my adopted dog

I think it is great you are getting a dog that is 'not perfect' and giving it a second chance at a happy life.
 
I am sure you can house train her if she is not already.  A lot of times environment makes such a difference in dogs behavior.  Once she knows you love her and will not hurt her, she will want to make you happy by learning what you teach her. Just be very patient and use positive training. Rewards and lots of love and praise for doing what you ask.
 
Always remember she may have things in her past you will never know and this will effect certain behaviors.  Frank our GSD rescue is still scared of the vacuum after 2 years.  The others won't even move and I have to vacuum around them.  Everything that happens to a dog makes it what it is, just the same as with human's life experiences.  I'm sure you and she will do great.  Be sure to post pix.

Dogs, kids, cats, etc can and do act completely different in public or in strange uncomfortable situations.  The dog may act totally different at home where they are relaxed and secure. I would wait and see before deciding on how to bring her out of her shell.
By the way, congrats on the adoption.  Jules

Let me tell you a little story about one of my foster girls.  Sadie (now known as Trinity) was the girl who everyone picked on and bullied.  No one hurt her, but no one gave her an extra inch either.  Sadie was from the FIRST litter I fostered after we moved up her.....Sadie hadn't been spayed because she was quite small and the vet wanted to wait and let her go through a heat thinking she might catch up in her growth.  So, at 13 months Miss Sadie went to her new home with one of her younger foster brothers and her new brother the shar pei.  Of course, on arriving home, Sadie decided to bolt and spent an adventure filled weekend roaming the streets before the TWO ACO's finally caught her, and then she spent 3 days in the county shelter before Mom could find her.  And mom had BEEN there everyday......we suspect that she was being hidden and the ONLY reason we DID find her is because a gal from one of the rescues emailed me to let me know exactly where she was IN the shelter.  I called....I spoke to the worker there and he flat out denied he had a young gsd......but he did.
 
Long story short, she went home with her new Mom and promptly became the Queen of the house.  Where her younger brother HAD been cuddled up to Mom at nite, now Sadie took that spot.  So, shy, timid, prone to being bullied HERE, but now, rules the roost there!   I felt like she would blossum in a home that was quite so pupulated as mine and she certainly did!  Now, she IS her new moms running mate.....Trinity is old enough and light enough to join her mom for her morning runs (except for right now since she's recovering from her spay), so that helped to build her confidence, but she's also living with the resident shar pei who had mom to himself for quite some time, and another male gsd who won't be snipped until fall......but SHE rules the roost.
 
It can be little things that make all the difference in a dogs confidence levels too.  Lori started to take her running with her in the mornings and that's all it took.  When we had a foster come back to us, I started a bit of tracking with him since he couldn't do a LOT of physical stuff (loooooong story).  None of the others do tracking, but I started teaching Tyler to "find" the rabbit fur and that made a huge difference for him.
 
But, the behavior that she's displaying now, could just be "shelter survival syndrome" and she may have a totally different personality than what's being seen right now.  And you won't see her true colors usually until shes been in your home for a few weeks or a few months....the honeymoon period truely can last a long time...and suddenly, she feels safe, loved and comfortable and she'll do something that totally surprises you.....but that's normal.
 
 

Congratulations on your adoption!  Take Glenda's advice and take it slow and day by day, she'll become comfortable and you will figure out what she needs and who she really is soon enough.

Yes you can train an old dog new tricks. Trixie was 7 when I got her and not house trained took two weeks, and Brando was 18 months took one.
Although she may be skittish at first, w/ the adjustment even after she is trained, if she gets scared or has SA she may have accidents when you are out for a few months. then be fine.

The one thing that I wish I knew when I first got Willow was that it took her a long time to adjust to living here.  She had lived outside in a totally different type of environment. 
 
But, I kept thinking something was wrong with her because she was sleeping a lot and not eating well.  She was adjusting. 
 
I'll be a lot more relaxed next time round because I guess I didn't realize that it could take so long. 
 
It might not for your dog but just thought I'd point this out.

Housetraining older dogs is both harder and easier than training puppies. 
 
