Why do you keep an aggressive dog?

[Anonymous]

We're seeing an uptick in dogs that shouldn't have been given to particular owners. As said above, the "adopt, don't shop" phrase really took off and so many in my age group (elder millennial) believe its unethical to get a dog from a breeder. Once people in my circle get a dog from the shelter, they wear it as a badge of honor (virtue signaling) that they're doing the "right" thing. Several of these dogs have behavioral issues not fit for first time dog owners (which many are), nor are these dogs fit for life in a dense city - encountering other dogs and people in elevators, crossing other dogs on tight sidewalks etc.

I've had dogs all my life, and my family has had dogs for generations. We believe in behavioral euthanasia, and that not all dogs are meant for all scenarios. Sadly, that is not the case now. You will see large breed active dogs living in small apartments with one walk a day acting out. You will see power breeds being trained often with only positive rather than balanced training methods (a conversation for another day) that will not listen to their owner in a high intensity situation. You will see dogs that have been abused and are on a hair trigger being left alone with children. Its a shame.

The rescues did a number on us. I am sad for the current state of canine-human relations. I think it will get worse as we come out of the pandemic and so many people just picked up a dog at the shelter and attempt to navigate the world. Near us, this is a lot of pit/pit mixes which require a certain level of care and expertise. As mentioned above, the bite history on some of these dogs would have meant euthanasia in the past but now they're released to first time dog owners who don't have kids or other dogs (but live in an apartment building next to kids and other dogs...). I hope that rescues wise up that eventually these difficult dogs end up in and out of different rescues and that releasing them without some careful thought as to their behavior and the circumstances of release is actually a disservice to the dog, owner, and community.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We're seeing an uptick in dogs that shouldn't have been given to particular owners. As said above, the "adopt, don't shop" phrase really took off and so many in my age group (elder millennial) believe its unethical to get a dog from a breeder. Once people in my circle get a dog from the shelter, they wear it as a badge of honor (virtue signaling) that they're doing the "right" thing. Several of these dogs have behavioral issues not fit for first time dog owners (which many are), nor are these dogs fit for life in a dense city - encountering other dogs and people in elevators, crossing other dogs on tight sidewalks etc.

I've had dogs all my life, and my family has had dogs for generations. We believe in behavioral euthanasia, and that not all dogs are meant for all scenarios. Sadly, that is not the case now. You will see large breed active dogs living in small apartments with one walk a day acting out. You will see power breeds being trained often with only positive rather than balanced training methods (a conversation for another day) that will not listen to their owner in a high intensity situation. You will see dogs that have been abused and are on a hair trigger being left alone with children. Its a shame.

The rescues did a number on us. I am sad for the current state of canine-human relations. I think it will get worse as we come out of the pandemic and so many people just picked up a dog at the shelter and attempt to navigate the world. Near us, this is a lot of pit/pit mixes which require a certain level of care and expertise. As mentioned above, the bite history on some of these dogs would have meant euthanasia in the past but now they're released to first time dog owners who don't have kids or other dogs (but live in an apartment building next to kids and other dogs...). I hope that rescues wise up that eventually these difficult dogs end up in and out of different rescues and that releasing them without some careful thought as to their behavior and the circumstances of release is actually a disservice to the dog, owner, and community.

You and millions of others. Doesn’t make you an expert or an authority, and doesn’t give you any more of a license than anyone else to pontificate.

[Anonymous]

I adopted a dog from the moco animal shelter and they told me he was “reactive” towards other dogs but good with children, so I was like fine, no big deal, as I didn’t fully understand what reactive means.

The dog is good with my kids but generally very anxious towards the outside world. He has had a few incidents with other dogs that were loose. In general he is a very good boy but less predictable and secure than the dog I grew up with. These are still animals and if he did become really aggressive I would put him down but it would break my heart.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:There was this episode of This American Life where they covered Ira Glass's dog and it was just extremely sad. They couldn't have people over and the dog regularly attacked them. Honestly it was horrifying, they were prisoners in their own home but also put people at risk living in NYC with this dog.

