Susie needs a Foster Home

[LindsaySF]

Under the circumstances, which would've been worse? Allowing a dog to live in a crowded household for a short time only to be involved in a major scuffle & then dumped somewhere else (not to mention all the puppies) or a painless & humane end to a life already miserable?

Melanie has agreed to keep all 8 puppies until they are placed.

And I would in no way say Susie is "miserable". Far from it. I have been to Melanie's house. Susie looks quite happy actually and she has started to put on weight.

Of course the situation is not ideal. But I don't think putting Susie to sleep would have been the better solution here.


~Lindsay~

[hoagiesmomma]

I totally feel for her. I don't think anyone is "jumping down her throat" here. However:

So due to these extreme circumstances, she agreed. Are you saying she should have said no and had this momma and her puppies put to sleep?

Under the circumstances, which would've been worse? Allowing a dog to live in a crowded household for a short time only to be involved in a major scuffle & then dumped somewhere else (not to mention all the puppies) or a painless & humane end to a life already miserable?

[/quote]

at that point it would have been nine dogs euthed...

we're now talking about only one dog who needs a foster.

[muse]

Of course if something DOES happen & the foster absolutly can find no way possible to make it work the rescue SHOULD step up to the plate & take the dog back.

For the record, we are talking about SPBR here...


~Lindsay~

THAT right there is why Eric and I had a falling out. He does NOT take dogs back once they are placed in foster homes.

Melanie, I feel for ya Darling, I do. But I know I cant have that kinda female in my house with Jesse. I will however offer to take Blaze for a bit if that would be of any help to you at all. He is ALWAYS welcome back..

sorry, wish I could do more.

[Miakoda]

Then I apologize if I truly don't understand the circumstances.

However, I stand firm on my belief that euthanasia is NOT "quitting" on a dog or "killing" a dog, but rather a painless release from a life of neglect, lonliness, abadonment, abuse, etc. I would much rather see a dog allowed to be "let go" than forced to live being transfered from home to home to home & possibly end up in very unstable environments.

[LindsaySF]

Then I apologize if I truly don't understand the circumstances.

However, I stand firm on my belief that euthanasia is NOT "quitting" on a dog or "killing" a dog, but rather a painless release from a life of neglect, lonliness, abadonment, abuse, etc. I would much rather see a dog allowed to be "let go" than forced to live being transfered from home to home to home & possibly end up in very unstable environments.

And on that I will agree with you. Sometimes dogs are in bad situations in foster homes (never let out of the crate, etc) and putting them down might be best. Don't worry, we are not of the "save them all" mentality.

But Susie is such a sweet people friendly dog (she LOVES cuddling) that I think she deserves to have a chance at finding her forever home.


~Lindsay~

[LindsaySF]

Does anyone have any links on crating & rotating that we can provide for Mel? She does have a large kennel where Susie stays when not being watched, and each of her dogs have a crate of their own. But any advice you can offer her to help the situation would be appreciated.

I've been down this road before with my Chows (evil, evil dogs ), so let me know if you have any questions Mel. I'm too lazy to type anything out tonight though.


~Lindsay~

[satanscheerleader]

What about getting some good, sturdy metal baby gates so the dogs can be separated by rooms or parts of the house that way they can have more freedom than a crate would allow at times. I often have fosters here that don't get along with other dogs. I also take introductions very slow so baby gates help to keep them separate without having to be crated as much.

[a-bull]

"Just say no" people . . . Don't get caught up in rescues to the point where you don't ask questions about important issues. These are pitbulls! There are soo many important issues that should be addressed regarding the rescue you're dealing with and the breed itself!!

Rescues that pressure people to take dogs, farm out the majoirty of their "rescue" dogs, and do not take dogs back if the foster can no longer keep them, should ALWAYS be a red flag!!!

Have you tried the "Urgent" section of Petfinder??

[a-bull]

Does anyone have any links on crating & rotating that we can provide for Mel? She does have a large kennel where Susie stays when not being watched, and each of her dogs have a crate of their own. But any advice you can offer her to help the situation would be appreciated.

I've been down this road before with my Chows (evil, evil dogs ), so let me know if you have any questions Mel. I'm too lazy to type anything out tonight though.


~Lindsay~

http://www.pbrc.net/rotate.html

[Maryellen]

you can also put tie downs in the house. i thought susie was being kept in the garage? if she is in the garage how is she interacting with the resident dogs? also, you can post on any pit bull forum, so just google them and join..

[a-bull]

you can also put tie downs in the house. i thought susie was being kept in the garage? if she is in the garage how is she interacting with the resident dogs? also, you can post on any pit bull forum, so just google them and join..

yes---what about that www.bulldogbreeds.com, also . . .

[savagem]

This is exactly why I hesitated to post this here. I got pretty much the reaction I expected from most. Thank you, Lindsay, Alma, and Geneia, for at least offering support instead of just attempting to guilt me. Yes, perhaps I should have thought things through more thoroughly before I took on these guys. But they needed help and I thought I could offer that. And I HAVE offered that. The puppies are now eating solids and they are ready to be away from mama. I made a committment to a nursing mama and her pups. The pups no longer need to be nursing. I thought maybe someone would be willing to share the load now and take Susie off my hands since the babies no longer need her with them. I thought that this might be the place to look for some help with Susie. Crating, rotating, being careful--all of those things are things that I will do if necessary to keep Susie and my dogs safe. But it is a HUGE load for one person to handle, and I could sure use some help, that's all.

