As I've said, we have two dogs, Gibson and Peavey.
Gibson was adopted from a great organization called Austin Pets Alive which rescues dogs from the local animal shelter that have not been adopted. We're his third family. He's been a part of our family for three years.
Now, the part that sucks. He snaps. He growls. He's bitten one person already. Lately, he's been starting fights with Peavey, scary ones that draw blood on both sides. We can't take him to the dog park because he displays alpha dog behavior on the other dogs.
We've had to do some very serious thinking about whether it's safe to have him in the house anymore. We have kids and Gibson has snapped at our son for no good reason. He wasn't poking at the dog or sitting on him or hurting him. Gibson just decided he didn't want Will near him and *snap*.
This is awful. We told APA that we didn't have any room in our home for a dog that bites. And he's going to bite. All the signs are there of his behavior that is called "dominant aggression", meaning he wants to secure his place in the pack as the top.
There are trainers out there but the $550-1000 price tag just isn't within our means. I've talked to our vet. I've talked to our friend who has a degree in animal behavior. We've talked to each other. We've done a ton of research and the odds of changing his behavior without intensive training aren't good. Even then, he could revert at any time.
We've made the very, very difficult decision that it's just not safe or responsible for us to have him in the house anymore. (I'm crying right now) We're currently trying to either find another home for him without kids or dogs in the Austin area or an organization that would take him for adoption.
I'm sick about this. I had to tell my children that one of our family will have to go live somewhere else because he's going to hurt someone some day. He's going to really hurt our other dog, who shows obvious fear of Gibson.
If you know of anyone who might be willing to take him, let me know. I'm going to hug my poor doggie and hope for the best.
Sometimes, you have to give life some lipstick and tell it to kiss your ass.
4 comments:
Oh honey, I'm so sorry. I really hope you can find a good home for him- it's very hard to find people willing to take on a dog that's been known to bite- even if he's fine as the single dog in a household with no kids. Will be thinking of you.
*hugs*
This is awful. Hugs. Here's hoping that he finds the right place.
Oh honey, I hope that you find a fantastic home for him. I would be in your same state of mind if I had to let one of mine go as well. *hugs*
If you adopted him from APA... don't they take them back if there's a problem?
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