The Trickster Shibes

Having raised two Shiba Inu puppies and adopted a third as an adult, I am no stranger to the phenomenon dubbed the puppy blues (or post-adoption blues).

The “new dog” blues as I’ll call them are a surprisingly common occurrence once the emotional high of welcoming a new family member wears off. They can cause feelings of sadness, stress, anxiety, regret, guilt, and more. Sometimes these feelings can even manifest into physical symptoms like headaches, nausea, insomnia, excessive crying, loss of appetite, etc.

I am often asked for advice when it comes to bringing home a new canine companion and if there’s just one thing I could impress upon a new pet owner, it would be this:

These feelings are so normal and almost always temporary.

A new dog is a big lifestyle change! And with any big change, it’s normal for big feelings to follow. There’s a lot of time and energy that goes into caring for a living, breathing creature. It can feel overwhelming if you’re not used to it and sometimes even if you are. No matter how prepared you think you are, there are always factors that can exacerbate the situation.

The new dog blues can be particularly intense for first-time owners but it can occur with second, third, or further additions as well. Personally, I struggled the most with our third Shiba, Ivy.

Loki and Raven were a lot of work as puppies to be sure. But they were also happy, affectionate, and progressed rapidly. Ivy is a fearful rescue and so it has been a lot harder (and slower) to establish a bond with her. There were pack dynamics to consider and we had to do a lot of careful, sometimes stressful, management in the beginning to ensure a successful integration with Loki and Raven. Ivy also came from a traumatic past which just naturally heightened our emotions around her. Rationally or not, I was so afraid to fail her in those early days. I spent most of the first week worried she was going to run away, a fear that was compounded when on the first night she hid herself under our deck in -30 degree weather and refused to come out.

I cried more in the first week with Ivy than either Loki or Raven, though all three had their moments. The good news is that these feelings very quickly dissipated.  New dog blues can last anywhere from a few weeks to a few months. I found that for each of mine, by the end of 2-4 weeks, we had adjusted and things were feeling much more manageable.

Time is usually the greatest remedy. Puppies get easier as they get older and rescue dogs will settle with time (learn more about the 3-3-3 rule). But that doesn’t mean there aren’t things you can do to help the process along if you’re struggling.  

Having gone through this process three times now, I can say that just knowing to expect these feelings has made them a lot easier to get through.

So to all the aspiring or new dog parents out there, be it a new puppy or an older dog, know that it’s okay to have these feelings. It doesn’t make you a bad owner or mean that anything is wrong. Growing pains are natural when you add a new family member. Barring major concerns, like severe behavioural challenges, these feelings generally do not last. (If they do or are causing extreme distress or disruption to your life, that is a separate conversation). I promise that with a little patience, effort, and grace, things will almost always get better. Hang in there and be kind to yourself. The pay off with your new best friend will be so worth it.