this evening has been a real eye opener for me regarding the lengths some people will go to, the lies that they will tell to get a dog rehomed and the dangers of their lying ways.

i had a call from the rescue organiser who asked if myself and tania could go pick up a young collie with "nipping issues". the idea was that Tania fostered it, sorted it out a bit and then we got it rehomed. HUH! "nipping issues" turned out to be full bites on both of the owners who were terrified of this dog. 18month old, full working collie shut up in a house for most of the day! the lady had bruises up her arms where the dog had bitten her. the man had stitches in his hands where the dog had bitten him. on further investigation it turned out that this dog was on human strength tranquilisers to keep it calm!!! it had a wheat allergy!!! On the face of it, this collie didnt seem too bad although it did try to nip Tania when she stroked it. In the car on the way home it was calm enough and sat in the back with me eating biscuits and cuddling up.

on arriving back home however, it absolutely flew into a fit of rage at the sight of Faith, almost took Tania off her feet and no amount of crating, sharp NO, water spray or anything else we could think of would calm this dog down. it was mental...the red mist had descended and it was seeing and hearing nothing. even covered in the crate it was going berserk!!! and that was ON tranquilisers!!! god knows what he is like when they wear off!

we immediately called the rescue back and were informed to take it back to the owners....who were out when we got there. so we sat and waited for them. two boys went past on skateboards...the dog had to be restrained from trying to leap through the window.
a cat walked past...the dog barked like a maniac scrambling at the car windows.
two youngish children walked past with their headphones in. had this dog been on the street they would not have heard him. he was frantic!
eventually the owners turned up and the dog was handed back along with sharp words about their responsibility. as the rightful owners of this dog they had put myself, Tania and anyone on the campsite who came near it in real danger. it was irresponsible, it was unfair on the dog who was uprooted for nothing.

i dont know what they will do with the dog...we are trying to get hold of collie rescue to see if any of their people, experienced with this breed, will take him on but i doubt it! i think we have seen a living example of a dog who has been pushed from pillar to post too often, who has not had his breed requirements fulfilled and who has gone Stir crazy with all the stress. so sad. he is a stunning looking dog....but sadly one that could possibly prove too dangerous to be successfully rehomed.

Wow....thats really sad. Probably issues that arosed from not only a lack of socialization but also a lack of stimulation needs.... I feel really sorry for the pup....but you guys are right, a dog THAT reactive is a real hazard...