THE 3/3/3 RULE OF DOG RESCUE

Have you heard of the 3/3/3 rule of adopting a new dog?

It’s a set of guidelines for transitioning a new dog into your home. Don’t let the words “rule” or “guidelines” trick you into thinking this is a hard-and-fast situation. Rather, I think of it more as a framework or mindset to help your new dog settle.

Let’s dig in, and I will share how our new pup, Penny, is doing simultaneously.

The first 3 days are for your dog to acclimate to his or her new surroundings. This is the “where the heck am I” and “am I staying here” phase. At this point, your dog isn’t showing his or her true colours because of the overwhelm.

The first 3 weeks are for your dog to learn the household rules and boundaries in a loving, kind, positive way. It starts your bonding process off on the right foot (er, paw?) and establishes the foundation of your relationship.

The first 3 months are for socialization, training, and new experiences. By the end of three months, your dog should feel settled and secure. A part of the family.

Throughout those first three days, weeks, and months, your job is to stay patient. Establish kind boundaries. Remain calm. Provide your dog with a safe, quiet space to use at his or her will. Be consistent and kind. Reward what you want. Ignore or redirect what you don’t want. Start basic training. Walk every day, if you can. Understand in advance your dog will start to test boundaries. Be patient and stay consistent.

Your dog’s job? Sniff, explore, test, experiment. Truly, it’s to test the boundaries and figure out what is and isn’t acceptable behaviour in your home. As your pup becomes more secure in your home, you’ll start to see a lot more of his or her true personality shine through.

After three months, continue to train, challenge, and socialize with your pup, though he or she should be confident that your family is here to stay–no more shelter for you, pepper!

LET THE 3-3-3 RULE SEEM TOO PERFECT
I looked at a lot of infographics that implied your dog will be settled in at three months! Congrats! You made it!

Except. Nuh-uh.

Maybe your dog fits right into your family and your household and by three months hit a solid stride.

It’s possible, but it seems less likely that your dog needs a bit longer than that mark, which is why I like to think of it more as the 3-3-3 guideline.

Penny still flinches when you raise an arm or leg near her (though she hangs out when I practice yoga, so that’s huge progress). She won’t walk down the hallway–or enter a bathroom, the dining room, or the laundry room, for that matter. She feels safer lounging in her crate than she does snuggling on my bed.

Sweet Penny whines and cries when she realizes someone is somewhere she can’t access (like the bathroom or dining room) and will not go to the bathroom on a walk.

She drinks water from puddles in the yard and is only now starting to trust the dog bowls of fresh water on the deck and in the house.

At three months, your dog probably understands he or she is here to stay. And that’s awesome. That’s a huge hurdle for dogs who have been bounced around from shelters or rescues or foster homes or unstable, unsafe situations like Penny’s.

The rest depends on the dog’s personality and the household humans’ dog skills.

So, if you’re someone who reads something like this set of guidelines and feels like you’re failing because your dog is still scared/reactive/untrained / whatever at the three-month mark, rest assured that you’re fine. Your dog is fine. I mean, heck, I worked with Cooper for more than 13 years and he never “overcame” his fear or his reactivity.

It’s not about having a “perfect” dog after three months. It’s about building a bond with your dog, building trust and security. Giving your dog a sense of safety.