Goodbye, Meyer and Underdog

We spent a second night with Meyer in the house Wednesday night. He had settled down considerably, with our biggest issues being that we didn't own a crate (resulting in destroyed bathroom blinds), and that he didn't quite get the part about being asked to pee outside. Other than that, we had some good times amidst the close supervision and general craziness during his visit. It was also apparent that we are not ready to "get back in the game" at this point. Sharon returned Meyer back to his previous foster home - where he has a lot of room and a number of canine companions indefinitely till adopted (which shouldn't be too long, given the record of the rescue group - more on that later).

It has become evident, in hindsight, that Kuna-i - the sweetest, most personable dog I've ever known - was a mess, from an obedience standpoint. While weighing about a quarter of what I do, she managed to occupy (and demand, especially if awoken from sleep) about a third of the width of our entire bed. She could not/would not trot leisurely along at our pace during a run (and positively hated other dogs we met along the way). And, in various bouts of exuberance, she scratched our faces - sometimes badly. Incidentally, and totally accidentally, but badly. And there's not a single one of those issues that would not be untenable with kids in the house. So any dog we want to bring in at this point is going to require commitment to us in the areas of obedience and consistancy. Meyer, while a sweetheart and plain ol' good boy, was a great reminder of that.

Shannon, the executive director of Underdog Rescue (the group through which we worked), was aware of the position we were in when we first showed up at the adoption event, I think. With an amazing mixture of grace and diplomacy, she informed us of as well as let us discover on our own, our limitations and current "dog readiness." And whlie she was at it, she managed to give us a big-time education in the subject of "bully breeds" (pit bulls, staffordshire terriers, and the like; the "fighting dogs"). I'm not going to say this very well, I think but: it seems that it comes down to this: you can say "Pit Bulls should not even exist," and perhaps be true in the sense that nobody in modern times should be breeding dogs for attack, gameness, or any of those other classic "fighting dog" characteristics. But the fact is - they do exist. Neuter and spay your pit bulls and decrease the population, certainly. But do not neglect and hate the pit bulls that are here. Dogs, above all else, want to please. They want to be what we want them to be; both as species (by breeding), and as individuals. And pit bulls are exactly as we made and wanted them to be.

If you have a chance, check out the front page for Underdog Rescue; particularly the "Our Story" section, that details the relatively brief history of the group. For pet lovers, and plain old lovers-of-human-interest-stories, it's truly inspiring. 1,500 classically "unadoptable" animals given homes in the past seven years just because one woman gave a damn. Amazing, and - beyond being the place where we will get a cat (conceivably before we get a dog, we now think) - it is now on our "short list" of charities, come donation time.