A Hard Decision…

I have a heavy heart while writing this post as Andrew and I have made a tough decision regarding one of our dogs June. She is the pretty Lab mix we rescued shortly after we got married. A little background before I dive into the whole story: June is the first thing Andrew and I took on together as a team. As you know I was not the biggest “dog person” before marriage, but I liked them enough to give pet ownership a try. So we adopted June and instantly became responsible for a living creature in our care. It forced us to be on the same page with discipline, training, etc…and she became our dog. Neither of us had ever had a dog that was just “ours” before, and adopting June turned out to be a huge blessing for us. She is smart, came housetrained, and loves to do anything and everything with us..and she has. When we first got her, I found myself thinking of places to take her and activities to do that included all of us. Ever since, we have spent many an afternoon at the dog park, on daily walks, runs, 2 dog training classes, I could go on. June also accompanied us on road trips and we marveled at how well she did in the car and with other people, dogs, children, etc. wherever we went. She changed the way I see people and their pets, and admittedly, I love that darn dog.

It is not as if she doesn’t have her faults. June continues to show us that she wants to be in charge of all other dogs. This became even more apparent when we got our second dog Wesson. She would snarl over a toy and not let him have it, but he backed down and there was never a real issue. We were also at ease since she has gotten along with other dogs like her best friend Monroe Phillips and countless dogs at the parks we frequent.

So it was to our great shock and horror when we took June and Wesson to a local dog park several weeks ago and she bit/attacked another dog. We went early in the morning and there were only 3 other dogs there. A woman and her weimaraner were playing fetch with a ball. Andrew threw the ball for her dog (as he can throw farther and wanted to help the lady out), but June went after the ball too and when the other dog got the ball, June starting attacking. Even when the other dog gave up the ball she would not stop biting. It was terrifying as I watched Andrew attempt to break up the fight. In what seemed like an eternity, but was actually probably only a few seconds, he was able to grab June’s hind legs and get her off. Once it was over, June acted as if nothing happened and resumed play. I was in a state of shock but was able to examine the damage. She had drawn blood on the other dog's ears and neck. The dog would need to see a vet but seemed to be ok. I was devastated. Not only had our beloved pet acted out in a horrific way toward someone else's beloved pet, but suddenly I felt an instant distrust towards June. I cried right there at the park…I didn’t know how else to respond. I was grieved that this animal we have invested so much in did what we never thought she’d do. That the dog owners who witnessed it thought we were irresponsible, it was awful. We gave the injured dog’s owner, who was upset also but actually tried to console me, our contact information so we could pay the vet bills. Now we were left with what to do next.

Andrew and I have been wrestling with this since. Was this an isolated incident? What if she does it again? What if it is a smaller dog next time or worse a human? Is she safe to be around kids? Will our friends never come to our house again because of this? Can we blame them if they don’t? On and on these questions were evaluated and discussed. Could we fix her somehow? What if we put her up when people come over? She has never done this before….maybe it is ok?

Ultimately, no matter how hard we try, we cannot justify having a dog that is capable of hurting other dogs. As much as we love her, and have shed tears over this decision, we have agreed we cannot keep her. As bad as I felt about her hurting another animal, it would destroy me if she hurt a person or child. Oh I shudder at the thought. And knowing this happened, and didn’t take action, how could I live with myself? I can’t. We have decided. It doesn’t make it easier though…

Andrew and I called the rescue group that we adopted June from. They are going to find her another home and we will keep her until then. It is hard to think about never seeing her again, and doesn’t help that I feel the rescue group is disappointed in us like we are giving up on her. I am taking it personally and feel like I want them to know how often I wash her bed, and make sure she is walked, fed, mentally stimulated, etc. I wish they knew how much I love her and have done for her! Part of me also feels like a failure, always wondering if there was something we could have done to prevent it. No matter my feelings and insecurities, I am at peace that this is the best decision for our family. June will be a great dog for people with older kids or who are single and active. We hope she will find a place that will love her as much as we have and that our broken hearts would mend quickly.

Nathalie