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In general I think rescue groups do a fantastic job with a chronic shortage of funds and thanks.But sometimes I wonder what they are thinking.
We had a long history of owning Boxers. At some point we began adopting from a Boxer rescue group. We successfully brought 2 different senior (not at the same time) Boxers into our family. We volunteered with the group, donated generously, went to the dog training classes they had. The 3rd dog we adopted was a problem once we got her home. She was aggressive with people and other dogs. We went to training but had multiple frightening incidents. Things came to a head one weekend when our son and pregnant daughter-in-law visited. The dog tried to attack him several times. D-i-l was shocked (we all were) and scared. We asked the group to house the dog for the weekend until we could determine the right thing to do.
They turned on us, reclaiming the dog, saying we over-reacted. In their next newsletter they trashed us as failures and listed this aggressive dog as up for adoption again, literally saying they wanted no more over-protective grandparents adopting dogs. To this day I wonder how many animals and people that dog attacked.
The vast majority of rescue group people are incredible, but a few are unable to accept that not every dog is adoptable to people that live around other homes. They blamed us when all we were asking was some time and advice.
P.S. we retired, moved, got acquainted with the local Boxer rescue and found another dog to join our family. He had a great, long life with us and left many friends, human and canine, behind.
P.P. S. If this belongs in a different discussion, please move.
I'm surprised you didn't have the dog destroyed. I would have. Not every dog is save-able and there are certain transgressions that can't be tolerated, period. And while many claim "It's not the dog's fault," and likely it isn't, I don't see what that has to do with anything. A dog that's unpredictably human-aggressive really ought to be euthanized.
In general I think rescue groups do a fantastic job with a chronic shortage of funds and thanks.But sometimes I wonder what they are thinking.
We had a long history of owning Boxers. At some point we began adopting from a Boxer rescue group. We successfully brought 2 different senior (not at the same time) Boxers into our family. We volunteered with the group, donated generously, went to the dog training classes they had. The 3rd dog we adopted was a problem once we got her home. She was aggressive with people and other dogs. We went to training but had multiple frightening incidents. Things came to a head one weekend when our son and pregnant daughter-in-law visited. The dog tried to attack him several times. D-i-l was shocked (we all were) and scared. We asked the group to house the dog for the weekend until we could determine the right thing to do.
They turned on us, reclaiming the dog, saying we over-reacted. In their next newsletter they trashed us as failures and listed this aggressive dog as up for adoption again, literally saying they wanted no more over-protective grandparents adopting dogs. To this day I wonder how many animals and people that dog attacked.
The vast majority of rescue group people are incredible, but a few are unable to accept that not every dog is adoptable to people that live around other homes. They blamed us when all we were asking was some time and advice.
P.S. we retired, moved, got acquainted with the local Boxer rescue and found another dog to join our family. He had a great, long life with us and left many friends, human and canine, behind.
P.P. S. If this belongs in a different discussion, please move.
See, this is exactly why I won't get involved with breed-specific rescues. I do not know what it is, but anecdotally all the true horror stories I have heard about rescues have been about breed-specific rescues. A friend stopped fostering for one such rescue after they insisted it was safe to rehome a clearly aggressive dog she was fostering. I mean, this friend had fostered something like 100 dogs and her opinion on whether a dog should be put down or not should have been given some weight.
Other such rescues I've encountered have exceptionally rigid rules based on generalizations about the breed in question rather than going with what is best for the dog. The one I volunteer for now has nothing set in stone, and it is all about the individual dogs' personalities and needs. I love that about them. They don't require that every home have a fenced yard or uniformly exclude people in apartments or families with children of a certain age.
I'm surprised you didn't have the dog destroyed. I would have. Not every dog is save-able and there are certain transgressions that can't be tolerated, period. And while many claim "It's not the dog's fault," and likely it isn't, I don't see what that has to do with anything. A dog that's unpredictably human-aggressive really ought to be euthanized.
The rescue likely had them sign paperwork that could have led to legal action if they put the dog down on their own.
With all these rigid rules of rescues, where should an inexperience/first time dog owner go to adopt a dog? Yes, we can go to a pound/shelter but then run the risk of adopting a dog with major behavior issues (that are not known to the shelter as the behavior can be suppressed in a shelter environment).
With all these rigid rules of rescues, where should an inexperience/first time dog owner go to adopt a dog? Yes, we can go to a pound/shelter but then run the risk of adopting a dog with major behavior issues (that are not known to the shelter as the behavior can be suppressed in a shelter environment).
Even from a rescue, you are taking your chances. Second hand dogs almost inevitably have had a bad start in life. Perfectly raised dogs don't end up on rescue very often.
Rescues have to use volunteers to foster and maybe all of those volunteers aren't experts, or may a volunteer hides a problem because they want a dog to get a home. Or maybe the volunteer is an expert dog trainer and any dog will behave perfectly for them, but not for a person who doesn't know how to train.