I also read an article about someone who adopted a dog during thr pandemic and the shelter hadn't been clear about the dog's bite history so the owner had to have the dog put down after some incidents.

We have to remove the stigma from behavioral euthanasia. People will insist the owners haven't tried enough but a dog that's attacking people and other animals simply has to go.

People who knowingly keep aggressive dogs also need to be criminally liable when their dogs attack people. There are just too many stories of delivery drivers or a neighborhood kid getting attacked.

I absolutely agree. My housekeeper’s six year old grandson is in the ICU right now with injuries to his trachea and aorta following an attack by a neighborhood dog. That dog went for the throat. I cannot believe the owners aren’t going to jail.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

If I had a friend living like this with a person, I would advise her that she was living in an abusive relationship and try to help her to get out of the relationship.

Really? If I had a friend that took an abused person from a shelter into their home, got them medical care and treatment, and took care of them, I would think they were a saint. I don’t get doing it with an a dog though.
Also, if that abused person turned out to have a serious mental illness that didn’t respond to treatment, and they occasionally attacked other people with a knife, then they would have to live in a locked facility.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you know your dog is a biter, why do you keep it?

You don’t “know” your dog is a biter until it actually bites.

We had a dog that we knew was anxious and didn’t get on well with other dogs, so we were careful about keeping her away from other dogs. When she was about ten, I was on my front stoop with her and we were both surprised when a guy on a skateboard whizzed down our street seemingly out of nowhere. The dog jumped the gate - which I didn’t even know she was capable of doing - and bit the guy on the knee. He wasn’t seriously hurt but the bite did puncture the skin so I insisted that I take the guy to urgent care. I was horrified. The guy on the skateboard was completely calm and understanding, however. When urgent care told us that the bite needed to be reported to animal control, we did as we were told but the skateboarder essentially refused to “press charges” when interviewed and told animal control that he startled the dog and it was all his fault. I remember him telling me “I’m new to DC. I didn’t come here to put somebody’s dog down.”

To this day we are good friends and we laugh when telling people how we met.

If you’re thinking that I should have gotten rid of a senior dog who under these circumstances bit for the first time, I don’t know what to tell you.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

Glad it's worked for you, but for the many debating a dog at all, you don't need to accept this if it doesn't meet your life. I've had 15+ dogs over 30 years and would not be as cool as PP.

Yes, I indicated that if we had this dog when the kids were younger, bringing in friends, etc., no. The rescue we worked with would have taken him back and rehomed. But now is a time we can do it. He's about 16 or 17 (?) now, deaf, almost blind, he sees outlines, shapes, not much else, still very curious, interested in things, pretty good health. He is very much loved and we have found ways for it to work.

All dogs are not for all people, and vice versa.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

If I had a friend living like this with a person, I would advise her that she was living in an abusive relationship and try to help her to get out of the relationship.

Really? If I had a friend that took an abused person from a shelter into their home, got them medical care and treatment, and took care of them, I would think they were a saint. I don’t get doing it with an a dog though.
Also, if that abused person turned out to have a serious mental illness that didn’t respond to treatment, and they occasionally attacked other people with a knife, then they would have to live in a locked facility.

Yes, really. They live in a situation where they are on eggshells, waiting for a violent outburst and scrambling to try to prevent one ahead of time (and if one happens despite all their scrambling, they will blame themselves). Their lives are limited because the abusive family member prevents them from seeing friends and engaging in normal life activities in their own home. They can't travel for long. They minimize the harm of the situation so as to justify putting up with it. They accept that the family member will never change and so circumscribe their own lives to accommodate the potential violence.

If that family member were a human not a dog, this would be an abusive living situation.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

If I had a friend living like this with a person, I would advise her that she was living in an abusive relationship and try to help her to get out of the relationship.

Really? If I had a friend that took an abused person from a shelter into their home, got them medical care and treatment, and took care of them, I would think they were a saint. I don’t get doing it with an a dog though.
Also, if that abused person turned out to have a serious mental illness that didn’t respond to treatment, and they occasionally attacked other people with a knife, then they would have to live in a locked facility.

