put my dog to sleep?

[booksandchoc]

I am being unreasonable, I feel terrible and I deserve whatever flaming I get.

I've made an appointment to get my little dog put to sleep. I'm tried to rehome him, but all the rescues around here are full, I spoke to the dog warden and he advised in our situation to get him pts.

We got him 4 years ago when he was 2, an elderly acquaintance had him a few months but couldn't cope with him, so we stupidly took him on without knowing his history.

He is aggressive to other dogs, every other dog, he has no recall, he barks constantly whenever we leave him in the house and now he has started snapping at DD. I don't know what else to do .

The dog had issues before dd was even born. I have a problem that the op has only just considered her dd's safety or the dogs behaviour now.

Spending 'hours' looking for rescue homes means fuck all really, she's just been offered a chance for her dog to be rehomed. There was a chance for him to get over his aggression and fear of other dogs, which is perfectly possible.

Sadly I think your right. But I think ops intention was always to pts even before this thread. Op just wanted us all to massage her guilt she feels because she knows she isn't doing everything she could.

So also sadly I've realised no offers of homes/help was ever going to change ops mind. There's still going to be a dead dog tomorrow.

But I have a feeling the two sides will never agree on this.

staffy I'm guessing I'm the twat who said he'd have a good death.

My dog was pts for aggression, caused by a massive brain tumour and inbreeding. The aggression was making him miserable and ashamed. In fact, every dog I know who has been aggressive has never been happy after snapping or biting; they've seemed genuinely upset.

So compared to another potentially four or five years of misery, followed by him either dying suddenly or painfully dragging on until the end, him being PTS was a good death.

If this dog is similar, feels upset and ashamed after the aggression and possibly has a health condition causing it, being PTS would be a good death. Indeed if the equivalent is the dog getting so stressed out around other dogs and yet still being put into kennels or a rescue, thus stressing him out so much he could become really ill, I still say PTS is a good death.

I see from your other thread, this is a JRT X? JRTs can be snappy little sods if they're not given enough to do or get over stimulated. Barky little so and sos too

They're the kind of dog who'd snap at a child out of misguided play rather than malice. When you say you were playing, did this perchance involve chasing dd around or lifting her up in the air and swinging her around?

My late JRT caught dd1's leg during such a game. No harm was intended, it was just play gone wrong. We put her in her pen when playing rough and tumble after that.

Most terriers need a lot of physical exercise and a moderate amount of mental stimulation to keep them relaxed and happy. What does your get?

Ironically the NDN's dog I referred to above with anxiety is a JRT. He's shut in the house whilst she works up to an eight hour shift, he's never walked and has just the run of the garden.
JRT's dont cope well being alone in general and are very much a 'big dog in a little dog suit'

Whereas my JRT X has never had any issues at all

Dooin, I have a lovely Scottish Terrier gnawing away on a Nylabone at my feet. He's my fourth terrorist (2 Scots, a westie and a yorkie), each has been different but each have been stubborn and rather strong willed. Mine is a teenager now (8 months) and pushing the boundaries with me as teenage terrors do.

Terriers are difficult, terrier crosses more so I suspect, but I do agree they are smart little things who are fiercely loyal and can be brilliant little dogs.

Why is it better for this dog to remain alive being passed from pillar to post than to be put to sleep? I wouldn't give a dog to some random off the internet I didn't know either. Dooin saying "bring it to me and I'll assess it and I might possibly keep it." is not a genuine offer of a knowledgeable, experienced, loving home. She could be anyone. That's the exact same thing as selling it on gumtree. I certainly wouldn't give it to someone who has just been flaming me if I were the op.

Mine is a jack Russell cross too

He was a little devil but the behaviouralist showed me how to be a better owner and he is the most fantastic little dog now.

I honestly think he would take on a pack of lions for dd

Terrier crosses are pretty much steroetypical terriers on speed ime . Mine is a twat. Every he has every terrier trait going, in spades including a 100% sucessful fox shit detection rate. Oh the fun we have

I luffs him really but he's a bastard. Not so much now as he used to be. He was fear aggressive of people and other dogs, on first getting him he bonded strongly with one person (me) and was distrustful of others (which in his case often translated to aggression) and was fear aggressive towards other dogs and considered the cat to be lunch on legs.

SelectaUserName Nice language but thats beside the point! Someone has offered to take on the poor dog!

I've just come back to this thread after work and I'm really sad that the board's repected, always helpful dog lover supreme DooinMeCleanin is getting such a hard time. This is a ittle terrier ( I knew it would be) you only have to walk round our village where there are dozens of them toknow they are very prone to having a pop at other dogs and that without firm boundaries and consistent training they can be snappy. (apologies to any lovely non snappy dog loving terriers)

I wish I could take this dog ( mine won't share) I'm not a dog expert by a long way but after raising puppies and coping with 3 rescues i can say it doesn't take herculean effort to resolve a problem like this. If OP had taken him to dog training classes when she got him the trainer would have offered sound advice to be adopted at home.

