Dog keeps escaping

foreign_correspondent

some background here - hope you dont mine me posting links to it leiela:

post #13 here
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1408185

and here -

http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.html?t=1481381&highlight=

JMW77

If she is ill it is kinder to put her to sleep,its not fair to tie her up she is clearly not happy.
A decent rescue centre would not of put her to sleep a decent rescue centre such as many tears homes all sorts of problematic dogs and never put the dogs down .

As said before make the best decision for your dog!

foreign_correspondent

to be fair, this girl is clearly in her last months, if not weeks, so rehoming is not fair or likely. I dont know what you should do Leiela, I know you wanted to give the dog a happy last few months with you when the second tumour was found. but her escaping is complicating matters.

As a cheap and temporary measure, cold you add an extra foot or two of trellis to the top of your fence? Alternatively, could she sleep indoors, perhaps in the kitchen at night when the kids are in bed?

leiela

She is concidered dangerous which is why she can not live in the house, because i can't risk my children's safety, she is also very distructive and hyperactive.. she's a dog with 2 settings.. "go" and "go faster" she destroy's something almost every time she comes into the house even with constent supervision.

I've had her 10 years i tried to take her back to the centre within weeks of getting her and they refused to take her back (well they told be they would put her to sleep if i gave her back), i've spent a fortune on therpy, training when none of that worked i tried time and again to get her re-homed, i've had the RSPCA involved they all say the same "put her to sleep"... i've fought to give her some kind of life, she's got a beautiful temprement once you get though her fear and hyperactivity.

I have tried repeatedly to re-home her with various different centres they ALL say the same thing, because of her behavioural problems they would put her to sleep, even the so called "good ones" say that her problems are unfixable and because she is dangerous they would be forced to put her to sleep. Most centres will work though "most issues" NONE will work though a dog thats concidered dangerous.

It doens't matter that her "danger" is though fear and panic rather than her being a nasty dog, the people in the centres don't care about that, they have 2 labels and the one that falls on my dog is "dangerous" and therefore their only option is the put her to sleep, as they can not in good faith re-home her.

I'll be honest she get's little to no exercise people/places everything scares her, she isn't lead trained, she panic's and struggles if you try to put a lead on her. Just getting a vet to examine her involves her having her sedated... walking her is simply impossible, she just freaks out.

Trust me i make no claims that this dog has the life a dog should have i know she needs exercise and stimulation but these are things beyond my capability's, right now im pretty much the only human being she'll let near her, i do my best for her she comes into the house a few times a week to see me when no-one else is around ... it's not much i know and there isn't a day that go's by that i don't feel guilty but it's the best i can do.

She doesn't have much of a life i know this but i don't know what else to do, sadly i think we are starting to reach the end of things with her i know a day will come when putting her to sleep is the kindest option.

leiela

foreign_correspondent wrote: »

to be fair, this girl is clearly in her last months, if not weeks, so rehoming is not fair or likely. I dont know what you should do Leiela, I know you wanted to give the dog a happy last few months with you when the second tumour was found. but her escaping is complicating matters.

As a cheap and temporary measure, cold you add an extra foot or two of trellis to the top of your fence? Alternatively, could she sleep indoors, perhaps in the kitchen at night when the kids are in bed?

Unfortunatly i live in an open plan house, letting her sleep inside would give her access to the livingroom/dining room and kitchen and i'd have to say good bye to anything of value and lock my kids in thier bedroom at night... not really an option besides it wouldn't solve the problem of me and my husband going to work.

My dad is coming down tommorrow and we are going to try and put a roof on the pen it it's at all possible, if not it looks like she's climbing up on the slat's on the wooden panel's of the fence so he's going to price up some pvc panel's we can hammer on to make the surfaces totally smooth so she can't climb it.

Failing that i'll look at possibly getting a large dog cage for night time and when we are at work but tbh that doens't seem kind or practical given the costs and as you've said, it also seems like alot of expence for a dog we are only likely to have for a few more months and we have no intention of getting another dog to it wouldn't be used again.

foreign_correspondent

good old dad - sounds like a good plan!!

border_collie

Quote,
"Trust me i make no claims that this dog has the life a dog should have i know she needs exercise and stimulation but these are things beyond my capability's, right now im pretty much the only human being she'll let near her, i do my best for her she comes into the house a few times a week to see me when no-one else is around ... it's not much i know and there isn't a day that go's by that i don't feel guilty but it's the best i can do.

She doesn't have much of a life i know this but i don't know what else to do, sadly i think we are starting to reach the end of things with her i know a day will come when putting her to sleep is the kindest option."



