My first rescue Boxer!

[Maussie]

My name is Marci and I live in so Cal. I volunteer at the shelter in my city and I bring home a dog to foster. I potty train, teach manners and basic obedience and then find a home as close to perfect as I can. I only have one foster at a time because I already have two dogs (mini Aussies) of my own.
I have always loved Boxers, but never had one in my home. I was worried because everything I read said that they were balls of energy and would be running through the house. My dogs are herders and like control so I thought it might not be a good mix. I live in suburbia, have no kennels to keep dogs separate if necessary. Our fosters live in the house with us as part of the family. So far this girl seems to be very low key and she loves the dog bed. I am sure living on the concrete for a month didn't agree with her.
I am surprised that no one adopted her as she is a very pretty girl. But she is 24" and can pull hard on the leash. so every time she came out the people lost interest. I tried to explain that she had been kenneled for 3 weeks and had energy to burn. This is something I will be working on with her. I don't need a strict heel, but I do need loose leash walking. So I would welcome any suggestions anyone is willing to offer. I am very thankful to have found this forum. It is so helpful to be able to learn from this experienced group. Are most people in this group located in the eastern U.S.?

[Kschnute]

Wow; she is a beautiful dog. I've had a lot of success with the following for loose leash walking:

1. When they pull, stop and don't move. Get the dogs attention (I usually do this by making a snikering noise and patting my leg). Once the dog comes within a foot or so of you, then you say "Let's go" and start walking. Do this every this they pull and they should catch on.
2. Ramdonly change directions without telling the dog. This teaches them that they need to pay attention to you and that you are controlling the walk.

Good luck.

[cadkids]

When I first started leash training my dogs I took lots of small treats (freeze dried liver ) and if they were in a correct position treated often and did sudden turns or noises when they were in pull mode to change their focus it didn't take log for them to figure out what I wanted the only exception I run into is small animals mine have a high prey drive and LOVE to chase cats and Squirrels and they still 4 years later take off after them then it is tug of war till we are safely past or they have split out of sight Good luck

[af_wx_wife]

Hi & welcome from TX. She is a beautiful pup. With my experience with mine when they pull I stop. I also treat frequently as a reward when they walk appropriately. I wish you the best & hope she finds a forever home soon.

[Maussie]

Unfortunately, I am not going to be able to keep her. She has fought with my dogs twice. They get excited, she thinks they want to play, they get scared and growl, she doesn't back off, fight ensues. My dogs weigh 17lbs and 30 lbs. It would not be a fair fight. I am now working to see what I can do. I will not take her back to the shelter. We met a Boxer on the way home from the park and she instantly wanted to play with him. I was worried that she would play to rough for my dogs. I should have listened to my gut. She is such a great dog, potty trained and well mannered in the house. She was even much better on leash this time. Now I have to figure out where to keep her until I find her new home. 8((

[dalenica2]

Welcome to the forum. I'm from Long Beach. Hope you're close enough where we can have playdates with my Leila.

[af_wx_wife]

Maybe look into a boxer rescue & they can find another foster family. I wish you the best.

[WholeLottaBoxers]

You posted this morning that you brought home your first boxer rescue and you post two hours later that you can't keep her because she doesn't get on with your dogs. How long have you had her? If you've only had her two hours, why is she even mingling with your dogs already?

You should NEVER, EVER just throw dogs together and hope it all works out. You should do slow introductions, through a baby gate or by rotating kennels over a period of time. Dogs coming out of a shelter need time to decompress and they also need time to adjust to the rhythms of your household. You set this girl up for failure the minute you tossed her into the fray and expected it to go smoothly.

The very minimum amount of time that passes here before we actually allow a new dog to be loose with the resident dogs is two weeks. Even then, we do introductions one-on-one and not with everyone all at once. We have one female who does not adjust to newcomers and she's not allowed with a new dog until eight weeks have passed.

This is why so many foster and forever homes fail. Rescues (and shelters) do not teach people about proper dog introduction. If people would slow down and give dogs time to adjust, a lot more foster homes and adoptions would stick.

[Mom2Jax&Bay]

I use an easy walk harness. it stops the pulling while you are able to teach why they pull. Mine are excellent walkers now in a regular leash. Minus the few times with kitty's and people and birds. But it is a rare occasion they pull me anymore.

Thanks for fostering this girl. She is beautiful. I am very partial to flashy's.

[Mom2Jax&Bay]

And amen to the dog meetings. I didn't catch that time frame.