Poor Decisions By Gsd Foster Home - Page 3

One last thing. Its easy to condemn a rescue when something like this happens, but I say Where were you when the dog (ca people)needed to get out in the first place before a rescue had to step in a save the dog from the needle?

Bhaugh     +1

Baugh, You are right, none of us were there. I have a great deal of respect and admiration for rescues. I applaud them and am so grateful there are people out there that sacrifice so much for the welfare of unwanted dogs. I don't know what we'd do without them. My present GSD came from a GSD rescue in Kentucky and I support a few resuces monetarily. I am not condemning the rescue, but I do have a huge issue with how this dog was set up for failure. All we have at the moment to go on are the articles we've read. To take a new dog, after being transported across the country, getting it neutered the next day and THEN taking him to a dog park the following day and THEN taking him home and letting him  loose in the house with several other dogs is terribly unwise. How much stress can a dog take before it either shuts down or acts out?  And to be surprised when a fight occurs and then deem the dog dangerous is something I just can't understand. This dog didn't know or trust the person handling it and certainly was not familiar with the dogs. Yes, everyone makes mistakes, but these mistakes will possibly bring the dog to his untimely death. If that's the case he would've been better off left in California. If the facts I've read are false or incomplete, then I stand corrected.
Char

Um, I didn't know about that dog.  Further, I have fostered dogs and I have kept dogs forever that were too damaged (beaten, starved, dog aggressive) to be able to be rehomed without a concern that the future owner might not rise to the occasion.  Among my 4 dogs is an elederly rescue I have had since the owners wanted to euth her because she broke her pelivis and could not be bred.  

How does that comment help this dog and the people here that want to help now that they know, including the person that volunteered to take the dog in?

Don't answer.  That was a rhetorical question.

I feel very bad for Alex, & rescue. I agree with Bhaugh about this rescue has been around for a very long time & knows what they are doing.
Yes the foster home did make poor choices, but we're lucky to have foster homes to help save other homeless GSD's. Hopefully this rescue won't get sued or lose more foster homes over this incident.

I've foster 100's of dogs over many years, & sometimes things like this happen because the dogs true temperament doesn't fully show until they are settled into a foster home.
I had dogs that came into my home that started stalking the neighborhood kids on leash walks like they were squirrels, had another bite off a thumb of a prospective adopter etc..
Both of these dogs displayed no aggressive tendencies at the shelter or transitional place of stay before being placed in foster care. But most rescue dogs were wonderful temper dogs that found their forever homes.
Back then it was normal protocol to alter all dogs entering in rescue & treat any medical needs. I don't think they did anything unusual by altering Alex when he arrived into that rescue's care.
Most dogs are altered ASAP before going into the foster home. Alex most likely was acting very docile from the ear infection & recent altering sedation so the foster parent had the wrong impression of him to take the
chances he / she did going to the park & keeping him free in the house with another strange dog.  I do feel very bad for Alex  & the rescue for these very big mistakes by the foster parent.

But now that Alex did bite a person & caused injury to another dog, it'll be difficult for rescue to save him because of the liability. How would Alex get adopted out through rescue with his history now?
Who would be able to foster him / adopt him without loosing their homeowners insurance? He now has 2 strikes against him if he attacked another animal / bites a person in the future, the new
adopter could have legal & crime charges tried against him. This is why I fell really bad for the rescue as well, they are in a tight spot now over saving Alex.

I am going to email a letter to help save Alex & offer a place for him to go also.

Yes, you are right about many rescue dogs going into a foster home are neutered right away, but the vet that saw the dog before being transported said the dog's health needed to improve before neutering him. I'm guessing there must've been a very good reason for this. I'm sure the rescue is really having a hard time with this because their mission is to save and rehome dogs. They certainly don't need this. They are definitely between a rock and hard place. 

I just went to check ot the FB page and there is a lot of confusion as to who did what, when, how and why in addition to finger pointing and blaming. Time will tell how it all plays out and if there is more to be told it will surely come out in time.
 

The issue here is that many people in rescue, despite their good intentions, haven't a clue about dog behavior or how to assess a potential foster home or permanent home for any given dog.  I've lived and worked with GSD's for over 35 years  and have many years of experience working with rescues and shelter dogs as well and the way I was treated when I contacted a rescue about potentially adopting a dog a couple of years ago was insulting.

If this dog dies, it is squarely on the so-called rescue...they did everything wrong.

I agree with Keith - it was step by step well-meaning but bungling every step of the way.  The main mistake was not letting the dog SETTLE between traumatic experiences - first after his stay in the pound - very stressful.  Then getting shipped across country and handled by strangers, going to the vet, getting restrained there etc - then getting neutered, then transported, then arriving at a foster home where he was forced to be confronted not only by more new people, new place, new smells/sounds, new part of his world, but new dogs in the house, then new dogs in the dog park (how stupid was that?  I can't even think of doing anything dumber than that with any new dog let alone a rescued dog that was just neutered and transported and changed hands umpteen times recently). 

Just let them SETTLE.  That's all they need - just LEAVE THEM ALONE - make sure they are safe, comfortable, fed and watered, in a quiet safe place (ie crate or kennel) until they have a chance to just take a few deep breaths, look around and start to understand their new lives.

I have a white GSD who was spotted running in traffic, emaciated and scared - he was trapped, and brought to me - huddled in such a tight ball in the trap that I didn't even think he was a GSD.  I thought he was border-collie sized.  He came out of the trap calm and shy and sweet and not even a speck of hackles or spookiness - he was completely overwhelmed.  He was left in the kennel with blankets, clean water, food twice/day, let out in the yard twice/day - no handling.  Just leave him alone and let him SETTLE.  Now he has woken up out of his stupor and he's showing a lot of hackles, barking, a little bit of bluff charging - no more sweet shy boy - he could become a problem to adopt out.  But I'll see that after he has more of a chance to SETTLE - I'm not going to push him, he's not going to the vet yet where he will be scared - he'll go to the vet to get his vaccinations and be neutered once he has a good chance to SETTLE.  Noone is going to push him into reacting and causing him to bite someone, that wouldn't be fair to him or anyone else. He could be a really nice dog.  He'll have every chance to show that he is, or he isn't - takes time to SETTLE before you can see the real dog shining through.

I have a border collie rescue who is a spaz, neurotic but certainly not aggressive - thought we found him a great home with a nice young couple with a sweet female collie dog.  He met the people and their dog no problem, went home with them - and what did they do?  Of course we told them to let him SETTLE for a week or two before doing anything with him - but no, instead they allowed the two dogs loose in the house together, fed the two dogs together, gave them toys to share together, had a bunch of friends and family over to meet the new addition, all in the same day they brought him home.   And what did he do?  He nipped a couple people who crowded him and wanted to hug on him - so back he came.  Now he's back here with a bite history.  Great for the dog?  No, it's a shame for the dog, and not  his fault.

I joined the Facebook group for a minute but then got embroiled in a dispute about how inhumane prong collars are and said screw it.  A lot of these dogs get abandoned because of behavioral problems that are easily mitigated save someone with a clue.  I am quickly coming to the conclusion that most rescues, despite their good intentions, do more harm than good because they simply don't understand even the most basic elements of dog behavior and harbor garbage ideals about it based on classroom "behaviorists" rather than on people who actually work with dogs in the real world.