[a-bull]

right . . . and if you read the last couple of posts above, I suggested Petfinder's "Urgent" section and a bully breed forum that seems to be quite helpful to rescuers.

[savagem]

can't you seperate her from your other dogs? I have two that can never be together. It was a little tough at first but we all got used to it. That is the reason I cannot foster. I have room for these three but no more, I can't stress MY dogs out by having another dog here.

Yes, right--that's exactly why I would like to find another foster home for Susie. For some reason, the dynamics are causing huge amounts of stress in my own pack. I have had 20-plus foster dogs here over the past year. Most have gotten along very well with my dogs and things have gone fine. But Susie is stressing everyone out tremendously--dogs and people alike. And now that her babies don't need her anymore I'm looking for another placement for her.

[savagem]

with the foster home system and rescues overwhelming right now with left over katrina dogs and dogs that people are dumping, there is no way you will be able to find a foster home for susie.. i would suggest doing a crate/rotate schedule with her.. period.. when taking on a foster dog you make an oath to make it work no matter what (unless the dog is human aggressive) you have to try to find out what the triggers are, and eliminate them.. for example., if susie does fine with 2 of your dogs, then only let her be with those 2.. do a crate / rotate with the others. if susie doesnt do good with 3 of them, then just let her be with the one that she does get along with..

remove all bones and toys from the floor, those should be given in crates only.. remove all food crumbs as well.. feed susie in her crate, locked, and keep the other dogs away from her crate while she is eating, same with the other dogs..

before fostering, make sure your private life is stable enough to foster, as this will cause tension in the house as well..

take a deep breath, and relax.. the breed is prone to fights, so you just have to deal with it, and get a system going....

Maryellen,

Thank you. I'm aware of the foster system and all the dogs in need. That is why I've taken in so many over the past year. But there are MANY people out there who are not fostering right now--some may be thinking about doing it but just need a little push. Doesn't hurt to ask, now does it?

[savagem]

We adopted our first pit bull from Hartford... We brought up one of my cats and our dog Pepper to meet her and she was fine. Needless to say, within the first week, she tried to attack Pepper. Then we found out that she had a tremendous prey drive and wanted to eat the kitties - one of which was older and didn't move very quickly. After a little bit, she and Pepper learned to live together, but the cat aggression remained. It took us over 6 months to place her and she stayed with us. We had to be careful with the cats and make sure they were well hidden from her. We made it work, because we thought she deserved that much. Sure my cats were displaced and Casey spent quite a bit of time tethered to the dining room table so she could still be with us and not get at Pepper, but it worked.

Thank you Sue. Yes, I've made worse situations work as well. But that was when I didn't have 8 growing puppies to deal with as well as my own dogs and my kids to care for. As the puppies grow it's getting to be a bit much for one person to handle. I don't have a husband to pitch in or kids who are big enough to help. I need help, and that's the reason for the post.

[savagem]

what I can add here is that I completely understand melanie feeling the need to eliminate the stress of a difficult dog.

she and I took litters in under similar circumstances...and did so because we wanted to help.

but there are times when...with all the other demands of keeping a household going...

enough is enough.

Thank you Geneia. Exactly--enough is enough. 8 growing puppies, my own four dogs, two kids, no help. More than I am able to handle at the moment.

[Maryellen]

of course not. and, no one is bashing you here.. we are all giving you some help with how to deal with susie, so please dont get offended.. it will take time to figure out where susie can go, so you have to realize that which is why i posted what i did about rescues/shelters being overflowing.. i dont think anyone here was bashing you, or being mean, they were all giving their advise to you, to give you as many options as possible..

[a-bull]

Doesn't hurt to ask, but it can hurt to "push." You acknowledged you're in this situation because you felt pressured by the original rescuer.

Just because people are not offering to take Susie, does not mean they are not being well-intended in their posts and what they are offering as advice or assistance.

[savagem]

what I can add here is that I completely understand melanie feeling the need to eliminate the stress of a difficult dog.

she and I took litters in under similar circumstances...and did so because we wanted to help.

but there are times when...with all the other demands of keeping a household going...

enough is enough.

Then you should have said no. I see dogs every day in CT that are PTS because no one stepped up for them. And every day I feel terrible that I couldn't help, but I know my limitations. I do not have a yard, I do not have space to separate. Everything that is going on in the household was going on before this altercation. It's sad that Susie has to be shuffled around because she's inconvenient.

Susie is not inconvenient, as you put it. Susie is becoming more than one human being is able to handle on top of 8 growing puppies and all of the other things that I am dealing with. That's all. And shuffling her around is the last thing I want to do. But I am stretched beyond capacity here. When the pups were less mobile and less demanding it was easier to handle. Now the pups require more attention and work and there is just one of me--pure and simple.