Joe in Tacoma now! 5:30-ish Eastern.

[gateley]

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_mesg&forum=132&topic_id=7521944&mesg_id=7521944

[jillan]

1. He will be on again in about a half-hour on cspan.

[Jennicut]

2. Watched it on C-Span last night. Made my sad mood much better.

I had to drop of my dog that I adopted to a "doggie college" to help his behavior. He was a rescue dog, a big black lab from Labs 4 Rescue and a sweet guy but had too many issues so we had to let him go. He was very fearful of strangers and then my 4 year old daughter tried to go into our bed the other night and Jake charged at her. Too many aggression/fear problems. My husband and I found a behavior school for him but we had to release him so the Labs 4 Rescue would pay for it. We drove almost 3 hours to upper Massachusetts to drop him off and were stuck in a major traffic jam for two hours last night on the Mass Turnpike. We were bummed yesterday.:( Then I come home, turn on C-Span to catch any speeches and there is Joe making me laugh, smile, and excited. I really needed that after a long day. :)

[jillan]

3. Ohhh - that is so sad about your dog.

Are you going to be able to get him back after he graduates college?

It's so hard when you get a dog from a rescue, you never know what they have been through in the past. We got our dog from a rescue as well. I took her to training at Petsmart, and luckily it helped alot. But there are still issues. When I recently took her to the vet, she was snapping at everyone - they even had to muzzle her. And what I really don't understand about her is how friendly she is to people that we meet when we are out walking...but if someone comes to my house it is a whole different story. She won't stop barking at them. Luckily, she will go into a room without too much prompting so our guests can relax.


You did the right thing. :hug:

[Jennicut]

5. The dog was most likely physically abused.

Makes me real sad and angry that abuse towards an animal can really wreck them for life. He was afraid of brooms and when I grabbed it once and took it above his head to use it to sweep up my kitchen he would cringe in fear. I think he was beaten with a broom or stick of some kind. He was from Alabama, was allowed to roam outdoors with no supervision and got hit by a car. The owners wanted to put him to sleep but the vet refused and took him in. He was being fostered by my husband's aunt when we decided to adopt him. He was good around our two daughters (3 and 4 years old) for the most part. He was so fearful of strangers, men in particular. He barked at men passing us on the sidewalk and at the park and so afraid of my own father and brother. Must have been because the man who owned him abused him. :( One day he was afraid of helium balloons my daughters got a a party and attacked the balloon as my 4 year old held it. We were worried after that but the bed incident was it for us. Good thing is he is getting help from a great trainer. Canine College in Mass is supposed to be a great place. We will see, he might go back to my husband's aunt to be fostered again. I don't think we will ever take him back because of our girls and our level of trust with him. Hope Jake gets better. Thanks for the support. We plan on getting a lab puppy after Christmas, I love animals and we still want a family pet!

[PatSeg]

7. I don't blame you for not taking a chance with the kids

It is just too risky.

We had a wonderful dog years ago who freaked out if we used a fly swatter. She clearly had been beaten and then dumped at a park, pregnant and very scared of everything. It took a while to get her to trust us and she ended up being a great pet.

[PatSeg]

4. That is so sad

It is so hard when they can't talk and tell you why they behave that way.

[Jennicut]

6. Yeah, Jake was a sweetheart but so afraid of everything.

I think his doggie school will be good for him.