What is worse for my dog?

[Summertime Mommy]

We rescued an amazing bullypit puppy back i`n February. He is a very sweet boy, but still very much a puppy, he is only 10 months old right now. At the time, we were living in in an apt with our kids and he was inside with us almost all the time. Since then, our situation has changed dramatically and we are living back with my mom. She is not fond of him at all because he is big and makes messes and is hyper. She does not want him in the house at all, and is not negotiable about it. (I have been trying to convince her for 2 months). He does come inside when she is at work, and his crate is indoors, and he is allowed to hang out in the playroom with the door closed when she is home, sometimes, but more and more often he is spending the majority of his days outside, alone, in the backyard or in his crate. This is not okay and I know it, but thst is the reality of the situation right now. I don't see things getting better for another 6 months to a year. As much as I hate to think about it, I am beginning to wonder if it would be better for him if we rehomed him. This is not something that I want to do AT ALL. But I am concerned about how being left alone so much is affecting him, especially at such a young age. I don't really know what to do right now. So my question to you all is, what is worse, him being outside alone several hours a day every day,or him to be rehomed? If anyone has any insight or ideas that might make it better for him, please let me know. I feel like I am letting my dog down and I just want what is best for him. He really is like one of my babies, which makes figuring this out even harder.

[Ola_]

Well it's not a perfect situation but it sounds like you're giving him inside time as much as you can. Between that and spending lots of time outside when possible (walks or even playing with the kids and doing yard work outside is still spending time with him) I think it should be fine. I'm sure he'd rather not be away from you but certainly it's not like you're just leaving him out there and ignoring him.

And that's the thing about outdoor dogs IMO - it's a lot harder to give them adequate care and attention than a dog who is inside and involved with your life constantly. So as long as you can keep the time commitment I wouldn't rehome him.

Is he having any issues that you can see from the current setup? How's the climate where you are (i.e. winter temps and snow)?

[Arduinna]

Just to clarify, so you are letting him in the house when your mom isn't home without her knowledge even though she said no way was it allowed? Or is she ok with him being in the house, as long as she isn't there? It's hard to tell for her from your post.

[plantnerd]

IMO a pit is one of the breeds that must have a ton of socialization as a pup to help control agression. That being said, if dog is happy outside and gets attention I'm also a big fan of outdoor dogs- they seem to love it. Tough situation either way. Rehoming him may be the best long term solution, especially before he gets much older and still has a little of the puppy charm to work from.

[Lula's Mom]

So does he sleep inside, since you said his crate is in the house? Making him sleep outside overnight in the winter would not be OK.  Pits just do not have the coat for it, unless you are in south Florida or similar climate.  And they really, really love people and need human contact a lot (as I'm sure you have noticed with him!)  As a PP said, it's hard to tell from your post just how much time and when he's able to come inside.   If you are able to give him lots of attention when he is allowed in, and go out to spend time with him throwing a ball, taking a walk once or twice a day, then I think you should keep him.  Rehoming him would probably not be an easy proposition anyway.  Pits have a hard time finding a home with someone who will really love them and have their best interests at heart.  Do your best to spend time with him and give him attention, and get through this 6-12 month period.

[Lula's Mom]

I wanted to add that I have had several Pits through the last 20 years.  Before the dogs I have now, I had a pair of red-nosed Pits that were my babies before I had human babies, you know?  I had them from puppies until they died at 15 and 13.5 years of age.  But there was a period, when my husband and I were divorcing.  I moved to a distant apartment, and they didn't live with me.  They stayed at his house, and he was often gone.  They were alone a LOT (they had a dog door so they could go outside, but no humans in the house except for a roommate who fed them before and after work).  I hardly ever saw them. They lived like this for more than a year until I moved to a house. And then they came to live with me again.  The point is, they made it through the horrible, tough period, even without much attention, and then lived the last few years of their lives happily with me again.  Your dog at least gets attention from you every day, and I think you can make the best of this less-than-ideal situation for him. :)