a query on dog descriptions (seeking homes)

[Scottsmum]

1 minute ago, showdog said:

I have seen numerous like that from rescue groups and I think it's scary .

One I read even statedhuman aggression issues that requiredon going support and a home that didn't have visitors .

Questions the liability factor 

That's beyond scary Showdog!

 

You really wonder sometimes. 

[Simply Grand]

It is better that they admit the issues than deny there is any problem (and imply that the carer is crazy and making it all up, like a certain rescue group I know). I wonder what kind of response they get to ads like that, maybe they do draw out people that want a project dog. The problem is if they get people who think the poor dog just needs love and stability and all the problems will go away. You'd hope they vet applicants very carefully for dogs like that.

 

As far as if they should be rehomed, I think any responsible rescue organisation should have checks and balances in place for situations like this. So behavior-wise they should be looking at things like -

 

Is a dog aggressive as in it will fight other dogs or aggressive as in it will try and kill other dogs? Plenty of dogs will fight and make lots of noise but it isn't actually that common for a dog to seriously attempt to kill another dog, especially without provocation. (This was a big one for me with my foster Molly - she had a laundry list of issues but the absolute black and white one for me was that I could not rehome a dog that I knew without a doubt would kill another dog).

 

Is it aggressive in groups of dogs or with dogs in its face, or will it drag someone across the street to get at another dog that's minding its own business?

 

How possible is it to safely contain the dog? Will it jump or climb fences or smash a window to get out, or is it containable without extreme measures? It's all well and good to say a home with no visitors but if the dog is a determined escape artist then the community is at risk every day.

 

Is the dog's behaviour improving with work? If the dog has been in foster care and is responding to behaviour modification then you're giving an adoptive owner something to work with but if the dog's behaviour hasn't changed with extensive work then you're saying here is a problem you have to manage very carefully for the rest of its life with no improvement likely.

 

Then you have to consider the dog's welfare - 

 

If the dog is going to have to live in a secure run to contain it safely is it going to cope with that? Many dogs don't and will either injure themselves trying to get out or shut down and spend the whole time they are in the run lying still in a corner.

 

If it's too dangerous or stressful to take the dog out in public is the dog going to be happy just being at home? One of the many issues with Molly was that she was a young, active, intelligent dog who got bored at home no matter how much enrichment we did, she wanted to go out and sniff and explore and run but she also spent much of the time we were out in a state of anxiety.

 

A territorially aggressive dog might make a good guard dog, in that it would attack intruders, but would it enjoy that role, or would it be stressed all the time?

 

I'm sure I'm not saying anything that isn't common sense to most of us and yet there are so many out there that do think they can all be saved and because there are really no rules around running a rescue group anyone can set one up and send these dogs off to people, sometimes without those running the group and making decisions for the dogs even MEETING THEM, let alone assessing them properly, so at least those that identify the issues are doing that much.

 

 

Edited May 8, 2017 by Simply Grand

[Scottsmum]

And of course - how do you really navigate a whole life with no access to other dogs?  Makes things like trips to the vet tricky.  No clue as to the size @persephone - I'm imagining large in my mind.

[gillybob]

This is a constant problem on sell,swap and buy up here.

A while ago a women advertised a dog aggressive wolfhound cross, that was good with her kids but hated other dogs! She had allowed her under five children to play with it!

I suggest that it might not be a good idea to rehome an aggressive dog.

I was sworn at and abused, but suggested again if nothing else it could be a legal problem for them if it hurts another dog or person.

[persephone]

25 minutes ago, Scottsmum said:

And of course - how do you really navigate a whole life with no access to other dogs?  Makes things like trips to the vet tricky.  No clue as to the size @persephone - I'm imagining large in my mind.

certainly wasn't small   Honestly, I read it twice , cos I couldn't believe the description/cautions .  

 

[persephone]

2 minutes ago, gillybob said:

This is a constant problem on sell,swap and buy up here.

A while ago a women advertised a dog aggressive wolfhound cross, that was good with her kids but hated other dogs! She had allowed her under five children to play with it!

I suggest that it might not be a good idea to rehome an aggressive dog.

I was sworn at and abused, but suggested again if nothing else it could be a legal problem for them if it hurts another dog or person.

What a shame , a dog so tolerant of kids ...

[Rascalmyshadow]

24 minutes ago, gillybob said:

This is a constant problem on sell,swap and buy up here.

A while ago a women advertised a dog aggressive wolfhound cross, that was good with her kids but hated other dogs! She had allowed her under five children to play with it!

I suggest that it might not be a good idea to rehome an aggressive dog.

I was sworn at and abused, but suggested again if nothing else it could be a legal problem for them if it hurts another dog or person.

While I agree this dog could be a liability being seriously dog aggressive doesn't mean it wasn't safe with her kids. Our old standard poodle girl was dangerous with strangers, would go other dogs outside of her pack and would chase/kill small animals (the reason we ended up having her PTS) however she was bombproof with my kids.

[melzawelza]

21 hours ago, Rascalmyshadow said:

While I agree this dog could be a liability being seriously dog aggressive doesn't mean it wasn't safe with her kids. Our old standard poodle girl was dangerous with strangers, would go other dogs outside of her pack and would chase/kill small animals (the reason we ended up having her PTS) however she was bombproof with my kids.

And dog aggression and human aggression are completely different things. Plenty of dogs out there that absolutely hate other dogs but are bombproof with people and kids.