed and confused at the moment and needs time to settle and chill in her new surroundings.

You say that you are going back to work next week,does this mean that the dog will be left on her own all day?


Re the house training you do need to take her out frequently and if she goes give her lots of praise and maybe a treat.
Try and teach her a cue word to go,like hurry up and be a good girl or something similar.

I guess that in an apartment you do not have a garden to use,so try and find some grass that another dog might have peed on then she might be encouraged to mark on it.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

I agree with bubbad about the crate. It might seem cruel but in the long run it will preserve your sanity and keep the dog safe. It might also help with potty training. Dogs don't mess where they sleep and she would (hopefully!) learn to hold it until she got to an acceptable place, such as outside. Me personally, I don't let the dogs sleep with me except in very rare instances such as my husband is working nights. It works for us and they both like their crates.

As for the potty training, try and put her on a schedule and do your utmost to stick to it. This will help you figure out how long after she eats that she needs to go outside. You need to watch her very very closely for a while after starting to potty train her. Her hints that she has to go could be very subtle. If you catch her in the act, clap your hands, say "Ah!" really loud, whatever you have to do to startle her and interrupt her potty. Don't punish her, just put her leash on and take her outside. It would probably be handy to keep some small treats by the door so when she does her business outside you can treat her for doing it in the right place.

As for her chewing. I hope you don't have the lovely experience of coming home and finding all your cabinets chewed or you sofa cushions torn apart. We rent too and we know we'd get into huge trouble if our dogs chewed on the cabinets or the baseboard. We give them a bunch of things they can chew on and it keeps them from finding things to chew on. When they were puppies (Virga still is but she learned quick) and they'd chew on something we didn't want them to we would just say "Ah!" and put one of their toys in their mouths and praised them for chewing on the acceptable thing.

All in all, be consistent and patient and you'll be fine. Just remember Basset Hounds aren't stupid. They're just stubborn. You just have to be more stubborn! Good luck!

 

[LY909]

Hi! I adopted my Porter last summer and I had similiar experiences. It took Porter almost 2 months to settle down and get used to my schedule. Your new puppy might just need sometime to get used to you and the new place. Porter used to follow me from room to room because he was worried to get left behind and he had severe separation anxiety everytime I leave, but it got a lot better as he realized that I'll always come back. I live in an apartment also, all the noise from the separation anxiety was bugging some of my neighbors. I knocked on everyone's door and apologized and told them I am working on it and they were very understanding.

 

[Soundtrack]

And now that I have checked the kitchen I see that she has finally peed....All over her bed. She has only gone to the bathroom while I have been gone so far. So...I am not sure what I am doing wrong. When I take her outside do I just stand there and wait? Do I walk around? I have done both but she just doesn't seem interested in doing anything except sniffing.

I am going to do some wild speculating here. I'm going to guess that she was not properly housebroken to begin with, and that due to punishment she is afraid to relieve herself with you watching (dogs quickly learn that if they pee in front of people they get punished, but if they do it out of sight they are "safe" - since they don't associate delayed punishment with the action). You may need to keep her in your sight at all times until she finally HAS to go - taking her for a good walk may help as exercise stimulates the need to excrete. Be prepared to lavishly reward and praise as soon as she does her business outside. If you can't watch her she should be in her crate, but try to minimize that as she may simply pee in the crate rather than pee in front of you.

 

[mhvonalmen8908]

I am going to do some wild speculating here. I'm going to guess that she was not properly housebroken to begin with, and that due to punishment she is afraid to relieve herself with you watching (dogs quickly learn that if they pee in front of people they get punished, but if they do it out of sight they are "safe" - since they don't associate delayed punishment with the action)

I've never thought of that! That's so sad. But it also makes sense. I think you're on to something with this Soundtrack. We startle Virga (when we can catch her) and my husband is sometimes worried about scarring her and it making her hide when she potties in the house. But she's fine. We've had to go back to basics with her and she'll gladly pee as many times as I want as long as I have treats!

 

[roscolaylamommy]

Bassets tend to be very pack oriented animals. Part of her following you from room to room may be the need to just be with you. I'm sure a lot of it is also this is a very new place to her and you're her safety. Like the others have said just give her time to settle in.

One thing to try when you leave is giving her something with your scent on it. Wear an old T-shirt (something that would be ok if it got chewed up) for a couple night running and then leave it in her area or crate when you leave. This might help relieve some of the anxiety she's feeling when you're not there.

Any time you bring a dog into a new situation, you have to expect there may be some challenges with potty training. When we adopted Layla she was almost 2 years old and for the first month or so we had her, we had accidents. Part of it was her adjusting to our routine and part of it was us being able to tell her signs that she needed to go out. For about the first year we had her, we would have occasional accidents when we would go to visit a new place (like my parents house at Christmas). That has seems to resolve itself.

If you are going to be working all day and leaving her at home, you may want to consider hiring a dog walker or pet sitter to come visit her part way through the day. But for the first few months you have her I would also recommend crate training with her. It not only give her a "place" of her own but it can also help with potty training. When we first had Rosco, I didn't let him sleep on the bed. Instead I put his crate in my room, where he could see me. That got him used to sleeping off the bed and also help with the potty training routine because I could hear him moving and fussing when he needed to go out.

Bassets are WONDERFUL companion dogs and I would recommend you give her more time. They loyal, lovable, and there's nothing better than basset snuggles. Just keep in mind that you may have the same problems with any rescue dog or puppy no matter what breed you pick.

 

[Soundtrack]

I should add that if you take her for a walk and she DOESN'T go, you will need to be extra vigilant when you get back as she will probably really feel the need and be looking for an opportunity to sneak off and relieve herself.

 

[Mikey T]

I am going to do some wild speculating here. I'm going to guess that she was not properly housebroken to begin with, and that due to punishment she is afraid to relieve herself with you watching (dogs quickly learn that if they pee in front of people they get punished, but if they do it out of sight they are "safe" - since they don't associate delayed punishment with the action

if you have a designated area for her to go you can try the following tip
Potty Training Tip
It allow the dog a bit more comfortable spacing while still allowing you to reward proper behavior in a timely manner.