Rant with pictures

[Sweet72947]

This past weekend at FOHA we had one of our pit bull mixes returned. The reason? She somehow got out of the fence and killed the neighbor's chihuahua, who was also running around loose. I guess prey drive took over. This dog is ok with other dogs her size. Stupid people.

This is the dog, her name is Juno (she also answers to JuJu). I sometimes call her bighead. She's so human friendly.

Its almost as stupid as the people who returned a husky mix for killing squirrels.

ETA: I don't think killing a chihuahua is anything to laugh about, I just think its dumb to get rid of your dog for displaying a natural drive.

 

[GoingNowhere]

I'm sorry to hear that she was returned. Unfortunately, I understand both sides of the story - not why the dog was loose in the first place though.

If they hadn't had the dog for a very long time, I can understand that it may be better to remain on good terms with your neighbors if at all possible. Of course, I'm sure the neighbors are already upset, but I'm sure that they would hate the dog that killed their little chi and maybe it's actually better off for the dog that she goes to a new home.

If the owners were ever planning on getting small animals or a small dog, this is going to be a huge problem. Also - if they just aren't able to keep a dog with that much prey drive confined, she'll be better off in a more suitable home. After all, as you've seen here - whether we like it or not, people often dont make a huge effort to keep thier dogs in their yard (for both parties involved)- but quite frankly, (although I believe that every dog should be confined correctly) I'd MUCH rather see a dog friendly dog loose. Not that I want to see any dog loose at all.

She'll be better off in the hands of people who love her and want to make sure that she gives a good name to the breed. It's sad that she's back in rescue, but just be glad that those people returned her to you and now she can have a better future with more responsible owners.

 

[CoyCoyote]

Oh noes...

Definitely a good-looking gal. I really hope she finds more responsible owners next time around.

People never cease to amaze me. *sigh*

 

[Punkygirl0101]

I don't think it was bad of them to return her honestly. Did they know she was small dog aggressive? Some people just cannot handle a dog aggressive dog!

Shes a very pretty girl though! And I hope she gets adopted by someone who can handle a DA dog.

 

[Maxy24]

Poor dog, I hope she can find a good home. Punky, I would agree with you if i thought the dog was DA, but she may not be, is kind of sounds like she has a high prey drive (more like a dog who kills cats, rabbits etc. but may think small dogs fall into that category) but I can't be sure without knowing how she reacts to them when she simply sees them sitting there.

 

[Bahamutt99]

IMO, I think it's good they returned the dog. Maybe she can go to a home that will set her up for success rather than failure now.

 

[Lilavati]

She has such lovely eyes.


I see both sides of this too. If nothing else, they may have had serious problems with their neighbors afterwards, especially if they had kept the dog. It doesn't really matter whose fault it was . . . when these things happen, everyone is in a tight spot. Should they have taken her back? I don't know, I don't know enough of the facts . . . but I do know that once it happened, things were going to be really tense on their block.

 

[Sweet72947]

I understand your points. I'm just annoyed that these people set her up for failure in the first place, and have probably made some more people fear the "vicious killer pit bull", (even though she's much more like an american bully than an ABPT).

 

[bubbatd]

Doesn't anyone feel sorry for the poor Chi's owners ???

 

[ACooper]

Doesn't anyone feel sorry for the poor Chi's owners ???

I am sure we all do Grammy to a point.........but the fact remains that THIS is what can and does happen when you let your dogs run loose

If it wasn't a bigger dog, it could have been a car, truck, toxins, mean kids, any number of things.

I probably don't have as much sympathy for them as I should.........KEEP YOUR DOGS CONTAINED PEOPLE!

 

[Lilavati]

I understand your points. I'm just annoyed that these people set her up for failure in the first place, and have probably made some more people fear the "vicious killer pit bull", (even though she's much more like an american bully than an ABPT).

They might not have. Dogs DO get out, even from responsible people. Sarama escaped once because the wind blew the gate open. It was latched, but the wood is uncured, and it had sagged. I would never have imagined the wind could push a heavy wooden gate hard enough to slip the latch (and we aren't talkign a hurricane here). We actually tested it . . . yes, it was the wind. Once we knew, of course, we put a lock on the gate. Fortunately, nothing happened. Twice she's slipped past us out the front door. Nothing happened. Something could have.

