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Well, I had to disable comments on my blog because some idiot decided to start posting random filth to my site.

Up for Adoption (Maybe)

I called this morning and cancelled the appointment with the expensive behaviorist. I found others offering 5 hours of personalized training for $300. $860 was absurd. Even then, when I cancelled, the behaviorist said, "Let's hope they know what they're doing."

Yeah, well, the same thing applies to you.

At any rate, I was up all night stressing over this situation. He's a sweet dog, but I just can't cope with the aggression. I spoke again with the folks from Aussie Rescue, and will be driving up to Sacramento Monday for an evaluation. Assuming they feel he can be adopted out, I just need to decide whether to foster him (i.e. he stays with me while listed), or to kennel him (which will be expensive).

I want him out of the house, but will likely opt to foster him. At least then I can continue working on his behavior and make sure when he does find a new home he has a home to home transition, rather than a home to cage to home transition. Going from home to home, and bypassing the stop at the kennels, will hopefully help.

Behavior Modification

Well, I called a behaviorist today to discuss ways of correcting Buddy's problems. He says it can be done. We'll see. Frankly, I'm torn on whether I even want to bother. I really hate the idea of putting him down, but I also hate the idea of spending $860 to put both dogs through behavior training. Ugh, I did not want this dog to cost so damn much! I've already spent $400 on the adoption, medical exams and medications for fleas, antibiotics and parasites. I just can't afford that expense right now! On the other hand, I also can't deal with a dog this aggressive! This evening I sat down on the floor next to him and started petting him, and the little fucker started growling at me!

I have no idea what to do. Put him to sleep or spend another $860 bucks on training. Argh!

The Buddy Saga Continues

Last week, Buddy attacked three dogs at the park. First he attacked a Newfoundland, who must outweigh Buddy by three times. Separating them, he attacked another dog that got too close. Leashing Buddy and taking him aside, he attacked a third dog that came too close. Then the little bastard lifted his leg on me.

I've been having email exchanges with a dog behaviorist, and also discussed him with my vet. I'm Buddy's third owner. The first one gave him to the second one, who turned him over to the shelter. I suspect the second owner surrendered him because of his behavior. I couldn't guess why the first one gave him away.

Both the behaviorist and the vet say he has dominance and aggression issues. There's this trick whereby you put the dog on its back, lean over it with a knee on its chest an your hands over its throat, similar to how a mother dog may pin a puppy. The vet asked how he responds when I do this. When I've done it in the past, to chastise him for bad behavior, he's just growled at me. The vet says he's not respecting me as top dog. Peeing on me is just another example of this.

Both the behaviorist and the vet say he may not be adoptable. The behaviorist says he never should have been put up for adoption in the first place. But how was the shelter to know, eh?

At any rate, when he attacked the dogs at the park last week, I started having waking nightmares of coming home to find Toby eviscerated. I told a friend I was worried he'd attack Toby next. He already shows unacceptable aggressive behavior toward Toby, in that if I'm paying attention to Toby, he starts wrestling with him to get him away from me, then runs up to me -- almost as though he's expecting praise for getting that other dog away from me.

Half an hour ago, Buddy attacked Toby. Buddy was lying on the living room floor, Toby walked him, and Buddy launched himself at Toby. He didn't hurt him; he didn't get the chance. It took me about two seconds to grab him by the back of the neck and throw him out the back door. I just don't understand what's bringing on this sudden behavior. The behaviorist says an adopted dog's personality often won't show itself for a couple of months. It appears as though his personality consists of aggressive and dominant behavior.

Attacking strange dogs is unacceptable. Attacking Toby is a cardinal sin. Both the behaviorist and the vet have suggested euthanisia given his behavior, the vet saying his behavior passes their guidelines for euthanising a problem dog. I hate to consider it, really, given I could always put the time and money into bringing in a specialist to deal with him. But the behaviorist tells me even this isn't guaranteed, and that a problem dog may well not be curable.

So here I am, two and a half months later, considering having him put down. I can't take him to the park, as I can't trust him. I can't have him around children, as I can't trust him. I don't think I can even safely kennel him over Thanksgiving as I have no idea how he'll react to the other dogs. He and Toby have been playing well, but I just don't know how safe Toby really is with him. And as I mentioned in my prior post, I have to consider Toby's well being. If Buddy presents a threat, he has to go. The behaviorist correctly points out that it's not particularly fair to pass the dog's problems off to a potential new owner. Unfortunately, having him put down is starting to look like the most viable option.

Quandary?

Something just occured to me. Calling it a quandary is stupid. If I'm concerned about Toby's safety, due to Buddy's being unpredictable, there's only one possible solution: get rid of Buddy. There's no reason I should risk Toby just to try and give this dog a chance.

I'll have to mail AR again and see if they think he's redeemable.

Buddy: A Failing Experiment

Three weeks since my last update.

