Post by michele5611 on Feb 9, 2011 10:53:12 GMT -5
www.wfaa.com/younews/115615479.html
Animal Rescues Won't Help Pit Bulls
by nfairman47 (Subscribe)
Posted on: Feb 8, 2011 at 9:53 PM CST
Local animal advocate Natalie Fairman has recently reached out to over twenty animal rescues for help in placing a healthy pit bull puppy who has undergone six months of training and socialization.
Only one rescue, a local humane society, responded. They refused to help advertise the dog because he's a pit bull.
With the outrage over Michael Vick's receipt of the key to the city of Dallas, isn't it newsworthy that animal rescues won't touch a healthy, well-behaved pit bull just because he is a pit bull?
How can we be simultaneously outraged that a professional athlete tied to a dog-fighting ring is honored in our city, and yet close our doors to so many dogs in need purely due to their breed?
The following is a transcript of the original email response by the humane society, and Fairman's reply:
On Tue, Feb 8, 2011 at 2:44 PM, Metroport Humane Society wrote:
We are not in a position where we can take your dog in as a foster pet and normanly we might offer to advertise for you as a courtesy listing but we do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs or have shown aggressive tendencies unless they are in a shelter where good screening of possible adopters is included. This is not because of their breed necessarily as we know that many pits and large breed dogs can become great pets with the correct owner.
As a volunteer group we do not have the screening capabilities to screen potential adopters so that the dog will have a good,responsible home.
We can only place pets as pet companions not guard or watch dogs and there is a possibility without good screening that is what these large dogs breeds may become.
I would suggest that first you contact the place from where the dog came and see if they can take the dog backespecially if you were a foster home for the dog.
If they can’t do that then you might do some advertising of your own on petfinder or in the local newspapers but we do urge you to screen any potential adopter very carefully before placing the dog.
On Tue, Feb 8, 2011 at 4:01 PM, Natalie Fairman wrote:
Thank you for your reply. It has been extremely discouraging that, after having reached out to more than twenty dog rescue organizations in the area, yours is the only response I have received about Phin.
I would like to make clear the fact that I did not request a foster home for this dog. In fact, I am a foster for this dog. I am willing to keep him as long as required in order to find a suitable, wonderful home for him. However, I am reaching out to rescue organizations for help because I fear that the aggression exhibited by my other male dog is not only dangerous for Phin, but also for my family. That doesn’t mean I am willing to hand Phin over to just anyone.
Your remark, from a “Humane Society”, that you “do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs or have shown aggressive tendencies unless they are in a shelter where good screening of possible adopters is included” was also quite discouraging.
First of all, I would never dream of adopting Phin to anyone without extensive screening. I have been active in animal rescue for years. I wouldn’t adopt any dog, much less a Pit Bull, to someone without properly screening them, visiting their home, and obtaining contact information to enable me to check in on their success with the dog in the future.
Obviously, the fact that you specifically stated that you “do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs” demonstrates a clear example of breed stereotyping, so I must respectfully disagree with your next statement that “this is not because of their breed necessarily.”
Any dog can become a fighting dog or a guard dog. In my situation, it is my full-bred Labrador Retriever who has become aggressive, not the pit bull puppy. Does that mean that your organization does not handle ANY large breed dogs? What about Standard Poodles? Golden Retrievers? Dalmatians? My black lab is no more predisposed to aggression than the above breeds, yet he is protecting his alpha status, as many adult dogs will do, with dog-to-dog aggression. Does that make Phin the Pit Bull any less deserving of a safe and loving home?
The fact that a “Humane Society”, with the high regard typically bestowed upon any organization of that name, clearly engages in the same breed stereotyping which leads nearly a million Pit Bulls to be euthanized in our country each year, is disheartening, to say the least. In my humble opinion, it’s nothing short of an outrage.
Lastly, it concerns me greatly that your organization does not “have the screening capabilities to screen potential adopters so that the dog will have a good, responsible home”. What kind of animal rescue group not only fails to screen potential adopters, but willingly admits such a failure?