The first time a latch fails, or a dog digs out, or a dog climbs the fence, I tend to give people a pass . . . these things happen. They happen to the best of us.

 

[ACooper]

We had only had Phoebe about a month when she escaped out the front door with the kids getting on the bus...........she saw a squirrel and took off.

She has since had better training and knows much better than to rush the front door.

The point is, if another dog, car, or anything had happened to her it would be MY FAULT. Same if she had reeked havoc in the neighborhood. I knew she wasn't trained yet, I knew she was excitable with the kids going to school, I knew she shouldn't be in the front room when the kids were going out the door.........but she was. Most "accidents" are completely avoidable............very rare is the accident where nothing could have been done to prevent it.

Same goes for the people with the Chi or this shelter dog's previous owners.

 

[Lilavati]

Perhaps I should clairify the concept of fault. Yes, the owners were at fault . . . on the other hand, condemning them as bad people because they made an error in judgment may not be fair. Its not that accidents can't be prevented, its just that people are failiable. Mistakes happen, because you didn't think of it, because you were distracted at that moment, because you were missing a piece of information. When you don't LEARN from your mistakes, or you don't take the advice of those with experience, then I'll be judgmental. But if this was the first time the dog got out . . .whether by charging through the gate, or climbing, or digging . . . I'm inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt. Of cours,e they may BE bad owners, and this may have happened before . . .

With what happened with you, AC, sure, you should have known better. But I suspect you thought you could keep her from getting out the door. The kids were going to school, locking her up was a pain, just be quick with the door. Nope.

Sarama has slipped out the door twice. Once, she was loose in the house, and the other one of us came home and she darted out past the person coming in, who had full hands and didn't know she was there (that would have been me). The second time she was in the yard and she slipped out the front gate while I was pulling the hose into the front yard from the back. I thought I could block her while I slipped the hose out. Nope. Now she's inside when we move the hose, and she knows better than to charge the front door. And the gates to the back are always locked from the inside to prevent the wind (or the neighbors) from opening them. We learned from our mistakes. But we did make mistakes, and we made them in good faith, and then we made sure we didn't make them again. I don't consider being responsible to be perfection: I consider it trying to predict problems, doing your best to avoid them, and fixing them when they occur. So yes, if something had happened, I would be at fault . . . and I'd be kicking myself to this day. But accidents DO happen, and they happen to people who really are doing their best, and who were just careless for a moment, or distracted, or literally didn't think of something.

 

[wishbone]

Sad return and poor chihuahua...

Saying little prayers for them.

 

[ACooper]

Perhaps I should clairify the concept of fault. Yes, the owners were at fault . . . on the other hand, condemning them as bad people because they made an error in judgment may not be fair. Its not that accidents can't be prevented, its just that people are failiable. Mistakes happen, because you didn't think of it, because you were distracted at that moment, because you were missing a piece of information. When you don't LEARN from your mistakes, or you don't take the advice of those with experience, then I'll be judgmental. But if this was the first time the dog got out . . .whether by charging through the gate, or climbing, or digging . . . I'm inclined to give them the benefit of the doubt. Of cours,e they may BE bad owners, and this may have happened before . . .

With what happened with you, AC, sure, you should have known better. But I suspect you thought you could keep her from getting out the door. The kids were going to school, locking her up was a pain, just be quick with the door. Nope.

Sarama has slipped out the door twice. Once, she was loose in the house, and the other one of us came home and she darted out past the person coming in, who had full hands and didn't know she was there (that would have been me). The second time she was in the yard and she slipped out the front gate while I was pulling the hose into the front yard from the back. I thought I could block her while I slipped the hose out. Nope. Now she's inside when we move the hose, and she knows better than to charge the front door. And the gates to the back are always locked from the inside to prevent the wind (or the neighbors) from opening them. We learned from our mistakes. But we did make mistakes, and we made them in good faith, and then we made sure we didn't make them again. I don't consider being responsible to be perfection: I consider it trying to predict problems, doing your best to avoid them, and fixing them when they occur. So yes, if something had happened, I would be at fault . . . and I'd be kicking myself to this day. But accidents DO happen, and they happen to people who really are doing their best, and who were just careless for a moment, or distracted, or literally didn't think of something.

