Post adoption guide

Published: Bangalore Mirror Bureau | May 26th, 2015

Have you made up your mind to get home a dog? Well, then there is something you need to know about moves – dog’s find moves very stressful. Your home may be the most loving home in the world. But your new dog has no way of knowing that. Moving to a new family is so unnatural for a dog that stress hormones – adrenalin and cortisol will be coursing through your dog’s body. You will need to give it some time to leave your dog’s system. During this period you also need to be aware of what to expect. So let’s do a quick run through of what happens when your dog is stressed.

Stress hormones interfere with digestion. So it’s very common for dogs who have just relocated to have digestive trouble. The dog may vomit, have loosies or constipation. Her appetite may be quite poor. There may be acidity and vomiting of frothy bile. Curd rice is soul food for a stressed dog. 

Curds helps sooth the stomach and the rice is a binder for the stools. Carbs also calm dogs down.

Stress also creates a water imbalance in the body. We often sweat when stressed. Dogs don’t sweat. They pee instead. So a stressed dog will pee often and in unusual places. Don’t get upset if your new dog is peeing in odd places. It’s just stress and it will change. Continue taking the dog for toilet breaks after naps and meals.

Stress increases neo-peptides, which reduces immunity. Such dogs may get allergies and infections frequently. Improve a dog’s nutrition and rest. Health will automatically improve.

Stress increases sexual hormones as well. This applies to spayed and neutered dogs too. This can result in irritable dogs and mounting. Mounting is often mistaken for dominance. But if your dog is mounting with no intent to copulate, then it has something to do with heightened stress hormones.

Under the influence of stress hormones oxygen and blood sugar is redirected to the muscles, leaving little behind for the brain. This results in poor ability to learn. This means that a newly adopted dog should not be put in obedience classes. Such dogs need time to relax and recoup. Relaxed dogs are much better students.

In situations of sustained stress the brain cells can start getting damaged. These cells can regenerate as health improves and stress reduces. However while there is damage sustained the social ability of the brain is the first to suffer. So the dog may be asocial to people or dogs or both, depending on the dog’s history.

Stressed dogs can also be hyper vigilant, hyper active and bark a lot. All of this is part of a move and yes moves are indeed quite a burden on dogs. However the good news is that dogs are masters at coping. Given the right environment they quickly cope.

As eager as most of us are to help our new dog settle in, we need to hold back our urge to give the new dog a cuddle and instead give the dog space. Stressed dogs need nothing more than space. While good food and comfortable beds are important, space and time are the key things that is often easy to forget. A good rule of thumb will be to not approach your dog but to let her approach you. Try not to start rushing off to vets, trainers and socialization sessions. Avoid inviting people to see the dog. Lead a low key life for a while. It’s a lifetime of fun ahead of you. Give your dog a few weeks to get used to a life altering change, because that’s exactly what it is.

Learning under duress

I distinctly remember that day. I was in 2nd grade. The new frock that had been sitting in the closet, that I had coveted for months had been pulled out and I was allowed to wear it to school to celebrate my birthday. I sat in class, shaking in my new frock, terrified out of my wits and asked my friend, "What do you think? Will she take it easy on me today because it's my birthday?". My teacher was known to be one of the toughest. She used metal rulers and hit us on our knuckles till they split open. "What if I threatened her that I would complain to the principal if she hits me on my birthday? Will she leave me alone?", I asked my friend. My friend looked at me like I had lost my mind. "Nooooo! Don't do that. She will get angry and hit you harder!", she said. Despite my friend's wisdom, when my teacher approached me, I snapped and screamed "If you hit me on my birthday I will complain. My father loves me and he will hit you back!". Oh boy....did I regret that!

