Sad. Failed dog owner & guilt...

[HappilyEvrAfter]

People IRL are telling me I'm crazy to feel guilty so I just need somewhere to let this out. Thanks for reading...

In Jan, this year, my son and I rescued an energetic 20 pd mix terrier.
He's a quaint little guy, well behaved, hyper, but good dog overall.

Then by early Mar I was allergy tested cause I was miserable. Well, I'm pretty allergic to dogs...not cats, just dogs. :sad

I've been toughing it out...getting my shots, taking meds, allergy cleaning, bathing the dog religiously. Sigh.
I don't think I can take it anymore. I'm a single mom living away from family, tired from allergies, tired from extra cleaning house and dog.
To top it off, the allergist wants DS tested cause he's 99% sure he's got allergies too...not nec. dogs, but somethig. DS gets tested on 3 Dec.

I don't think I can keep up with the dog. I feel like crap all the time at home, but I feel guilty for wanting to re-home the dog after rescuing it and making that commitment.

I know there isn't much advice anyone can give...I just needed to type it out and have someone "listen".

Sigh. I'm kind of sad about all this.

Thanks for listening.

[kathymuggle]

Do not feel guilty! You did not do anything to cause your allergies....

If you want to try one last attempt at allergy maintenance I would post over on the allergy forum (there is one, I think), but if you have tried everything reasonable and it is not working that is that.

You have time to find him a great new home. He will be OK in a great new home. I think dogs, particularly young one, adjust pretty quickly... it is the humans they left behind who do not.

hug,


kathy

[miss_sonja]

Guilt be gone! He came into your life before you knew of the allergy. It's no ones fault, not the dog's not yours!

You didn't fail, you had a medical reason why you can't be a dog owner.

[buttercup784ever]

OMG, do NOT feel bad!! There are plenty of people out there that would have dumped him on the side of the road at the first sniffle, and here you are doing everything to keep him. You're a GREAT pet owner!

And you don't have to live like this, so don't let guilt keep you miserable. If you rescued the dog from a rescue organization, you may have signed a paper that says they will take the dog back for any reason. Some of them make you sign a contract that is legally binding, and you HAVE to give the dog back to them. Contact before trying to rehome by yourself.

In the mean time...is there a teenager that you could hire to wash the dog for you? I know my groomer does baths for $30, but that's a little steep especially if you're bathing once a week trying to keep dander down. Also brush brush brush the dog everyday. It would be better if you could get someone else to do it, but if not wear gloves and maybe a mask if it's really bad. Brushing really cuts down on the shedding.

[HappilyEvrAfter]

Thank you all for the kind words. After a "heart to heart" with my son (why we originally got the dog), we've decided it's "ok" with us to re-home the pup.

He's really such a good dog....I'm sad to see him go, but I just spent a week in a house that's animal free and I can't believe how different I felt.

I'll def see if I can find him a good home locally and then use the shelter as a last resort. It breaks my heart to think of him going back to a cold floor and cage.

[Ola_]

There is absolutely nothing with rehoming a pet because you are allergic to it! Sadly many folks use "allergies" as an excuse to surrender pets that they don't want to deal with or that have behaviour/potty issues. So be prepared for some folks to be suspicious because it's a line that's used too frequently.

Good luck with finding him a home! Hopefully since he's a small dog that will help his case. If you need to go with the shelter route, perhaps ask if they would list him on their website while you do foster-care for him? Rescue groups are a good idea too - around here there are some that specialize in small dogs.