For those with rescue dogs..
- Thread starter Amber
- Start date
I have been so blessed to have been a part of such fantastic dogs lives. Most of those dogs were rescues and most of the rescues were tragic beginnings. The ones I most wonder about were
Lexi - Found hanging in a garage by the police while they searched a home for drugs. She had her mouth wired shut and was bloody and bruised. She was still alive so they brought her in to be euthanized at the shelter I was volunteering at. I had to jump through hoops to save her and make calls to every large donor I knew. The shelter wanted to euthanize her because they had great concerns about her temperament. I didn't have any concerns about that.
After a few months of allowing her physical wounds to heal we began work on her mental wounds. Oddly enough, she loved ALL people and would literally stand on her head to try to please me. She was extremely dog aggressive but it was fear based. I managed to introduce her to my current house dog easily and then a dog at a time. Lots of positive training, love and encouragement and she turned into one of the most fabulous dogs to ever walk this planet. I was so blessed to know her. So what I wonder about her was.... How did she end up where I found her? What kind of a monster abused her so horribly. Worse, is he still walking these streets? :yikes: He went to jail for awhile but it is NEVER long enough.
I also wonder exactly what happened to my current boy Oliver. I know he was abused, he came in to be euthanized with a broken jaw and leg. Neither of those injuries received proper veterinary care so obviously the people never cared about him. He is also a FABULOUS dog. Most everyone that meets him falls in love with him. He just wants to be loved. How the heck to you kick a little puppy. He was around 5 months old when I got him and the injuries were old? I will never understand people, I just won't.
In my rescue efforts I have seen all kinds of senseless abuse on animals. Oddly enough many times when given the chance to surrender the dog/cat people will claim to LOVE the animal. The animals may have spent their entire existence on a huge chain tied to a tree with no cover, little food or water and certainly no obvious affection from the people who claim to love them. We (the other rescue people and I) often pretend to not really care about the dog that much. If they know you want it, they want it more. Suddenly the dog is worth hundreds, maybe a thousand and they cannot part with such a prize dog. All I have to say about that is.... PLEASE!!!
Lexi - Found hanging in a garage by the police while they searched a home for drugs. She had her mouth wired shut and was bloody and bruised. She was still alive so they brought her in to be euthanized at the shelter I was volunteering at. I had to jump through hoops to save her and make calls to every large donor I knew. The shelter wanted to euthanize her because they had great concerns about her temperament. I didn't have any concerns about that.
After a few months of allowing her physical wounds to heal we began work on her mental wounds. Oddly enough, she loved ALL people and would literally stand on her head to try to please me. She was extremely dog aggressive but it was fear based. I managed to introduce her to my current house dog easily and then a dog at a time. Lots of positive training, love and encouragement and she turned into one of the most fabulous dogs to ever walk this planet. I was so blessed to know her. So what I wonder about her was.... How did she end up where I found her? What kind of a monster abused her so horribly. Worse, is he still walking these streets? :yikes: He went to jail for awhile but it is NEVER long enough.
I also wonder exactly what happened to my current boy Oliver. I know he was abused, he came in to be euthanized with a broken jaw and leg. Neither of those injuries received proper veterinary care so obviously the people never cared about him. He is also a FABULOUS dog. Most everyone that meets him falls in love with him. He just wants to be loved. How the heck to you kick a little puppy. He was around 5 months old when I got him and the injuries were old? I will never understand people, I just won't.
In my rescue efforts I have seen all kinds of senseless abuse on animals. Oddly enough many times when given the chance to surrender the dog/cat people will claim to LOVE the animal. The animals may have spent their entire existence on a huge chain tied to a tree with no cover, little food or water and certainly no obvious affection from the people who claim to love them. We (the other rescue people and I) often pretend to not really care about the dog that much. If they know you want it, they want it more. Suddenly the dog is worth hundreds, maybe a thousand and they cannot part with such a prize dog. All I have to say about that is.... PLEASE!!!
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Yeah, we wonder about Buddy, our shelter Golden who came in as an adult stray to one of the area shelters and was never claimed despite ads in several places. They said he came in covered with tar on his underside. They think he was purposely dumped as an adult dog, and at one point he had found some fresh tar to lay on to keep warm. (Some frgidly cold nights at the time he was apparently dumped ... but he's no dummy.)
I would love to know how he looked and behaved as a puppy!! Not possible, but some things from his background we have been able to discern, between a couple of the shelter personnel, the behaviorist through our vet, and our own observations.
He's likely the product of a BYB, because he's just way too big. He's a purebred Golden but larger, in height and weight, than the highest allowable standard for an adult male Golden. In one spot his coat doesn't quite wave right. His ears are a just a tiny tad too short ... but not short enough for anyone to notice, unless they really know the breed.
Physical signs showed an "outside only" dog, and he had been one for some time. A still-young dog, estimated at about 3- 4 years old, but already with dried out, cracked pads and the top of his nose leather was dried and cracked too. Reactions to certain things inside our house confirmed his prior outside-only status. He was startled by sounds of the ice machine, dishwasher, and washing machine and dryer. He didn't have the first clue how to navigate stairs ... up or down.
