There's 3 abused male dogs in my local shelter, the previous owner, who abused them had to surrender them to the shelter when the authorities found out. I volunteer at the shelter and have met them. 2 of them are just timid but can be very sweet. The other 1 is aggressive and will try to attack you. The aggressive 1 is scheduled to be euthanized next Saturday. I have enough things and space for another dog and would like to adopt him, but I don't want an aggressive dog. What should I do?
bluebonnetgranny2020-09-13T16:15:09Z
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A temperament test was done & the dog was deemed to be dangerous or they wouldn't be scheduling an euthanasia. Although it is much easier to tame an aggressive dog than it is to instill courage in a submissive dog. If you do not want an aggressive dog, you best let this one go.
It is also illegal to allow an aggressive dog to be adopted. There has been cases where aggressive dogs were allowed to be adopted by staff & the dog attacked or attempted to attack someone & the dog still had to be euthanized cause the adopted didn't know how to tame the aggression. The entity that allowed the dog to be adopted got into big trouble.
If this dog was a large female with a short coat, I would be interested in adopting. But I am probably miles & miles from you. I am a Canine Behaviorist & could modify the temperament.
You don't want to manage an aggressive dog, so you don't adopt the dog. If the dog has been determined not to be adoptable due to aggression, it's very unlikely they would let you take him anyway, it would be an enormous liability for the shelter to take on.
Unless you are willing and experienced enough to take on a timid dog, and are aware that many timid dogs will exhibit fear aggression when startled or pushed to do things they aren't comfortable with, don't consider the other two, either. Yes, they may seem sweet right now, but that doesn't mean that they will remain so in your home. Fear aggressive dogs can actually be more dangerous than a dog that is consistently aggressive because owners often don't expect the aggression and it can often be triggered by unexpected things.