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Shelter Dogs



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 15th 03, 03:13 PM
Julia Altshuler
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Default Shelter Dogs

This whole discussion was starting to sound awfully familiar so I looked
back in my sent mail and found that we'd had the discussion as recently
as October. Back then we were talking about food aggression as it
relates to choosing which shelter dogs to put down (kill). Here's what
I had to say on the subject then:

------------------------------------

For me, the question isn't so much whether the food aggression test is
fair or not-- it obviously isn't-- it is whether the food aggression
test is more fair than some other.

Let's imagine that you have 200 dogs you'd like to find homes for but
money and space for only 100. You also know from past experience that
only 75 good homes looking to adopt a dog are likely to walk in the door
in any given week. The sad truth is that 100 dogs are going to have to
be killed. How do you choose which ones?

You could put numbers in a hat. You could come up with some formula
based on how long the dog has been awaiting adoption. You could look at
the age and health of the dog. You could look at how much time and
training the dog would need to become a good pet. You could choose
based on size or furriness or whether adopters tend to like long ears or
short tails. When you get down to it, pretty much any method you choose
is unfair.

If you had space for 100 dogs, only 50 dogs, and more adopting families
than you could supply with dogs, then you'd want to adopt out every dog
you had. The only dogs that would be killed would be ones that were so
vicious and unable to be rehabilitated that they presented an immediate
danger to people. A minor food aggression problem or an imaginary food
aggression problem wouldn't enter into it.

------------------------------------


I wonder if this is one of those long discussions where we spend a lot
of words coming to the conclusion that we all basically agree. Perhaps
it all comes down to the interpretation of the age old cry of "THAT'S
NOT FAIR!" Some will hear that and immediately think "that's not fair
and therefore steps should immediately be taken to come up with a more
fair system and implement that system." Others will hear "that's not
fair" and sympathetically agree with the crier. They'll both feel
better for yelling and letting off steam but not feel the necessity to
do anything about it.

Perhaps the result of the "that's not fair" in this instance is to work
to make fewer dogs in need of homes (not breeding dogs who don't have
homes all lined up) and to work to make more homes (better training
efforts for people who want dogs).

Let me go off on one of my extended metaphors. My lit class spent a
little time on the Puritan Revolution in England. I've thought about it
a lot because I'd always studied that spot in history from the
perspective of its influence on the U.S., not on England itself. For
the first time I thought about what a paradigm shift that must have been
for a nation of people who were used to thinking in terms of the divine
right of kings to execute their king for treason. Before then, the
mindset was that one could get a bad king and one could complain about a
bad king, but it was like complaining about bad weather. You didn't
really believe anything could or should be done.

That's my analogy for the different ways we look at the cry of "that's
not fair!"

--Lia

  #2  
Old December 15th 03, 10:26 PM
J1Boss
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Default


: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D

I've adopted 2 adult dogs from the shelter I work with. One was a found dog of
~1, one was a surrendered dog of 2. Both were "easy" in almost every way.
Heck, Lucy was/is a piece of cake. She moved in here with another dog and 2
cats like she had lived here all of her life. Should I have left her for a
person who didn't have as much "dog skill" and adopted a tough dog instead? At
the time I adopted her, I wasn't looking for a dog. She was meant to be mine
though, and I think we've both benefited from the arrangement enormously!
Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.

Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

  #3  
Old December 15th 03, 10:26 PM
J1Boss
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default


: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D

I've adopted 2 adult dogs from the shelter I work with. One was a found dog of
~1, one was a surrendered dog of 2. Both were "easy" in almost every way.
Heck, Lucy was/is a piece of cake. She moved in here with another dog and 2
cats like she had lived here all of her life. Should I have left her for a
person who didn't have as much "dog skill" and adopted a tough dog instead? At
the time I adopted her, I wasn't looking for a dog. She was meant to be mine
though, and I think we've both benefited from the arrangement enormously!
Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.

Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

  #4  
Old December 15th 03, 10:26 PM
J1Boss
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default


: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D

I've adopted 2 adult dogs from the shelter I work with. One was a found dog of
~1, one was a surrendered dog of 2. Both were "easy" in almost every way.
Heck, Lucy was/is a piece of cake. She moved in here with another dog and 2
cats like she had lived here all of her life. Should I have left her for a
person who didn't have as much "dog skill" and adopted a tough dog instead? At
the time I adopted her, I wasn't looking for a dog. She was meant to be mine
though, and I think we've both benefited from the arrangement enormously!
Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.

Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

  #5  
Old December 15th 03, 10:52 PM
Mary Healey
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Posts: n/a
Default

J1Boss wrote:
: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D


Yahbut, your PITA may be my sweet baboo. I don't think any of my dogs
has been particularly difficult, but I've been assured by others that
Sam's activity level, Noah's bullying tendencies, Ranger's ball
obsession and Duke's lumpishness are considered highly undesirable
traits by Normal People. (Honestly, Duke's probably the "easiest" of my
dogs, and he's the one most likely to make me crazy nuts. His
Lab-normal reactions are just so Not Heeler that I find him a little
difficult to understand sometimes.)

Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.


Like there's only one "good one" ever, and you've condemned the rest of
humanity to "bad" dogs somehow?

