I will give them credit because alot of people would have dumped the dog on the street along time ago, which you do hear of every day.

Gosh I got rid of a dog for less than that - I just couldn't cope. I took him to a rescue organisation. I'm an experienced dog owner but just couldn't do anything with him. I guess if people can have mental health issues or personality disorders, so can animals.

I have taken in a couple like that, they are special dogs you have to work with them IMO but the one absolute key feature is you have to keep other people and animals safe and that in our case meant no visitors and never walk them where they had access to people or animals. One we had I used to crate and carry out to the car to go for a walk, we have communal stairs and grounds and I couldn't take a chance to meet anyone on the stairs so keeping everyone safe meant I carried him.

It's hard work and you spend a life alone with the dog. I have thought since he died whether it was really fair on rest of the family and our other dogs. I am still unsure keeping him alive was the best for everyone.

I stopped reading as soon as you said the dog was 'dangerous, bitten people and drawn blood'. There is only one answer to a dangerous dog that bites people bad enough to draw blood - put it to sleep. Not just for the owners sake but the dog's too, a dog that bites and has to be kept away from everyone/thing is going to have a miserable life. There are more than enough happy, friendly loving dogs around needing homes, ones that have never so much as growled at something, without keeping ones that a danger to people and other dogs around. It really annoys me that rescue places will spend a lot of time trying to "retrain" vicious unpredictable dangerous dogs, not to mention the cost of keeping them, when they could put the time, space and money into dogs that have nothing wrong with them, that they have to turn away due to having no space for them.

Dogs Trust never put a healthy dog down but then again, they try not to take on dangerous dogs to start off with. That's why their dogs tend to be more 'reliable' than those from some rescues... I seriously doubt they'd have him and would it be fair for anyone else to have him, really, as the owners, if they love him, will always wonder how he might have gone on to hurt after they owned him if they did pass him on?

I think PTS is the only option. Even if they had the money for a trainer - he would never be a dog they could trust, and many trainers might work with him for weeks or months only then to come to the same conclusion.

If you really love a pet, you do what is best for it. He is not a happy dog, is he Nor ever will be if they have had him 7 years and not turned it round. Every day of his life he is having to be hyper-vigilant. It might be hard to give him adequate exercise if he can't be let off the lead and destructiveness often has its roots in boredom, but it would be mad to let a dog that could bite anyone at any moment, off the lead..? Also he might have benefited from heavy, constant, consistent obedience training (intelligent dogs can be destructive when they're bored). As they haven't given him that they're not likely to suddenly start. Dogs Trust do a brilliant free training DVD that is online - there are also some great training tutorials on YouTube etc so having no money is no excuse not to get clued up and learn how to train your dog.

If they love him, I think they really need to put him quite literally out of his misery. They are not meeting his needs. Sorry to be so brutally honest but I think he is an accident waiting to happen.

That must have been extremly difficult and required the sort of dedication most people simply couldn't manage even if they wanted to. I know for a fact that I couldn't do that, it would take all they joy out of owning the dog for me and feel like a life sentance living like that for years, and I'd probably end up resenting the dog for forcing me to be that way. I couldn't deal with it, never able to relax or drop my guard, I would find it unfair on me and the dog, no matter how much I loved him/her.


DogsTrust is one of the good ones, probably because their big and well known, so if they took on and rehoused a dangerous dog their reputation would be in tatters. No rescue is meant to take on a dog that bites full stop, but shockingly, some do, then rehome them. It's highly irresponsible of someone to pass on a biting aggressive dog in the first place, but for a rescue, which ought to know better, to place such a dog with someone else is downright dangerous.

Hi All, and thanks for your comments and thoughts.

I have spoken to the owners and it does seem to have become, over the years, a catch 22 situation.

For example, in his excitement of going for walks he has hurt people, broken things and actually got someone locked in to the cupboard under the stairs! Thankfully there were others in the house to let them out!
Therefore, walks have become more infrequent. Leading to boredom etc.

You could take this example and apply it to almost everything. He behaves in a certain way - they respond in a certain way and it all just continues.

One owner also has a degenerative spine condition and having him yank them all over the place as he's lunging at people and other dogs is, understandably, unappealing.

We had a long chat and again I spoke to them about the dog and improving their lives and his life.
I suggested maybe using a Halti instead of his bright red harness and lead. I suggested going to the PDSA to see if they could recommend a behaviourist that would work with them for a contribution, for example.
I also suggested that the PDSA could prescribe something for the dog to take before walks etc. Honestly, I think he is so wired he's going to struggle to learn anything whilst he's in such a permanent state of anxiety.

I passed on some info that was given here.

I have spoken to them before about how unfair this all is on the dog and I agree with you all - he is probably swinging from boredom to severe anxiety and back again permanently. No way for a dog to live - or them.

I will try to keep encouraging them to deal - even if it's in small increments. I do think they have become a bit fatigued with him over the years and needed a bit of a motivational push. Obviously having him PTS is probably going to be the end result but, thanks for your input anyway guys.

Try a front fastening harness. Halti's have to be very carefully introduced and managed as they can cause problems. Try reading through this for advice
http://www.petforums.co.uk/dog-chat/...harness+thread

Edited to say that our dog has been reactive in the past and I think collar and lead are awful for the dog's physicality and can cause damage. Def recommend a front fasten harness with a double ended attachment lead, one for the collar and the other for the harness for maxmium control without too much fear for the dog. Used without professional help head collars can make the problem worse and cause dogs pain.

Do they have insurance? Can the vet recommend someone to help them?

Sorry but the dog has already drawn blood and attacked shopping bags?

That's a public danger and should be destroyed immediately, never mind "beware" collars the dog is a death waiting to happen.

I cannot believe anyone would be so bloody selfish to keep an animal like that never mind expose the public to it.

It's very difficult to actually bring yourself to do it I know I always said I would if mine actually bit anyone, I knew they would given a chance so took extreme precautions to make sure they didn't get a chance. If they did it would have been my fault not the dog.

I think in this particular case they have shown they cannot keep people safe so it must be taken extremely seriously and they need to accept it has to happen.