Dog Rehoming Question

[samoyedman]

Wtf is going on here??? I am after some dog behavioural information for the possibility of a rehoming situation.

How can people be so judgmental when they don't know any of the details?

Thanks to those who replied in a non-judgmental way. I could never separate myself from this dog with a clean break and not see him regularly. I am not prepared to divulge my complicated personal situation, but I am not the type who would rehome my beloved samoyed lightly.

You are limiting the rehoming prospects for this dog severely by insisting you have access. No way known would I ever adopt a dog under those conditions.

The stress to the dog of regular meetings, followed by separations would not be fair IMO. How is he expected to bond to a new owner under these conditions.?

Thank you, this information about dog behaviour is what i am after, and this along with similar feedback has convinced me to reject the idea of rehoming him. I would prefer to stay where i am because i could never cut this dog completely out of my life.

[Guest Maeby Fünke]

Sorry, bad timing. I just read you're post. I understand where you're coming from now.

Edited November 26, 2013 by Maeby Fünke

[westiemum]

Sam without knowing the details and going on what we know, if you need to rehome then rehome and cut all ties with your dog. Legally you don't own him anymore if you rehome properly anyway. If you can't cut all ties then I think you need another solution - such as a dog friendly apartment and a dog visiting/walking service - can be done.

I've recently had to move out of my home so I could demolish and rebuild - luckily a friend offered a house-sit. But the Adelaide South parklands and a tent were looking pretty good there for a while. My westies are all too old to rehome and I couldn't give them up - ever - but that's me. For me it's like a good marriage - for better for worse - but if for you it's 'divorce' with your dog then it must be final and for good IMO. Hope that helps and good luck.

[Loving my Oldies]

Wtf is going on here??? I am after some dog behavioural information for the possibility of a rehoming situation.

How can people be so judgmental when they don't know any of the details?

Thanks to those who replied in a non-judgmental way. I could never separate myself from this dog with a clean break and not see him regularly. I am not prepared to divulge my complicated personal situation, but I am not the type who would rehome my beloved samoyed lightly.

You are limiting the rehoming prospects for this dog severely by insisting you have access. No way known would I ever adopt a dog under those conditions.

The stress to the dog of regular meetings, followed by separations would not be fair IMO. How is he expected to bond to a new owner under these conditions.?

Thank you, this information about dog behaviour is what i am after, and this along with similar feedback has convinced me to reject the idea of rehoming him. I would prefer to stay where i am because i could never cut this dog completely out of my life.

It was said very early on in the thread.

[dee lee]

Sam man, can I ask if you don't think your dog would be ok living in an apartment or just that it wouldn't be allowed? Obviously there is not much you could do about the latter, but apartment living with a dog isn't impossible.

I live in a very small innercity terrace with a courtyard the size of a balcony, my dog lives inside & I take her out daily for exercise. There are many innercity parks where you can take dogs. Many CBD residents have dogs with no problem. There are also an abundance of dog walking and doggy day care businesses. It would take a little adjustment, but your dog would be fine.

[samoyedman]

Dee Lee, that is the main thing. He's used to living in yards and outdoors (sleeps inside of a night). He likes to dig/run around and i am afraid living in an apartment would be stifling for him.

I walk him twice a day and would do so in the city. Its so risky though if he hates it.

[samoyedman]

Wtf is going on here??? I am after some dog behavioural information for the possibility of a rehoming situation.

How can people be so judgmental when they don't know any of the details?

Thanks to those who replied in a non-judgmental way. I could never separate myself from this dog with a clean break and not see him regularly. I am not prepared to divulge my complicated personal situation, but I am not the type who would rehome my beloved samoyed lightly.

You are limiting the rehoming prospects for this dog severely by insisting you have access. No way known would I ever adopt a dog under those conditions.

The stress to the dog of regular meetings, followed by separations would not be fair IMO. How is he expected to bond to a new owner under these conditions.?

Thank you, this information about dog behaviour is what i am after, and this along with similar feedback has convinced me to reject the idea of rehoming him. I would prefer to stay where i am because i could never cut this dog completely out of my life.

It was said very early on in the thread.

And I acknowledged that, thanks.

[minimax]

You don't have to go far out of the city for places with backyards. Even the bottom of the Anzac bridge is a suburb with houses and yards, and that's a 5 min walk to the city.

[Bjelkier]

Dee Lee, that is the main thing. He's used to living in yards and outdoors (sleeps inside of a night). He likes to dig/run around and i am afraid living in an apartment would be stifling for him.

I walk him twice a day and would do so in the city. Its so risky though if he hates it.

If he hates it, rehome him.

At least then you will know you tried to do everything possible for him to be happy.

Samoyeds are highly adaptable dogs. He might surprise you.

[persephone]

Sam man ... seriously - as has been said , rehoming is just that . No visitation rights , for the good of the animal.

:) Hope you two get to stick together !!

[Rosetta]

I don't judge people who responsibly rehome their dogs. That means finding the best home and vetting the dog's living arrangements and asking some pointed questions about willingness to maintain grooming and vet care etc. It also means cutting ties. What I don't condone is "free to good home" without caring who takes them.

