She went back into heat Saturday night - cystic ovaries. We took her to the goat vet for a hormone shot, then up to see Headliner, the buck, again. Let's hope she settles!
Sister called me last night to ask advice. She had a foster dog from a shelter. The shelter told her the dog was good with other dogs, cats and children. The dog attacked another dog, unprovoked, twice... the dog began going after Sister's cat with intent... and the dog had been good with the 2 yr old baby...
....until Sister called.
She said she'd been folding laundry with her baby and the dog. Baby reached over and touched the dog's paw.... dog lunged at the baby. Dog left welts on the baby's head. Didn't break skin, the baby is fine and unhurt.
Sister wanted to see if I thought she should give the dog back - she said in a voice that sounded a little more than stressed, "The dog had Baby's head in it's MOUTH!".
YES! Let someone else foster that dog and tell the shelter so they can re-evaluate the dog.
Someone would probably love to take on a challenging dog... however, it's not my Sister. Especially when her child is in jeopardy of being mauled! Nope. Way too many nice, nice dogs out there.
We have two shelter dogs in addition to our little purebred dog... all are good with children.
Bequia, our cattle dog mix, LOVES children... her whole body takes on an air of happy bliss when she hears a child or baby's voice. She loves being near children - the quick grabs of Bequia's fur in plump fists delight our little cattle dog - the shrill screams of a baby's exuberance send Bequia into a fit of happy sighs. Her contentment around children is almost physically tangible...
And we still watch the dogs when they are around kids - even our sweet, child loving Bequia. Dogs and kids don't automatically mix - only takes one second and a bite can last a lifetime.
You all probably know this already.... but boy, oh, boy did that little reminder hit close to home last night!
Oops - I almost forgot - HAPPY WINTER SOLSTICE! Every day we'll get a little more daylight from here on out... wa-HOOOOOOOOOOOOO!
5 comments:
Glad to hear the baby's ok. And on the daylight thing...WOOT!!!!!!!! I hate it being dark so early.
Can't believe your sister even had to call.... but luckily you were there to give her some good advice. Hope she heeds it!!!
HAPPY day after Winter Solstice!!!
Yousef - YES and YES!!!
Kelley - yeah - think she was just feeling bad and looking to make sure... I think she called the shelter right after talking to me! No worries! :)
definitely a problem with the pooch. I realize patience is sometimes rewarding but when an animal is broken, sometimes you just can't fix that. I had to put one dog down in all my years and I just KNEW it was the right thing to do. He started attacking with relish any dog he just happened to be standing beside. There was no provoking and just an enjoyment and dominance that scared me. Then he growled at me when I just looked at him. Off he went. Sounds pretty tough but I had a grandchild that I would never put at risk..end of story! I know I did the right thing. Now about longer daylight, I am ALL for that. I would love to see some above 25 degree days also. Could you remind me WHY I live in this State??
DebH - ummmm... the agate? grin.
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