Y'all, I used to head up Bloodhound rescue. We temperament test our dogs against other dogs, cats, babies, children, adults and elderly. One sign of aggression and they go into a different program. Period. End of story. They are not adopted out of our program.
Sweet Pea is a rescue and she isn't perfect. She has separation anxiety and we have learned to live with it.
We were attacked by an Akita about three years ago and this resulted in both vet bills as well as medical bills for me. This dog was almost twice the size of the Sweet Pea and the owner claimed he was 'dog aggressive.' We had to go to court and the owner was found guilty of violating the leash law. There is a 'one bite' law here. About a year later, I heard the dog had been euthanized, which meant he had attacked again.
Can you believe we were just attacked again? I get flipped in the air somehow and am now bruised at my hands, elbows, shoulder and rear, etc.....Sweet Pea was protecting me again. This was a huge Mountain Bernese, another breed much larger than the female bloodhound.
As I was laying in the middle of the road, I said, "Get that dog away from me." The owner did not. I repeated myself a couple of times and she finally got the dog away. I then proceeded to tell her that if she couldn't control the dog, then get rid of it. She kept saying, "I'm sorry." Then, her friend chimed in with, "The dog is a rescue!"
"Then, if you can't control the dog, give it back to rescue." Period. I showed the owner my scratches and let her know that Sweet Pea is a rescue as well, but we don't have these issues. Large dogs need to be a on harness that is strong enough for the dog's weight. This gives the owner much more control from a physics perspective. I don't believe in choke collars, but evidently they do work......use the dang things!
Dog aggressive? There is no qualifying 'aggressive' in situations like this. I could have been strolling a baby or had a small child walking with us. Aggressive is aggressive and I am fed up with people thinking they are doing good by adopting animals that are harmful, particularly in a busy, congested city.
If your adopted dog shows signs of aggression, please do the right thing before someone is seriously injured and find a program that takes such dogs. There are farms, fire stations, police stations, working dog programs, etc. Do not let your domesticated animal attack another domoestic animal or worse, a human.
I am extremely upset and angry. Damnit!
Sweet Pea is a rescue and she isn't perfect. She has separation anxiety and we have learned to live with it.
We were attacked by an Akita about three years ago and this resulted in both vet bills as well as medical bills for me. This dog was almost twice the size of the Sweet Pea and the owner claimed he was 'dog aggressive.' We had to go to court and the owner was found guilty of violating the leash law. There is a 'one bite' law here. About a year later, I heard the dog had been euthanized, which meant he had attacked again.
Can you believe we were just attacked again? I get flipped in the air somehow and am now bruised at my hands, elbows, shoulder and rear, etc.....Sweet Pea was protecting me again. This was a huge Mountain Bernese, another breed much larger than the female bloodhound.
As I was laying in the middle of the road, I said, "Get that dog away from me." The owner did not. I repeated myself a couple of times and she finally got the dog away. I then proceeded to tell her that if she couldn't control the dog, then get rid of it. She kept saying, "I'm sorry." Then, her friend chimed in with, "The dog is a rescue!"
"Then, if you can't control the dog, give it back to rescue." Period. I showed the owner my scratches and let her know that Sweet Pea is a rescue as well, but we don't have these issues. Large dogs need to be a on harness that is strong enough for the dog's weight. This gives the owner much more control from a physics perspective. I don't believe in choke collars, but evidently they do work......use the dang things!
Dog aggressive? There is no qualifying 'aggressive' in situations like this. I could have been strolling a baby or had a small child walking with us. Aggressive is aggressive and I am fed up with people thinking they are doing good by adopting animals that are harmful, particularly in a busy, congested city.
If your adopted dog shows signs of aggression, please do the right thing before someone is seriously injured and find a program that takes such dogs. There are farms, fire stations, police stations, working dog programs, etc. Do not let your domesticated animal attack another domoestic animal or worse, a human.
I am extremely upset and angry. Damnit!
now, go have a drink and feel better soon.