This booklet is for those who foster rescue dogs. The guidelines described are to help prepare the foster dog for adoption.

1. HOW TO BUILD A STRONG
RELATIONSHIP WITH YOUR
NEW RESCUE DOG
A NO NONSENSE GUIDE TO BUILD A
STRONG RELATIONSHIP A RESCUE DOG
ROD BUTTS DOG TRAINING
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2. How to build a strong relationship
with your new rescue dog
All dogs including rescue dogs have the capacity
to overcome obstacles they have endured
throughout their lives. From abuse to neglect,
they can thrive. The problems for those that
rescue dogs are understanding how to properly
deal with their charges. The majority of rescue
dogs come without a documented history. They
come with little more than their personalities. In
order to help these dogs thrive we need to apply
a simple plan to ensure success.
Dogs are incredible creatures that are
instinctually driven to be part of a pack or family.
Their pack can include humans, other dogs and
other animals. They thrive in an environment
that has structure.
When we bring a new dog into our home there
will be a time of adjustment for the dog. He will
be getting to know you and your family, your
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3. home, any animals you have already in your
home and your neighborhood and most
importantly, where he will fit into your pack. You
also will need to get to know your new dog. To
help you through this process I want to give you
some simple rules to help you build a solid
structure so your rescue dog can thrive in your
family.
These rules are simple and designed to build
your leadership in a way that your dog will
understand.
1. Be the leader
Dogs are pack animals. In a pack, there is
a leader and then there is everyone else.
If you are not the leader, your dog will
take charge.
2. Rules are required
As the leader, you decide what the rules
are for your dog. The rules are to be
followed or there is correction. (I.e. no
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4. dogs on the furniture means no dogs on
the furniture.)
3. Consistency is the key
As the leader, when you set the rules,
always follow through when your dog
violates the rules. You can’t let the dog
violate the rule one day and then expect
him to follow the rule the next day.
4. Project strong confidence
Your emotional state of mind has an
effect on your dog. If you are fearful,
concerned, worried or upset your dog
will react to your energy. If you are not
acting like a leader, he will take charge!
Project strong confidence and your dog
will follow your lead.
5. Praise the positive.
Praise your dog for behaviors you like
even if you have not given a command. If
you sit down to read a book and your
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5. dog comes and lies down next to you,
praise him.
6. Correct the negative
You must correct your dog for unwanted
or negative behaviors as it happens or
just as the negative behavior starts. If
you do not see it happen, let it go.
7. Exercise is calming.
You should exercise your dog on a
regular basis. Daily is preferred.
8. Don’t try to calm your dog if he is acting
fearful.
You are telling him that the fearful
behavior is what you want. Dogs don't
understand the difference between
trying to calm them down and praising
them for what they are doing at that
moment.
Now that we have set the ground rules
let us look at some strategies you can
employ to help, you teach your rescue
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6. dog the rules of your pack. Since we
don’t know what our rescue dog was
allowed to do in his former home, we
want to guide him in learning about his
new pack and new environment. To
make this proves easy I recommend that
you tether your dog to you. Tethering
your dog is simply having a leash on the
dog. This gives you a way to control his
movement around the house and guides
him to follow you. This simple act also
allows you a way to supervise him at all
times. Some dogs, if not supervised, will
explore their new environment and go to
areas you may not want them to. Some
of the possible problems that they can
get into are, urinating or defecating out
of sight, chewing things they are not
supposed too, eating and swallowing
things that are dangerous to them and
any number of things that are either
dangerous or costly.
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7. With your dog tethered to you, he will
follow you as you go about your daily
routine. This communicates to your dog
that you are the one in charge and you
are the one to follow. Under your
watchful eye he will not have the
opportunity to get into trouble, thus as
he becomes accustomed to you and your
home he will be less likely to get into
trouble in the future. If he does
something that you don’t want him to,
you can stop it immediately, not after
you discover it sometime later. This also
gives you a chance to learn some clues
to your rescue dog’s behaviors like,
when he has to go outside and what he
likes to do. For me out of sight out of
mind is the goal. If he can’t get into
trouble, he is less likely to get into
trouble. As a minimum, I recommend
that you tether your dog to you for the
first couple of weeks. After that period
of time, you can let the dog just drag the
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8. leash around. This gives you a way to
quickly gain control of your rescue dog if
something happens. Dragging the leash
can be done for as little as 2 weeks to
any longer period of time.
Any time I bring a new dog home I
always keep them in a kennel when I
can’t supervise them. This goes along
with the out of sight out of mind
philosophy. For my dogs after some
time, I can let them stay outside the
kennel without worry but this does not
happen overnight. Freedom from the
kennel is not viewed by your dog the
same way it is seen by you. The kennel
gives your dog a safe and secure place
for them to be. Remember that dogs are
den animals and will seek out a place
that is theirs. We give them a quiet and
safe place that is theirs.
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9. The kennel can sometimes be an initial
cause of conflict with your dog. If he is
not accustomed to being in a kennel, he
may not want to be there. I start by
working them to go into the kennel. If
you are having trouble getting your
rescue dog to go into the kennel contact
me or the trainer of your choosing for
guidance.
Obedience training is a great way to
build your relationship with your rescue
dog. Through your obedience, training
you will teach your dog to respond to
commands with specific behaviors.
Obedience training is not just to get your
dog to sit on command it is a safety
issue. We have all seen other people
walking their out of control dogs. I have
watched people being yanked into
traffic, knocked over, and jumped on,
other being jumped on and uncontrolled
aggression from dogs out for a quiet
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10. walk. Remember your dog, no matter
how big or small, is capable of hurting
you or someone else if you don’t have
control. Control of your dog is your dog
respecting your position as the leader of
the pack.
It takes a couple of weeks for your
rescue dog to begin to feel comfortable
with you and his new environment. With
that in mind, we don’t want to cause any
more stress than is necessary. You
should begin your obedience training
from the first day you bring the rescue
dog into your family, keeping in mind
that you do not want to get into a war of
wills with the dog. Slow and steady and
keep the lessons short. Praise for
positive responses, but praise should be
low key for now. Do not over praise or
praise just because. Only give praise
when the dog has done something you
have asked him to do or for acting
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11. appropriately. For example; you sit down
to read a book and your rescue dog lies
down next to you. A simple “good boy”
or “good girl” is all that is needed.
To successfully bring your rescue or any
other dog into your family follow the
above listed rules and for at least the
first couple of weeks tether your rescue
dog to you, kennel your rescue dog
when you leave or can’t watch them and
train them in obedience. This is a brief
description of what you can need to do
to successfully bring a rescue dog into
your family.
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12. So call!
My name is Rod Butts and I am the owner of
Rod Butts dog training. I specialize in training
dogs with behavioral problems. I can train
any dog, any breed, any size and any
temperament.
Call me now at 303-503-7712 for a free
consultation. During your free consultation
will give your dog a temperament test and
give you a prescription to help solve your
dog's behavioral problems.
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