Basic Guidelines for Working with Your New Rescue Boxer

1. Do remember that it might take up to 4 months for a dog to settle in to its new surroundings. Try not to pressure the dog to work with you too much or expect anything from the go during this time. Do give the new dog time to adjust to his new family and surroundings. Your home is a new place with new smells. Let him get acquainted before jumping into big playtime. If you have small children or kids that visit you, introduce them slowly and gently. Don’t ever expect a boxer to be grateful that you rescued him. To the dog, you are the bad guy. You took him away from a home he knew and felt comfortable in, along with people he trusted. What you Do need to do is gain the dog’s trust. When you have done that, then you will have a grateful dog.
2. Don’t act like you get a new dog in your house every day of the week. Like it’s no big deal. This is hard because you’re nervous yourself, but it is SO important. If you are nervous and uptight, the dog will also get nervous and uptight. Dogs are experts at reading body language; your apprehension will be telegraphed to your new pup.
3. Don’t touch the dog. Let the dog come to you in its own good time. When a boxer is in a new environment, the only thing that is familiar to them is the immediate space around their own body. This space becomes inviolate to the dog. If you drop something next to the dog, either wait for the dog to move, or, if it’s edible, kiss it good bye. Try not to make quick movements with your hands or body that might startle the dog. Don’t leave your dog’s foster home and make stops along the way home at pet stores, grandma’s house, or your neighbors to show off your new boxer. The dog is trying very hard to figure out what is happening in his life right now without the additional stress. Don’t get your new dog home and think that a game of fetch is a good thing to do. Your dog should be treated the same way you would treat a new baby or bringing home a sick person: limited excitement, limited exercise/playtime, and limited and supervised activity with children.
4. Do talk to the dog the A LOT. Use your natural voice. Tell the dog what you are going to do to try to make him happy with you. This might sound dumb, but what you’re doing is getting him used to your voice and helping him to learn to ready your body language. The faster the dog learns this the quicker it can start to settle in. So talk to him a lot.
5. Don’t act in any way sympathetic toward the dog. Yes, they are miserable, but dogs don’t understand sympathy. The minute your voice sounds sympathetic, the dog’s immediate reaction will be “uh oh, something is wrong.’’ The dog is already in a “something is wrong” situation in being re-homed. You don’t want to add to this problem.
6. Don’t expect ANYTHING from the dog. The only thing you want to do during the first few weeks is to show the dog your basic leadership skills. Just stand tall; for now, self-assurance type traits will help the dog understand you know what you’re doing.
7. Do have the dog SIT before you set their meals down or hand them a treat. Feed your new dog away from any other pets to make sure that there are no food issues among them.
8. Do put the new dog in a crate and let any other dogs in the home meet him through the crate. Dogs must work out their pecking order. It is best to let them settle it without your interference, and without “dog aggression.”
9. Do remove all toys if there is another dog in your home. Let the dogs adjust to each other before adding the stress of squabbling over toys. If you can’t help yourself, provide toys while the dogs are individually crated.
10. Do be aware that YOU might be causing tension between dogs. Try to provide attention and cuddles to the dogs out of sight of each other at first.
11. Do pay personal attention to the dog when he begins to ask for it, but be cautious. Some boxers want attention but then revert to fear when you reach out to them. They are still unsure of your movements and what they mean. Reach out slowly with your palm up and watch the dog carefully. If he looks the least bit tentative, STOP. Don’t jerk your hand back, just stop your hand wherever it is. If the dog is tentative, the dog will turn away. You can then pull your hand back slowly.
12. Do expect the dog to become a “velcro dog” during the early going. They may have been abandoned once or neglected and don’t want to let you out of their sight, fearing they’ve been abandoned again. Just try not to fall over the dog if it really sticks close. You can tell how well he is adjusting by when it starts letting you out of his sight and for how long.
13. Should the dog growl at you for ANY reason, stand (if you’re not already), turn your back to the dog and slowly walk away. Should he try to nip at you as you’re walking away, just STOP and stand still, ignoring the dog completely.
14. Keep a leash attached to his collar at all times when he’s in the house for at least the first week. This will help you have control over him if needed. A new boxer in your home may try to find a place that the can claim as “theirs.” It may be an overstuffed chair, the couch, the bed, etc. You Don’t want this to happen. If he growls while he is on any piece of furniture, tell him OFF! And use the line to pull him off. Don’t jerk the leash, just pull gently but firmly until he gets down. When he is off, then you may invite him back up if YOU desire, but it’s important that he knows that he has boundaries and limits.