You get the dog you get, and sometimes that's an easy dog and sometimes
that's a difficult dog and you do the best you can by the dog you get.
THAT's the real difference between successful adoptions and failed
adoptions, far more than how "easy" or "difficult" a particular dog
might rate on some general scale.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.


g Sam is the reason I'm not getting another puppy. Ever. His
puppyhood was as much puppyhood as I'm likely to ever want, thanks.
Difficult? Not really. PITA? Oh, yeah.
--
Mary H. and the Ames National Zoo: Regis, Sam-I-Am, Noah (1992-2001),
Ranger, Duke,
felines, and finches

  #6  
Old December 15th 03, 10:52 PM
Mary Healey
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Posts: n/a
Default

J1Boss wrote:
: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D


Yahbut, your PITA may be my sweet baboo. I don't think any of my dogs
has been particularly difficult, but I've been assured by others that
Sam's activity level, Noah's bullying tendencies, Ranger's ball
obsession and Duke's lumpishness are considered highly undesirable
traits by Normal People. (Honestly, Duke's probably the "easiest" of my
dogs, and he's the one most likely to make me crazy nuts. His
Lab-normal reactions are just so Not Heeler that I find him a little
difficult to understand sometimes.)

Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.


Like there's only one "good one" ever, and you've condemned the rest of
humanity to "bad" dogs somehow?

You get the dog you get, and sometimes that's an easy dog and sometimes
that's a difficult dog and you do the best you can by the dog you get.
THAT's the real difference between successful adoptions and failed
adoptions, far more than how "easy" or "difficult" a particular dog
might rate on some general scale.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.


g Sam is the reason I'm not getting another puppy. Ever. His
puppyhood was as much puppyhood as I'm likely to ever want, thanks.
Difficult? Not really. PITA? Oh, yeah.
--
Mary H. and the Ames National Zoo: Regis, Sam-I-Am, Noah (1992-2001),
Ranger, Duke,
felines, and finches

  #7  
Old December 15th 03, 10:52 PM
Mary Healey
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

J1Boss wrote:
: So, instead of crafting an adoptable pool of dogs by removing
: potentially difficult dogs, perhaps another solution would be to appeal
: to the better-prepared, dog-oriented potential adopters?


Who are mostly too smart to want a PITA dog? ;-D


Yahbut, your PITA may be my sweet baboo. I don't think any of my dogs
has been particularly difficult, but I've been assured by others that
Sam's activity level, Noah's bullying tendencies, Ranger's ball
obsession and Duke's lumpishness are considered highly undesirable
traits by Normal People. (Honestly, Duke's probably the "easiest" of my
dogs, and he's the one most likely to make me crazy nuts. His
Lab-normal reactions are just so Not Heeler that I find him a little
difficult to understand sometimes.)

Every once in awhile, someone attempts to make me feel guilty for taking the
"good one". I don't get that.


Like there's only one "good one" ever, and you've condemned the rest of
humanity to "bad" dogs somehow?

You get the dog you get, and sometimes that's an easy dog and sometimes
that's a difficult dog and you do the best you can by the dog you get.
THAT's the real difference between successful adoptions and failed
adoptions, far more than how "easy" or "difficult" a particular dog
might rate on some general scale.

OTOH, my purebred purchased as a puppy dog is not a dog who would have done
well in a lot of homes. He's not a "difficult" dog, but hes not for everyone
either.


g Sam is the reason I'm not getting another puppy. Ever. His
puppyhood was as much puppyhood as I'm likely to ever want, thanks.
Difficult? Not really. PITA? Oh, yeah.
--
Mary H. and the Ames National Zoo: Regis, Sam-I-Am, Noah (1992-2001),
Ranger, Duke,
felines, and finches

  #8  
Old December 16th 03, 12:25 AM
J1Boss
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Posts: n/a
Default

Jack wrote:

Do you have a reference for that, Sarah? A jurisdiction and/or
ordinance number, maybe?

If nothing else, I can use as an example of "what not to do."


I chaired the Vicious Dog Hearing Board for 4.5 years. I can quote the law in
my sleep.

"A vicious dog is any dog that has bitten or attacked a human being or another
animal, or has attempted to bite or attack a human being or another animal and
was only prevented from doing so by a leash, fence, or other means"

It's a hard one to prove and one that never was presented to us, but I see a
huge potential for misuse of the law.


Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

  #9  
Old December 16th 03, 12:25 AM
J1Boss
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Jack wrote:

Do you have a reference for that, Sarah? A jurisdiction and/or
ordinance number, maybe?

If nothing else, I can use as an example of "what not to do."


I chaired the Vicious Dog Hearing Board for 4.5 years. I can quote the law in
my sleep.

"A vicious dog is any dog that has bitten or attacked a human being or another
animal, or has attempted to bite or attack a human being or another animal and
was only prevented from doing so by a leash, fence, or other means"

It's a hard one to prove and one that never was presented to us, but I see a
huge potential for misuse of the law.


Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

  #10  
Old December 16th 03, 12:25 AM
J1Boss
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Jack wrote:

Do you have a reference for that, Sarah? A jurisdiction and/or
ordinance number, maybe?

If nothing else, I can use as an example of "what not to do."


I chaired the Vicious Dog Hearing Board for 4.5 years. I can quote the law in
my sleep.

"A vicious dog is any dog that has bitten or attacked a human being or another
animal, or has attempted to bite or attack a human being or another animal and
was only prevented from doing so by a leash, fence, or other means"

It's a hard one to prove and one that never was presented to us, but I see a
huge potential for misuse of the law.


Janet Boss
Best Friends Dog Obedience
"Nice Manners for the Family Pet"
Voted "Best of Baltimore 2001" - Baltimore Magazine
www.bestfriendsdogobedience.com

 




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