qzsimmons
06-14-2006, 09:34 AM
Hi All
I have a friend who has small, all breed rescue in CT. She has a few foster homes and is very thorough in her evaluation of adopters. Over the past couple of years that I have worked with her, she has placed a lot of animals in great homes. She is great!
Well, my friend took a black lab mix from a rescue in VA a couple of weeks ago. The dog seemed like a great dog--friendly, outgoing and playful. The dog was placed in a home with a couple of children. After about a week with the family, the dog was out on a walk with the family and he got into a minor scuffle with a neighborhood dog. No one was hurt but the people we sort of shaken up. They loved the dog and decided they would work with him to make him more comfortable. They did some basic leash training and have not had trouble with other dogs since then.
Early this week, the mom of the family had the dog outside and she went to get a ball from him at the same time that there was a loud noise. The dog was startled and sort of lunged at her and, while no one was hurt, they decided they did not want to keep him. My friend called the folks at the rescue that sent him and they told her that if they took him back they would just put him to sleep.
He is apparently a wonderful dog and my friend just can't bring herself to send him back when she knows what his fate will be. I spoke to a behaviorist and she felt very strongly that this sort of behavior is largely based in fear and with some basic behavior modification and confidence building, the dogwould be a wonderful pet. She suggested that my friend put him in a foster home with no children and good dog experence and offered to provide very detailed guidance on how to rehabilitate the dog to the foster people. They have rehabilitated many such dogs in the past.
So, we are up against a deadline as the people want the dog out of their house by the end of this weekend (6/18). If anyone can help or knows anyone who can, please let me know. You can reach me at q zsimmons@ hotmail. com (remove spaces).
Thanks!!!
Quincey
I have a friend who has small, all breed rescue in CT. She has a few foster homes and is very thorough in her evaluation of adopters. Over the past couple of years that I have worked with her, she has placed a lot of animals in great homes. She is great!
Well, my friend took a black lab mix from a rescue in VA a couple of weeks ago. The dog seemed like a great dog--friendly, outgoing and playful. The dog was placed in a home with a couple of children. After about a week with the family, the dog was out on a walk with the family and he got into a minor scuffle with a neighborhood dog. No one was hurt but the people we sort of shaken up. They loved the dog and decided they would work with him to make him more comfortable. They did some basic leash training and have not had trouble with other dogs since then.
Early this week, the mom of the family had the dog outside and she went to get a ball from him at the same time that there was a loud noise. The dog was startled and sort of lunged at her and, while no one was hurt, they decided they did not want to keep him. My friend called the folks at the rescue that sent him and they told her that if they took him back they would just put him to sleep.
He is apparently a wonderful dog and my friend just can't bring herself to send him back when she knows what his fate will be. I spoke to a behaviorist and she felt very strongly that this sort of behavior is largely based in fear and with some basic behavior modification and confidence building, the dogwould be a wonderful pet. She suggested that my friend put him in a foster home with no children and good dog experence and offered to provide very detailed guidance on how to rehabilitate the dog to the foster people. They have rehabilitated many such dogs in the past.
So, we are up against a deadline as the people want the dog out of their house by the end of this weekend (6/18). If anyone can help or knows anyone who can, please let me know. You can reach me at q zsimmons@ hotmail. com (remove spaces).
Thanks!!!
Quincey