Bella was returned to us yesterday... I spent yesterday trying to find the same behaviors that caused her adoption family to give her up (but to no avail so far)... A few weeks ago after a stay in a boarding kennel, she came back and began to wet in the house... I'm still not clear if she had a urinary tract infection or not, but this behavior stopped... Last week she got into a cat box and three days later, she had a seizure and fell over... I suspect it might be from the clumping litter she ingested, but their vet didn't have any definitive reason for the seizure...
However, I guess the primary reason for her return was chewing... Locked in a bathroom for three hours or more, she chewed a spot in the wall and with small children around, the adoptive mom had to be on her toes all the time to make sure Bella didn't get ahold of any small toys...
Bella wasn't necessarily a 'chewer' while she was my foster, but I kept her supplied with those flavored NylaBones... Soft dog toys (the tiny stuffed ones) she'd shred up and I got into the habit of making sure they were not left around for her to find, but because she did love to play with toys, play fetch, etc. I changed the kinds of toys I put in the toy box for her to have... So I really didn't have a 'chewing problem' with Bella here...
However, there is one big difference... Bella was adopted into a home without other dogs and this is a multi-dog household here... There is always a dog interested in playing a game of 'catch me if you can' or just to interact and hang out with...
Although we are really sorry to see Bella returned, there is a positive side of this particular chapter in her life... Bella's adoptive home had two young girls (so we know she loves children) and they also had a cat (which I do not) - two areas I could not verify if she'd be OK with in her life... And Bella also gained a little bit of weight which she needed...
Bella was overly excited when she saw me yesterday and in my mind, I'd never changed her name to 'Lucy' so when I called her with my usual "Bella, Bella, BELLLLL-LA" she immediately responded and must have remembered me... She and I spent a lot of time together, worrying about her ability to nurse those pups, then the transition between my bottle feeding them as a supplemental resource and finally, Bella teaching them canine manners but not being required to nurse them... She and I developed some level of understanding throughout it all and was the only foster I've ever had that I'd gotten too emotionally involved in... I love them all to a certain level and treat every foster like I do my own dogs, but there's a short garden wall I don't allow myself to step over inside my heart... In Bella's case, I'd peered enough over that wall that it did bother me when she was placed...
People always ask me, "Doesn't it hurt too much when you have to let them go?"... And normally it does not... I know they are fosters when they arrive here, it is not their day to die and I know they will eventually be moving on... Bella has always been a bigger dog than one I personally favor, and she's a lot more Terrier than she is Chihuahua (despite the classification the shelter gave her originally)... So I didn't feel like I would get too attached to her from the start - she was just too different from the kind of dogs I fall in love with and get attached to... I myself was surprised at the depth of emotion I felt when we placed her and made a quick departure to forgo any long, lingering goodbyes...
Yesterday it was almost as if she'd never left... She reacquainted herself with the dogs she already knew - her tail went into overdrive when she smelled Nacho and I believe she recognized him as her son, but Nacho didn't respond in kind... I suspect Nacho doesn't have a clue Bella is his mother... There are two fosters here now that she didn't know - one she started playing with immediately - the other has been a snarfing partner, but I stepped down on that right away...
Bella found her favorite spot on the futon mattress outside where the dogs lay on and sunbath... Then spent most of the afternoon running around and playing with her canine buds... I'm truly at a loss as how to explain the chewing that went on once she was adopted, but because of this, we are making the restriction that if she is readopted into another home, she cannot be the only dog...
Maybe the lack of interaction with other dogs allowed her to become bored and then to deal with the boredom, she found something she could chew on and/or caper... My husband's a great example of this - his entire life has been one that once he got bored, he'd caper and get into trouble... Dunno, but we spent the afternoon trying to discover the reason for her radical difference in behaviors between our home and her newly adoptive home - that's the only thing we could come up with... That and I don't have any children running around here...
So for now, I'm keeping a close eye on her... And trying to observe or discover why her adoption failed... Bella is an active dog and not a couch potato (although she always loved sitting down with us in the evenings and relaxing), and she's still so young and puppy-like, she is just not a suitable dog for someone that has a sedate home, doesn't like to do walks or doesn't have things and activities to engage in - or doesn't have another dog for her to play with...
It's hard on the dogs when they go back to the shelters after a failed adoption... Shelters do the best they can but it is such a fluid environment so unless the dog is returned back to the shelter the very next day, the dogs have difficulty dealing with the numerous transitions... In our case, although Bella was gone for a month and was exposed to new environment components, she adapted immediately to what she knew here --- old smells, old canine buds, etc.
Some dogs are chronic rehomers and IMHO, it is more inhumane to keep trying to rehome them... The more the dogs pop back and forth, in and out of shelters, the worst their behaviors become (almost as in protest)... This is not Bella's case... She just needs the right home for her and her personality, the right amount of activities and surroundings to keep her engaged, along with a new adoptive parent that understands chewing will become an issue if she's left alone, and/or becomes bored, etc.
I started crate training immediately again yesterday and she took to it... For her safety and my own peace of mind, it's a better plan of action until I am 100% certain she doesn't start chewing here as well... Right now, Bella's plan was to step right back into the hierachy of the pack, but some have moved on while others have joined... So last night she slept with my daughter and Riley (who doesn't "play" when it is time to sleep and cuddle)... Riley will quickly step down on Bella if she steps out of line or tries to take over his territory... So we shall see how things go and I'll update this blog with the new journey as we embark upon it...
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