This One's Different

 



I haven't posted in awhile. But this one's different. I need your help. In fact, this is a desperate plea. And I know no matter how I phrase it, I'll still be that person, giving away her dog -- something I have never understood and have always found utterly disgusting. But here we are.

This is Rilo. She's a Basset Hound/Pit Bull Mix. We think she's about three years old, though she's a rescue, so we don't know for sure. She found us a little over three years ago while we were still in Denver. From the beginning it was clear that she had some problems that just weren't her fault. When she came to us, it was clear we were her first proper home. She didn't know how to do anything -- our older Lab had to teach her how to go up and down stairs, how to squat to pee...everything. And she was probably one when she came to us. And she was terrified of the car, which makes me think she was just dumped by the side of the road somewhere, like she didn't matter. My husband (then boyfriend) and I were resolved to show her that all of that nervous energy could finally be let go and that she would always be safe and loved with us. It took a long time, but she learned to fully trust us and she started rewarding us with snuggles and good behavior whenever her overwhelming energy level would allow. She was a wild one in this previously mellow household (Lab was about 9 and Cat Cat was about 8 at the time), but she was sweet.

We knew we'd need extra training and patience because she's a different dog than either of us (longtime dog owners) had ever had. We housebroke her. We taught her to sit. We taught her that Cat Cat was not after her and, while it's okay to sniff, it's still best to let him do his own thing because she's like a bull in a china shop with all that muscle and force packed into such a compact 55-pound body.

We'd wake up at night to find Rilo snuggled in between us (Cat Cat on the pillow above me), on her back, feet in the air. And no matter how many times we'd politely wake her and tell her to get down, she'd be back up there again the next time we awoke. She was settling into our home, but there was still a lot of nervous energy we were working through, so we hired a highly recommended trainer. She came into our home and showed endless patience and understanding with this special doggie. She helped us understand what traits were just Rilo and which things we could work with her on. She gave us very detailed and specific instructions on how to get her used to car rides...and pretty soon, she loved them. We even drove about an hour down to this trainer's facility, where Rilo completed training courses and worked on not spazzing out while walking past other dogs. (I phrase it that way because she LOVED playing and running with our friends' dogs who would come over for play dates. But that was in her own backyard.) She did great. She was becoming our baby and everyone was getting along great. We still had to be cautious when people came into our home because her nervousness would surface sometimes, but we found that if we just let people know they should ignore her until she approached them, all was well.

Well, things have changed. Dramatically. We moved several states away about six months ago and Rilo's world shifted. I'm going to cut to the chase because my husband has made me painfully aware lately that I might talk too much for some people's taste: She's all of a sudden an adult dog and her Pit tendencies are showing more than ever before. She's going after the previously social and ALWAYS around Cat Cat, who now hides in the closet. She now splits her time between playing with the Lab and asserting her dominance by biting his neck. She's not broken skin, nor injured anyone, but she's showing us that she plans to -- I believe. She recently had a full bloodwork panel and is in good health, so it's not a medical issue. She's just doing what Pits do. And I believe we are in an imminently dangerous situation, having two other older and therefore vulnerable pets in the home. It's sometimes fine and sweet and sometimes really not. I know very well that if she really wanted to hurt them, she would have. But her warnings are not falling on deaf ears and I am frightened for the other two pets' safety...not to mention what could happen with strangers in and out of the house (everyone's a stranger in a new city...didn't mean for that to sound weird.).

So, after lots of conversations with anyone who would listen (vets, shelter managers, behaviorists, fellow animal lovers, the homeless guy on the corner who just didn't run away fast enough), we're at the end. WE NEED HELP. I can't wait until she does something to our other babies -- I could never live with myself. She needs a new home and she needs it within the next few days. I really believe she'd be fine in a home with only adults (as she is now), but no other pets. This home would have to be active (she's heavily terrier, so she has energy that has to be channeled.) and have NO POSSIBILITY of children because I don't think that would ever be safe with these new tendencies, and that's not something worth risking. She's a sweet girl and I would never ever ever just want to pawn her off on someone else to make this their problem. If I didn't believe that she could be okay in another home, I would never even ask for help. But I want to give her every chance (let's just say every freaking Pit rescue in this country is so overwhelmed and unable to help. And shelters can't take her if she's shown aggressive tendencies, for liability reasons.) for the happy life she could possibly have. We just have to try to create that somewhere else for her because she is practically screaming that she has to be the only baby in the house.

I hate myself. I'll just put that out there. I hate that I've reached the end of my rope and that I know this is a problem that more love and hope cannot fix. We've done everything from Melatonin pills everyday (recommended by her trainer. Human strength...they just make her slightly more mellow, not go to sleep.) to throwing the dang tennis ball (which excites her the way Chanel excites me) for an hour, thinking it will wipe her out. It does sometimes, but her wiring makes her the way she is, activities be damned.

Look, I don't want to paint her in a negative light. I hope it's painfully obvious how much my husband and I love her. But I have no interest in lying about the situation just to get someone else to take her. The bottom line is this: She is a good girl. She is hyper. She is a breed that needs to be on its own, which means she'll require extra attention from her new mom or dad because she very much likes to be right where you are. I think it's her way of protecting and feeling like she's doing her job, which she obviously values very much.

If you have knowledge of Bully breeds and are an adult-only household and might be able to help, PLEASE please please comment asap. We have to do something very soon because this is an escalating situation.

I have made peace that there may only be one solution left, but I want a happier ending. And I want to know if/when that day comes that we have left no stone unturned.

Please help, if you can.