well after our old rescue was PTS earlier in the year, our 10 year old collie x was pining for friend and was howling the house down whenever she was left alone (including in the night ) so we have been on the lookout for a buddy for her. yesterday we found him, a 10 year old GSD x something else, lol hes a right beast, but is lovely. he moults everywhere, but ive got a good hoover

to think he was looked over in kennels for over a year and a half, yet hes good with all dogs, cats, kids, travelling, left alone, the only thing is he pulls a bit on the lead-but who wouldnt if you had been shut in a cage for over a year im sure he will get better in time.

i love older dogs, who else here has rescued an older friend over buying a puppy?

What a lovely thing to do ~ I wish you many happy years with your dogs.

Very often the "golden oldies" in rescue centres are overlooked & I'm so pleased you've taken on an older dog. Now both your dogs can grow old & graceful together ~ more power to canine senior citizens!

I got one of my dogs as a rescue when she was about 3 years old as I wanted a dog roughly the same age & size as my other dog so that they could both enjoy long walks, rough & tumble games & grow old together (as will I!). I took on a black female labX & was very happy to do so as I knew that these nondescript, black, medium-sized mongrels are very often overlooked in favour of more striking-looking dogs. It was the best thing I've ever done as she's fitted in with the rest of the family so well & Barney was delighted with his new playmate. She's had a few teething problems behaviourally as she was very wary & nervous of adult strangers (adores kids!) but this problem has faded into insignificance now & she's so much better with people.

I hope lots of other people who are thinking of getting a dog will think long hard about older rescue dogs ~ they really deserve a chance of a loving home. Whilst rescue centres do the best they can, kennel environments are never ideal & some of the older dogs that are overlooked are doomed to spend months, if not years, in kennels ~ so hard for them if they've been used to life in a family home.

Well done Kelly ~ I look forward to hearing about your new dog.

well today went badly, went for nice long walk this morning, came back and they had breakie. then chewies, but he ended up being extremely aggressive and bit me when i went near him. couldnt risk that with the girls around so he went back to kennels

So sorry to hear that Kelly. And you are absolutely right - with children around the best thing is back to rescue. They now have an extra bit of information they never would have had if you hadn't taken him home which will hopefully help them find him the right home.

ETA: Sorry, mean to say I hope the bite wasn't too bad and heals quickly

it will probably be PTS now.
they cannot risk it biting someone else.

Not always.

Some rescues will rehabilitate dogs and place them in suitable, experienced homes, others have a non destruction policy.

Without knowing the rescue you can't say.

i hope i am wrong but the dog is 10 years old so will they have time to rehabilitate it?

Depends on the rescue. There are homes out there for difficult dogs. And there are rescues with non-destruction policies - which might mean a life in kennels, but with a good meal, exercise and vet care.

Kelly can't put her kids at risk. She made the right decision.

I think the recent tragic news about the young boy killed by a dog in Liverpool entirely supports that.
Kelly did her best to give this dog a chance. It's certainly not her fault if it didn't work out and better to decide that now than after any dreadful incident, particularly as this dog would be a largely unknown quantity.

What a shame Kelly. But I agree you can't risk this with children around. As others have said, at least now the rescue centre has this information & can take care with future homes. Don't give up though ~ there's another dog out there for you.

as we said to the women at ther rescue, he would be an ideal dog for either a couple or a family with older teenage children who would know not to go near him when he has something he likes, and who are able to keep food etc out of his reach.

in every other way this old boy is a fantastic dog, a real teddy bear. hes been in kennels for a year and a half now, and they use him to rehabilitate nervous/aggressive dogs when they come into kennels as he has always been 100% around other dogs and shows them how to behave. he has now had a note put on his kennel card to go with older children only.

i felt like i let him down by taking him back, but i know they wont destroy him as they are a no-kill rescue home, they wont put him down. they even have diabetic dogs and some on permanent medication who are bad with kids and cats etc who are there waiting for just the right home.

the bite wasnt bad, he only just caught me as i got my arm away from him. he varely broke the skin, i just have a bit of a mark and bruise where he clipped me with a tooth.

im sure his ideal home will be out there, just takes a bit longer for the older dogs without the puppy cuteness

Sometimes the powerful breeds demand a strong handler with very obvious leadership. I've no doubt somebody with previous experience of similar breeds will be able to take that dog and get on fine with it.

You did the right thing in taking it back to the rescue before it got too serious.

This dog's behaviour problem sounds relatively easy to fix, especially as he has so many other good behavioural traits. I'm sure an experienced dog owner would be happy to take on this dog if this was the only problem & as long as there are no small children in the house.