Brand new dog owner - Need Help!

I was just worried about what Gina said above about not grabbing her.  Sounds  like this could really upset her.  She does seem to really be scared when I have to pick her up.  Plus, she's a big girl already and quite heavy.  I won't be able to pick her up for long.

There's probably no real answer to this situiation and I'm thinking I'm just going to have to carry her outside for now because I don't want her to think it's ok to potty in the house. 

I really did feel like I was pretty prepared for everything but her fear and not walking at all has really thrown me for a loop.  I did not expect her to not want to walk.

I would avoid forcing her to do anything at this point until the trust is built up - use treats and lures to encourage her. So avoid picking her up to get her outside if at all possible. Start by desensitizing her to the leash by just having it close to her, giving treats and praise, then eventually put it on, giving treats and praise.
 
In the meantime, try to get her outside by using yummy smelly treats to lure her out. If she ever pees, give treats and lots of praise, maybe followed by playtime if she likes to play.
 
It will take time and patience to bring an unsocialized dog around, but I'm sure it is quite possible.

I would not feed her from a bowl, yet, but I'm no expert. I'd sit quietly on the floor, and dispense a little food at a time, establishing myself as the YUMMY PERSON. I'd also dispense small amounts of incredible treats, like cheese and liverworst. It's hard for a dog to NOT come near you, when you have cheese and liverworst.

Jen, that's a great idea. Yes, hand feed her. She can have a bowl of food too, when you are gone, but when you get back, feed her some by hand for a while. Have the kids do the same, so she understand you are ALL Foutains of Yumminess. Don't let your kids overwhelm her with hugs, etc. Liverwurst and cheese and pieces of hot dog are great.

I think another bonding would take place if you and the kids were to brush her. Certainly she must need some grooming, after being outside all that time, right? Get a dog brush and gently brush her. I bet she'll love it. Do it just a little at a time, of course. She may even be afraid of that, but once she sees how good it feels, that will be another great connection for you.

She'll start following you around for those treats, I bet you anything!

Yes, I second the getting her to a vet ASAP!

I tried luring her out with treats and such but she doesn't budge.  I did carry her outside and then back in again this afternoon. She didn't potty though.  She just laid around and would walk only if I walked away from her.  She wanted to be close to me.  That's a good sign, I think!? [] 

We bathed and brushed her as soon as we got her home yesterday because she was filthy. She did great with it and even sort of seemed to enjoy it.  We'll continue brushing her for bonding as well as grooming. Thanks for that tip.

I've had the leash on her to help her get used to it but she really doesn't like it as she seems to step on it and trip on it.  She picked it up with her mouth when we were outside to be able to move around better.  (She still only took about 3 steps though and sat back down.)

I like the idea of handfeeding her.  As shy and scared as she is she has been eating food and treats like a little pig.  That's a good sign, right?[]

Definitely a good sign that she's following you around already. She must be drawing a sense of comfort from you, which is certainly a good first step! I'm so glad she's found a wonderful, devoted mom like you. Trust me, after the initial fear wears off, she'll be so glad that she's found a new home with you. It's just going to take some adjusting for her, coming from where she did. I agree with the others in saying that you should try at all costs to get her to go outside without you picking her up. If all else fails, then resort to that, but I'm afraid that the forcing her to go outside against her will is going to frighten her even more. Just try to be patient in luring her outside. The hot dogs were a great idea - dogs love 'em! Make a little hot dog trail that leads to outside...get creative! []
 
Definitely hurry to find a behavioralist and a vet for her. These are both things she needs right now. Congrats on the new addition, and welcome to the forum! It sounds as though you may have a "patience-trying" situation on your hnads for a little while, but just take it one day at a time. Baby steps are key for this little gal...who is beautiful, by the way! You will definitely find a wealth of information, and some very helpful people here!

Hotdogs worked!!  I had tried earlier with the store bought treats (which she likes) but she wouldn't come out. But I decided to chop up hotdogs and put them in a baggie.  I put one on the floor every couple of feet in front of her until we were out the front door!  My daughters just got home from school and are now sitting outside with her!  Wow!  What a first day! LOL  I'm thrilled though and am so thankful for this board and all the advice. 

Hopefully she does her business before we bring her back in.  I told my girls though that we're going to take turns outside with her until she does poop since she hasn't done that yet. 

