Money floweth like water: out the (dog) door, Part 2
July 14, 2014
I’ve talked about Sibling’s dog before; I have hated leaving him there because I know he deserves better care and maintenance but couldn’t summon the strength to deal with:
1. the removal from one home,
2. installation into our home where we have breed restrictions,
3. while fighting an uphill battle with my Sibling over the removal,
4. acclimating New Dog into a small, yardless, abode.
That’s before you even consider all that he needs, aka, the reason we’d be taking him away in the first place.
Basic supplies: bed, leash, collar, food and water bowls, adequate food.
He’s either malnourished or underfed or both because he’s lost way too much weight.
Estimated cost: $300 to start, $45/month ongoing.
Medical supplies: he needs to be neutered, he’s got something going on with his skin that could be anything from a food allergy to … well, any number of things. But he’s breaking out and his poor enormous-dog paws are swollen and red and tender to the touch. The only thing he has got going for him is that his pearly whites are truly pearly white.
Estimated cost: $250 to start if I can book the animal shelter for the neutering, rabies vaccine, microchip, pre-surgery bloodwork if required due to age.
Then … $$$ for treating the skin issues if it’s not just food allergies or environmental causes.
Training: he’s been off-leash so long, he has to learn how to walk politely, on a lead, again.
Estimated cost: Time. Energy. Patience. Doggle’s patience.
Boarding: His rescue will happen before we have unchangeable plans to travel so we need to find a place that’ll board him for a reasonable amount. Brian suggested DogVacay.com which seemed really promising but it turns out most of them discriminate against certain breeds (and from at least one inquiry, based entirely on one bad incident which is preposterous considering the only bad encounters we’ve ever had at dog parks were with Golden Retrievers trying to kill Doggle, while none of the “aggressive” breeds were anything but lovely. This isn’t an isolated experience either, other dog owning friends have had the same experience, but you don’t hear us saying we can’t trust Goldens.)
***
Step One is still going to be horrible. I have to extract him safely and without triggering the Sibling in some way. I can stand him off on my own, I think, but what happens when we leave? What happens when he gets upset at how long the dog’s been gone? Does he try to come hunting us down and then I have a problem with an out of control sibling raging on our front step? Probably unlikely but not out of the question and what do I do then? Call the police and have him hauled off?
But I also can’t keep letting the possibility of his outrage or upset delay us any longer – the dog needs help and it’s clear to anyone else who looks at him.
We’re planning to make it happen this summer. We’re already going to be extremely busy and have our hands full but we’re doing our best to plan ahead to make it go as smoothly as possible.Ā Do wish us luck – we’ll need it!
agghhhh! I feel your stress. Having ONE dog that I’ve trained and taken care of since he was a baby is enough work for me, but I can’t imagine delving into a new situation like that. It is a lot of work when a dog is already trained to walk off-leash etc. Plus the neutering and all that. Good luck, you will need it – but I think you’re doing such a great thing, especially for that doggie.
Yeah, at least I know the dog, I know his temperament and he acknowledges me as a pack head (or you know, an adult in his life or whatever). It’s still going to take a lot of work. Thanks!
Good luck!!!! That dog deserves better.
Thank you!
I’m sorry you have to do this and happy you are doing this (as a dog lover) all at the same time. I just went back and read your previous post about your brother and understand what you are dealing with. I have a mentally ill daughter and sister, so I know your pain. Sometimes I just want to scream. “What have I done to deserve this?!” and then I carry on, one foot in front of the other, as before.
Appreciate the empathy – your mixed feelings are mine exactly :/
I think there’s one more thing to consider: if you take your sibling’s dog, is there anything stopping him from getting another one? I definitely think that you’re right to feel that the dog is, at best, being neglected and needs better care. And you guys taking the dog and caring for him is a really kind and responsible thing to do for the dog. I just wonder if you might find yourselves in the same situation again in a year or two.
The other thing I’m wondering… would it be possible for you to find another home for your sibling’s dog? I’m asking mainly because I’m thinking of one couple that I know that does really well with one dog in the house, but they run into problems every time they add a second dog. In the last 10 years they’ve gone through four second dogs, each time intending to keep the new dog for life and each time finding that they just don’t function well with more than the first dog they’ve had all along. They’ve passed the second dogs onto other family members or new homes, but I’ve spent the last few years privately wishing they would just accept that they need to be a one-dog house. It doesn’t seem fair to the dogs. I don’t think you’d be like them, but– it could be a good thing for you and for the dog if he could go straight into a home other than yours– someplace where he’d be taken in because he’s genuinely wanted and not because he needs to be out of a bad situation.
Your first point is a very good one; and I’m working around that. It may involve being less than honest with my brother.
As to the second: Ideally I want him to be with us, after all, I want a dog pack. But of course I am obviously only willing to have them if it works well for everyone because it doesn’t do him any good if he’s unhappy here too. I’ve always had more than one dog in the past so I have experience with it, but enough to know that if this situation doesn’t work well, we will have to find a better way. Temporarily, we may have to plan to keep him some months out of the year, and have him be back with my dad/brother the rest of the time so we can keep him in relatively decent shape in between times. I’d like to find him a good home but I won’t be able to do that immediately. Totally agree with you that he should be in a home where he’s genuinely wanted, whether it’s ours or with a family who can also take excellent care of him, and I’m going to do my best for him in that regard.
It’s a crappy situation with not much in the way of good answers.
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You are so kind! That is taking on a lot of responsibility. Congratulations and everything will work out!
I have a surfeit of Responsibility Feelings š Thank you and I thank you for the well wishing š
Wait, what…you mean you intend to dognap his critter? Is that legal?
Have you thought of reporting Brother to the Humane Society? It sounds like a good argument for neglect could be made. They might go and get the dog.
Hmm… However…dunno about California, but in AZ the Humane Society does not operate no-kill shelters, and you might have a hard time intercepting the dog and quietly adopting it yourself. The people who run those shelters in these parts can be kinda arrogant.
1. Since I don’t know how this will work, we’re calling it a temporary situation anyway.
2. Considering I’ve been paying for both of them for near ten years, I’d say “ownership” is a bit of a loose term here. He’s failed to neuter, vaccinate OR license the dog, in essence, do ANYTHING that would establish responsibility for him, much less give him the medical care he needs. He’s been a negligent squatter starting from many years before his mental troubles, for the dog’s sake, I can’t give two hoots about legal.
3. Nope, not putting this dog through humane society hell. He deserves way better than that. They serve a purpose and I support them, absolutely, but he shouldn’t have to be processed through a system just because of … whatever. They would just put him down, more than likely.