Opinions on potential adopter needed

[GoingPostal]

Well if the guy's looked around at other pit bulls for adoption he might have seen enough fence jumpers to worry him, honestly I wish I'd put in a trolley before we got Nero, we finished the fence but that did absolutely no good since he can go over it, if we had a trolley he'd have never gotten out like he did. And my other dog loves to lounge outside for hours when we are home, just because she's an inside dog doesn't mean she shouldn't be able to do that. What about people who buy crates before they get a dog? Are they assuming the dog will chew and destroy stuff when they know nothing about it? Will they leave the dog in a crate 24/7? I don't know, just seems like way too much is being inferred here.

[Pit Chick]

I always encourage people to buy crates before they bring home one of my fosters. They shouldn't be given free roam of a new home right away. And chained Pit Bulls is a huge thing in Houston and from the sounds of his neighborhood, it's probably a very common thing, especially for "protection". There is a limited window of time in Houston when it's ok to leave a dog outside tethered or not. The rest of the year it's too hot, raining, or in winter the wind chill is brutal.

That wasn't my only concern about the guy and on top of that, he never answered my last email about moving and rehoming the dog so that speaks volumes.

[leila.quinn.82]

Because it seems like he's anticipating something happening before he even gets the dog. He said he already went and bought a trolley line, yet he claims his yard is completely fenced. He said he got it to prevent the dog escaping. Where would he get that idea when he doesn't even know the dog? And he said the dog would never be alone. If that's the case, why a trolley line? Isn't someone going to be there to watch the dog all day?

I'm not against tethers and trolley lines for dogs that need it. One of my own dogs needs a tether because she can jump a 4th fence and that's what my yard has. If I was adopting out a dog like her, I would expect the adopter to invest in a tether or trolley line, but this guy is jumping to conclusions about a dog he doesn't have.

I do totally agree that if your gut says no then i would trust that, but I will say I am cautious to a fault when it comes to dogs, and I really would tether a new dog, inside a fence, and then stay outside every minute they were out there, imagining the potential hazzards i'd maybe overlooked

[Pit Chick]

If you brought home a dog you knew nothing about then sure, I could see being cautious, but having had a dog in foster care with some history, none of which involved fence jumping or digging out, I don't see the need to jump to conclusions that the dog will automatically escape. Being outside with them every second is always a good idea at first because then you get to learn if they are a fence jumper or not. I know sometimes that can present itself later, but then you would know it's time to tether.

[Amy Hendrickson]

I'm curious why everyone is assuming because there's a trolley, the dog will get left outside all the time? I mean, most people wouldn't adopt to someone without a fence, but you can just as easily leave a dog in a fenced yard all the time although it'd be much less secure than with an additional trolley or chainspot. I probably wouldn't adopt to this guy because of the moving=dump dog answer and the non payment of child support but seems like a lot of assumptions are being made.

I'm totally making assumptions but not assumptions that the dog will be left outside. My assumption is that this guy will be less than responsible. There is a history of giving away pets - OK, so his parents did it. I'd be frank and ask him about that. If you say, hey, what happens if you move to where the dog isn't allowed....honestly, I have had adopters tell me they would return the dog which is totally uncool, then be shocked when they aren't approved. Giving a pet away, even when this guy was a kid, it teaches something. It teaches him that a pet is disposable and whether or not he can verbalize it, it's in there. It is a lesson he learned as a child.

Then there's the child support thing. I've got a thing about responsibility and being responsible for the lives you produce as a breeder (of dogs) and the kids you have regardless of whether you like your ex or not the decision was made to create a life and if he's not paying his end of the deal.....that is just not responsible.

[Pit Chick]

[Minders73]

In addition to all of the above comments...my other concern would be the back child support. If he is behind with the court then chances are he has a warrant and in Michigan a Child Support warrant equals a trip to jail...

[Pit Chick]

That was a red flag for me too. I still haven't heard back from him so I can add him to the DNA file.