Six days until Bloggin' the Square '08
my friend has to move this week and has to get rid of her rottie he is about 4 years old. Do you have any suggestions? Her last ditch plan is to take him to the pound tomorrow Monday? It never hurts to ask, her number is [I-really-should-leave-this-in-but-I-won't]. Thanks for your time.
Now I'm not ticked off because this is a dating site, not a rescue referral site. I'll go to the mat for a dog just about anytime, anywhere. But seriously, what the hell did you think I could accomplish in less than 24 hours?? I cannot begin to list all the things wrong with this. Greenville, you can't really have thought I could save this dog with that kind of time constraint could you?
First of all, I only do referral work now -- and not much of that. Mainly for the safety and well-being of people like your friend. Far too many idiotic humans came far too close to being bitch slapped far too hard when I was a full-on active volunteer. No humans were actually harmed in the making of that movie, but it was a very near thing.
Second, the "I'm-moving-and-can't-take-my-dog" excuse for giving up your pet is b*llsh*t. Even if you've been evicted, you have to be given notice -- at least 30 days, and more in some states/localities. Here's a suggestion: move somewhere your dog can live too!. With a Rottie, that's not always so easy. Because other stupid humans like you have given them a reputation for being a "bad" breed. But reputation notwithstanding, there are apartment communities and landlords that don't discriminate against them.
More likely, Greenville's friend found herself faced with more torque and horsepower than she could handle. Which is why one of my very favorite rants is "research the breed before you get the dog!". I love me some Rottweilers. They're beautiful, they're keenly intelligent, they're clean and they're loyal to a fault.
But I do not have one.
The reason I do not have one is that my current living situation and lifestyle are completely wrong for that breed. This is a working dog, and I don't really have a job for him to do. This is the same reason I don't have a German Shepherd Dog, Siberian Husky, Alaskan Malamute, or any of the other big, powerful, majestic dogs I love so much. It's the reason I don't have a Border Collie or Australian Shepherd. These are dogs that need a job to do. And if you don't give them one, they're going to find one for themselves. And the chances are extremely good that you will not like the job they pick.
Working breeds are a joy for those who have the time and the energy available to keep them employed, and for those who are assertive enough to be in charge. Think what you want, but in a relationship with a Rottweiler, one of you is going to be in charge. And if you're not willing or able to be the one, the dog will take th ejob from you. And that can't happen. Ever. Because then you have 100+ pounds of muscle and teeth run amok, and you've just made it incrementally harder on the responsible Rottie parents by virtue of your stupidity.
I've heard just about every excuse there is for giving up a dog. And there are one or two circumstances where even I would concede that there's no other viable option. But it pisses me off to no end when a little bit of research up front could have prevented the situation. Working breeds in general -- and Rottweilers in particular -- are the wrong dog for a lot more people than they're right for. I can't count the dogs that I've seen that were adopted or bought by people for the wrong reasons, with little or no forethought and were either trained inappropriately or -- more often -- never trained at all. These are the dogs that came to the rescue I worked with. These were the dogs on death row in the county shelters.
And Greenville's friend's dog is in all likelihood going to die in the Pitt County Animal Shelter, and I have to accept that there's not a damn thing I can do to change that.
Which makes me one very angry, very frustrated white boy today.Stumble This!
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6 comments:
Amen! Amen! Amen!
Far too many people treat animals like accessories and then want to trade them in when they get tired of the fashion. Idiots!
As for bitch slapping some humans - it's a wonder I haven't been arrested. One of my favorite examples of how disgusting a human can be in regard to an animal is ...
A cousin through marriage - thank goodness we don't share DNA - had the sweetest maltese. the dog wasn't very well behaved because as usual they didn't take the time to train him. but they did appear to love him, sometimes even spoil him.
fast forward 3 years - yes 3 years!! they move to a fancy schmancy house and they decide their new furniture and their expensive rugs can't be put at risk by their dog. only by accident did I hear they were simply going to drop him at a shelter they knew nothing about.
I went there, took him, gave her a piece of my mind and as I left I "accidentally" knocked over a hug potted plant. oh the horror! dirt on white carpet!!
I kept him in my bathroom for days - I had a tiny apt. and 2 cats. I even slept in there with him the first night, he was crying. I found him a good home and he lived happily ever after!
Wow - a very long comment but this just sets my blood boiling!
You're a good man, Charlie Brown.
No, seriously.
I'm sorry you're left to deal with this. Really sorry.
jc
I agree that people need to think before they get a big dog. Or any kind of a pet. I'm furious every day at the office when my co worker comes back from lunch 10 minutes late because she had to run home to let her dog out.
She was raped a few years ago and her fear caused her to go out and get a puppy from the pound instead of investing in security for her apartment and herself. The puppy was 4 months old and 70 lbs. He's part Pit and part Retriever. Beautiful dog but he doesn't belong in a studio apartment.
She goes home at lunch because if she doesn't, he tears up everything in her apt, and barks so loud the neighbors complain. The dog so obviously does not belong there nor does he belong with her. It sickens me daily.
So I know where you're coming from. *HUGS* to you today, Mojo!
First, I'm looking forward to Blogging the Square, yo. Nice art!
Second, you're totally spot-on (get it?) on the dog thing (dogs are commonly named spot, so... um, nevermind).
My last dog, which sadly I had to leave with the ex, was a beautiful rescue mutt. Part lab, part sneaky neighbor dog, she was left with her mom and sister when their former owners moved. Puppies, a week old, abandoned. Some people need their breathing privilege revoked.
I'm currently the surrogate adopted dad of an Australian Shepherd, and you're right about her needing a job to do. I put her to work fetching tennis balls a few times a day, and she wags her little stub like mad. When I'm not working her, the cat teases her from the cupboards.
You sure have to know what you're in for, and realize that not only are you goign to have to change your LIFE for a dog, you're going to have to change who you ARE if that dog is to be a happy one.
There is a family right up the street from us who keeps their little girl on a chain in the yard. She cries whenever she seems someone, and I'm THISCLOSE to liberating her to my house some soon dark night.
Thanks for posting this.
The point is not so much about you changing your life for your dog -- though you're right, it absolutely will require some changes. The point is more to get the dog that best fits you and your life. "Different breeds for different needs" isn't just a bumper sticker. It's an unalienable truth when considering getting a dog. (Or any pet actually, but dogs I know something about.) Know what you're getting yourself into before you bring home an animal. And be sure you're capable -- and willing -- to make a 12- or 13-year commitment to maintaining that dog. You'll get back much more than you invest if you just inform yourself up front.
And there have been more than a few dogs I've wanted to "liberate" (and more than a few people I wanted to put a beat-down on) for the very reason you're talking about.
That's why I had to get out of full-on rescue. Somebody somewhere would most surely have been severely kilt if I'd stayed on.
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