If the dog is unreliable in behavior, then it should be leashed or contained within a fence at all times. With the dog who bit/chased my kid/s, one of the owners claimed that the tether and e-fencing they had tried using with it in the yard made it feel ‘defensive’ - given its history as part of a fighting operation… so… the ‘solution’ was to allow it to roam freely. The police had to intervene and explain to this woman that it’s actually against code to just allow a dog to roam freely.
I just don’t understand how people can approach owning a dog with a belief that the world will have to adjust to the dog. That’s so dangerous and irresponsible. Train your animals, and contain them as appropriate.
Yes! That’s exactly it! It’s not even an attitude people take to, well, people. If your dog is so highly reactive to people and other animals who are simply going about their business (like chasing down people who happen just to be passing by your front yard), you need to seriously do some soul-searching, as well as get a chain link fence and a very stout non-retractable dog leash.
I have to commend the OP’s barn owner who was able to be honest with herself and nip a potential issue in the bud before it really got out of hand.
Yup. She apparently is putting the new dog in a training program. Which is great. Get someone qualified to work with the dog, and then make a plan for the dog that will make sure bad things don’t happen.
Maybe it just needs training and a consistent program to settle in to a new home. That’s certainly possible. But I will admit, in recent years, I’ve come across so many people with rescue dogs that are out of control… I’m wary.
Oh, the expression of amazement on the face of the volunteer trying to sign me up to support a nationally known dog charity. I said “No. I’ve just been looking at your list of dogs up for adoption and one has been unsuccessfully re-homed FOUR times before. It needs to be put down.”
And then the rescue will make a post on Facebook that just tugs at the heartstrings:
“Poor wittle Cujo has had such a hard life and dreams every night of having his own family to spend Christmas with! He was so excited when he thought he’d finally found his person, but that guy brought him back two days later for no reason whatsoever! What a heartless bastard, feel free to trash talk him in the comments so that you feel better about yourself. Cujo was broken-hearted and cried all night in his kennel. Are you a good enough person* to open your heart and give him a furever home?
*must be a home with no other dogs, no cats, and no humans under 21 or over 50. Must not live on a farm, but needs a 10,000 square foot house with a minimum 5-acre yard with solid 6’ high fencing so that he can play and exercise. Applicants must be able to spend 24/7 giving Cujo attention and therefore those who work outside the home will not be considered. Cujo is a Special Needs dog and requires medication that costs $200/week, but if you’re truly an animal lover you’ll be totally fine with that.”
That is so sad, and what an awful thing for the rescue to do, though it’s unfortunately unsurprising. I don’t understand how they could allow a dangerous animal to go with an unsuspecting person who is unaware of the animal’s disposition and feel right about doing that.
Because the dog is more valued than the human? I have friends who have been refused dogs because they work, are too old, have the wrong kind of garden, have no previous experience of dog ownership (horses don’t count for experience), all kinds of obstacles because the dog in a rescue kennel is not ‘at risk’ and therefore
is better off.
If you see my dog wearing a muzzle, you can be sure it is for her protection.
I’m constantly astounded by how many people play fast and loose with their dogs’ lives, their own financial security and the safety of the general public. Leashes and fences people. Double up if you have any questions.
The “animal lover” thing really gets to me, because a number of these “hard luck” (truly un-home-able) cases are also often animal-aggressive. I mentioned how my dog was attacked twice. I’ve often found people who are very adamant that no dog is un-rescuable will also say nasty things about small dogs, or dogs from more traditionally family-friendly breeds (who won’t fight back if attacked by another dog).
Ah yes. The dog that I mentioned that bit my child, and came from a fighting situation? No less than 4 cats have disappeared from the immediate neighbors beside this dogs home. 3 were barn cats. One’s body was found, another one left behind blood, fur and pee. This all happened while they were allowing their rescue dog to roam free, because they thought the tether and e-fence in the yard was making the dog aggressive.
The dog is now on the radar of the County Sherriff’s office. One more bite or dead animal, and it will be seized. As @Angela_Freda pointed out… if these irresponsible people hadn’t allowed their aggressive dog to roam loose, and if a child hadn’t been bitten and cats hadn’t been killed… then they wouldn’t be one more incident away from the dog being seized and euthanized. But guess what? They are mad at everyone else.
