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Pit Bulls

They are being very transparent. The new listing for her says no kids, no cats or other dogs. The shelter manager won’t take her back to her home because she has quite a few other pets. I feel bad for the dog; it isn’t her fault and I am sure all this moving from home to home is terrifying to her but I think that is the only way to ensure the safety of other pets and make sure she never gets a record of biting.

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I do think a lot of that is just that fewer people have dogs that end up having puppies accidentally today than before. Today I think if you want a small, easy-going dog, you probably are going to have to end up seeking out a breeder of purebred dogs.

As far as off-leash dogs, I totally agree. A lot of people are really laid back about it, and honestly it’s irritating. I’ve got a new neighbor with a little dog. He’s always out in the road. I tried to catch him once and found out that Chuck is not friendly lol. I worry about him getting hit by a car, but he also challenges my big dogs when I’m walking with them on leash. That isn’t good for any of the training I’ve done with them, so I often have to turn back and change my whole walk pattern because they can’t be bothered to not let him out the front door and to contain him in their yard. He’s little and I’m certainly not afraid of him injuring my dogs, but I still find it highly irritating. I’ve worked with my dogs to focus on me, not on strangers and not on other dogs. I don’t really understand the fascination with letting all dogs interact together and “petting all the dogs” rather than just teaching them to ignore things other than the handler. IMO it would prevent a lot of incidents.

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Well this is really going south for my friend. We went to two other rescues yesterday (Monday) to find another dog. The first one had a darling little puppy that was kind of shy. We both loved her but we already had the appointment for the second rescue. He told the owner he would think about it and explained why. She said there was no pressure and we went from there to second rescue. Didn’t bond with that one as strongly so he then DM’ed first rescue back, saying he would like to adopt the puppy. They read the DM immediately but did not respond. They finally responded Tuesday morning telling him they had an application come in for her and the person was coming WEDNESDAY to see her so they were going to hold her for this person who hasn’t even seen her yet. I would totally understand if someone came in Monday and took her but to hold her for 48 hours when there is another approved adopter who wants her is absurd.

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Or, they don’t think he is the right person for the dog and are waiting to see if they get a better match in the next prospective home. With any luck, the rescue is actually being selective to what kind of home each dog goes to - especially a shy puppy.

Just because he wants the puppy doesn’t mean he should have the puppy. Was he even looking for a puppy?

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No, they told him he could have her if the other person turned her down. It had nothing to do with what kind of home the other person was going to provide. They wanted him to take her on the spot. Apparently it was a strike against him because he took a couple of hours to think it over. She had told us a very similar story while we were there but in that situation, the adopter was in route when the first person called to say he wanted the dog. And in that case, yes, I get it.

Really? Did they check references, etc. before he got there? Most rescues don’t turn things around that quickly, at least none that I’ve ever heard about. The dogs are in foster care so they are not in danger; no need to rush.

They are getting a ton of puppies in right now so they are moving them fast. They approved him in about 15 minutes but I thought that was because they had a friend in common. They emailed him today saying when he walked out the door he lost his spot, even though she had said (while we were there) he didn’t have to rush. They then told him they didn’t hold dogs, even though they are currently holding her for someone tomorrow. The whole thing is just a bunch of miscommunication I guess. We talked to the owner yesterday and the employee is communicating with him today so I could see where the owner wouldn’t want to undermine the employee’s decision. Still frustrating.

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The no kill shelter local to me has a reputation for this kind of thing. I imagine it can be very frustrating for a person hoping to make an informed selection on a dog.

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Miscommunication my foot. I call BS on them. And they wonder why people get frustrated with rescues and their adoption procedures.

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Speaking from the the POV of someone who doesn’t like cats… I agree with you 100%. It’s not fair to put the cats in that situation and have them fearing for their lives every minute of every day.

Our local rescue also won’t label any breed which I think is a terrible practice. Just be transparent.

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Doesn’t this guy have an old cat? I have a cat that is 20, no way in hell would I put my old cat through the nightmare of getting another dog, especially a puppy.

