We found a dog!

[Becky]

DH and I rode to work this morning. As we were pulling into our parking lot (in a not-so-nice part of town), we saw a car pull up, the door opened, and a dog was tossed out! DH ran after the car and was able to get a partial plate number, but not enough for an ID. The city police are referring this to the SPCA, but I doubt that much will come of it.

She's a young pit bull with a deformed rear leg, and is so sweet. She's happily greeted everyone who has stopped by to visit. Right now, she's sleeping in my office as I type this. It's been a busy morning for her.

Decisions, decisions....are we ready for a second dog, and a special needs pit at that? Are our dog and two cats ready for this? Can I bear to see her go to the SPCA? Like most metro areas, pits don't have real good luck in shelters here.

[tulip]

How bad is her leg? The SPCA in my city doesn't put dogs down, but many municipal shelters do. Make sure your homeowners insurance covers Pit Bulls and American Staffordshire Terriers. There are so many of those dogs at the shelters here, it saddens me that they are bred and discarded like that. There's a family down the street who breeds them to sell.

[Becky]

Well, animal control just picked her up She'll be held for 3 days before being transferred to the SPCA shelter. The officer felt that she's not all pit, and that she has a good chance of passing a behavioral assessment and being adopted. You bring up a good point about the insurance angle. Something to explore before we make any decisions.

The leg isn't terrible, but I'm guessing from the way that she walks that it will eventually atrophy and a vet would recommend amputation.

Dang....I miss her already

[bmccasland]

Becky,
At least you picked her up and kept her safe. As much as I hate "extra" dogs being put to sleep, or put down just because of being a certain breed, I see it as a better option than becoming feral. Street dogs don't have much of a nice life, and if they get hurt, no one to care for them. Someone who cared, you, picked her up, and her options are better than they were earlier in the day when some dang fool decided to toss her out of a car hoping to never see her again. Hopefully the authorities can find them and prosecute.

[Trek420]

Becky,

Call the shelter daily and keep checking up on the dog. Dogs that have an "advocate" tend to do better. A pox on anyone who would turn out a dog on the street like that

Is there a rescue group like this in your area?

www.badrap.org

[Becky]

Thanks for your kind thoughts and suggestions, everyone. DH and I need to sit down tonight and decide if she's meant to be part of our family, and go from there. If so, I will have the SPCA on speed dial

A dog trainer/rescuer friend of mine pointed out that surrendering her was the best thing to ensure that the SPCA can pursue the abandonment case and to resolve any legal issues with her ownership. So I'm feeling a little bit better now. Still sad, but my practical side feels a little better.

EDIT: I just found out that the SPCA has a "finders first" adoption policy, meaning that, as the finders, DH and I are first on the list to adopt her if we notify them of our intent and she passes the behavioral test. http://www.kentcountyspca.com/lostlistnew.htm This makes me feel a little bit better....