Dogs Amok

One of my Facebook acquaintances takes great pleasure in posting about what mischief her two dogs get into.  Generally there's nothing wrong with that, but there have been some incidents that she has described that had me shaking my head at how ill trained the dogs really are.

This person is a hard-working woman; she works two jobs, sometimes 12-hour shifts at a time.  She volunteers at a local animal shelter and has fostered many cats and dogs in her home.  I've nothing against her personally, other than she doesn't seem to have adequate time or energy to devote to two high-strung dogs that constantly upend her life.

They have destroyed two of her couches.  They routinely get into the household garbage at night and strew it all over the place.  This morning she woke up to find her bed full of dog kibble because one of the dogs brought his dish into the bed.  It's clear there's no alpha in this pack and the dogs know this, which is why they behave the way they do.

No matter how much one loves one's dog there should be a line drawn, and I commented as much.

Since everyone else was laughing and saying cute things about the dogs, I was decried as a spoil-sport for my suggestion that the woman invest in obedience classes for the dogs before they destroyed her house.

Her response: "Why is there always one person that can't keep it light and fun?  My life is a comedy in every aspect of it.  Most of it comes from my [dogs]."

"It's plain to see how much you love your brood.  How can you get mad at them when you love them so much?  You just can't. ... All that matters is all the laughter and fun you share with your pet family," was another comment.

I'm sorry, but sometimes love isn't enough.  My family once had a dog that unfortunately developed a chewing habit and resisted all attempts at breaking him of it; neither training nor attention worked.  One day he somehow got into a drawer and chewed an expensive piece of electronics.  My father was livid, and the dog was taken to a shelter the following day.  Some people might think that cruel, but the alternative was to be constantly having to ensure that anything smaller than a pillow was locked up or out of the dog's reach.  That's no way to live.

So call me a spoil-sport, tell me I have a sour personality, or that my opinion on this subject isn't worth listening to.  I stand by what I said.  I love animals but they must be properly trained to behave.