{"id":801,"date":"2025-09-05T10:34:39","date_gmt":"2025-09-05T08:34:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/2025\/09\/05\/responsible-adoption-everything-you-need-to-know\/"},"modified":"2025-09-05T10:34:39","modified_gmt":"2025-09-05T08:34:39","slug":"responsible-adoption-everything-you-need-to-know","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/2025\/09\/05\/responsible-adoption-everything-you-need-to-know\/","title":{"rendered":"Responsible adoption: everything you need to know"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">If you are thinking about<\/span> <b>adopting a dog<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, this article will give you the main<\/span> <b>tips for adopting responsibly<\/b> <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">and avoiding the most common mistakes.<\/span><!--more--><\/p>\n<h2><strong>Dog adoption: real decisions, real consequences<\/strong><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adopting a dog is one of the most important decisions you can make. It is not an impulse or a fad, and certainly not a way to fill an emotional void. If you are considering doing so,   <\/span><b>I invite you to read this first<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Every year, thousands of people adopt with the best of intentions&#8230; and many make mistakes. <\/span><b>One in five adopted dogs ends up being returned to the dog pound.<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Not out of malice, but out of lack of preparation. And the dog, who already had a difficult history, pays the price. <\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>What you need to know before adopting<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Adopting is not just an act of love. <\/span><b>It also requires time, money, emotional stability, and responsibility<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not adopt out of pity or on impulse. Adopt out of commitment. <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">A dog is not a gift or a trophy. You don&#8217;t do it for yourself, you do it for him. <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">He may arrive with fears, insecurities or behavioural problems. Are you willing to truly help him? <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Consider whether your lifestyle, your home, your routines and your knowledge<\/span> <b>are compatible with what that dog needs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Avoid getting carried away by trendy breeds or how \u2018cute\u2019 a dog looks on social media. A \u2018cool\u2019 dog can become a problem if you don&#8217;t know what you&#8217;re adopting. <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><b>Professional advice:<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> Visit the kennel or shelter several times. Take the dog for a walk. Observe how it reacts to you, to other dogs, and to its surroundings. And if you can, ask a professional dog behaviourist for help. Sometimes, an outside perspective can change everything.    <\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Many behavioural problems in an<\/span> <b>adopted dog<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> are not the animal&#8217;s fault, but rather the adopter&#8217;s lack of knowledge. Avoiding  <\/span><b>mistakes when adopting dogs<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> can make all the difference.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>First time with an adopted dog, what do I do now?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Have you already adopted? Then your real work begins.  <\/span><b>The first few weeks are crucial.<\/b><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Establish clear routines: meals, walks, rest.<\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Teach them what they can and cannot do. <\/span><b>Set healthy boundaries from the outset.<\/b>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not give them all your love at once out of pity. That usually causes more anxiety than relief. <\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not humanise their behaviour. They are not a person. They are a dog, and they need you to behave as their leader, not as their equal.  <\/span><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<h2><b>The bond takes time (and thought)<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">During the first few days, your dog will constantly observe you. He will learn what you are like, what you allow, and when you react. You should do the same: observe him, respect him, protect him, and   <\/span><b>act like a consistent leader<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<ul>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not release it uncontrollably.<\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Be careful with visitors, children, or sudden changes.<\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<li style=\"font-weight: 400;\" aria-level=\"1\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Any dog may bite if it feels insecure, pressured, or frightened.<\/span>&nbsp;<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Do not wait for serious problems to arise before asking for help. If something does not seem right,  <\/span><b>consult with an educator or your vet<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. Better sooner than later.<\/span><\/p>\n<h2><b>What if you have doubts about adopting?<\/b><\/h2>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">It&#8217;s fine to have them. In fact, it&#8217;s a good sign. It means that   <\/span><b>you are taking adoption seriously<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Is this your<\/span><b> first time with an adopted dog<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> and you don&#8217;t know if you&#8217;re ready? Do you see signs that your  <\/span><b>adopted dog&#8217;s behaviour<\/b><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> is not what you expected?<\/span> <\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I&#8217;m <a href=\"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/contact\/\"><strong>Janusz Teresiak<\/strong><\/a>, dog trainer in Mallorca. If you like, leave me a comment or <a href=\"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/contact\/\">contact me<\/a>. I&#8217;m here to help you decide if this step is right for you. And if it is, to help you do it right.   <\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>If you are thinking about adopting a dog, this article will give you the main tips for adopting responsibly and avoiding the most common mistakes.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":798,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_et_pb_use_builder":"","_et_pb_old_content":"","_et_gb_content_width":"","om_disable_all_campaigns":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[51,1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-801","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-adoption","category-sin-categoria"],"aioseo_notices":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/801","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=801"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/801\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/798"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=801"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=801"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/dogandroll.es\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=801"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}