Irresponsible owners and your experiences with them

While I don't waste my time anymore, I have some stories of the most irresponsible and ignorant owners I've ever met (this will be long).

I have a friend. She was very excited when they got their first puppy. German Shepard-Husky mix I'm told. For whatever reason a few months later the got his brother. Both dog escaped out of the yard and were picked up by the pound. Since they were a low income family AC also gave them information on low cost spay-neuter programs and vaccinations. They got them neuter and vaccinated, however during their first and only trip to the vet the vet informed them that one dog was partially deaf and the other dog was partially blind. These dogs grew up very fast, and they grew to be HUGE! They were given no training whatsoever. The deaf dog, bit someone as he was walking into their house. It seemed like he was playing like any dog who had never been taught any bite inhibition, but he bit hard enough to draw blood. The next day he was carted off to the pound and they described him as vicious, so of course he was immediately euthenized.
So what do they do? on their way out to appease their screaming 9 year old they went and looked at other dogs. She picked out a young small black female dog... probably a black lab mix puppy. Anyways they brought her home threw and her in the backyard. Basically same story... no manners, hyper puppy... she jumped on the 9 year old girl, and was taken to the pound only a few months after her arrival. She was also deemed vicious.
So a few months after that, the bring home another puppy and throw him in the backyard. He's a gorgeous Rottie-Husky mix. Most beautiful blue eyes. He's growing to be huge too! Anyway, my friend has recently informed me that they are getting rid of both dogs now. Their reasons? Well, she doesn't want them anymore because she has to come home after working 8hours and feed them and apparently that's a lot to ask.
Dear God, do not let this person ever have children!


Another irresponsible owner that sticks out in my mind... the people who just untie their dog and "let him go" randomly. The worst part? (Yeah there is a worst part) They untie him, but he still has a rope dragging behind him... can't wait for that to happen and it to get wrapped up around something. AC will do nothing about it... I think because when they do get called the owners just tell him that the knot came untied, which is not what they've told us... it's pretty sick.

Oh yeah I could tell you tons of these stories! Some from just people out and about on the street....but tons from working as a vet tech!

I don't go to the dog park very often anymore, and when I do go I will only take Bridgette in if it's the select people that I know/like that frequent the park. We are lucky to have mostly great people who go there and are actually responsible with their dogs, but there are always those people who drive me insane! Just recently there was a lady who brought her dog in and basically wouldn't let her relax and play. Everytime the dog went up to greet another dog she was all "Lucy, Lucy come here. Lucy!" It took all I had not to yell "why bring your dog here if you won't let her play??!" The poor dog ended up getting really nervous of the other dogs and hiding under a bench near her owner! I just don't get people sometimes!

And I can't tell you the number of people I've seen with out of control, unleashed dogs lately! I literally saw two girls (could not have been more than 11 and 5) walking this hyper young Weimaraner off leash! The dog was bounding all over the place completely out of control. I heard them calling the dog, but he was having WAY too much fun to listen. We were about 20 feet from a busy road.

Oh, I've got stories.

Plenty of people leave their dogs in the dog park unattended. The owners usually play basketball about 20 feet away or sit in their cars.
One chick brought her aussie to the DP. I crouched to pet it and the owner said,"Can you just ignore her. She'll bite from fear aggression". That dog should not be at the dog park. I started talking to her about what she's done to help the dog and she said,"We tried a couple things but they didn't work".
My roommate leaves her dog with me for days on end while she's out socializing or what have you. Denver is an extremely dog friendly place to live. There's no reason she couldn't take him. She has never spent any time training him. So that's where I come in. He has learned a lot but she never reinforces the things I teach him so he's still a complete when she's around. We also can't leave him home alone because he'll bark constantly. I've been working with him on it but then she comes home...he knows how to manipulate by barking. Point is nothing I do with him will be of any use unless she reinforces it.
Currently, the pooch is staying with her ex. I once heard them fighting about letting him off leash. The ex said,"You just have to trust him". My roommate responded with,"He's a DOG".
I walk the same route most every day. On that route is a woman's house with two dachsunds. They bark at me. She will sit there hitting them with a magazine the entire time they bark. They don't even flinch anymore. Just keep right on barking.

Lets see where to begin.

