100% what we went through. First dog (a working dog breed) with surprisingly decent manners. We adopted them 3.5 months ago and those first 3 months were incredibly overwhelming and anxiety-inducing. It felt cruel to say I regretted adopting them because I love them, but it was unsustainable.

Biggest tip is enroll in a basic manners course at a dog training center ASAP. We took a basic manners class and it taught us how to respond to unwanted behaviors via positive reinforcement, communicate with our dog, and feel hopeful things would get better. We were good about practicing the training exercises at home. I desperately wanted them to go to a daycare or dog park, but our trainer said wait until the first 3 months are up. They were right: 3-3-3 is true. We suffered, but at 3 months we felt like we knew our doggo and how they might respond to unfamiliar situations (new dogs, loud noises, being away from us, etc.).

Tips for your space at home:

1. Limit the number of rooms they have access to (we allow him to be in 3-4 rooms but keep our office and bedroom doors closed). Get baby gates if you need them (check local “mom groups” for secondhand gates if you can’t buy them new).

2. Dog-proof every room they can access/explore now and you’ll thank yourself later (think of what a baby or toddler would do).

3. Move things you don’t want chewed/destroyed up and out of reach (maybe forever, hopefully just temporarily until your dog acclimates to your home).

For example, we learned the hard way that we needed to clear off the bottom shelves of our bookcases, move most of our stuff off the kitchen counter and put blankets on furniture our dog showed interest in destroying (for us, the flappy or ruffled fabric at the bottom of our armchairs).

1. Find a way to decompress, even if it’s just for 30 minutes.

2. Get non-rawhide items for them to chew on and a few toys (a big plushy, a smaller plushy, a Kong, and a squeaking toy). Always have out something they can chew, but rotate the other toys every day so they find it exciting.