On the one hand, she may already have learned that it's okay to go in the house.  If her previous owners were the classic ignorant 'rub her face in the mess so she knows what she did' or 'hit her with a newspaper' type, then she may have also learned that going in the house isn't the problem, it's going in front of people that's the problem.  This can be problematic because the new owner will watch the dog like a hawk the first few days, and figure everything is okay because the dog only went potty outside.  Then, as the vigilence fades, and the dog is left alone during the day or even just allowed to wander off in a different room for a few minutes, puddles and piles start to pop up in secluded spaces.  
 
On the other hand, her bladder and bowels are fully developed, so she is capable of 'holding it' for reasonable periods of time, unlike puppies, who may end up messing their crate because it was impossible for them to hold it any longer rather than due to any confusion about 'where' they can go.  
 
The key thing is, do not leave her unsupervised.  At all.  You have the ability to teach her that this house is off limits for potty breaks.  To do that, you just need to make sure she does not get the opportunity to make mistakes, and that if she does, you are there to stop it and take her outside right away.  Treat her just like you would a new puppy.  If you have to go to the bathroom, check on your lasagna, tell the door-to-door salesmen that you aren't in the market for new kitchen knives, check your email, etc, then crate her.    
 
With the 'thether' method, you put her leash on and attatch it to the piece of furniture you are sitting on.  This keeps her from wandering away and going potty/chewing shoes/raiding the trash can/counter surfing/etc.  Once again, if you have to get up and move away for any reason, put her in her crate (sans collar/leash).   
 
As for adjusting, I usually restrict a new arrival to just one room for the first few days.  Spend plenty of time with her---watch tv, read a book, sit on the floor, etc.  When she starts to relax, than you can gradually let her explore other rooms (with supervision, of course).  I also handfeed them durring this time.
 
I'd also avoid walks for the first week or so.  Going out in ublic may be stressful until she trusts you as a protective figure/leader.  Practice walking her on the leash in your yard to see how she reacts.  Also, if you were out in public and got rushed by an off-leash dog or something negative happened, she could end up associating it with walks, you, or both.  Let a small bond of trust be forged beforehand.

Zoe didn't bark at the shelter.  When I looked at the previous owners' description of her they said she barked a lot.  I was surprised.  Once I got her home.... she barks .  It is a dachshund trait so I can't blame her for it, but she definitely was more shy at the shelter.  They also said she was about 80% housetrained but when I got her I made sure I took her out often and she started to learn to go to the door when she had to go out.  It has never been a problem and she is 100% trained now.
 
Congrats on the new doggie!

[]Congratulations and good luck with your new dog!

i just adopted emma from the shelter last thursday, the first day i saw her she wouldnt respond to much of anything but i went back and visited her every day for 10 days in a row, sometimes 2 or three times.  each time she got a little more excited when she saw me.  the people at the shelter said she was "fearful".   as soon as i got her home it was like she had always been here, there really was no adjustment period for her.  and she is anything but fearful.  she tried to run up to every single person or dog or any living thing she sees to play with them. 

thanks everyone!
 
in addition: how long should it take for a dog to be completely housetrained?
 
(and shatterstar, unfortunately her previous owners were of the 'hit her with a newspaper/hand' type. of course, that 'training method' will change from now on. [])  

i disagree with limiting the dog to one room for a few days, when i first got emma (and still)  she followed me EVERYWHERE.  i think it would have broke her heart if i restricted her to one room only, and she also wouldnt have been able to sleep with me unless i locked her in my bedroom for a few days.  i think that would cause more anxiety and slow down the adjusting process in the long run.  although i would suggest limiting guests and try to stay home with the dog as much as possible in the first few days.  let her explore her new home at her own pace and give her space when she needs it.

when housetraining it is absolutely critical to limit the dogs acess to different areas of the house.  Unless you are able to give her your FULL attention, too much freedom equals accidents and the more accidents they have in the house, the more likely they are to think it's OK to go inside.

Every dog is different in the length of time it takes to train.....you should see some major progress in a few weeks, but with some it takes much, much longer.  Much depends on where they came from (pet store pups take a notariously long time to train because they HAD to go in their crates) and what her life experiences are.  Time and patience and CONSISTENCY are key.

Congrats on your new baby!

I have read many people on here suggesting that you leash the dog to you so you can always see where he/she is and what he is doing, but also allow them to be near you and go around the house.
 
When I got Zoe, I let her anywhere in the house but if I remember correctly, she always stayed right near me anyway.