Why do We have to do it?
Please note: The following story has had all names omitted and locations left unidentified in order to protect all parties from retaliation. The facts are accurate, if understated.
The alarm was set for 3:00 a.m., but I woke up before it rang. Neither of us had slept that well anyway.
We had our coffee & breakfast, fed the dogs and got on the road by 5. Drove an hour to pick up another witness/helper, and then made the drive to the next stop -- where our fourth member was waiting with coffee and muffins, and the details that we’d listen to before heading to our final destination:
an animal shelter more than one hundred fifty miles and at least two counties from home.
Several of us had received calls over the previous couple of days. The story went something like this: a citizen had finally decided to relinquish the Rottweilers that had lived in filth so bad that the local authorities had declared one of the residences unfit to live in. The photo of the house was a disgusting picture of feces and trash everywhere.
Animal Control workers spent many hours removing and transporting the dogs to the shelter. Most of the animals which were already in the shelter had to be moved into portable crates and kennels in order to make room for the new arrivials: more than FIFTY (50) Rottweilers.
The shelter workers and authorities recognized the magnitude of the task before them. First, to evaluate the dogs as to health, temperament and adoptability and the to make arrangements to find homes for them.
Our job would be temperament testing.
The AC folks had already marked the kennels of the most difficult dogs -- the ones that made them glad for the invention of catch-poles. Fortunately, none of the ACO had been injured in the process, and we four Rescue folks were hoping that we would share their luck. (We packed plenty of first aid supplies, as always.)
As the officers prepared to assist us, we walked through the kennel areas to survey the magnitude of our task. It quickly became clear that many of these dogs would never be suitable for adoption as pets. Most were displaying exaggerated fear aggression. Many had serious injuries and medical conditions ranging from open wounds and useless limbs to obvious orthopedic issues. But, while those conditions were obvious at a glance, our task was solely temperament evaluation.
And so we began. We had information that these dogs were not socialized and lived in segregated ‘packs’ of 3-5 dogs.
Lack of socialization is never good, but with young dogs who have sound temperaments it is possible to rehabilitate in some cases.
Shyness is one thing. Fight or Flight is a normal (though not always acceptable) response to a real threat. Complete paralyzing fear is another matter entirely.
I have to admit that I’ve never seen 6 month old pups so fearful that they completely shut down. Totally unresponsive to any external stimuli.
That was the consistent response of one litter. Terror.
Another litter of pups (under 8 weeks) will be evaluated when they are old enough to be considered for adoption.
One other pup -- a bitch about 4-5 months was shy and nervous but managed to snap out of it after a while. She’ll survive.
Nearly every other dog was either unapproachable or aggressive, the common denominator being fear. And a 100 pound dog that wants to make you go away is not a safe dog to have around.
We found ONE adult female who would allow us to approach her kennel and responded to our attention. Oh, my god. A ‘normal’ dog! When we got her out to the testing area she wasn’t a wiggle-butt, she was a Rottweiler: “responds to the environment with a wait and see attitude... not given to immediate and indiscriminate friendships.” But she warmed up to us and went through everything just fine. Although she wasn’t thrilled about it, she allowed examination of her teeth, ears and paws. We even turned the hose on her and she was fine with it, even when squirted in the face. She did not react badly when we walked her past the kennel of a dog that wanted to take her out -- she just kept walking confidently.
When we micro-chipped her I joked that the huge needle she was getting was better than one that many others were likely to get. Gallows humor helps, a little. It’s just not funny.
41 dog evaluated, 39 were recommended for euthanasia.
Why are rescue people so cranky? Oh, I dunno. Maybe it’s just the by-product of doing the ‘dirty work’ for people who breed dogs, cash the checks and forget about where the pups are in a few months.
Some of them end up in good homes.
Many do not.
Do you know where the pups are that you produced? Are those pups producing more pups? Is your Kennel Name on the pedigrees of dogs that end up in barrels?
Do you know?
Do you care?
Lacrimosa dies illa
Qua resurget ex favilla
Judicandus homo reus.
Huic ergo parce, Deus.
It’s A Dirty Job
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