When you are a first time dog owner, be prepared to study and train and to put up with dog nonsense,. It comes with owning a dog.
If you buy a puppy from the very best breeder in the country, that puppy comes complete with a bunch of puppy nonsense and puppy destruction. Be prepared for it.
If you take a dog from the dog pound, or out of a cardboard box in front of the grocery store, that dog is going to need training in order to fit it into your household. Be prepared for it.
If you get a dog from a really good rescue, that dog has been fitted into the foster's home, not to yours. You must train that dog how to fit into your household. Be prepared for it.
Most of the dogs in the pound are great dogs who have not been taught any manners. Be prepared to take that dog and train and explain to the dog how to behave in your house. Dogs want to please, but you have to explain in a way that they can understand, just what they need to do to earn your approval. If you can explain it to them, they will try to do it.
With all these rigid rules of rescues, where should an inexperience/first time dog owner go to adopt a dog? Yes, we can go to a pound/shelter but then run the risk of adopting a dog with major behavior issues (that are not known to the shelter as the behavior can be suppressed in a shelter environment).
I am a first-time dog owner that adopted through a rescue. It's not necessarily a mark against you; they just want you to know what you're getting into. Dog ownership is work. As long as you understand that (and can convey that to a rescue) it's fine.
Even from a rescue, you are taking your chances. Second hand dogs almost inevitably have had a bad start in life. Perfectly raised dogs don't end up on rescue very often.
You're correct, but I'd say IME 50% of them are dogs that are simply "too much" in one way or another. Meaning you aren't always dealing with baggage. A GSP that was way too hyper often isn't a dog that has issues you have to watch out for (other than excercising it til your feet are bloody, so the dog will lay down for a nap.)
Quote:
Originally Posted by oregonwoodsmoke
Most of the dogs in the pound are great dogs who have not been taught any manners. Be prepared to take that dog and train and explain to the dog how to behave in your house. Dogs want to please, but you have to explain in a way that they can understand, just what they need to do to earn your approval. If you can explain it to them, they will try to do it.
I see that a LOT, dogs that need manners and often those that need a bit of a firm hand in teaching them. The way I explain it is that they're like kids. Some will thrive in a self-directed, montessori school. Some kids do better being taught in a structured "Catholic School" environment taught by nuns. Same with dogs; some can shut down with a little pressure but others thrive with a bit more of it and require it.
The rescue likely had them sign paperwork that could have led to legal action if they put the dog down on their own.
1) What would they do about it? If they sued, what damages could they prove?
2) How would they know why it was put down? Bites or Brain Tumors or Bloat...
Breed rescues often fail to become stewards of the breed. Part of stewardship means eliminating truly rotten apples (not the apples that are a bit warty or scarred.)
The rescue likely had them sign paperwork that could have led to legal action if they put the dog down on their own.
It was over 15 years ago but I know there was a contract and these incidents happened within 2 months of adoption. To be precise, she attacked but I got hold of her before she actually bit. But the growling, baring of teeth and running towards her target looked like she was attacking. Privately, another group foster mom told me she had the look and behaviors of a puppy mill dog. I’m not experienced with that, but maybe her brain wasn’t wired right. We probably would’ve had her put down after a weekend to think about it, but the rescue group took it out of our hands when we just asked them to board her a couple days and then we’d discuss. They immediately put her up on their website for adoption despite knowing about the behavior.
What worked against us (I think) was that we lived in an apartment and didn't have a fenced in yard. I was a cat person but my husband had owned dogs since he was a kid. He even used to train dogs, the police used to find lost dogs and bring them to him, etc. He was a real dog lover.
But they wouldn't let us adopt a dog no matter where we went! Finally got a cute one on CL who was ten at the time and he lived long enough to have his own fenced in yard and enjoyed five mile walks before that when we still lived in the apartment.
Broken hearted when that little one finally passed and we wanted another dog right away. Because of the negative treatment we had received at the dog rescues, we went directly back to CL. Got a rescue but he came from a dog sitter who saw that he was being abused. (I had forwarded the email from first doggie's former owner praising us for being the best "parents" her dog could ever have had and how lucky she was to have found us when she had to give up her beloved dog.)
I appreciate the work the rescues do and I definitely do not want to see people adopting a dog just to create a puppy mill or to sell it for medical experiments or to mistreat it in anyway. But to deny a dog to a lifelong dog owner just due to the lack of a fenced in yard is cruel to both the dog and the potential owner.
I think there is age discrimination too and I hope they will be more open about that. I now live in an age restricted apartment and lots of people here have dogs. The dogs are good company and they keep the older people out and walking. The older people dote on the dogs and are home a lot so the dogs are not alone.
I would hate to see a dog abused and I do not like it when people don't train their dogs. Also dislike people feeding their dogs junk food or making them overweight. But many breeds of dog can live happily while enjoying walks instead of a fenced in yard and many smaller dogs can live with an elderly person and enjoy daily walks. Hopefully, the rescues can straighten out their rules.
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