[Simply Grand]

I moved with my three a few months ago from a house with a small yard, but big enough for them to get a run going, to this place, with no yard apart from a balcony sized area I've fenced off outside so they can go outside when I'm home (not secure/safe enough to leave them out there when I'm not) - definitely not ideal but through life circumstances here we are for now!

I walk them in the am and take them to the off lead park for a run in the evenings and they have clear floor space in the living room to play with each other like idiots a lot of the time when they're inside (less of an issue with only one dog).

It's do-able, they're happy and healthy, but the house is certainly not something to be proud of and TBH it can be a pain in the ass for me not being able to kick them outside when they still have energy to burn, and I'm sure they'd rather have a yard to play in when I'm not home. This place works for now because I sacrifice any sense of house-proudness and spend most of my non-work time keeping them entertained but I'll definitely be looking at moving when I can.

My point is you could well make it work but if you have a different option where you can keep the space I'd recommend it...

[HazyWal]

I moved with my three a few months ago from a house with a small yard, but big enough for them to get a run going, to this place, with no yard apart from a balcony sized area I've fenced off outside so they can go outside when I'm home (not secure/safe enough to leave them out there when I'm not) - definitely not ideal but through life circumstances here we are for now!

I walk them in the am and take them to the off lead park for a run in the evenings and they have clear floor space in the living room to play with each other like idiots a lot of the time when they're inside (less of an issue with only one dog).

It's do-able, they're happy and healthy, but the house is certainly not something to be proud of and TBH it can be a pain in the ass for me not being able to kick them outside when they still have energy to burn, and I'm sure they'd rather have a yard to play in when I'm not home. This place works for now because I sacrifice any sense of house-proudness and spend most of my non-work time keeping them entertained but I'll definitely be looking at moving when I can.

My point is you could well make it work but if you have a different option where you can keep the space I'd recommend it...

This is exactly my situation at the moment. We moved two months ago from a house with a huge yard to a house where I too have fenced off enough for them to go to the loo but cannot leave them out there unsupervised. We too are stuck here for now as I had no choice but we will move when we can, I know they miss their yard but they are adapting to it. The only reason I would rehome my dogs is if as others have said I was too unwell to look after them and I have already made arrangements should that happen.

[Guest hankodie]

Living with dogs in apartments is definitely doable, even if you own a high energy breed. I've done it and know lots of friends who live in apartments and own dogs. One even owns a samoyed!

Dogs are highly adaptable and like someone said, he might surprise you. One friend of mine moved his high energy lab from a quiet house in Texas to a 1 bedroom apartment in upper manhattan. He takes his dog running in the mornings and to the dog park in the afternoons, there was a period of adjustment and my friend does devote some time and effort towards his dog's needs but my point is if you are willing to invest the time then it's certainly very doable.

Re-homing would definitely have to be a "clean break". Dogs don't rationalise like we do. Your dog is not going to think "oh, here comes my old owner, he's going to take me for an outing and then I'm going to go back to my new owners."

I had a family dog I grew up with, I went away overseas to college at 18 but used to visit home frequently. He was beside himself whenever I came home and was even worse when I left. One time when I came home for a month and then left, my mom told me he spent 3 weeks sleeping outside of my bedroom door. It broke my heart. I imagine re-homing your dog but frequently visiting him would be like this except worse.

Either stay put, take him with you or find him a new home and say goodbye. It would be too hard on your dog otherwise

Edited November 26, 2013 by hankodie

[bertie]

Bertie was my half sister's dog, he was about 12 when he came to live with me. We then didn't see each other for over 6 months. The first time we saw her after, Bertie immediately lay under her car instead of mine, through the day. He obviously missed her. He always still came with me when I left, he knew it was our car now, I don't know exactly how distressing it was for him, I think the only way it worked was because there was always long gaps between visits. Also she had little kids at the time that I think he was grateful to leave. I really don't think it could have worked with shorter spaced visits.

[Katdogs]

Oh Sam, you've been on DOL almost as long as me. You know you can't partly rehome. You know dogs can adapt to city life - though only if you give them the time they still need. How long is the fluffer by himself at the moment each day, with work and social life? He's older, he'll be ok. Of catch a train. Or rent at St Peters and go to a great park and dog care place. So many options.

[indigirl]

Oh Sam, you've been on DOL almost as long as me. You know you can't partly rehome. You know dogs can adapt to city life - though only if you give them the time they still need. How long is the fluffer by himself at the moment each day, with work and social life? He's older, he'll be ok. Of catch a train. Or rent at St Peters and go to a great park and dog care place. So many options.

+1

[Katdogs]

Nother idea:

Rent out a room and keep dog and roomie together while you spend a few nights a week in town.

[temperamentfirst]

THere are heaps of dog friendly apartments in the CBD. And great walks for them.

If you do decide to rehome, then you should not visit - it is totally unfair on the dog.

THe employment opportunity would have to be out of this world for me to rehome a dog of that age.

[Zug Zug]

Glad you've decided not to do this. I honestly think you may find yourself with deep regrets down the track.

You seem quite attached to him. Don't give that up unless you really must.