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Old 05-24-2013, 10:58 AM
 
Location: On the corner of Grey Street
6,126 posts, read 10,069,938 times
Reputation: 11796

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I am certain this has been discussed before, but I just needed to vent/rant/whatever. Last night I got on Facebook and a girl who had a baby earlier this year and is already pregnant again was posting about getting rid of her dog. I think this must be my ultimate pet peeve. I've had my dog since he was a little guy. I cannot imagine tossing him out because I had a baby. I would get a trainer, I would do whatever I had to help the dog adjust to the baby. Does having a baby really change you so much that your life long friend becomes disposable to you? I guess I could understand if the dog attacked the baby and hurt him or her, but just because you don't want to fool with the dog anymore or he's having trouble adjusting? Really?

It was all I could do not to comment with what I wrote here but I didn't see any reason to start drama. It seems like this is so common and it makes me really sad. I would never ever ever get rid of my dog. Ever. I just can't imagine that. Poor dog. I wish I could take him, but she doesn't live in my area.
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Old 05-24-2013, 11:17 AM
 
1,286 posts, read 3,468,565 times
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Sad, isn't it? Assuming she's doing so b/c she deems the dog to be a bother, I then feel most sorry for the child in all this----to be raised by such flaky individuals. If you take on a pet, it's a commitment for their entire life. Yes, it's a lot of work but it CAN be done.

My high-energy dog was 2 y.o. when we adopted our first. She (the dog) never lacked for attention and I credit her for helping me on those stressful early days. In my new life as a mom to a newborn, she was my rock (and inspiration for exercise) while hubby wasn't around. She was our first baby.
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Old 05-24-2013, 11:25 AM
 
1,696 posts, read 4,330,280 times
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Yes, it appears bringing a baby into the house is among the top 10 reasons people dump their dogs. Incredibly sad. I think people generally tend to overestimate what they can handle and underestimate the effort required for dog ownership and parenting. I also find that most couples do zero preparation when it comes to the transition of going from a dog household to a baby + dog household. My favorite resource for this topic is: Family Paws-New parent classes dog and baby One of their programs is for expectant couples to prepare themselves and their dog(s) for baby's arrival.
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Old 05-24-2013, 11:58 AM
 
Location: in a house
3,574 posts, read 14,304,026 times
Reputation: 2400
Seems as if you're making alot of assumptions, unless she actually came out and said the care was too much. Perhaps she did try a trainer. Perhaps the animal did bite/harm the child or threatened it - which would NOT be posted necessarily if she wanted to re-home the dog. Cut her some slack.
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Old 05-24-2013, 12:11 PM
 
Location: On the corner of Grey Street
6,126 posts, read 10,069,938 times
Reputation: 11796
Quote:
Originally Posted by mm_mary73 View Post
Seems as if you're making alot of assumptions, unless she actually came out and said the care was too much. Perhaps she did try a trainer. Perhaps the animal did bite/harm the child or threatened it - which would NOT be posted necessarily if she wanted to re-home the dog. Cut her some slack.
Actually there were about 25 comments discussing the dog and the reasons for getting rid of her so I'm not making any assumptions, but thanks.
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Old 05-24-2013, 12:16 PM
 
1,286 posts, read 3,468,565 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by k9coach View Post
Yes, it appears bringing a baby into the house is among the top 10 reasons people dump their dogs. Incredibly sad. I think people generally tend to overestimate what they can handle and underestimate the effort required for dog ownership and parenting. I also find that most couples do zero preparation when it comes to the transition of going from a dog household to a baby + dog household. My favorite resource for this topic is: Family Paws-New parent classes dog and baby One of their programs is for expectant couples to prepare themselves and their dog(s) for baby's arrival.
Why haven't you won money for being an informative poster?