He had no prior training. He had no house manners at all, but responded very well and very quickly to training. He was a champion at counter-surfing, but has since been trained out of it. He's VERY intelligent and trainable, catches on and responds with very few repetitions. Just seemed that no one had ever bothered before.
He has bite scars hidden in his fur, which explains his dog-reactiveness to medium-sized and other large dogs ... Buddy had been attacked. Appears from his scars that no one bothered to get the wounds stitched. (Still working on that reactivity, he's got better but it's not gone yet.) He loves all little dogs and all cats.
Somebody hit him, more than once and it was an adult male. Like others have posted, our Buddy was another one who reacted VERY strongly to a man's upswung hand ... including some light cringing even when an adult male just went to pet him on the head. Somebody tried to housebreak him at some point, because he picked up too quickly on it (less than 2 days). But they must have been harsh, because he acted very afraid when I said "No" the first time he tried to "go" in the house.
He must have been close to some adult female at some point, and felt protective toward her. When I walk him ... he does not want any strange adult males coming anywhere near me, no severe reactions but his hackles raise and he does a continuous low-pitched growl ...unusual behavior for a Golden. But it's selective to strange adult males only ... he's perfectly fine with any and all children, and perfectly fine with adult females. I look at him sometimes ... and wonder about those past demons still in his memory. He's a wonderful dog ... an inside dog now and we love him dearly.
I would love to know how he looked and behaved as a puppy!! Not possible, but some things from his background we have been able to discern, between a couple of the shelter personnel, the behaviorist through our vet, and our own observations.
He's likely the product of a BYB, because he's just way too big. He's a purebred Golden but larger, in height and weight, than the highest allowable standard for an adult male Golden. In one spot his coat doesn't quite wave right. His ears are a just a tiny tad too short ... but not short enough for anyone to notice, unless they really know the breed.
Physical signs showed an "outside only" dog, and he had been one for some time. A still-young dog, estimated at about 3- 4 years old, but already with dried out, cracked pads and the top of his nose leather was dried and cracked too. Reactions to certain things inside our house confirmed his prior outside-only status. He was startled by sounds of the ice machine, dishwasher, and washing machine and dryer. He didn't have the first clue how to navigate stairs ... up or down.
He had no prior training. He had no house manners at all, but responded very well and very quickly to training. He was a champion at counter-surfing, but has since been trained out of it. He's VERY intelligent and trainable, catches on and responds with very few repetitions. Just seemed that no one had ever bothered before.
He has bite scars hidden in his fur, which explains his dog-reactiveness to medium-sized and other large dogs ... Buddy had been attacked. Appears from his scars that no one bothered to get the wounds stitched. (Still working on that reactivity, he's got better but it's not gone yet.) He loves all little dogs and all cats.
Somebody hit him, more than once and it was an adult male. Like others have posted, our Buddy was another one who reacted VERY strongly to a man's upswung hand ... including some light cringing even when an adult male just went to pet him on the head. Somebody tried to housebreak him at some point, because he picked up too quickly on it (less than 2 days). But they must have been harsh, because he acted very afraid when I said "No" the first time he tried to "go" in the house.
He must have been close to some adult female at some point, and felt protective toward her. When I walk him ... he does not want any strange adult males coming anywhere near me, no severe reactions but his hackles raise and he does a continuous low-pitched growl ...unusual behavior for a Golden. But it's selective to strange adult males only ... he's perfectly fine with any and all children, and perfectly fine with adult females. I look at him sometimes ... and wonder about those past demons still in his memory. He's a wonderful dog ... an inside dog now and we love him dearly.
I am really curious as to who had Wilson, and what his history is. He is such a loving guy with his family--but also very protective when strangers(to him) are around. I would love to know what else he is made of--basset seems pretty clear-but not sure of the rest. And I know he would have been an adorable puppy!
Baxter I think must've gotten away from his home somehow--that beagle nose of his. He didn't come with too many "issues"--so I imagine he was taken care of. He was picked up in an area that is rural farm country--and when we drive around sometimes he gets very excited when we see cows,etc. So I think he was a farm dog.
Baxter I think must've gotten away from his home somehow--that beagle nose of his. He didn't come with too many "issues"--so I imagine he was taken care of. He was picked up in an area that is rural farm country--and when we drive around sometimes he gets very excited when we see cows,etc. So I think he was a farm dog.
All the time. Why is she scared of knives, how old is she, how many litters of puppies she had, why the sight of a broom makes her cower, how she survived all those months in the bush, why were her ribs broken.
I look at her now and wonder if she remembers he past life, if she is grateful to us and if she knows how loved she is now. I also wonder if she ever worries about going back?
I look at her now and wonder if she remembers he past life, if she is grateful to us and if she knows how loved she is now. I also wonder if she ever worries about going back?