I volunteer at the local Humane Society, and we recently had a stray retriever mix come in and no one claimed him. He was well behaved and friendly. After a while as we learned more about his characteristics, we thought he might make a good search dog of some sort. So we had a guy come to evaluate him and the decision was that Fido would make a good drug-search dog. So off he went to doggie school. But after a few weeks the trainer determined that whereas the dog was great for searching and finding drug stashes, he didn't show interest in searching for small amounts and traces. So they returned him to the Humane Society. A couple of weeks later a family fell in love with him and adopted him. A week later they called to report a strange behavior that they didn't understand. The dog would sit and stare at the man of the house endlessly. What they didn't understand was that the dog was pointing at the man as a source of drugs and was waiting for his reward for finding them. Nobody knew the guy used drugs.
I hope they rescued the dog from that family. IMO the police should be happy with a drug dog that knows enough not to go after the casual user.
Lucky dog. He got a home. I cry everytime I have to go to Human Society. All those dogs begging to be saved.
It is a sad place to visit, yes. It is not rare seeing a sad situation for a dog such as a dog pacing back and forth at a corner where the owner dumped the dog, the dog increasingly becoming frantic wondering how long before the owner returns, which is never. Our latest rescue (a cat we are keeping) was pathetic circumstance. A neighbor saw it happen. The cat about 4 months old, very small size cat. A car stopped and a little girl carried the cat back about 100 feet. She set the cat down and then ran back to the car jumping in, the kitten chasing after her but unable to keep up - and the car drove off. We heard the story but only knew the kitten somewhere in the woods across from us. One day I opened the door and the cat ran right in straight to the food dish for our other cats. We have another cat that was literally thrown out a car window when it was about 3 weeks old. This latest addition to our home is the most lovable and cuddly cat you can imagine and clearly was with a little girl for how the kitten likes to be held like a doll or cradled like a baby, something most cats do not like. What kind of parent would teach their child to do something like that? The cat still seems to keep looking for that little girl in our home and likes being held and treated the way a little girl would hold her. I suspect they get one kitten after another, then throw it out as it grows to get another kitten one after another. IF they HAD to get rid of the cat at least don't use the little girl who the kitten grew up with to do it! What a horrible way to use and teach a child. I can imagine that girl as an adult having the same attitude towards her own child some day. We find good homes (and follow up) for most animals we rescue, but now and then there is one we just can't give up or is of a nature no one would want it such as if it is very old. Maybe they smell the food but critters in trouble seem to know to come here. One cat we have was very old, declawed, and had clearly been abused for how timid and afraid of people it was. It was laying on our sidewalk so starved we thought it was dead. She revived but it took almost 2 years to completely come to trust us.
there are a lot of bad people in this world and if it weren't for good people like you and other who care they world would be a bad place to be. I got into fights as a child with boys about being mean to animals. One was named Butter Bean,LOL. I like to watch the youtube videos about how dogs act when their masters come home after being away.
Animals almost never forget if they were abused, but they also never forget who protected them. I have seen this time and again when I have chased off a dog or big cat going after a small cat, or a big dog going after a little one. The cat or dog I intervened for doesn't forget this. I just became that animal's guardian. That has even happened with a squirrel. A cat had grabbed a squirrel trying to run off with it. I saw this but someone else closer took after the cat dragging the screaming squirrel, which the cat then dropped to get away. That squirrel now hangs around the house and will not scurry away when that person comes out. Rather, is waiting for the person. I can't understand cruelty to animals. Hunting animals, eating meat, sure. But to treat an animal sadistically it hard to understand why anyone would do so, given the animal is truly helpless.
Another one saved!! We got a small black short-hair dog in recently and no one could touch him. He has a look like a short-haired schipperke and is about the size of a min-pin. He was scared to death of everything! One person (a volunteer) decided the little guy needed to get outside to get some "exercise" and picked him up. Before the guy could drop the dog the guy got bitten 3 times. One employee finally was able to touch him but that was it. Well, if he can't be handled, he can't be tested for behavior issues, and he can't be put up for adoption if he can't be trusted. And that means a death sentence. So I began to work with him. After one day he would take pieces of hot dog from me. On the third day I could touch his cheek while he took food. He didn't like it though. But I kept at it, watching closely for upset. On the 5th day I could stroke his neck lightly while he took food. The next day I held out my hands, palms up and in a sort of trough. He came forward and put his muzzle in my hands and pushed in close while I scratched his chin/jowls. Later he put one foot on my leg as I sat on the floor giving him hot dogs. Today he greeted me with two front feet planted up on my thigh when I entered his kennel and later he laid half way onto my lap and rolled onto his back to give me his tummy. BREAK THROUGH!!!! And man o man does it feel good to see such transformation. I actually picked him up before I left today and I stroked his neck and talked quietly. He was happy but he is still unsure and cautious. Great response though. Now we need to find a foster home for him. He's going to be ok. To all you who love dogs: realize how needed you are. The employees at shelters don't have time to spend focused on one needy dog. They can't do it. It takes volunteers to do it. And every shelter gets fearful dogs. Working with them to improve their trust and confidence means the difference between being adopted or having to be put down, even in a "no-kill" shelter. So check with your local shelter and find out about any volunteer programs. At our shelter we run volunteer orientation one Saturday per month. Then the volunteer can start learning about the dogs and the needs and right away can go into many of the kennels to just be with the dog and keep them socialized. And as you learn you can take on bigger challenges. Team up with an existing and more experienced volunteer if you can find one. They will have the time to spend with you and get you started working with the dogs. There is a method and strategy to working with a fearful dog and winning his/her trust. So it's quicker to learn from someone else who knows what to do. The dogs need you. It's life and death.
That reminded me of when I had to return my first dog (I was an RAF police dog handler) to the training depot when I was posted abroad, because there was already a dog at the posting whose handler was being repatriated to the UK, his tour of duty having ended. The kennel compounds at the depot were at the end of a downward slope, and after I put him in and shut the gate, I felt that he was watching me as I walked back up the path. I tried not to look back at him but couldn't help it, and my last sight of him was watching me until I went out of his sight. I've often thought of that, and if he felt I'd betrayed him.
