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Originally Posted by smartycat
 This all makes me very sad.
 I never want anyone to pick a dog over a person but it really just goes to show how disposable pets are. When I got my Pomeranian puppy recently I did so knowing that it would be here until I was in my 50's and my hopefully future child to be would be in their teens. It isn't just a commitment I was making in my late 30s. If this is the feeling on this board, then I may have to step back. I have devoted my life to the well being of animals and this view of them breaks my heart a million times over |
Warning: description of dog fight
Personally, we had to find a new home for my first dog, M, who I still love dearly and think about everyday. Never in a million years did I think I would give a pet away, but at the time we felt we had to.We had to find a new home for her because she started exhibiting aggression and then had two major fights with our other older dog, B (who was an abandoned rescue). The second fight almost killed B - she probably would have only gotten a little bit more than a nick, but she was old so her skin tore easily. We had gotten M as a puppy who was also abandoned, and we had no idea what breed she was or what her temperment would be - she was a very laid back puppy at first. Looking back, I think it was partially my fault that the fights happened. The younger dog is a very energetic dog that needed a lot of exercise. From since she was a puppy I would take her out on hour and two hour walks, runs, and swimming in ponds. When we rescued B we continued to have at least hour walks, runs, and swims, and shorter walks throughout the day. When my daughter was born, I had an episiotemy
: that was extremely painful for two years after, and it made it extremely painful to walk long distances. I still tried to walk them for 20 minutes to a half hour, but it was extremely painful. My husband couldn't walk them much either since he worked 13 hrs a day. Looking back, if I had known what I know now - that M needed that hour walk to get her energy out and not take it out on B - then I would have found a neighbor or someone to take her for a longer walk. But I didn't know that, and I was in the throws of having a new baby and I kept thinking that my scar area would start to feel better (it didn't) and I could take them out on longer walks. Well, fast forward to when dd was 9 months old. We took the dogs to a pet care place where they could run around and play and be lovingly watched and not in a cage when we went on a two week long trip. While we were gone, the caretaker threw a ball for the dogs to run after and they both went after it and got in a fight when B got there first. M was definately the aggressor. Now, I constantly think of the what ifs and miss M everyday, but we couldn't risk her getting in a third fight (the first one was very minor in comparison - but should have set my warning bells off more than it did) and killing B. We found a great home for her on a farm (really! 
) were she loves it running around and swimming in the creek. She is their only dog (which is what she needed we realized after) and they love her very much. We visit her everytime we are up that way, and she is very happy. She has never been aggressive towards people only other dogs - and only other alpha dogs and B (who she was jealous of I'm surmising). If I had to make the decision today, maybe I could have worked it out so that they two dogs were never in the same room together, but we couldn't do that at the time.Anyway, what I'm saying is we each make different decisions for our children, animals, and lives, and I try not to get upset at someone for those decisions because I am not in their shoes. I hope you continue in our forum, smartycat, because we all benefit when we have different perspectives and opinions to listen to.
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It just saddens me because there is so much that could be worked through and prepared for. I mean, the average preganancy is 40 weeks. There is all that time to work towards getting the dogs used to baby noises and smells. Working with them on basic obedience, and new routines or contacting a behaviorist if problems arise instead of just looking for someone else to deal with it. I know dynamics change once a baby is born. And maybe I can't realize how much they will change right now, but I know I am already going to try to prepare my excitable 113# German Shepherd for a baby coming to the house.
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It's odd, too, because isn't pregnancy supposed to make you constipated? 
However, I'm not complaining, because I'll take loose stools over constipation any day! 
Next time I won't even waste money on a pregnancy test! My nose will do the trick! 
If this one is a girl...then she is already stealing her mama's looks! My hair is thin and stringy as well, but with my boys it grew faster and was shinier/fuller.
