I have an Aussiedoodle who is one year old and have to give her to a new home

[Jack Bisikirski]

Our little girl has been with us for a year.  We just discovered that she has Diabetes and since we have two small active children and we both work I just don't think we will be able to give her the care she would need.  She is black and white. She is 30 LBS. I have one month of medication and food I could give.  She cost us $1000 but I would be willing to give her to a good home for free. We live in Suwanee GA, Just north of Atlanta.

Please let me know if you would like to know more about her.

Thank you,

Jack

[F, Calla & Luca]

And I think you are absolutely right. I guess sometimes we get upset if we think we are not getting the whole story.

[Lisa, Daisy & Dexter]

I agree that it appears that some of the posts are harsh, however it also seems that there is a lot of missing information. I just posted on his wall, civilly, things that would be nice to know about her. 

Oh and he has responded on some things on his wall.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

I respect your feelings, Martha, especially because you are dealing with a sick dog yourself. I am sure it never occurred to you to rehome Cooper, though. Nobody can blame a person whose dog is diagnosed with an incurable illness for feeling overwhelmed and asking for help.

But if the person who owns the dog and supposedly cares about him is not willing to do what is needed, what makes them think someone else who has never met the dog would be willing to do it? And who could take a sick dog and put them through the worst stress imaginable, which is guaranteed to further jeopardize the dog's health. Only someone who really doesn't care about their dog. I admit that I do not have friendly feelings towards people who don't care about their dogs.

I wish that people were not so afraid of hurting someone's feelings. Maybe if we are honest, the person might realize how selfish and irresponsible they are. Maybe if they saw that others don't share their feelings that it's perfectly acceptable to dump a dog as soon as the going gets rough, they would take their responsibilities more seriously. When we sympathize with these people (Oh, I'm so sorry you are having financial, health, allergy, family, whatever, problems) and help facilitate their abandonment of their dogs, we're enabling them. We're making it easier for a dog to lose his home. It's really emotional blackmail. Doodle rescues get emails every day: "If you don't take this dog, I'm going to dump him in a shelter or have him put to sleep." I know of one owner who contacted rescue recently about a 7 year old 113 lb GD (overweight) who needs a knee replacement. (Probably because of his weight, at least in part.) The surgery is complicated and the outcome is uncertain, because of the dog's size as well. The owner doesn't want to spend the $ and have to care for this dog, then end up having to euthanize the dog anyway. It's his fault the dog is so out of shape to begin with, but someone else who doesn't even know the dog should not only foot the bill, but restrain and care for this huge dog through months of recovery and rehab. What rescue could do that, even if the thousands of dollars to pay for the surgery were available, and they could tie up a  foster home for months when there are dogs in danger in shelters who need fosters. But it's that or say to them, Go ahead, put him to sleep, we can't help you.  Imagine that you have to make these kinds of decisions every day, and you will see why I get upset.

In this case, a dog with diabetes does need a lot of care. I hope everyone will  read about what this dog will require, the other illnesses that he is at higher risk for, and also think about the fact that he will not be eligible for insurance to cover this, (also not his fault but rather his owner's).

http://www.executec.com/diabetes.htm

I would ask everyone to imagine that it is your dog who has this condition and needs this kind of care, and then I would ask you to imagine giving him up to strangers.

And add into that mentioning how much you paid for him, as if you are doing someone a favor by abandoning giving him up "for free" at a time when he needs you the most.

I am sure you cannot imagine doing that. So what kind of person would?

This is truly also not meant to stir up controversy either, just an explanation of why some of us do not feel friendly and open when we see this kind of post.

[Jane, Guinness and Murphy]

I think you've stated this well, Karen.  We are a passionate bunch of "Doodle Lovers", and it rips our hearts out to see any dog have to go through the stress of being taken from a family that they trust and love....especially when it appears that there are other options. 

[Anna and Achilles]

As always Karen you rock!

[F, Calla & Luca]

Martha and of course I agree with you as well. I thought long and hard, years really before getting my dogs because of all the unforseeable things involved. Aside from serious illness of my own, and possibly even with that,my doodles are with me forever or until death do us part. But there are two sides to every story. I just wish that people would tell the whole story. And in the end even if it's just, "This dog is an inconvenience.", the dog suffers, at least for a while.

[Martha & Cooper]

Karen,  I truly do see both sides of the picture.   It has to be a drain on the Rescue Organizations.   I just hope that this dog gets the help she needs and this family, with both working, may not be the best place for a diabetic dog.  

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

My hopes are the same. :)

[Lindsey & Cocoa]

AMEN, Martha.

With the economy being so bad I know having a dog with no heath problems is hard for some people but when you add a sick dog who needs expensive foods and med's it can come down to that being someones house payment!  My parents had a Snauzer who was diabetic and it can be very costly to buy the food she needed and she had to have shots given to her everyday.  My parents have the money for this and my father was able to give the shots... but my mom just could not do it so he always had to be home at the time the dog needed her shot or my grandmother who worked at a vet clinic had to come and do it.  This went on for about 3-4 years before they had to put her down (she was 14 and her body just gave out when they put her down, she went out in the yard and laid down and never got back up).     

Right after we got Cocoa DH took a huge pay cut at work... but my inlaws bought this dog for us and they have been helping to pay for most of her vet bills.... even paying for training classes.  If we did not have that extra help I am sure I might have had to re home Cocoa just because I could not have afforded to take care of her the way every dogs needs.

[Martha & Cooper]

I do understand Lindsey.   There are things that come  up that are beyond our control and we need to ask for help.   I am so glad  your in-laws have been there to help you.  

[Donna K & Quincy]

Martha, I knew when I posted this it would bother some people but sometimes being nice isn't the answer either.I am a person who avoids controversy so I gave this a lot of thought before I posted it. It just bothers me so much when someone doesn't even seem to try and their first option seems to be to get rid of the dog. There will always be situations when there are no other options but I just feel that this is not one of them. I would never condemn someone for doing what is best for the dog, I do condemn them for not trying.

Nowhere in this post did it say that money was an issue, just that they weren't willing to put in the time,that is what bothers me.

[Martha & Cooper]

I just think that if someone comes for help and has already decided to give up their dog, maybe there is more to it than they want to post in a forum.   From my experience with Cooper, I can imagine how hard it would be to take care of an ill dog if I had to work and I know that Diabetes is a 24 hour  disease.   This Doodle would probably be better off in a home with someone that is better able to monitor her, maybe that is all the poster was saying.   I guess I am just too naive.