But here is the thing. Today I deal with many many dogs. Dogs just as scared as I was that day. Dogs who have tried to tell us, in every way possible, that they are terrified. And dogs who eventually snap. They don't have anyone to complain to. So they defend themselves. Instead of recognizing the hopeless corner we push them into, we label them as aggressive or dominant and push them further and further. One fine day they give up, go into a shell. They become completely apathetic and then we claim to have "cured" the aggression. To my mind there really cannot be a solution unless one gets to the bottom of the problem and address that, instead of merely dealing with the symptoms. At the basis of canine aggression is fear. To fix aggression, one needs to understand fear and stress - there are no two ways about that!

To understand fear and stress, we need to understand where it comes from - the brain. Somewhere, a long time ago, in biology class, I learnt of two parts of the nervous systems - Voluntary and Involuntary. The Involuntary nervous system was something that had a mind of it's own and there was little I could do to control what that system did. This involuntary part of the brain has two modes of functioning - an emergency  mode that's turned on during times of stress and a regular mode. (For those who like technical terms, it's the Sympathetic nervous system and Parasympathetic nervous system respectively) When one mode is on, the other mode is off. And considering all of this is part of the involuntary nervous system, there is not much point in telling a dog "NO! Bad Boy! Sympathetic system off!". No amount of training, no amount of dog whispering, no amount of leadership is going to teach a dog to turn off his Stress Response or the emergency mode. The only way is for the Stressor itself to go away. But with us, hovering there, trying to be dominant leaders, we ourselves become the stressors, constantly keeping our dog in emergency mode. What does this do to our dogs?

The Parasympathetic system or the regular mode of the body focuses on long term projects of the body - digestion, storage of nutrients, growth, immunity, learning, memory etc...When a dog is stressed all of this is turned off. The emergency mode kicks in. This system's focus is survival. So it puts all senses on high alert and gets the muscles pumped up and primed for a mad dash. That means that all nutrients in the body, that were being stored for learning and growth are now being poured out for the mad dash. The heart is beating hard and fast to get all of this to the muscles. The muscles are sucking up oxygen which was meant for the brain. The senses are focusing on the entries, exits, defense tools etc...and don't really care about learning.

At this point, we have some trainers who come in and insist on training the dog. There is talk of "obedience training". There is talk of leadership. There is talk about "manners classes". I remember once when I was being punished badly for botching up history classes. Between sobs I was trying to learn the dates of the damned battle of Panipat and who fought who. Looking through my tears I could see the letters and numbers floating around and doing an obscene dance in front of me that made no sense at all. Nothing made sense. All I could think of was "please don't beat me any more with that metal ruler". I tried so hard to get those sentences to make sense, but the numbers and letters just sniggered and continued their insane dance. "What are the dates Sindhoor?". I heard the question but the question did not make sense. I repeated the question in my head a few times. I looked at the dance. Nothing made sense. I sobbed and blurted out "Please don't beat me!" and I bolted across the room. Continuing to recount this story is just going to be hard to read. When trainers recommend manners classes for such dogs I relive that day. I look at the dogs eyes and I see the same sentiment in the dogs eyes. The feeling of helplessness, fear and complete inability to comprehend anything. Trainers are not always tuned into their dogs. But good pet parents are. I sincerely hope that they look into the eyes of their dogs and see what the trainers are asking these poor dogs to do and rescue their dogs from this impossible misson.

Off late, I have been dealing with many dogs who are under severe chronic stress and are being subjected to additional stress in the attempt to train them. My mind is filled with all of this, to a point where, a few nights ago I had a night mare - I heard my little sister crying. She was being punished for not learning well. She was sobbing. I often look at my dog and my sister similarly. So in my dream, they both were the same. It was a little girl of about 5 or so, sometimes representing my sister, sometimes representing my dog and sometimes representing the 5yr old me, terrified, being yelled at, sobbing and trying to learn. I ran out, called out to this little girl. When she came to me, I hugged her, wiped off her tears. Told her that she was OK and there was nothing to be afraid of. I asked her to take a break and that she could learn later. I told her I would come play with her in a bit. I went looking for the person who had hurt her and ensured that there would be no more punishments. If we think about it, dealing with our dogs should not be very different. The concepts are the same - ensure it does not happen again, a reassurance, a break from learning and some help to feel better again. So for a dog, this is what we would do:

1. Remove the stressors. Stop the scolding. Stop the yelling. Stop being dominant. Just be a loving pet parent
2. Provide reassurance to the little one that there will be no more of that. For a dog being left alone, calm reassuring voice and stop changing scenes on a dog. If a dog is guarding resources due to fear of lack of resources - just flood the dog with resources so that the dog is confident that there is no reason for fear
3. Give the little one time to recover and cope. For chronic stress, like in the case of dogs, nutrition and sleep are critical in this. Consistency in the home a dog is absolutely critical. So don't move the dog around from foster home to foster home. Stay. Let the dog recover. 
4. Build confidence in the little one that she can indeed cope and learn. In the case of a stressed dog, work with a good behaviourist on confidence building measures. When faced with potential stressors, reassured the dog that the dog has the choice to walk away and avoid the stressors, thus helping gain more confidence.

During the worst of her days, Nishi sought comfort in her toys. 
She took them to bed with her. 
Back then, I could not take pictures of all of her. It was too horrifying. 
So I took pictures of the best part of her - her coping spirit!

Love, patience and nurture are critical in helping a stressed dog. Leadership, obedience and manners are futile, counter productive and almost cruel on a stressed dog. I can relate to this and for those of us who were brought up in a culture of punishment, we don't need to understand the Sympathetic and Parasympathetic Nervous Systems to know how all of this works. We just know what works and what does not. And if the voice inside us is not something we want to rely on, then understand the functioning of the brain. Either way, the answer is the same - remove stressors, reassurance, recovery & confidence building. 

After Adoption - A guide to help pet-parents deal with their newly adopted dog

Adoption is stressful.
This was Tigger before she came to us.
Notice the fear and anxiety in her eyes
Photo by Ramya Reddy

Congratulations! You have a new family member. Adopting a dog is a great decision. However, your new dog has most likely been in a very high stress environment. The move to your home is also stressful for your dog. Adrenaline is coursing through his/her body and can pose some challenges. But don’t worry. You and your dog will learn to cope. There are several guides on what to buy and how to puppy proof your house etc….This guide is not going to cover those issues. This guide is aimed solely at the emotional aspect of the adoption and how to help your new dog deal with the emotional roller-coaster ride that he has been put on, by being moved from one place to another.

First things first:

1. Understand what stress hormones can do to your dog
2. Give your dog space and time to settle down in this new home

Once your dog has calmed down, the effects of stress hormones should automatically come down and you will be well on your way to a happy canine family.

What can stress hormones do to your dog?
Stress hormones damage brain cells. This in turn reduces your dogs ability to be social with dogs & humans. Depending on your dogs memory, the asocial behavior might be directed towards dogs or humans or both. He is not being indifferent to you or your existing dogs. He just does not know how to cope at the moment. He needs time.

Adrenaline, interferes with digestion. Excess gastric juices are secreted resulting in a bad stomach, diarrhea, constipation and/or vomiting. This is not hard to imagine. In my case, I experience all of the above when I am nervous. Before an exam, I used to have a lot of acidity, I could be nauseous or not manage to get out of the toilet at all. Same with your new doggy. So bear with him. His stomach will settle down as he calms down.

Stress hormones increased sexual hormones too. Increase sexual hormones result in irritation or even anger. This could lead to growling, barking, fights etc…We all know that when we are irritable or angry, it’s best that we are left alone. Same with our dogs. Dogs with high level of sexual hormones will also mount.  This goes for spayed or neutered dogs as well as female dogs too. All dogs have some amount of hormones of opposite genders and even sterilized dogs will still have some residual hormones that are increased with stress. They are not trying to dominate anyone or anything. Your dog is merely stressed. So yelling at your dog in an attempt to dominate him will only worsen the situation by stressing him further.