1. The neighbors who do not pick up after there dog at the park across the street where there are 2 signs stating to pick up after your dog and they even provide doggy bags.

2. The woman with the shepard whose dog was off leash at the same park when there is a sign saying all dogs must be leashed and her dog running to my dog clear across the parking lot in seconds who tried but failed to attack my dog. The owner said she likes to let him swim (parking lot is for a beach) when in fact it was winter and the dog was not even wet. Not that it matters because even when swimming the dog could be on a lead.

3. Owners with a JRT at an off leash dog park that at the time was the only dog in the off leash dog park. As we were entering there dog tried to attack my dog. I stopped there dog by grabbing it's neck and pushing the dog downward to a submissive position and holding him there for a minute. The irresponsibility was having their dog inside the dog park when it obviously was not socialized. They left 2 minutes later and did not say a word to me.

4. Woman last week with a shepard dog her dog breaking free from its leash and while doing so breaking the leash. The irresponsibility there was she had a leash with plastic clips and the harness had plastic clips as well. Her knowing her dog was DA and I know this because she was holding the dog still as we approached the area. When I had seen from about 30 foot away that she was holding her dog still but not in a submissive position I stopped walking towards them and it was then the dog broke free. The irresponsibility there was buying the dog a leash and harness that was not strong enough for the dog knowing the dog was DA.

5. A lady bringing five dogs inside the dog park when in fact the rule is 2 dogs per person. All five dogs were on the 35 pound and under side of the park when in fact there were 3 of the dogs over 35 pounds. One was on a leash in the off leash dog park that she refused to either let off the leash or remove him from the inside of the dog park and that dog was over the weight limit as well. She cursed me up and down and I called the rangers and had her removed. I have not seen her there since and if I do and she does the same I will take the same action.

6. A male owner bringing his un-neutered great dane in the right side of the dog park but unable to recall his dog and his dog scaring all the other dogs running around like a wild horse. His irresponsibility was bringing a un-neutered dog into a dog park that has all the rules posted and one of the rules is that all dogs must be spayed or neutered. I had him removed.

Now some people think that I might be mean by having these people removed from the park but if you bring your dog into the dog park and cant follow the rules or have a dog that is not socialized enough to be inside the dog park then you do not deserve to be at the dog park.

Lola's Dad.. you are right. As the owner of a little dog you are more than justified. No one shoud be handling a dog off leash if the dog is not obedient and non aggressive.

As I have stated before I dealt with horse rescue for years.. I bought the horse that the parents got for Junior thinking it was My Friend Flicka and later finding out a Green Broke Three Year old and a Green Rider was a bad color combination. The kid lost interest and the horse was fed intermittently.. whereupon I entered and offered to buy it for very little money (usually meat price or less).

I would then rehab/retrain the horse and either keep it or resell it to a responsible home.

Ignorance and neglect can be as cruel as outright abuse.

Honestly.. my frustration is the dog up the road who lived chained to a dog house and was elderly.. and last winter it was hard and the dog "vanished" one day. Now the dog house is still there (a ramshackle affair at best) and there is a new dog chained to the house.. a much younger dog.. looking to live out its days chained to that house (the earth about it is pounded to below root level!). WHY do they have a dog????

Then there is the loose GSD who comes through my yard. If my cat is out on his rope I have to get him in.. the dog runs away when I come out... I don't let my CATS roam.. Why do people think it is OK to let their dogs roam???

The people at the Town park who came up to me and asked if my dog was a male.. they are looking to breed their (untitled, untested) female because she is soooo PRETTY... (not to mention selling puppies for $400 each will make money for them). My dog, BTW is a spay....

The guy with the Doxie and JRT who come blasting out snarling at my dog when I take her for a walk and who would be the first person to sue me if my dog turned and grabbed one of his off leash terrors and snapped it in half.


The time at the Vet's office where there was a comatose dog in a cage.. and I asked about her.. she was pretty little long haired dog with white on her chest. Vet said the dog had been out on a chain in the 100 degree weather w/o water and was in there in a coma from brain swelling.. and would either die or recover in the next 12-24 hours (the dog died BTW).

Speaking to these folks.. all I can say is I have had more productive conversations with brick walls. In the last case, AC took over and they were told no more pets.