Not disagreeing here, I was addressing giving sympathy to the Chi owners.

While I feel for them, I don't feel OVERLY much for them..........it's their own fault whether they intentionally let the dog run or the dog escapes.

The previous owners of the shelter dog probably did the right thing in returning her........perhaps they realized that they weren't cut out for the trials of owning her after all, IDK, but yes, a mistake happened and they made a choice to giver her back. I don't know if I would've done the same or not.

If Phoebe had been run over or attacked when she escaped I would have taken the blame and wouldn't expect "sympathy" from the owners of the car or dog (or compensation) That was my main point.

 

[Lilavati]

Not disagreeing here, I was addressing giving sympathy to the Chi owners.

While I feel for them, I don't feel OVERLY much for them..........it's their own fault whether they intentionally let the dog run or the dog escapes.

The previous owners of the shelter dog probably did the right thing in returning her........perhaps they realized that they weren't cut out for the trials of owning her after all, IDK, but yes, a mistake happened and they made a choice to giver her back. I don't know if I would've done the same or not.

If Phoebe had been run over or attacked when she escaped I would have taken the blame and wouldn't expect "sympathy" from the owners of the car or dog (or compensation) That was my main point.

Agreed. And I did very much wonder what the Chi was doing loose. Perhaps it was a one time thing too: I hope so . . . because if letting any dog run loose is irresponsible and dangerous, letting something the size of a Chi run loose is just plan insane, at least if you want to your dog to live. Would I give a dog back under those circumstances? It would have a lot to do with those Chi owners . . . if they were going to stalk me, or my dog, or threaten the dog, or since its a pit bull, try to get revenge through animal control, probably. But it would be to protect the dog from further danger, not because I thought there was something wrong with it.

 

[Kela]

I'm not entirely sure that I believe that BOTH dogs were loose. To me, it sounds like the pit bull adopters were trying to avoid a lawsuit in claiming that both dogs were somehow running around loose.

People don't let chihuahuas run around loose, it would be stupid. There is a reason that most chihuahuas are petrified of other people, its because the typical owner keeps it inside and away from other people and animals for most of its life. Maybe the pit broke out, and was able to get into where the chihuahua was?

I find it unlikely that both dogs coincidentally were out and running around around loose at the same time. Maybe the chihuahua got out and was able to enter the fence of the pitty, and got chased back out? It really sounds like someone tried to avoid blame there.

 

[puppydog]

Um, I don't think they were stupid at all. It is their choice to decide if they want a DA animal or not.

 

[Bahamutt99]

People don't let chihuahuas run around loose, it would be stupid.

Oh, they do. Last house I lived at, I found two different Chihuhuas in my yard. One was a regular offender, and I started checking my yard for him before I'd let my dog out. The little dogs would slip under the 3-4" gap in the gate. Here's a (bad) pic of the dog that belonged to my neighbor, right after he'd slipped back out of my yard. In addition to being in violation of the leash law, they were also in violation of the mandatory neutering law. What you cannot see in this picture is the busy 4-lane road to the immediate left of our yard.

Thankfully this dog was a wimp, and not one of the Napoleonic Complex types that likes to be "brave" around other dogs. But that doesn't make him less of a Chihuahua, and this photo is not Photoshopped. So I agree with you, it is stupid. But I disagree with your contention that it never happens because it is stupid, and am more than a little offended that you think the Pit Bull's owner must be lying.

I find it highly likely that the Chi was let out for a stroll, and probably antagonized the APBT through the fence, inciting the escape. I've had little Napoleons goad my dogs through barriers more times than I care to count. I've also had them come out at me when walking my dogs. The only difference being that when it's a Chi or a toy poople putting on the macho display, it's cute. When the big dog responds, that's when people get mortified.

 

[puppydog]

^^ I agree totally! It is one heck of a generalisation to say no chi owners allow their dogs to wander.