In my opinion this dog's distress is being prolonged for nothing.
You have done your best and now it is time. The vet doesn't know what is going on at home.
If she is so bad with people you just cannot risk her getting out again, ever.

Imagine if she tore a child's face to bits or killed someone?
Stop feeling guilty and take her to be pts.
Living in the back garden is no life.
Sending you strength to do what needs doing.
xxxxxxxxxcarolexxxxxxxxxx

pink_piggy17

Have you consulted a behaviourist? There must be a reason why she is so bad. have you tried calming things like rescue remedy and a DAP diffuser? The lack of exersize is a main cause of hyperactivity in dogs that are "normal" anyway.

What is the prognosis for the condition she has?

leiela

The vet is well aware of the situation at home as is the RSPCA both still deem her to have a "good enough" quality of life, the vet always say's that he only has to watch her with me to know that she's loved and that even though what she has isnt much she loves every minute she get's to spend with me, he says that dogs that arn't happy eventually give up and that if the life i was providing was compleatly misrable she'd let us know.

We do our best to keep her stimulated in the back garden she has a vet large pen, plenty of toys and as i said she is bought into the house in the evening for a few houses as often as possible.

We spent a fortune on behaviourist's unfortunatly we couldn't continue with them for financial reason's, the reason's for her behaviour are due to the years of abuse she suffered before we got her, she said that after "so long" a dogs mind state is set and unfortunatly the abuse went on for too long to break, even the behaviourist said he her temperment otherwise was beautiful.

If im fair i think the chances of her "lashing out" are very very slim, she's bitten my son once but in fairness to her she did pin her into a cornerer dispite repeated warnings for him to leave her alone and the "bite" was a warning she didn't even so much as break the skin (still it was enough that we didn't want to risk the children with her again because obviously they are our first priority)

The only person's skins she's broken was a neighbour and that was because she escaped and being helpful he chased her up and down the street scaring the life out of her before cornering her. Grabbing her dragging her back to my front garden where he proceeded to pick her her and try and THROW her over the 6ft gate into my back garden. While the whole time she growled and his sister screemed to at him to let her go.

So yeah she bit him and bit him quite badly but to be fair i might lash out if someone picked me up and tried to throw me over a fence and tbh he blamed himself more than the dog.

Still this is enough for us to know that if scared enough and if pushed enough her responces is to lash out with teeth and although we could have kept these incidents secret when trying to rehome her because when you meet her she doens't come across in a "dangerous manner" (typical dog, all waggy tail and doppy brown eye's) We felt it was our responsibility to warn the rescue centres of the incidents so they could re-home her suitably.

Unfortunatly despite in 10 years these being the only incident of that nature we've had but it is enough as the RSPCA are concerned it's enough to label her dangerous and its enough the refuse to concider re-homing.

I really do think the chances of her lashing out in the street are very slim, the problem is that she's scared of people, so if she got out and someone came towards her she'll run away.

She only lashes out if she's cornered and to be fair she's been cornered mulitple times and only actually bitten twice (though i admit she growled, barked and bore teeth and was pretty scary the other times). Still 1% chance is 1% too much which is why im desprate to secure her pen.

You have to understand though i fully admit her quality of life isn't great in comparison to "most pets" the vets and rspc are more than happy her needs are being met.

We did have the RSPCA called out to our house last year by the new neighbour who didn't know her past and thought it was cruel to keep her in a pen, but when the RSPCA came around (baring in mind they've been involved when we tried to re-home her) they looked at her pen they spoke to us and they examined the dog and even the RSPCA woman said we'd done more for this dog than most people would have and that i should be proud of the life i have given her.

Is it the dogs trust that say "they never put a healthy dog down?" thing is she isn't "mentally healthy" as far as centre's like that are concerned and even the best ones would put her down. (yes even dogs trust said they would put her to sleep)

Ok sure her live is rubbish in comparison to a normal pet, but i dare say it's a damn site better than many of the other "unhomeable" animals stuck in shelters living in tiny pens with no love. She has toys a large pen and she does have regular human interaction and love though admitedly not as often as i'd like.

janeys

leiela, please stop being down on yourself, you do look after this dog,you give her tons of love and if you could do more with her you would. You have given her the best life that was possible due to her unfortunate start in life. Yes, it is not as good as other dogs but it was the best that you and her would allow.

How are you getting on with securing the pen with your Dad? I hope his ideas worked and you can spend the last moments of her life without worrying she will get out. This is a hard enough time for you without you beating yourself up, you may decide to get her pts but as with everything else you have said you have done this will only be done if it is in her best interest. Please give yourself a break and good luck with whatever you decide. Janey xxx