Here at Oreo's we have been transfering old VHS tapes to DVD format the past few days. It's always fun to look back and see where you've been, and anticipate the next adventure. Our dear Hawk is on so many tapes and he was a part of our life for 9 years til cancer took him. Unpredictable and perhaps not a puppy that should have made it to market; he remains deeply loved and the source of much writing on Oreo's blog.
We got him from a person in Dayton who supposedly was selling the litter for a " sick friend" in Portland Oregon. If stupid came in a can we would have bought a case I suppose..... Of course the sick friend in Portland was a mass producer who distributed through private parties in cities across the west. He was an adorable puppy in horrid conditions, living with his litter mates is a stinking crate in a dark garage. Every warning sign was there, yet we brought him home anyway. I think about the only thing right was, he came forward across the box to us. Once home he grew quickly and became beautiful. But..... having raised and worked with GSD's for 30 years I knew he was different in his reactions to other animals. He taught me more than any normal dog ever could have. The cats never cuddled with him like they did all the other dogs, and by 4 months people were asking me to keep him from playing with their dog at the parks.
In case you haven't figured it out, this post is about nature vs. nurture. The shelter is full of dogs like our Hawk, dogs that are victims of bad genes. The euphenisms like " needs an experienced owner " or " must be familar with this breed" are unfair to the dog and it's new home. Looking at the 9 years of Hawk video makes it clear you cannot socialize a crazy dog, you can contain his behavior , but you don't change the genes.
Long before his little feet could hit the ground, waiting to finish his course of imunization ; we carried him into new situations. Every neighbor for blocks around knew Hawk, and were eager for playdates when the shots were done. One lovely shepherd was Hawks first friend and as soon as Dr. Janet cleared him for public exposure we headed to Sierra's house. They romped every day, along with other dogs he met on his three times daily walks. At 4 months old, he faced his first rejection. Sierra's owner said " your little pup is really mad, and he's not playing " I knew that, but thought at only 4 months I must be mistaken. Shaken, I took Hawk home and we began a more serious look at his behavior. This was not normal puppy play and the grown dogs sensed it immediately.
We continued the walks and instead of playing with the others on the route we " sat and stayed" while the grown up chatter went on. Perhaps he couldn't play, but he could become a good canine citizen. That was never Hawk's plan..... he didn't want to be bad; he seemed as powerless over his spontaneous rages as we felt. Please, let me clarify, he was never a mean dog. even his vet's thought he was the sweetest dog they knew; but he was defective. He was atypical for his breed, hell he was off the charts for any breed... so what to do ?
We kept Hawk, even when he attacked his " Mom" our older female that raised him. That was the wake up call, I had been telling my husband he was " different" but until it happened in front of him, there was denial. It was instantaneous and vicious, and we were fortunate to not lose Sphinx. From that moment on, for the next 9 years, he was never left unattended with any living creature except us..... He never showed any signs of owner aggression, but did snap at a neighbor, so his world became narrow.
I don't think we are going to see that kind of commitment for these special needs dogs coming out of the shelters currently. Just not going to happen, and we must stop pretending this is all about lack of socialization or love in the young years. Many of these dogs had a normal life and got surrendered when the defective genes took hold. They are time bombs, and yes, the pitties are the most prevalent in the shelters so the numbers will be highest among them. The sheer numbers of Pitbulls in shelter right now is a testament to the problem and they can't all be
" abused" some of these dogs could be contained, but the new owner better damn well know what they are getting....
Oreo enjoys the best of both worlds, sleeping on the porch with the French Doors open..
