Rehome my dog, possibly. Question?(long, sorry)

catloverin_ks

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As many of you know, I currently have 4 dogs....Amy,Yoda,Molly, and Oreo.

Anyhoo, Yoda hes the one I am considering rehoming. He for some reason has decided that he likes to chase my cats over the last few mos. He doesnt hurt them, just loves to chase them!!!


I have a friend that rescues dogs and she has a listing on petfinder, she offered to put Yoda on there. I got an email a few days ago from an older woman saying she wants a travel dog/ companion, yadda yadda! I offered to take him to her house(which is about 30 miles from me) and she said well I can just come pick him up.

Well I got to thinking I cant just give him away like that. So I emailed her and offered to take him to her, again. She responds with some lengthy excuse and she still wants to come here and get him.

So I guess my question is, should I let him go like that?? I mean I really want to do a home check and such.


Oh, heres a pic of the 'lil terror, lol.
 

katachtig

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Sounds fishy to me. I would want to do a home check. If her home is ok, then she shouldn't have a problem with this. Ask for references from her vet.
 

mulenag

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I don't really have any background in rescue, but if you are questioning it don't do it! The right home will come along that will make you feel good about your decision and until then I'd wait.
Good luck with the rehome. That is a tough situation.
 
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catloverin_ks

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Originally Posted by MuleNag

I don't really have any background in rescue, but if you are questioning it don't do it! The right home will come along that will make you feel good about your decision and until then I'd wait.
Good luck with the rehome. That is a tough situation.
It is very tough!!! I hate to even get rid of him, just because of that reason, but I just wont tolerate it any longer!!
 
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catloverin_ks

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Originally Posted by katachtig

Sounds fishy to me. I would want to do a home check. If her home is ok, then she shouldn't have a problem with this. Ask for references from her vet.
Yeah, kinda what Im thinking. She just moved here from NJ and doesnt have any other pets, so I dont have a vet to check with.


When I spoke with her on the phone, she just sounded so caring and sweet. She kept saying how she travels alot and just wants a dog that like to ride!! I even spoke with her on his problem, and she said "well Im allergic to cats so thats not a problem"
Also spoke with her on how I dont want him tied up!!! She reassured me that she would never do that to a dog!!!

I dunno what to think!!
 

graciecat

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There's some reason she doesn't want you to bring Yoda to her.
If it were me, I'd tell her that you MUST do a home visit or that Yoda will not be coming to live with her.

If it doesn't sound right ( and this doesn't ) then I wouldn't do it.
 
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catloverin_ks

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Originally Posted by Graciecat

There's some reason she doesn't want you to bring Yoda to her.
If it were me, I'd tell her that you MUST do a home visit or that Yoda will not be coming to live with her.

If it doesn't sound right ( and this doesn't ) then I wouldn't do it.
Yup! This is what I am thinking. I guess I will send her an email and tell her if I cant come check out her house and such, then she cant have him!
 

graciecat

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Originally Posted by catloverin_ks

Yup! This is what I am thinking. I guess I will send her an email and tell her if I cant come check out her house and such, then she cant have him!
I think you're making a very wise decision.

We have a bunch of stray cats on my street, they live in my neighbors side yard almost everyone one the street takes turns buying them food, getting frontline for then and getting then their shots.
A few months ago someone came by and just wanted to take our little orange main coon boy home right then and there.
We told her that we'd have to see where he was going to live, she was very upset with us and said she couldn't understand why we were so worried about where a stray cat was going to live.

Needless to say, he was not allowed outside unless someone was home to keep an eye one him and he NEVER slept outside...he slept in our garage.
She kept driving by and we were scared she was just going to take him and he would have gone, he's a very friendly little man.

Something about her just didn't set right with any of us.
We have since found him a wonderful indoor home...with the daughter of a couple from the next street over.
They have a 9 year old daughter and she adores Garfield and he feels the same about her, he sleeps in the pillow next to her head every night.
She had no problems at all with one of us coming to see where he was going to live, in fact she welcomed us with open arms.
She understood how much he means to us and she wanted us to be assured he was going to have a good home..he didn't get a good home...he got a GREAT one.
 

KitEKats4Eva!

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There is no way I would let him go to that home.

What training have you tried to deter him from chasing the cats? It's a pretty easy problem to fix, so you may not have to rehome him at all - particularly if it's just started up out of nowhere. Has he been to the vet, had all the checks and balances that you should undertake before considering such a drastic step?