I am a professional, working mother with four rescued dogs, including Phin, a young child, and my husband is a full-time college student with a full-time job. I commute 48 miles to work each way. As such, I feel even I have absolutely adequate resources to thoroughly screen any potential adopter for Phin, including scheduling and conducting a home visit, verifying veterinary records, interviewing, and observing their interactions with the dog. I am surprised and genuinely dismayed that a legitimate animal rescue group does not have the resources or willingness to do the same, regardless of the breed of animal being rescued or adopted. Does your organization screen any adopters?
When we found Phin as a starving stray puppy, wandering a busy street near the high-kill animal shelter, I immediately contacted my dear friend in Austin, who trains Pit Bulls as AKC Canine Good Citizens and volunteer therapy dogs. She suggested some techniques and resources to me, which I gladly accepted. I read “The Pit Bull Placebo” by Karen Delise in its entirety, researched the breed thoroughly, and immediately engaged Phin in a regular, intensive training and socialization program.
I was and still am fully aware of the dangerous potential of placing any dog, and particularly a Pit Bull with its modern, misguided reputation, into a home not properly screened. Therefore, I committed wholeheartedly to this puppy’s training, socialization, and veterinary care so as to give him the best possible chance at being a loving and loved companion dog rather than a fighter or one of the millions of stray and unwanted dogs who are tragically and unnecessarily euthanized each year.
It was my impression and my hope that animal rescue groups shared my convictions and my dedication to saving lives, preventing health and behavior problems, and placing otherwise doomed animals in loving homes. However, since your entirely inadequate, stereotype-ridden response is the only one I have received from any rescue to which I have desperately reached out for assistance in placing this loving, well-trained puppy, I have sadly begun to question the animal rescue community in Texas when it comes to Pit Bulls.
It’s a shame. Maybe my local newspaper needs more than a classified advertisement about the unfortunate predicament of Pit Bulls, even those blessed with proper care and training, even those whose caretakers beg assistance for from the very organizations created and theoretically designed to help.
Even given the situation and significant inconvenience and danger, I’m still glad Phin the Pit Bull Puppy is alive and well today. Based on the response I’ve received, it’s become quite clear to me that if I hadn’t been there for him, the chances were pretty dismal that anyone would have been.
~Natalie M. Fairman
www.pawsitivelytexas.com/profiles/blog/list?user=25ygvok0j225b
Animal Rescues Won't Help Pit Bulls
by nfairman47 (Subscribe)
Posted on: Feb 8, 2011 at 9:53 PM CST
Local animal advocate Natalie Fairman has recently reached out to over twenty animal rescues for help in placing a healthy pit bull puppy who has undergone six months of training and socialization.
Only one rescue, a local humane society, responded. They refused to help advertise the dog because he's a pit bull.
With the outrage over Michael Vick's receipt of the key to the city of Dallas, isn't it newsworthy that animal rescues won't touch a healthy, well-behaved pit bull just because he is a pit bull?
How can we be simultaneously outraged that a professional athlete tied to a dog-fighting ring is honored in our city, and yet close our doors to so many dogs in need purely due to their breed?
The following is a transcript of the original email response by the humane society, and Fairman's reply:
On Tue, Feb 8, 2011 at 2:44 PM, Metroport Humane Society wrote:
We are not in a position where we can take your dog in as a foster pet and normanly we might offer to advertise for you as a courtesy listing but we do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs or have shown aggressive tendencies unless they are in a shelter where good screening of possible adopters is included. This is not because of their breed necessarily as we know that many pits and large breed dogs can become great pets with the correct owner.
As a volunteer group we do not have the screening capabilities to screen potential adopters so that the dog will have a good,responsible home.
We can only place pets as pet companions not guard or watch dogs and there is a possibility without good screening that is what these large dogs breeds may become.
I would suggest that first you contact the place from where the dog came and see if they can take the dog backespecially if you were a foster home for the dog.
If they can’t do that then you might do some advertising of your own on petfinder or in the local newspapers but we do urge you to screen any potential adopter very carefully before placing the dog.
On Tue, Feb 8, 2011 at 4:01 PM, Natalie Fairman wrote:
Thank you for your reply. It has been extremely discouraging that, after having reached out to more than twenty dog rescue organizations in the area, yours is the only response I have received about Phin.