Yes, really. They live in a situation where they are on eggshells, waiting for a violent outburst and scrambling to try to prevent one ahead of time (and if one happens despite all their scrambling, they will blame themselves). Their lives are limited because the abusive family member prevents them from seeing friends and engaging in normal life activities in their own home. They can't travel for long. They minimize the harm of the situation so as to justify putting up with it. They accept that the family member will never change and so circumscribe their own lives to accommodate the potential violence.

If that family member were a human not a dog, this would be an abusive living situation.

Come on. It's a small dog, not someone's uncle. These comparisons are crazy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

If I had a friend living like this with a person, I would advise her that she was living in an abusive relationship and try to help her to get out of the relationship.

You can't put your husband or wife in a playpen or spare room when company comes over. I can actually do that with my suspicious and non trusting terrier who loves us but not workmen who come to the house.
Yeah, it's not the same, people. Get a grip.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I have a mixed rescue that was written down on paper as being 3, and with some infected ears, skin, and in need of a dental. He growled at my husband when we went to foster home, but nothing aggressive. We took him home, started medical treatment for skin and ears, and his dental turned out to be a 5 hour surgery. .so infected that he was probably in real pain. And he was about 10, not 3. He was likely abused..evidence of past broken ribs.

Wrap to the end..yes, he loves us, trusted family members, but no one else. Yes, he will bite those ( people and dogs) he thinks are threats to us. His demeanor really improved, though, after he started feeling good, and he's living his best life with our 2 other dogs. We keep him away from others, that's all. He does fine in a kennel that gets him -with our other dogs, when we have to travel. It's not for everyone, but it's been a privilege to earn his trust and to care for this sad little dog. If we had little kids coming in and out of the house all day, no, we couldn't do it, but we are well suited to do this now. Glad we took him home.

If I had a friend living like this with a person, I would advise her that she was living in an abusive relationship and try to help her to get out of the relationship.

Really? If I had a friend that took an abused person from a shelter into their home, got them medical care and treatment, and took care of them, I would think they were a saint. I don’t get doing it with an a dog though.
Also, if that abused person turned out to have a serious mental illness that didn’t respond to treatment, and they occasionally attacked other people with a knife, then they would have to live in a locked facility.

Yes, really. They live in a situation where they are on eggshells, waiting for a violent outburst and scrambling to try to prevent one ahead of time (and if one happens despite all their scrambling, they will blame themselves). Their lives are limited because the abusive family member prevents them from seeing friends and engaging in normal life activities in their own home. They can't travel for long. They minimize the harm of the situation so as to justify putting up with it. They accept that the family member will never change and so circumscribe their own lives to accommodate the potential violence.

If that family member were a human not a dog, this would be an abusive living situation.

Come on. It's a small dog, not someone's uncle. These comparisons are crazy.

They are accurate. If the dog was a human, this would be an abusive situation.

But the crazy rescue people justify it, because they are, well, crazy.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some people (not me) like aggressive dogs. They'll talk as if they don't and will say they're sorry if their dog scares you, but deep down inside, they don't give a damn if you're scared. They're selfish and entitled and as long as it's someone else who is worried, they'll continue on as if nothing was wrong.

This is my neighbor. She thinks she needs special “protection “ and really enjoys that her very large dog is aggressive and bites people. A new neighbor moved in and put up a HUGE fence. She feels all aggrieved that it blocks her view but the dog attacked the neighbors kids. What did she expect?

[Anonymous]

Aggressive dog owners enjoy having an aggressive dog. Especially certain kinds of dogs that are known to guard. We had one at the beach where the owners let it roam on the boardwalk path to the beach that all owners and guests had to use. He just loved that his dog threatened every person who passed. In some cases it’s a certain kind of PERSON.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:If you know your dog is a biter, why do you keep it?

My dog isn't aggressive to me or my family. My dog doesn't leave our yard. We play ball in the backyard, instead of going for walks. He wears a muzzle if we have to the vet. MYOB

[Anonymous]

Virtue signaling.