High stress increases the Anti-Diuretic Hormone – the hormone that controls the water balance in our body. In humans we often see the effect of this manifest in excessive perspiration. In dogs, due to decreased perspiration, we see an alternate behavior – urination. This might result in urination inside the house, in what they consider safe spots etc…The dog is not marking territories. The dog is just dealing with increased ADH by peeing, just like you or I might have started sweating.

Stress hormones increase Neuro-peptides, which in turn weaken the immune system. When I was in college, I always experienced this. When I got too stressed due to exams, I would end up having a severe throat infection. Weak immune systems can cause infections and allergies in a dog. Pumping a dog with medication is not going to help much. What the dog really needs is rest and decrease in stress.

Another effect of stress is low blood sugar. Low blood sugar inhibits learning. The dog experiences a lack of concentration and a general inability to learn. Hence trying to teach a dog anything at this point is not only going to be futile but also frustrating for us and further stressful for the dog.  There will be lot of time for learning and training in the future. For now, it’s time to take it easy and just bond. 

In addition to all of the above a dog could exhibit hyper nervousness, hyper sensitivity to sound or touch, excessive barking and generally be hyper alert.

Now, that’s a long laundry list. The list is not here to scare new pet parents, but to let you know that these are normal. These don’t mean that your dog is sick or a bad dog. It simply means your dog is stressed and dealing with basic stress will address most, if not all problems.

What should you do?
Nothing! Just give your dog lots of space and time. Meet his basic needs – plenty of water and food. He is in a recovery phase and needs that nutrition.

He also needs lots of rest. Give him many cozy spots to sleep in, so that he has choices. Dogs are social sleepers. They can’t sleep alone and are in high alert mode if left alone. So ensure there is someone around, especially at night to give him the comfort and confidence to fall asleep. Our good old panacea of “curd rice” works wonders on dogs as well. Every noticed how hard it is to stay awake at work after a heavy South Indian meal. That’s the carb-crash. Carbs have similar effect on dogs. Combine that with the probiotic effects of curds and you have the perfect recovery-food for your pooch!

And don’t forget to provide plenty of reassurance. Talk to him in a calm voice from a distance. Tell him what a wonderful boy he is & that he is your miracle boy (or girl). The soothing calming tone will work wonders.
SPACE: DO NOT APPROACH HIM. LET HIM APPROACH YOU

Tuffy was one of the hardest cases we dealt with.
Her stress levels were so high that she refused to come inside the house.
She was most comfortable outside, in the garden.
All we did was to to keep our distance,
let her sleep and be there for her when she approached us
Photo by Ramya Reddy

What should you NOT do?
Don’t start training commands. Stress hormones reduce a dog's ability to learn. So let him heal first. As I mentioned earlier, there is enough time to train in the future

Contrary to popular belief, long walks & games like fetch or tug actually increase a dogs pulse, adding to stress. What your dog needs is rest and plenty of it. Let him sleep. Keep walks short.

Interaction with other dogs and new people can also be very stressful for dogs. While you might be dying to invite friends home to show your new dog, hold off for a bit. Let your dog first get comfortable with you. Don’t be in a big hurry to visit the vet either. If you have seen a dog at a vet, waiting with several other highly stressed dogs, you will understand how that can do no good to an already troubled dog. Unless he is severely sick, hold off on the vet visit or find a vet who does home visits. Yep, those do exist in Bangalore

Children perhaps like to be cuddled. But dogs are not children and they hate it! They tolerate it, but they don’t like it. Hugging or cuddling is the last thing your dog needs. You want to comfort your dog? Leave him alone. He will approach you when he is ready. Give him his space.

And last but not the least: DON’T APPROACH YOUR DOG. LET YORU DOG APPROACH YOU!

Tigger today - A naughty, impish little puppy
who is so happy at all times that
her constantly wagging tail is a mere blur in all pictures

(Another Turid Rugaas Lesson)