I'm not trying to lecture you, but you said you hate to `get rid of him, just for that reason'. Well, you may not have to - and particularly if he doesn't hurt them. It's may well just be play. It seems to me an odd reason to rehome an animal - unless there's other stuff about him that is problematic, too?
 

white cat lover

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Honestly, perfectly nice sounding people can suck as pet owners. I once was thrilled about this couple who wanted to adopt a hard to place pair of kitties. I talked to them for 2 hours. They seemed so awesome, knew all about expensive foods, etc.

All their past cats had been completely declawed, but never were fixed.
 

brandi

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Have you tried a spray bottle with him...My 2 yr old shih-tzu 10 wk old pit puppy and 7 yr old collie started chasing our 3 cats around the house with the collie as the ring leader...I was considering the same thing It just got too stressing trying to get them to stop all the time..I talked with my vet about it and he recommened we get a spray bottle and spray the dogs each time they done something we disapproved each spray accompanied by a strong "NO" we done this and it broke all but my pit puppy a stubborn one she is...she would come to the bottle when we sprayed and drink the water out of it
So I called him again he told me to tap her nose not hard but just enough to get her attention each time she done it and again in a firm voice say "NO" and it worked wonders...In fact we have used the same method either spray bottle or nose tap to train our dogs with everything!!! We also use the spray bottle with our cats...as soon as they see the bottle they stop doing what ever it is that is inapproiate and run for cover
Weve broken them from getting on counter tops and tables
 

KitEKats4Eva!

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Just don't ever put anything but water in the bottle if you are going to use this method. Some people recommend chili or vinegar but that is just cruel and totally unecessary. If it doesn't work with your dog, you need to try something else.

I used to spray the wall near Sashka with a water pistol whenever she abseiled up my hat stand. Worked wonders - only used it twice and the sound and smell of the water put her off. I never wet her with it - ever - but just the wall. It still worked. After that I only had to reach for it and she would stop. It's a form of negative operant conditioning and can be done without cruelty or fear.
 

momofmany

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I completely agree with others here. If this woman won't allow a home check, she's hiding something.

With 4 dogs you are bordering on a full "pack" - my theory is that you really hit full pack status with 5. Group dynamics start to really change when you have that many dogs. I witnessed this when we adopted our 5th dog years ago and interesting, Jan Fennell, the Dog Listener told me that she realized her calling in life when she adopted her 5th dog. You are right on the edge of this shift in dynamics.

While Yoda is now simply chasing the cats without harming them, her behavior could trigger a reaction from the other dogs. You really have 2 options. Either rehome Yoda, or work on her behavior, and in doing so, it will help the collective group. Have you read any of Jan Fennell's books? I highly recommend The Dog Listener. I don't want this to come off as a lecture, as it is not intended to be such. But you are one that will always have a lot of critters in your life and the more you can understand their behavior, the better off you will be in the long run.
 
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catloverin_ks

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Oh my!! This is the email I got today:

I'm sorry you don't feel you can trust me. Have a good life.

Trust her!? I dont even know her!!


Wow!!
 

loveysmummy

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Originally Posted by katachtig

Sounds fishy to me. I would want to do a home check. If her home is ok, then she shouldn't have a problem with this. Ask for references from her vet.
Ohhhhhhhh, I am looking for a lil terror!
He is so adorable that I wish I could take him!

I agree with the above...Get a vet reference and tell her sorry, but that you would prefer to do a homecheck...I don't like the fact that she is so averse to it...
 

loveysmummy

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Originally Posted by catloverin_ks

Oh my!! This is the email I got today:

I'm sorry you don't feel you can trust me. Have a good life.

Trust her!? I dont even know her!!


Wow!!
Well, I think that says it all....I wouldn't want my dog going to someone like that anyway..
 

graciecat

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Something is really off with her.
She refuses to allow you to bring Yoda to her and then she sends you an e-mail saying that she's sorry you don't feel you can trust her and then says have a nice life?

She sounds like a real piece of work to me.
I wouldn't allow that woman to adopt a housefly!
 
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catloverin_ks

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Originally Posted by Graciecat

Something is really off with her.
She refuses to allow you to bring Yoda to her and then she sends you an e-mail saying that she's sorry you don't feel you can trust her and then says have a nice life?

She sounds like a real piece of work to me.
I wouldn't allow that woman to adopt a housefly!
LOL!! I know!!!
 

aelurophile

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Wow--that email is really creepy. I'm glad you trusted your instincts on this one!
 
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