Unfortunately, I'm beginning to doubt Buddy's ability to fit in. He's been exhibiting some behavior I've been unable to change. First, he jumps up on people. That can be dealt with in time, though in the almost 12 weeks he's been here, he still hasn't stopped doing it. He does seem to be learning that he won't get pet until he sits calmly, but he still jumps up on strangers.

He paws at people. If you stop petting him for a microsecond, he's in your face (if you're on the floor) or he paws at you to demand attention. Twice, playing with the dogs, I've had claws dragged across my face because I dared stop paying attention to him.

He's a face lunger. And this is the most frightening and potentially dangerous. He's lunged at my face and drawn blood before, when I wasn't paying attention. Usually I'm prepared. He doesn't do it to attack but to lick. But since his mouth is open to prepare for licking, your face collides with teeth.

He still doesn't seem to understand he's not supposed to poop in the back yard, but he's at least beginning to learn. Every time I go outside after they've had access to the back yard, I march out there and inspect it. He goes and stands in the gravel, where they're allowed to go, in anticipation of whether he's going to get chastised or not. When chastised for going where he's not supposed to, he gets dropped in the gravel.

Unlike Toby, he doesn't avoid his poop. He steps in it often (sigh). This is extremely annoying, and I just can't figure out why he thinks it's okay to walk through it.

Most recently, he exhibited a complete unacceptable behavior. At the dog park Wednesday, he attacked three dogs! There's this huge Newfoundland that comes to the park, that is both male and not neutered. Talking with other dog owners, it seems there are lots of dogs that have aggression issues with the newfie. Buddy's one of them. Now bear in mind that Buddy only weighs 50 lbs. The newfie must weigh at least 120. But there Buddy went, attacking him. Pulling him away, he attacked another dog that came near. Then while standing aside, with Buddy on leash so Toby could play, another dog came over and also got attacked.

I just can't figure out what brought this on.

Worse, while I was standing aside with Buddy, the little fucker lifted his leg on me and peed! I damn near blew a gasket. I tied him to a tree, went to collect Toby, and went home. I wouldn't let Buddy in the house for several hours, and immediately fired off an email to Aussie Rescue to see if they could help find him a new home. I got a response telling me sure, they could for a $50 donation.

The AR behaviorest, on the other hand, had more to day. She said the dog was showing aggressive and dominant behavior, in "marking" me as his. She said it doesn't sound as though his prior owners put much effort into training him properly, and that unfortunately behaviors like this become ingrained and can be nearly impossible to break. She further said, based upon my description of his behavior, that me may not even be adoptable (I'm his third owner), and that it may be less cruel to just euthanize him.

I'm not ready to take that step but... I just can't allow him near other dogs any longer. I will never again take him to the park, and will only take Toby. He just can't be trusted.

The behaviorist also said a dog's true personality often won't show itself for a couple months after adoption. If this is his true personality, I just don't know what to do about it. He plays well with Toby, and Toby doesn't exhibit any fear of him, so I assume he hasn't been abusing toby. But I have this waking nightmare now, of coming home to find Toby eviscerated because Buddy attacked him. I can honestly say were I to find this, I'd kill Buddy myself without giving it a second thought.

That isn't a particularly healthy attitude to have towards one's own pets, but where I've had Buddy 12 weeks, I've had Toby since he was a puppy. He's been raised properly. This is his house, and while I thought it might be nice to get him a friend to play with, Buddy's recent behavior does concern me.

Being his third owner, I'd like to give the dog a chance. But I'm beginning to wonder if the second owner didn't turn him over to the shelter because of his aggression. I still wonder how he was treated by the first owner, and why he was given away in the first place. Maybe the dog's just damaged goods. The AR behaviorist suggested turning him over to yet another owner could damage him permanently. Being fostered from one person to the next can have detrimenal effects on a dog's brain, I guess. Lack of stability, doubt, insecurity, etc. When I first brought him home, he was extremely insecure. Hated to be left alone. Still hates it, in fact. He sits in the backyard and whines when I take Toby for a walk. Toby, on the other hand, doesn't freak out when I take Buddy for a walk, and just waits for us to get back home.

Today I put up a new mailbox by the front door because the old one can't be used any longer. The prior owner had a mail slot installed in the garage door, with a hanging basket to catch the mail. Twice now I've come home to find mail shredded or scattered around the yard. I was in the garage one day and saw him go absolutely berzerk when the mail man dropped the mail through the slot. The dog is neurotic. My friend Corrii recently got some liquid for her cats, to calm them (there's been a lot of fighting between the two females). I may need to look into a similar depressant for Buddy. Who knows, it might help. Where I'd call Toby sweet and friendly, I'd call Buddy frantic and manic.

Anyway, we'll see. I'll give him another couple of weeks. I maintained when I brought him home that if he didn't work out I'd turn him over to Aussie Rescue. But their behaviorist's comments concern me. I'd hate to turn him over only to have him euthanized as a problem dog. On the other hand, I am concerned he might hurt Toby.

Quandary.