I would like to make clear the fact that I did not request a foster home for this dog. In fact, I am a foster for this dog. I am willing to keep him as long as required in order to find a suitable, wonderful home for him. However, I am reaching out to rescue organizations for help because I fear that the aggression exhibited by my other male dog is not only dangerous for Phin, but also for my family. That doesn’t mean I am willing to hand Phin over to just anyone.
Your remark, from a “Humane Society”, that you “do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs or have shown aggressive tendencies unless they are in a shelter where good screening of possible adopters is included” was also quite discouraging.
First of all, I would never dream of adopting Phin to anyone without extensive screening. I have been active in animal rescue for years. I wouldn’t adopt any dog, much less a Pit Bull, to someone without properly screening them, visiting their home, and obtaining contact information to enable me to check in on their success with the dog in the future.
Obviously, the fact that you specifically stated that you “do not advertise pit bulls or any dogs that might become fighting dogs or guard dogs” demonstrates a clear example of breed stereotyping, so I must respectfully disagree with your next statement that “this is not because of their breed necessarily.”
Any dog can become a fighting dog or a guard dog. In my situation, it is my full-bred Labrador Retriever who has become aggressive, not the pit bull puppy. Does that mean that your organization does not handle ANY large breed dogs? What about Standard Poodles? Golden Retrievers? Dalmatians? My black lab is no more predisposed to aggression than the above breeds, yet he is protecting his alpha status, as many adult dogs will do, with dog-to-dog aggression. Does that make Phin the Pit Bull any less deserving of a safe and loving home?
The fact that a “Humane Society”, with the high regard typically bestowed upon any organization of that name, clearly engages in the same breed stereotyping which leads nearly a million Pit Bulls to be euthanized in our country each year, is disheartening, to say the least. In my humble opinion, it’s nothing short of an outrage.
Lastly, it concerns me greatly that your organization does not “have the screening capabilities to screen potential adopters so that the dog will have a good, responsible home”. What kind of animal rescue group not only fails to screen potential adopters, but willingly admits such a failure?
I am a professional, working mother with four rescued dogs, including Phin, a young child, and my husband is a full-time college student with a full-time job. I commute 48 miles to work each way. As such, I feel even I have absolutely adequate resources to thoroughly screen any potential adopter for Phin, including scheduling and conducting a home visit, verifying veterinary records, interviewing, and observing their interactions with the dog. I am surprised and genuinely dismayed that a legitimate animal rescue group does not have the resources or willingness to do the same, regardless of the breed of animal being rescued or adopted. Does your organization screen any adopters?
When we found Phin as a starving stray puppy, wandering a busy street near the high-kill animal shelter, I immediately contacted my dear friend in Austin, who trains Pit Bulls as AKC Canine Good Citizens and volunteer therapy dogs. She suggested some techniques and resources to me, which I gladly accepted. I read “The Pit Bull Placebo” by Karen Delise in its entirety, researched the breed thoroughly, and immediately engaged Phin in a regular, intensive training and socialization program.
I was and still am fully aware of the dangerous potential of placing any dog, and particularly a Pit Bull with its modern, misguided reputation, into a home not properly screened. Therefore, I committed wholeheartedly to this puppy’s training, socialization, and veterinary care so as to give him the best possible chance at being a loving and loved companion dog rather than a fighter or one of the millions of stray and unwanted dogs who are tragically and unnecessarily euthanized each year.
It was my impression and my hope that animal rescue groups shared my convictions and my dedication to saving lives, preventing health and behavior problems, and placing otherwise doomed animals in loving homes. However, since your entirely inadequate, stereotype-ridden response is the only one I have received from any rescue to which I have desperately reached out for assistance in placing this loving, well-trained puppy, I have sadly begun to question the animal rescue community in Texas when it comes to Pit Bulls.
It’s a shame. Maybe my local newspaper needs more than a classified advertisement about the unfortunate predicament of Pit Bulls, even those blessed with proper care and training, even those whose caretakers beg assistance for from the very organizations created and theoretically designed to help.
Even given the situation and significant inconvenience and danger, I’m still glad Phin the Pit Bull Puppy is alive and well today. Based on the response I’ve received, it’s become quite clear to me that if I hadn’t been there for him, the chances were pretty dismal that anyone would have been.
~Natalie M. Fairman
www.pawsitivelytexas.com/profiles/blog/list?user=25ygvok0j225b
I look forward to learning much here