Introducing a short term dog foster (Advanced Beginner Dog)

October 19, 2016 8:31 AM

Six months ago I adopted the wonderful Huggy and we have come to live very happily together. I am taking an unknown foster for the weekend, and would appreciate some advice about how to go about this in the best way.

One of the local animal charities was flooded today by our near-miss Typhoon. We have another much stronger Typhoon which is supposed to hit on Friday. As a consequence, the charity is desperately seeking fosters for their 400 medium-large dogs. I have agreed to pick up a foster tomorrow evening and bring him/her back on Sunday to the shelter.

I know it's the right thing to do, but how do I do this? Huggy is used to being an only dog, but when I am out of town for work she boards with a friend who has dogs. She has never had an issue with her dog sitter's dogs, and is fairly mellow in general. At the dog park she sometimes shows some small guarding behaviour, but it is rare and passes quickly. She can occasionally take an irrational dislike to another dog, and when that happens there doesn't seem to be any way to reverse the effect.

So what should I do? How should I introduce them? Should I introduce them outside, or bring the foster upstairs first? What should I watch for? Is there anything I can do to minimise trouble?

Any advice gratefully received.

posted by frumiousb to Pets & Animals (8 answers total)

Best answer: Best practices I've always been taught (former multi-dog household dogmom, and former animal shelter volunteer dog handler) is to introduce them on neutral turf if at all possible. A local park, a parking lot, the corner down the block from your house, something like that. Take them for a short walk together before going back home.

Before you bring the new dog home, put away all your dog's toys. A dog that's totes cool palling around with a new friend may be totes NOT COOL with sharing his favorite stuffy with said friend.

The other thing to do is let them work things out amongst themselves to the greatest extent that is safe. Like, clearly if one is obviously aggressive towards the other, you should step in (and return that dog to the shelter because that's not a problem you're going to solve in a weekend) but if there are some minor displays of what we often call "dominance" just let them do that. Don't step in, don't play favorites, don't try to police the interaction. Dogs need to communicate with one another on their own terms and if you try to suppress their behaviors, that doesn't change the emotions behind those behaviors and those emotions may come out in some other, less predictable ways.

Once back home, have them both drag leashes around for a while until they seem comfortable with the situation. That way if you do need to step in at any point, the leashes will be there to restrain them.
posted by soren_lorensen at 8:51 AM on October 19, 2016 [7 favorites]

I introduce mine in a friend's fenced-in back yard. I find dogs are less likely to be aggressive if they can meet new dogs off-leash and it's neutral territory for both of them.

Fostering is awesome; good luck!
posted by metasarah at 9:27 AM on October 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

No advice, but I very much want to hug Huggy.
posted by schadenfrau at 10:04 AM on October 19, 2016 [5 favorites]

Best answer: Awww, Huggy is lovely.

I've fostered 3 dogs over the past three years. I have two dogs of my own & foster when Himself is not working during the summer (teacher) so there is someone around during the day.
So far we've had no problems whatsoever with the dogs reaction. Usually they do say it is best to have the initial meet in a neutral space, and if you can go for a bit of a walk with the two dogs that can help ease any tensions. They both have things to think about other then the other dog.

Yes to keeping trailing leads on them until you can gauge how they'll react to each other, makes it a lot easier to pull them apart if anything does start.

Good luck, and well done on fostering.
posted by Fence at 11:13 AM on October 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

If you can, feed them in separate spaces. That way if there is any food guarding behavior it'll be minimized, and since this is short term you don't need to worry about long term harmony. If your guest has some blankets or other soft porous things from the shelter, set them in a safe spot with walls or other barriers on at least two sides and something comfy and freshly washed underneath. That way they have a safe space that smells mostly like them. Even better if they can often keep an eye on you and Huggy from that spot. Basically, make this new dog feel like they don't have to be actively defensive to be safe.
posted by Mizu at 4:46 PM on October 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

Definitely feed them in separate places. Hell, I had to do that with my two dogs the entire 3 years their lives overlapped, because my Corgi was so damned bossy.
posted by radioamy at 5:19 PM on October 19, 2016

Best answer: Also, remember that it is just for a long weekend. You can always simply keep them separated for the duration. A pain, yes, but if there seems to be any problems, it will be the easiest solution. Thank you for helping out!
posted by Vaike at 5:26 PM on October 19, 2016 [1 favorite]

Seconding the feeding in separate rooms, with the door closed!!! My sweet, happy, sociable dog has just ONE doggie friend that she can't eat in the same room with.
posted by raisingsand at 7:49 AM on October 20, 2016