What to do with the dog?

[GeorgeK]

Had to log back in for that.

You are actually *pondering* how you can sustain a potentially dangerous situation???
Are you insane?
Dog----> gone.

I can see how you will sue anyone who gave you advice when your kid is maimed for life.

Originally Posted by billybek

My wife and I had a sad realization today. Harley dog may not be able to stay with us any longer.
It is a typical couple has baby, dog doesn't seem to be compatible with the new family order.
Some background. My wife adopted the dog from a rescue society in North Carolina about 7 or 8 years ago. Harley is a mixed breed, but appears to be a Kelpie and perhaps Blue Heeler cross.

The big problem is that she growls at our little guy and while she has never made a move to bite him, she did make an "air snap" at another child today. I am worried that she will one day bite and do damage to some poor unsuspecting child.

She is about 9-10 years old. While I would hate to put her down before her time, I would hate more to do nothing and allow her to hurt a child.

Ahhh crap, what do ya do?

[billybek]

Originally Posted by GeorgeK

Had to log back in for that.

You are actually *pondering* how you can sustain a potentially dangerous situation???
Are you insane?
Dog----> gone.

I can see how you will sue anyone who gave you advice when your kid is maimed for life.

My wife is contacting the local humane society today and is going to talk to a trainer as well to determine our options.
If it is unworkable the dog is going, hopefully to a new home.

I have been called crazy before, but never insane!

[masraum]

Originally Posted by billybek

My wife is contacting the local humane society today and is going to talk to a trainer as well to determine our options.
If it is unworkable the dog is going, hopefully to a new home.

I have been called crazy before, but never insane!

Lots of dogs do great with babies (dog or human). They often seem to understand that they are babies. That said, when I was born, my dad had a GSD that was jealous of my mother. When I was born they gave the dog to someone else because they were afraid the dog was going to be jealous of me.

I remember an episode of "The Dog Whisperer" where the family dog would snap at the mother and even occasionally the father, but was 100% submissive to the baby. Cesar said that they had made the baby the "alpha" but had never done that with themselves. I thought that was interesting and funny.

[Jim Richards]

Originally Posted by billybek

I have been called crazy before, but never insane!

Give it time. You know we're here to help. :P

[LeeH]

On Good Morning America today - family dog takes baby from crib:

http://cosmos.bcst.yahoo.com/up/player/popup/index.php?cl=14677631

[450knotOffice]

Hopefully it works out well for you and your family dog, Bill. Best wishes.

[billybek]

Just a quick update on Harley dog.
We had the trainer come in and evaluate the dog a couple of times and she had a lot of good suggestions on how to "manage" the situation. That is exactly what needed to happen. The situation needed to be managed......constantly.
We needed a solution that wouldn't put our child or any other child at risk. My wife found some young university students on line that were interested in adopting an older dog that was a little less full on than getting a puppy and they didn't want to be tied to a dog for 12-14 years.
We met them and were very impressed with their responsibility and their level of commitment to Harley after they had a trial run with her for a few weeks.
The new owners have no contact with children and are well aware of her limitations with being exposed to young children.
So it looks like a win win situation. We were dreading the possible outcome of this situation as we were told that the local shelter would not accept her for adoption.
My wife was over to drop off some dog booties and some other things to the new people and Harley was quite at home. While she was exited to see my wife, she in no way was interested in leaving with her.....
Life is good and I feel that we have done the right thing!
Thanks for your input on this matter.

[stomachmonkey]

Love a happy ending.

Happy it worked out for everyone.

[azasadny]

I'm glad this worked out...

[450knotOffice]

Sounds like it worked out perfectly for all involved.

[billybek]

Thanks guys..
We miss her, but there are times when we miss her more than usual. Like when the little guy has finished eating and we can't just bring out the clean up dog!

[Nathans_Dad]

Good move. I had a very similar situation occur with an SPCA dog we adopted a few years ago. The dog was fine with my kids but would growl and snap at other kids who came anywhere near the house. My wife and I decided that even with training, there was no way we would feel comfortable having the dog loose in the house with kids around. Also, you have to remember the situation mentioned above where a toddler loses his balance and falls on the dog. If the dog snaps at kids normally, what's going to happen when a kid falls on them? Bad deal.

We took the dog back to the SPCA pronto.

All the people on this thread who are saying that you have a duty to try training the dog first have their priorities all out of whack. What you have is a duty to protect your CHILD.

I love dogs, but dogs are not humans.

[juanbenae]

nice

[rammstein]

Well done, everyone wins.

[john70t]

Interested in a Jack Russell? We got him from a schutzhund breeder who was afraid for the other dogs.

[Burnin' oil]

I have a dog that I'm going to have to put down. Any takers?

[James Brown]

great story

[billybek]

A sad twist in the tale of Harley dog.
I just finished talking to the new owner and Harley has cancer that had started in her liver and has spred to her stomach and spleen. She is bleeding internally and will be put down in a few days.
Just when things had worked out so well.
She soon will be chasing frisbees with her buddy Lucky and refusing to give them up.

[Chocaholic]

Could also explain her behavior toward your child. She may have been in pain, and as such, had no patients for a baby, etc. Dogs have an amazingly high threshold for pain, so it may not be visible to you. Sorry to hear of her situation.

[Rikao4]

thank for even trying..
sorry it ended this way..
but you tried..
that's more than most..

Rika