So glad to hear that the hot dogs were a success. I had a feeling they'd do the trick! I don't think many dogs can resist them! [] It sounds as though you're making progress with her, which is fantastic. Just remember to take it slow. She's made a huge step in her doggy life today! Congratulations! She should be out of her shell in no time with the gentle patience you seem to have with her.

Thanks! []  Now, one more thing for the day would make me feel like this day was a huge success.  Maddie hasn't pooped in at least 24 hours.  Should I be concerned?  Any ideas as to why she won't poop? She's had plenty of opportunity outside AND she was shut in our spare bathroom all night (with bed, food and water) and still didn't poop.  I guess she can't hold it forever but I'm wondering if this is a natural reaction to her being nervous or if I should be concerned about medical issues?  I don't know.......... I'd like her to poop before I go to bed tonight though so I can sleep. lol

My coined phrase on this forum seems to be "Im no expert", but I'm going to use it again here! []. I would imagine that her not pooping has a lot to do with stress. I wouldn't be overly concerned, as it's only been 24 hours. If she still hasn't pooped by tomorrow, I would call and check with a vet to see if there's something you can do to "get her moving", so to speak. But I'm pretty sure that this is just a reaction to her being pretty stressed right now.

Just out of curiousity, how is she eating? Pretty normally? And drinking water?

Yes, she's eating what seems to be normally.  She's eaten Puppy Chow Dogfood (prolly not the best but I'm looking into that now that I know), store bought bacon treats and the hotdogs.  She's eating fine.  And she's been drinking water.  She's only peed once that I know of.

There is an old show dogs trick you can use to get her to go...if you aren't squeamish. Use the PAPER end of an unlit match and insert it in her anus.  It works like a suppository and will make her want to go to remove the "thing".

If she DOES have an accident, don't make a big deal of it and PLEASE don't rub her nose in it! Just quietly clean it up and move on.  You can use a mixture of 50/50 vinegar and water to clean up urine.  The vinegar neutralizes the ammonia in the urine and she probably won't go back to this spot.

If you catch her piddling on some newspaper or anything else you might normally toss out, save it.  When you take her out to pee the next time, take the item along for a scent to encourage her to go in the area you want her to use.

Also, you say Maddie's very quiet right now.  Don't be surprised if you find a crazy girl on your hands once she comes out of her shell!

Congrats on this lovely girl.  it will be a lot of hard work, but  believe me, it WILL be worth it!

If she was kept outside a lot, the whole "house" thing could be really confusing for her.  When I rescued my dog, he'd only lived inside for the two weeks he was with his foster mom.  He had trouble understanding that he couldn't "go" anywhere he wanted anymore, and he was very scared to walk through doors and didn't really understand stairs.  Thankfully, he is a curious little guy, so he was willing to explore with me!

Well, she ended up pooping on her own yesterday outside!  Yay!!! []  She didn't potty in the house at all yesterday and this morning she woke me up at 5:30 am and we went outside and she peed immediately!  I am so surprised that she's already going outside and not in the house.  I think she would rather go outside since that's what she's been used to doing.  Does that make sense? 

She is a totally differant dog since yesterday after she pooped.  LOL She's been very active and somewhat hyper running in the yard, jumping around and just acting very happy now.  She's still a bit confused in the house as far as (like someone said above) the steps and walking through doorways or into a new room but she's coming around. 

One thing that I find a bit strange is that she seems very frightened when she can hear other neighborhood dogs barking.  She'll jump and try to hide and whimper and give tiny little barks.  She grew up with a pack of dogs so I'm not sure why she would act so frightened?  Any ideas?

I'd imagine having lived with a pack she is QUITE well versed in territory and "no touchy, mine" rules...if the pack did a lot of barking to warn others off the territory, she probably thinks those other neighborhood dogs KNOW she is there and KNOW she is not their pack and want to eat her up! If you think about it..makes sense!
 
Dogs that come from pack situations often have a more "grown up" sense of territory and space and react more wolf like to being warned off, or sniffing other dogs scent...they feel they are an interloper and they should leave or hide before they are found and chased, or worse!
 
It should improve once she is more comfortable and takes some walks and such to feel like she can establish herself in the new territory. If she is a truly omega or submissive dog she may never be comfortable around barking dogs tho...