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There were problems, though. He suffered from allergies; and he fougnt through several bouts of upper respiratory infections that first year. He threw a couple of temper tantrums. But we had no warning of what was to come during his second year. All at once, his physical problems stopped. But his temper tantrums became more frequent. Shannon took him to puppy classes; and Scotch was a quick learner. he learned to heel, sit, and down quickly. He could be trusted off-lead in the yard. he would always come with one command. Shannon would put him in "sit out" against the wall and he would wait until she released him. But something strange was happening. His temper tantrums came even more frequently. And we realized that they were happening for no reason. We would be petting him and he would suddenly become enraged! He bit all of us at least once a week. We talked to the vet; but he didn't know what to say. Scotch would literally go catatonic at the vet's office. He never did his "rage" act. Since he first started the behavior, Scotch has gotten worse. He's terrified of almost everything and everyone! He immediately goes into a defensive mode when he's approached by a stranger. His eyes widen and he growls and snarls. He wants attention; but he can't handle the stress of being touched by a stranger.
And he goes absolutely ballistic when children are close by. he would definitely bite if he were allowed to reach them! And the strange "rage" ocntinues. he will suddenly turn and attack whoever is near him1 If he were larger, we'd probably have to have him put down. But he's small enough, and we recognize the signals he gives, that we can control him. Shannon continues to take him to obedience classes. And he does beautifully! But he's very dog aggressive; and can't stand to be touched by the trainers. They've been wonderful with him. They've even gotten him to take treats and allow them to lightly touch him. But he's always on guard! And he stresses out so much that he has to be crated and allowed to calm down. 90% of the time Butterscotch is a wonderful companion to Shannon. he's never really learned to play like other dogs; but he's happy and LOVES to lick ears. But the rage continues. And because of them, he truly misses out on many experiences. It's sad. When Shannon takes him out with finian (and she takes him often), he craaves the attention that Finian gets. He'll cry and cringe; but he'll allow some people to touch him. He trembles from fear; but he so wants human companionship! He's better now. But because of bad breeding; and because of being kept in a cage for the first four months of his live, he'll never be the loving, fun dog he should be!
Shannon often uses her experience with a "pet store, puppy mill dog" to talk to people about the importance of responsible breeding. We love this comical little "prozac" puppy so much! And we cry at the callousness and greed and stupidity that breeders like his exhibit! Remember...DON'T BUY A PET AT A PET STORE! |
Her older Pap Butterscotch had run out the door with her. When we got there, we walked around the immediate area asking if anyone had seen the puppy. We took Shannon back to our house and spent a long, sleepless night. By 7:00AM Shannon had finally drifted into a restless sleep. The phone rang and I answered, expecting no good news. What I heard caused me to cry out and lose my sense of balance. That morning one of Shannon's neighbors was cleaning up around her apartment. She looked up a saw a small, dirty puppy coming out of Shannon's totally burnt out apartment. The pup looked around, then primly lay down in the doorway. She said it looked as if he were just waiting for Mom to come home.
She called him and he pranced up to her. She took him to her mom's house and called us. When Shannon ran into the yard, he came scampering out and leaped into her arms. We couldn't believe it! He was only 10 weeks old and had been at that apartment with Shannon only 2 weeks. He must have been hiding close by while the firemen fought the fire; then, when all the commotion and noise died down, he came back and slept in the apartment. His independence and self confidence might be maddening when trying to train him; but it saved his life that night!
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