Throw Away Pets

[scott_vt]

Sorry Jim, I couldnt resist /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif And NO, Im not bashing Texas, I still think I have some friends down there /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif

scotty

 

[JimR]

I have a few down there too.

 

[DrRod]

I was waiting for a bus in front of the Kennel at Disney World and a worker came out and asked if I wanted a dog. I sort of laughed and he shook his head and said "we get two or three dogs abandoned here a month." Apparently, people go there on vacation, put their dog in the kennel while staying there, and then leave without it. I suspect some of those are due to the owner getting sick or dying on the property but some are just people who decide its easier to just go home without them. Is there anything less Magic Kingdom than that? Amazing.

 

[RoyJackson]

This is such a sad thread...and what makes it worse is I'm guilty of this terrible thing! I feel so bad about doing it.

I'm not going into the details...too ashamed.

This was a while back...now, our dog is part of the family even when she passes gas while in bed with us! Of course, the wifey snores louder then the doggie!

Even after all this time, I still remember that little pooch...and I still feel guilty as all get out.

 

[Jstpssng]

Those of you who take in multiple strays deserve medals.

I have a lot to say about those people who abandon or abuse their pets, /forums/images/graemlins/mad.gif but it's best if I keep those comments to myself.

 

[Cliff_Johns]

My wife and I have fostered somewhere around 250 dogs over the years. All house dogs, one, two or three at a time for various local and national organizations. It's a terrific experience and I recommend it. I'll second petfinder.com as a good place to look. You're local vet should also have a list of shelters in your area and possibly a list of pure-breed dog rescue organizations. We did English Setter rescue for a long time (as you might guess by my avatar).

Please don't buy a dog from a store and imagine that you are "rescuing" it. Perhaps you are, but they will make more to replace it. This is what we need to stop.

Also, don't imagine that only muts and problems are left at shelters or at the end of dirt roads. As Eddies example illustrates, that's just not true. Out of the 250 or so dogs we fostered, we only had a couple who we evaluated as a serious problem. One we kept and rehabed -- he's a lover now -- the other was eventually put down, but he had a tough life all around.

If you want a pure-breed dog, they are redily available. Puppies are also available if that's what you want, although I think old dogs are cool and if you want a puppy you may have to wait a while.

There is a hiden network of dog transporters -- which my wife worked on for some time -- who can ship dogs across the US by setting up travel legs, and getting help from truckers etc. Very cool organization.

Anyway, the point is, the dog you want is already alive and well in a shelter somewhere. You just have to find him before his time is up.

Cliff

Old dogs are Cool!

 

[Inspector507]

We've got 3 pets living here, if you don't count my adult son /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Anyway all are rescues. The male cat was adopted from a cat shelter non-profit agency that will not euthanize an animal. They will live an old life there if never adopted. He was the last of a litter of 6. He was a vocal kitten. no wonder no one wanted him. He still is today. The female cat, totally black and full of pee and vinegar, was tossed out of a car window at maybe 3-4 weeks old. We were only going to keep her for the day to find someone to take her. She's been here 12 years so far. The dog is a mixed breed, Shepard and Golden, beautiful dog. We got him from a county dog pound at maybe 5 months old. I think he was abandoned because he got too big, and the fact he had a chewing problem. But cmon he's 5 months old. A little crate training and he's my best friend right now. I think he weighs in at 75-80 lbs now and 4 years old.
I'll take a rescue/abandoned one any day.

 

[Sigarms]

You hit it on the head so to speak on the crate training. There are so many people that don't realize that a dog can be trained, it just takes time and effort /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif

 

[Jstpssng]

</font><font color="blue" class="small">( crate training. There are so many people that don't realize that a dog can be trained, it just takes time and effort )</font>

some habits can't be broken, though. once she got some size on her, my lab would NEVER stay in a crate, even though she was just 8 weeks old when I started training her... it took me a long time to figure out she was just pushing the door 'til it gave. Once she got out all H*** would break loose. I gave up after she got onto my bureau and chewed up as disposable razor. /forums/images/graemlins/shocked.gif


This same dog will sleep in the truck all day if I'm stuck in the office; she stayed home alone all week without a problem when she was 8 months old. She just doesn't like to be confined.

I guess it's true that pets take after their owners.

 

[AB4D]

This whole subject really irritates me, I really dislike people that are not responsible when it comes to pets. The wife and I moved to our present location about a year ago. A feral/stray cat showed up at our house and the wife decided to give him a meal. Now we have 15 feral/stray cats that show up for regular meals. They are a lot tamer now than when we first started feeding them, but you still can't pet them, except for one. My neighbor down the road told me that people come down here and drop off their unwanted cats. The problem here is that there are no vets in the county that particpate in a spay/neuter program. Greed is the name of the game, and you can't get a cat fixed for less than $190 for males and $220 for females, luckly we found a vet in the next county that would fix all the cats and give them shots for a reasonable fee. So after trapping all of the cats we finally got all of them fixed. There is a plus side to the ordeal, we did get one house cat out of the bunch, he used to run from us, but then he decided to come into the house one day, and he never left /forums/images/graemlins/smile.gif. It's hard to get used to having a cat again, the last one I had died 5 years ago from cancer after having him for 19 years, but this new guy is pretty cool.


Jim