We have owned dog- and people-aggressive dogs before. We structured their (and our) lives so that we could avoid triggering that behavior. This was a choice we made and we were always very very careful to keep them safe, and everyone else safe. I don’t think people understand how stressful it is for animals that are unable to live normally in society to be put in those situations. And each incident only makes it more likely that it will occur again, and it will be worse. We took on a young St. Bernard who was a product of inbreeding and of severe malnutrition while he was a puppy who was afraid of everything and everyone, and his reaction as he matured was to attack. Luckily we realized what was happening before he seriously injured someone but he was a big Saint and the dangers were very clear to us! We worked with U Penn’s Behavioral Clinic to figure out how to manage him and did that successfully so he was able to live a good life for several years. Eventually, his anxiety got to be unmanageable and we made the choice to put him to sleep. We loved that dog, but he was no longer safe, even with his carefully-engineered environment.
I tell this story not because I think all dog owners should be prepared to go to those lengths, because most aren’t and there is no reason they should be. I tell it because if you take on a dog who turns out to be aggressive it is entirely on your shoulders to deal with it in a way that keeps the dog, you, and everyone else safe. If that way is euthanasia, well, there are a lot worse things than a kind, peaceful death.
After having four aggressive dogs over the years, although they were all much-loved, we decided to take a break and now we have three adopted dogs who are safe in public, like other dogs, don’t have food aggression or space aggression, don’t get stressed out and need to be locked in a room when people come over (with a sign saying: DON’T OPEN DOOR! CUJO INSIDE!), and like children. People who don’t take responsibility for their problem dogs are harming the dogs along with everyone else.
I honestly think part of the problem–all of the problem-- is that people view dogs mostly as some accessory. There s just a huge ‘dog culture’ where: A) people think it’s okay to bring their dogs everywhere, B) you’re the a-hole if you don’t let them jump on you to ‘greet you’ , c) if you don’t like dogs you’re not a person to be trusted, which makes absolutely no sense given the reality of the situation–also for those who might’ve had bad experiences with them.
It’s absolutely bizarre, and seems more like a western world phenomena. Given the above, not a lot of people speak out when it comes to untrained dogs and their behaviors because the owners expect you to tolerate it (to be frank, it’s something that’s quite Narcissistic. Their dogs are an extension of themselves. If you criticize the dog, you offend the owner somehow. Vice versa. It’s very weird to me personally, and is overly prevalent). Anyone who is anyone can buy a dog (or a breed) that they don’t need/cannot adequately control. The more you see it, the harder it is to ignore.
That said, thank you to those who actually spend lots of time training and understanding dog/canine behavior. There is a big difference in those who have dogs as accessories and those who actually put in the work to train the animals.
Absolutely, I would call it a dependacy though. People love to feel important to somebody/something. Just like the owner of the previous barn we were at - old, childless person, whose family had cut ties with, and who had rescued a super aggressive dog, acted offended when we complained about his attacks and turned a blind eye on animal control’s visits (there were 3 separate calls, none of which was from us). Anyway, it’s their financial loss of business and eventually they’re going to loose this dog to animal control if more complaints are raised.
Yeah, I’ve experienced this, and sometimes it’s very clearly someone working out their feelings about being rejected using the dog.
[Loose dog lunges, barking at me. I back away.]
Owner: You’re just scared and don’t like my dog because she’s [insert breed of dog].
Me: No, no, I’m just nervous! Ha, ha! [Trying to be nice.]
Owner: You can’t show fear! [Dog continues to bark, lunge.] If you show fear, she thinks you’re dangerous, but if you relax, she’ll be friendly. I know my dog.
Me: [Totally not relaxed now].
Owner: I can’t trust you with my dog! Don’t be so scared! If you just relax, she won’t hurt you. I can’t trust you, because if she bites, they’ll take her away.
Me: [So extremely not relaxed].
The owner is kind of demanding that you like/trust the dog, despite the dog giving every signal NOT to trust the dog, and the dog wants you to GET the F-away. That’s a hard ask!
Oh the hypocracy! In their delusional heads, it’s somehow always YOU causing the problem and never their über aggressive dog. They can truly never grasp the issue and it’s best to just back off. Justice will be served one way or another.
‘Western world phenomena’ meaning it seems like a very American thing- to have dogs and not put the effort in training them.
Though ill behaved/not properly trained dogs is worldwide truth be told. Heck, India is dealing with a horrific stray dog problem that they cannot control–nor the diseases that comes with it. Yet people will still feed the strays. At the determent and health of others. I guess my point there being it really is the same mentality in these types of people. Their enjoyment of dogs can be–and often is–at the expense of others. Don’t dare tell them that though.