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My sister ran a Petsmart rescue for 20+ years and that is exactly what she said. Not much to do but move forward. We are going back to the rescue that had the first shy dog this weekend. She has an adult that is cat friendly now. Hopefully that one will work out.

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That right there is a huge issue where we live. Three years ago, two pits mauled a heifer by wiggling through the barbed wire and attacking her repeatedly. The bull tried to fend them off, but he has attacked as well. The heifer was put down. The owner hid the dogs in the woods and then fled to another area in town when AC came back with the cops (neighbors tipped them off about the dogs in the woods).

Fast forward to last year and our across the road neighbors decided on getting a puppy. They’ve never had a dog before. The boyfriend is very macho and concerned about apprearing tough and manly. Guess what they found in front of the grocery store for $50? Yes! A female pit puppy. Now, we have very solid fencing and our dogs can safely roam our farm without fear of neighbor dogs getting in and chasing livestock. The neighbor with the pit didn’t want a fence. Their dog was hard to keep in their yard (duh). They thought that another dog would help keep the now grown puppy at home. So, guess what they did? They got another two year old female Pit from the pound that has aggression issues. They continually yell at their dogs when they run off their property. We scurry into our gate as quick as we can when our dogs are out. We have a dirt road, so little chance of their dogs getting hit, but I really hate worrying about the barn cats and going in and out of our gate. It’s hot now, so our dogs are in most of the time.

I really wish they would stop being so dang cheap and buy fencing. I’m waiting for an incident, but happy it probably won’t involve our dogs.

The county is passing an beefed up aggressive dog ordinance. Oh boy. I like our neighbors, but this is a perfect example of a shelter not screening and not using their brains when finding suitable homes. Did they even ask if they had a fenced yard?

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Loose dogs are a safety hazard. Full stop.

Hopefully your fence holds! Constant Vigilance :grin:

I also have some dog yelling at neighbors. Milo evidently wanders off every day. Not sure what Milo looks like; he doesn’t come here. He goes down “their” road and bothers the hound dogs that another neighbor has it sounds like.

At least I presume Milo is a dog. Could be a kid or a cat I guess.

I suppose folks could misrepresent the status of their fence.

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Potential pitbull owners should read dogsbite.org

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Please no more anti-pitbull RHETORIC. Not all pitbulls are bad, like any dog they start off fine but the idiot owners make them what they are. And yes I know about pitbulls so spare me a lecture. I worked in ERs for over 20 years and have to tell you that every. single. dog bite that came in - most were Chihuahuas, the rest other toy breeds and one German shorthair dog that was a hunting dog - the owner had specifically told his children and wife not to go near the dog as it did not like them (it was even kept in a locked kennel and run) but wifey insisted on having children try to feed and play with dog who finally bit one. No pitbulls. Sorry.

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I just talked with my friend who runs a senior dog/cat rescue. Apparently her contacts in the rescue world say dogs adopted during the pandemic are flooding back into shelters now that adults and kids are heading back to work and school. The dogs are showing separation anxiety behaviors that the adopters don’t know how to deal with (or don’t want to bother with). I guess now we’ll have a wave of pups in shelters that will need significant rehab work in their new homes. So sad.

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This is patently false and not just for pitties. All dogs don’t start off on the same level playing field - breeding matters. Lines carry different traits and that’s true whether you’re talking bred-for-purpose dogs or oops dogs. No one says “all pitties are bad”, we just acknowledge the two facts of “pitties are not appropriate for every home” and “some pitties are bad”.

All the great experiences in the world won’t completely override breeding & instinct. Pretending you can just love any dog into being a perfect pet for any home doesn’t help anyone.

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Of course they are, not surprised at all. Lots of 6 month to 1 year old dogs being given away on my local moms groups. Can’t handle dog, kids, and going back to work.

As usual for this time of year, local shelters are slam full of half grown pit cross pups with the odd hound/collie/shepherd mix thrown in.

God forbid anyone ask for recommendations for breeders / leads on a specific breed of dog. Great way to get roasted for not adopting one of said half grown pit pups.

I don’t think pits are inherently more dangerous than other breeds of dogs, but I do think it’s ridiculous to criticize folks for wanting another type of dog. Or gasp a puppy with a known health history and pedigree

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