Wonderful to know there is such a resource. Wish more people knew about that program!
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Old 05-24-2013, 12:16 PM
 
Location: Elsewhere
88,014 posts, read 83,827,560 times
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I have a coworker who had her dog put to sleep when she was having her baby. This still bothers me and I have always thought less of her because of it.

She had found the dog as a stray and kept it when she was single. The dog was not that sociable--when I first met her dog, she barked ferociously, which didn't bother me because she was a DOG, and then she sort of attempted to bite me--put her mouth on my hand, but didn't sink the teeth in. I knew she was a skittish dog and so I just let her, and she determined I wasn't a threat and that was it. My coworker then got married and her husband was OK with the dog, but then apparently when she was pregnant, she decided the dog would be a threat to the baby and she had it put to sleep. She'd had this dog for at least five years--I don't know how she did that. We at work didn't know she was planning this until she told us the week after it was done--how she and her husband bought the dog vanilla ice cream and let her eat it as a treat, and how her husband sat there with tears in his eyes watching the dog eat her ice cream--and then the next day they went to the vet and had her put down. We were speechless. She was so nonchalant about the whole thing.
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Old 05-24-2013, 12:52 PM
 
Location: On the corner of Grey Street
6,126 posts, read 10,069,938 times
Reputation: 11796
Quote:
Originally Posted by Mightyqueen801 View Post
I have a coworker who had her dog put to sleep when she was having her baby. This still bothers me and I have always thought less of her because of it.

She had found the dog as a stray and kept it when she was single. The dog was not that sociable--when I first met her dog, she barked ferociously, which didn't bother me because she was a DOG, and then she sort of attempted to bite me--put her mouth on my hand, but didn't sink the teeth in. I knew she was a skittish dog and so I just let her, and she determined I wasn't a threat and that was it. My coworker then got married and her husband was OK with the dog, but then apparently when she was pregnant, she decided the dog would be a threat to the baby and she had it put to sleep. She'd had this dog for at least five years--I don't know how she did that. We at work didn't know she was planning this until she told us the week after it was done--how she and her husband bought the dog vanilla ice cream and let her eat it as a treat, and how her husband sat there with tears in his eyes watching the dog eat her ice cream--and then the next day they went to the vet and had her put down. We were speechless. She was so nonchalant about the whole thing.
Oh wow, that is so terrible. She didn't even try to acclimate them? My dog is only 10 pounds but he doesn't like children. I think they scare him. If I ever have kids I will be preparing long before the baby ever comes to make sure he handles it okay. I could understand giving the dog away if it was vicious towards the baby, but it seems like most people just don't want to fool with having a pet anymore. I know kids are a lot of work and maybe I should keep my mouth shut since I don't know what having kids it like, but it really bothers me.
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Old 05-24-2013, 01:29 PM
 
Location: At the corner of happy and free
6,452 posts, read 6,606,689 times
Reputation: 16228
As long as the dog owner finds a good home, where it works out best for everyone, what is the problem? Sometimes pets and children aren't a good fit.

I had to get rid of a cat that I owned when I had my first baby. Something about having a baby in the house made my cat (named Angel, ironically enough) turn into a devil-cat. She became absolutely wild and vicious. One day, after bringing my son home, she wildly jumped onto my leg (I was standing up, wearing shorts) and she went absolutely crazy. She hissed and growled and bit and clawed me, and I was bleeding all over. I was completely caught off guard, but was able to pull her off my leg, and though she was then clawing at my arms, I was able to toss her outside and quickly shut the storm door (solid plexiglass). So I was inside, and she was outside, and I was standing there basically in shock, since my cat had always been very sweet until then. She saw me through the glass and came racing at me, trying to attack me again, but of course she just smacked into the glass door.
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Old 05-24-2013, 02:09 PM
 
Location: Stuck in NE GA right now
4,585 posts, read 12,327,284 times
Reputation: 6678
It's not unusual for new parents to get overwhelmed and sadly it's the pet must go and as another poster stated if they do a good job and re-home the pet it's best for everyone including the pet.
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