This is uncomfortably close to a lot of real posts I’ve seen I won’t even deal with private rescues or urban/close-in suburban county shelters anymore. So many examples of policies that don’t serve the animals. One that really bugged me: Iirc, it was a private rescue doing a joint foster with Fairfax Co. A middle-aged Great Pyrenees that was a trained LGT from a sheep & goat farm & had lived his entire life to that point outside with “his” herd. Of course, potential fosters had to have a fenced in yard & the dog must be kept inside. Fortunately, a bunch of western LoCo residents jumped in to ask them what they were smoking & an LGD experienced foster/adopter secured. Whatever happened to common sense? I see it as even worse than that. They’re insulting a highly intelligent, sentient being. You can’t take a dog that has been trained to be an independent decision maker & relied upon to exercise it’s judgement totally outside all human input & tell it “Now you live in a house 24/7 & have to ask the humans to let you pee.”
A few years ago, we were looking to adopt a dog. We visited a private, non-profit rescue just over the state line that people always recommended on social media. It was a Saturday, there was a Girl Scout troop there on a field trip, and a volunteer manning the desk who was clearly not equipped to deal with the activity level. Turns out they don’t allow you to look at animals unless you fill out an application. Then, they only allow you to look at animals that the staff member deems suitable., Literally. I got scolded by the anti-social volunteer for turning my head to look in the direction of another kennel. She then declared that we could sit in a private room with the dog she chose for us – a Lab mix – cough, cough, APT. I actually quite like the bully breeds. My farm insurance policy does not. It was a sweet dog, but jumped up & pawed at you, the one behavior I explicitly said was a deal breaker. My younger daughter was maybe 7 at the time & jumpy dogs made her nervous. And being an APT, this dog was a tank. A sweet tank, but a tank nevertheless. We walked. The dumbest part was that we have giant breed experience. Our mastiff weighed 265 lbs & stood nearly 36" at the shoulder. We know how to handle them, are well-aware of the extra costs involved, & are well-versed in the medical issues specific to giant breeds. We WANT a dog the size of a mini horse yearling! That’s what we like! Yet, this rescue (or at least this individual respresentative) told me we were ineligible for large breed dogs because of my (giant breed savvy) elementary-aged kids.
This rescue has a very new facility several times the size of the government-funded shelters in the surrounding counties. We’d gone up there to look because our tiny, “evil” county shelter (they kill animals!) had next to no dogs. They had next to no dogs because they were good at matching them to adopters. The few they had were dogs with a history of problematic behavior. Every now & again they found the needle-in-a-haystack family one of these dogs needed. Otherwise, barring serious human aggression issues, those dogs lived a fairly pleasant life at the shelter, warm with a comfy bed, a full belly, and staff that really cared. You were welcomed to come sit in the cat room (dangerous, we ended up with 3 of our cats that way!) or borrow a dog to take on a walk in the adjacent county park. By contrast, this private facility was completely full all of the time and there were never dogs outside that I could see.
Ok. Rant over. I realize that liability is a very real concern, and they want to make sure they’re not adopting animals out to psychos. The pendulum has swung too far in the opposite direction & the needs of the animals are no longer prioritized, imo. And some rescues smell too much like a front for hoarding or profiting off something that is supposed to be non-profit.
@Equestrian24, thanks for asking! She had to go to the ER & ended up with multiple stitches, but fortunately, my mom was ok. She still likes dogs, which I find pretty amazing. And she & our mastiff had a really special relationship. He was the gentlest soul & she doted on him. She did have orthopedic issues for a while from soft tissue damage. And she still has visible scars on her forearm. I’m 46 now, & it happened when I was 8. Really puts into perspective how much risk people take letting unpredictable dogs run around loose.
People who don’t take responsibility for their problem dogs are harming the dogs along with everyone else.
I won’t even deal with private rescues or urban/close-in suburban county shelters anymore. So many examples of policies that don’t serve the animals. One that really bugged me: Iirc, it was a private rescue doing a joint foster with Fairfax Co. A middle-aged Great Pyrenees that was a trained LGT from a sheep & goat farm & had lived his entire life to that point outside with “his” herd. Of course, potential fosters had to have a fenced in yard & the dog must be kept inside. Fortunately, a bunch of western LoCo residents jumped in to ask them what they were smoking & an LGD experienced foster/adopter secured. Whatever happened to common sense? I see it as even worse than that. They’re insulting a highly intelligent, sentient being. You can’t take a dog that has been trained to be an independent decision maker & relied upon to exercise it’s judgement totally outside all human input & tell it “Now you live in a house 24/7 & have to ask the humans to let you pee.”
