Help! I'm looking for a dog breed that....

[black_cat]

My mom got her hand shattered by Zeus b/c he was resource guarding. They used all the key words in his adoptive description "sweet but loves his food!"

Uh oh.......

I would have taken that to be like my past golden, who was sweet, and inhaled his food in about 4.3 seconds after it was set down

 

[ShrekDawg]

There was a link in there that showed a facebook post from a woman that had adopted a dog with a description that used some of the example words and it was like ''....I currently don't have the use of either hand, but the doctor was able to reattach my left pointer finger, which had been severed. The bones in my right arm are shattered...."
And that really scared me sh!tless

Oh wow that’s crazy! They’re real cases!? Most dogs are not like that at all though. Not even close. Don’t worry. And they should not have adopted that dog out

 

[ShrekDawg]

yeah I agree that was extreme, its a combination of that list, combined with good judgement. not every dog who is fearful with strangers has high aggression LOL..

Yeah exactly hahah

 

[chickentrains]

Uh oh.......

I would have taken that to be like my past golden, who was sweet, and inhaled his food in about 4.3 seconds after it was set down

Yeah, we where completly oblivious. The shelter said just to not bother him while he was eating. So we didn't, my mom walked past his food dish and he said nom nom.

 

[black_cat]

Every single 'problem phrase' on that list says that it means that you have a 'high' or 'moderate-high' risk of whatever it signified- that can't be right, can it?

 

[Namentuppen]

I may just have a nasty, suspicious mind, but that description made me nervous.
Here's what I thought as I read it:

"has a lot of energy and will need an experienced owner committed to giving him enough exercise" (might mean "never settles down, constantly gets into mischief." How destructive is he when bored?)

"Bucky has some herding behaviors" (might mean "he tried to herd the cat" or "he nips people's ankles," no idea how serious of an issue it is.)

"would be best as the only dog in the home" (probably means "does not get along well with other dogs," but no clue HOW badly it went when they tried.)

"A fenced-in yard would be a plus for Bucky" (I assume they say that for all dogs.)

"we recommend a home with teens and up" (probably means "bad with small children," but no clue how bad. Or is it a policy of the organization to say this for all dogs?)

"He is a friendly, social dog and will make someone a great pet!" (considering the rest of the description, I'm a bit doubtful.)

Of course, all of those things COULD be read differently.
And most of the other descriptions can be read in a similarly unflattering way, too.

Meeting the dog, and having a conversation with anyone who's lived with the dog, would tell you a lot more than my guessing from the description

Agreed. Also, some more common shelter/rescue language for the ones trying to sugar-coat:

"Would do best in a home with someone who works from home and wants a best friend forever!" = Separation anxiety (varying levels; some it's just whining and pacing, some will bark the whole time you're gone, some will destroy the house). OR incontinent if they're old...

"Would do best as an only fur-child" - nervous around other dogs or downright dog aggressive.

"Would do best in a home where they are the only child (aka no kids)" - Either aggressive in some (or all) circumstances or fragile to some extent.

"Women are his/her favorite" - Abused by men, scared of men, or aggressive towards men.

"Needs experienced owner" - Not trained, destructive behaviors, aggression, or etc.

"Needs a well fenced in yard" - Either a standard requirement or the dog is an escape artist.

"Needs time to warm up / needs lots of love" - Abused, fear-aggressive, or nervous about new things, not socialized well.

"Needs alone time" - Antisocial, potentially aggressive, very shy, or etc.

"Cannot be adopted out by someone with kids, dogs, etc" - Probably bit someone/something or almost did.

"Needs a firm hand" - Doesn't listen, isn't biddable.

"Gets very excited on walks!" - Strong puller, will drag you down the road.
"Gets very excited to see other dogs!" - Potentially lunges at other dogs (might not be aggression).

"Does not appreciate dogs in his/her face" - Will snap at other dogs that get in his/her face.

Oh, and if it's a shelter and the dog is the only dog there wearing a shirt (yes, I've seen this) the dog probably either has alopecia, mange, ringworm, allergies, or some other disease causing hair loss or really bad skin.

If this is a shelter dog, look for hair loss, lumps/bumps, scabs, inflamed skin/red skin, "black dots" (possibly staph, fixable), look at the teeth if you can (a rotten mouth can cost a lot to fix), look for specks, ulcers, or "floating" things in the eye, look at the white of the eye and make sure it's not red (lift the lid).

Ask for heartworm test results if they have them (my dog was heartworm positive, and with my employee discount of at-cost products it still cost $600+ to treat him. However, if you can stomach the cost go for it because these dogs are less likely to be adopted. The dog would be on bed-rest for around 2-3 months though during this treatment).
If the dog has allergies you won't know until after treatment most likely, they will usually throw the dog on Prednisone for a while before the immiticide treatment and this will "hide" allergy symptoms (happened with my dog).

If the dog has had nothing but mandatory shots (think Rabies), take the dog to a vet for a fecal test because they're probably going to have parasites, get a heartworm test, bloodwork would be good to establish a baseline if you can afford it. Definitely the heartworm and fecal test though! Call a few vets too; some will do the first actual "exam" portion for free for rescue pets (aka no exam fee, you'll still have to pay for the testing/meds/etc).

And always, always keep your dog on heartworm prevention and get them heartworm tested regularly (at least at their annual exam). Heartworms are devastating if allowed to progress. Always get your heartworm prevention from a reputable source (I would recommend your vet's office, especially if they are a decent price or price match).

I would like to note that heartworms can take 6 months to show up on a test as they check for adult (breeding) female heartworm antigens. It can't test for male heartworms or microfilaria (baby heartworms) So a dog may show up negative at first but really be positive.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Every single 'problem phrase' on that list says that it means that you have a 'high' or 'moderate-high' risk of whatever it signified- that can't be right, can it?

No. That article was a bit extreme. And I think related to real cases? Based on the links under each term. But that doesn’t mean any dog will be anywhere near that. Actually, most won’t, if any. But it’s just good to be prepared I guess. But that one seemed a bit fear mongering. And also dogs act quite different in a highly stressful and loud, overcrowded kill shelter type situation than they may in a foster home or something. And they want to get dogs out of there as fast as possible cause they don’t have room. Rescues take more time and get to know them better outside that environment.

 

[chickentrains]

Every single 'problem phrase' on that list says that it means that you have a 'high' or 'moderate-high' risk of whatever it signified- that can't be right, can it?

No, most of them are low risk TBH

 

[chickentrains]

the study was on real dogs, who had severe aggression, and what descriptive words where used in their adoption profile.

You can apply these words to the real world adoption profiles, but it does not mean that a dog with that descriptive word has horrible issues, it just means its a red flag that MIGHT needs to be addressed.

 

[black_cat]

the study was on real dogs, who had severe aggression, and what descriptive words where used in their adoption profile.

You can apply these words to the real world adoption profiles, but it does not mean that a dog with that descriptive word has horrible issues, it just means its a red flag that MIGHT needs to be addressed.

Ok thank you for that context!