I hate our dog but he cost us a fortune

A little while ago we adopted a puppy from our local SPCA, at first everything seemed ok, his training was progressing and his health was improving (when we adopted him he was nearly bald and covered in scabs due to an allergic reaction and was severely underweight).
I've had dogs before and have always had a knack for training dogs but this particular dog is impossible now that he's well. He makes my young kids nervous,they don't like him now that he's gotten comfortable, he's destroying my older kids clothes (while the kids are wearing them, btw) and when he barks (which is any time he's alone) he sounds like he's being murdered, yipping and yelping and carrying on. He's sneaky and misbehaves when I'm not watching, climbs over the baby gate to get into the living room and pee, grabs at the kids clothes with his teeth, puts his paws up on the counters or kitchen table. He's also decided he would prefer to pee in my kitchen than go into the yard, seriously, he fights against going outside and will willfully refuse to pee outside and then immediately pee in the house. I feel like I'm losing my mind and for the first time in my life I can understand why some people abandong dogs. I have tried to post ads to rehome him but the SPCA has taken over the internet classifieds in my area and non-shelter rehoming ads are not permitted and taking him back to the SPCA will require us to pay a fee after we already paid 250$ for the dog and another 200$ for all his stuff (kennel, toys, food, shampoo etc) and I've put so much time into working with him, treating his skin and getting him to a healthy weight and I know they won't take proper care of him. I feel trapped because abandoning animals is not something I condone but, I don't know what I'm going to do. He's only 6 months old!

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Comments ( 7 )
  • Dogkiller

    Give it to me

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  • EuphoniumLizz

    Alright. Hyper dog then. He is still young so he could calm down as he gets older stay consistent with your training and when he messes up be stern but don't yell. My dog Loki is a very hyper pitbull but after he was about a year he stopped getting in as much trouble. At six months he broke a window because he saw a few kids playing. He's not aggressive just loves people. As far as the SPCA you will just have to be creative and more aggressive than them to rehome your dog. Also ask your friends and colleagues they may know something an internet person does not. Good luck.

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  • MangoTango

    Not sure why you went with a puppy. It's evident you have no real experience with dogs. If you had experience with dogs, you would have CERTAINLY went for a dog around age 3-4 or even 5 yrs old. Anyone with dog experience knows that at that age, such dogs commonly make better house pets. Shelter dogs are fine. I've had plenty of them in my care.

    This dog is likely going to be a handful, like all of them can be, until around 3-4 yrs old.

    The traditional cure all for most issues is to wear your dog out with good old exercise. That's exactly what they need. That's exactly what we humans need -- exercise. Having said that, let me just say that with a puppy? Exercise builds fitness, so you have a few years before your dog will hopefully mellow out, if at all. Some genetic types of dogs never settle down. A slow human-paced walk won't cut it. Dogs need a runner or anywhere this dog can just run all out.

    No matter, a tired dog is usually a good dog.
    It's true.

    Not sure why they let you adopt this dog in the first place. Im guessing you have a backyard at the least, right?

    I know this sounds crazy, but sometimes getting another dog, having two of them together can help. Even more strange to say to someone I suspect isnt a dog person, having 3 dogs can be even better. The dogs kind of bond and entertain each other. That way you can in fact send them all outdoors in your backyard for awhile.

    Oh, as far as a yard is concerned, it needs to be a really large area.

    Really, I don't think you're into this.
    For a dog at 6 months of age? Act like you're a long term foster situation, and word-of-mouth let people know you are open to a rehome, if such a situation can be done.

    If you still want a dog? Be SENSIBLE, and go with an older one please. That way you're past the hyper energy stage. You can evaluate the dog's temperament and you know what you're getting. Don't dare look at any dog under the age of 3 yrs old.

    Now, if you're up for it? Your dog is 6 months old. Everything you said seems relatively easy to manage, but it takes work even if you don't like it. Sometimes, dogs are time demanding. This is one such time.

    You ought to try a large crate. Not a freaking tiny pet taxi-size box. That's cruelty. You need something like this --> At least 4 or 5 foot across.
    PetSafe Cottageview Boxed Kennel, 5-Foot-by-5-Foot-by- 4-Foot
    https://www.amazon.com/PetSafe-Cottageview-Kennel-5-Foot-5-Foot/dp/B001VJ09R8/ref=pd_sim_199_1?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B001VJ09R8&pd_rd_r=N5956EH8R5D42CJR04T6&pd_rd_w=Z8rsk&pd_rd_wg=4EPzD&psc=1&refRID=N5956EH8R5D42CJR04T6

    A crate is not to be used to house the dog all day, no. But, they are great for using as a time-out area to put a rambunctious dog to give you a breather. Dogs can be whiny in a crate at first, but if you feed the dog there, and make this the afternoon nap zone, dogs adjust to actually enjoying their crates like it's their den.

    I think crates save lives, lol. They keep people happy and keep dogs out of your hair when you just can't deal with them at the moment.

    Anyways, I have a dog like the one you describe. I think she escaped from an African tribe perhaps. She's kind of crazy. She appears to be mostly shepherd-like. She has a lot of sight-hound traits. Very tenacious. Absolutely 'awful' dog at first. But, with about six months adjustment, yep, she's great now. Still crazy, but as with most dogs, she has blended in and follows the same clock as the rest of us.

    Okay, having said all that above. Yeah, it's okay to vent, lol. I'm just going to see the humor here. You have a puppy, lol. You'll probably be fine if you just stick things out for a year. This is an adjustment period. Set some rules, do some formal training, follow a routine, get this dog some serious exercise, and see what happens.

    Do remember you have a dog. So, be a bit forgiving. Maybe read up on canine behavior. You haven't described anything atypical of a puppy that's a newbie at your home. This dog is going to take awhile to get the house rules down. Like I said, be forgiving.

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  • EuphoniumLizz

    I would try to rehome the dog myself if you're worried about him going back to the shelter. Find someone good with animals and he'll be fine. Another option is sending him to an obedience class.

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    • Dr_Mrs_The_Monarch

      How would you suggest I rehome him? The thing that I guess I failed to communicate is that I am the person who is notoriously "good with animals" and rehoming dogs through local calssified ads online is being prevented by the SPCA. So, what I'm asking for is alternative ideas.

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      • EuphoniumLizz

        Word of mouth or find a place to post the ad where the SPCA has no authority. The dog is fairly young. Is there a way for the dog to get more exercise that help my dog Loki calm down a lot. Or you can find another way of training him all dogs are different. Where I am at we can put up a Facebook ad for a dog no problem. Out of curiosity what type of dog is it.

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        • Dr_Mrs_The_Monarch

          The dog goes for 3, 1 hour long walks per day so, I doubt exercise is the problem and training doesn't seem to be the issue either (perhaps that also wasn't clear in my original post, it's difficult to change training for a dog who resists non training methods of house training, eg; taking the dog outside every 1/2 hour to prevent them from having the opportunity to eliminate indoors) also, he was following the rules (sit, stay, down, leave it and eliminating outdoors) until his skin healed and he became healthy. I might have to create a facebook account and try posing an ad there although the SPCA here is very aggressively targeting anyone in the area trying to rehome dogs (not cats though for some reason). He is a shelter dog so all we know is that he "may be" part shepherd.

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