Three days,
Three weeks,
Three months
Lately, we've been tagged in this post circulating around Facebook and Instagram because we check in at 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months on all of our adoptions. At the onset of Brown Dog, we knew we wanted to do multiple check in’s on our adopted dogs. Patricia McConnell, a Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, shared the importance, and magic of threes, and so those were our decided check in points from the very beginning.
Of course, 3 days, 3 weeks, and 3 months are general milestones that fit into a memorable formula. But dogs will take as long as they need to decompress, learn a routine, and settle in. We've found that dogs often need longer than a few days to decompress, particularly immediately after transport and quarantine. The original Brown Dog, Libby, needed at least 6 months to settle in and speak her mind with her beautiful voice we are all quite familiar with!
Although most dogs don't fit into this exact formula, we've still found the three check in points beneficial to gauge progress over time of a dog in their new home. Check in’s give adopters the opportunity to ask for help, and for us to support our adopters and dogs. Plus, check in’s feed our soul to foster the next dog who needs a temporary home!