There are some nasty dog hating people on here - of course a good death for a dog is to be PTS at home with their family around them when they are a great age. OPs laziness and lack of action over the last 4 years has caused thisproblem and she should be resolving it, not having dog killed because it is the easy option.

JRT? Ffs, its not a dangerous dog that could kill anyone

Ok, first, I never ever said he was a terrier of any type, he could be, but we also think there is spaniel, Jack Russell, lab, beagle and staffy. we haven't a clue where he came from. and higgle, my laziness and lack of action have not caused this problem, he is a much better dog than he was but he still is nowhere near normal. I maybe haven't fixed anything but I certainly have not caused this so shut up and do one.

OP, are you reading any of the posts pointing you in the direction of more help?

Tabulah offered you the details of a behaviourist who may be covered by your insurance, if you scroll back up. It's worth a shot at least, no?

I've named rescues and forums you could try for further help. If you get no-where come back and I'll post some more.

But, having looked at the thread you had some really constructive advice in 2011 - no flaming or criticism, advice to find a good training class and emphasis on the need for lots of exercise in a special exercise area to calm him down. You said your partner played with him and he nipped then - something that maybe has encouraged him to nip when you play with your daughter. You also said thta youloved him and let him sleep in bed with you - love is about abit more than indulgence.
Have you tried Many Tears?

Forgive me for another personal question but I'm trying to get my head around this.
Am I right in thinking you live in a flat as well? If so, I can imagine the combination of being cooped up and not walked is definitely not helping him. Do you have a garden? Does he go out at all?

You were given excellent advice back in 2011 and you have been given excellent advice now. Please contact the rescues listed and take the help you've been offered. I'm fairly sure in the right home Buddy can thrive.

All these people with advice but not one genuine offer of a home. And a jrt could do alot of damage to a 2yo! I have two if them one of them is indeed a bastard

It was a Jack Russell terrier that took my friends fingers off
And as I said, she took loads of advice off professionals and the internet. Several professionals, including her vet suggested to pts

A vet will try not to put a healthy dog to sleep.
But OPs dog is not healthy
It is mentally ill - it has personality traits which if it were a human would have landed it in prison or a secure psychiatric unit.
One of the small mercies we have for our pets is that we can avoid incarcerating them for the rest of their lives to go completely insane.

OP you tried.
It has not worked. That is not your fault.

Move on, remember the good times and in due course get another happy and healthy dog.

Really because ops dog sounds exactly like mine did two years ago.

This is not a problem that can't be fixed. Some can't some can.

Op never listened to proper advice or sought a professional so we have no way of knowing which this dog is.

Dog aggression/fear, sa and one snap during play when ops dp used to play with the dog like that with him snapping does not an insane dog make.

Oh dear, what a sad situation for all of you.

I have no words of wisdom for you I'm afriad, but didn't want to read and run. All the best for tomorrow.

"A vet will try not to put a healthy dog to sleep.
But OPs dog is not healthy"

To be fair, without professional help, nobody knows that - which is why I offered her the contact details of a professional who could help work that out.

I have a dog with a fairly major behavioural issue and I would have him PTS if it either escalated or something happened with me that made it become unmanageable...but I've come to that conclusion with the agreement of a professional who is helping me work with him.

If the op is I central Scotland the dogs trust is heaving I think its terrible no rescue helped you

All these people with advice but not one genuine offer of a home.

Exactly. It's easy to be a keyboard warrior. Truth is, no matter how much you don't want the dog to be put to sleep, there's no one that will take him. There's no practical solution. I wouldn't foster an aggressive dog, and I don't think very many people realistically would. It's a liability, and if he causes damage to another dog or child the person taking the dog in could be responsible for vet bills or legal issues.

It doesn't matter if she caused the dog to act like this, it is what it is now. She can't take the time to train him if her toddler will be put in danger, it's just not a feasible solution. Love and patience is all well and good, but not at the expense of a child. No animal will ever be worth the safety of a child. It doesn't matter if the child yanked his tail, no dog should ever snap. Not ever.

Even if it was the child's fault, the OP cannot reasonably keep an eye on both at the same time 24/7, she's not a robot that needs no sleep. It only takes one second for her to turn her back and a toddler to run off and antagonize the dog that could result in a serious injury for the child. She could potentially teach the dog and toddler to co-exist, but that requires time she does not have, and that she should not make. Even if she got the best trainer, that still requires the dog and toddler to be in the same house which once again, training should not be at the expense of a toddler's safety while the dog learns.

The fact of the matter is, the dog is not compatible with the owner's home. Which is fine. Not all dogs make a good match. I had to give mine up when we had DD because we couldn't potty train him. Unlike me, she can't find a place willing to take him because he's aggressive.

There is no real practical option besides putting the dog to sleep. She's doing the right thing. The second a dog snaps at a child, is the second it should no longer be allowed in the house with them, even if it was the child's fault. Dogs are not capable of complex reasoning, if they snap once, they'll do it again, and a child's safety is an unacceptable risk to place a bet on whether he'll snap again if she just does X.