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Checkers · **Very Sad Day -** 09-24-2006, 11:03 PM

Tonight I had to make the very hard decision to try and find a new home for Cheyenne. My son started crawling this week and one of our major fears was realized... he crawled over next to her and she snapped at him. This is breaking my heart because she really is a great dog... just not with kids and sometimes other dogs. She is almost 11 years old now and I just can't take the chance that next time she snaps at him it might connect. I know finding a home for her will be a major challenge though because I cannot in good conscience give her to a home with kids or another dog. If I get really lucky I will find a home with a single person or couple with no kids that wants a quiet, very well behaved dog to share a few years with. I have owned Cheyenne for 10 1/2 years now and I always believed I would have her until her very final moments. I feel like I am failing her now but I know her personality like no one else could and I just don't feel like this is fixable... that feeling compounded by the previous fight with Checkers. Anyhow... this has made for quite a crummy night for me and I'm still fighting back the tears. Just needed to share....

-Cheryl

Marshy · 09-25-2006, 01:22 AM

Cheryl,

I understand the issues & difficulties that you are wrestling in your heart.
I am sad to hear that as well. It is the best thing to do for your family.
You have loved Cheyenne & give her a good life all these years. Now u will
take all efforts to ensure Cheyenne will find another good owner that would
care for her like you do. I am sure Cheyenne will understand it some day.
You can also keep in touch with her new owner & pop by to visit her when time permits. Don't worry dear... will keep Cheyenne in prayer to find a loving owner & home soon. With God nothing is impossible. You are a good mommy & Cheyenne will always remember that.

Hey friends, do spread the word around for her & help Cheyenne find a good home. I can't do much here cos I am half the world away.

Michael Romanos · 09-25-2006, 01:34 AM

What makes it so sad is that all Cheyenne is doing is showing how much she loves you and wants you for her very own. So kids are an obstruction to those srrong feelings she has for you and she also wants to protect you from other dogs.
It is a very difficult - and sometimes improbable - task to find a home for a dog into his/her senior years.

tandemgal · 03:32 AM

Cheryl,

I know how you feel. We had a schnauzer, Pepper that we had to let go after our son was a toddler. Hubby had a buddy from work - he and his wife had no children. They were wonderful with her and she had a great life. Pepper was a great dog - she just wasn't ment for small children.

(((hugs)))

Hayashi_eri · 09-25-2006, 05:34 AM

I feel sad for Cheyenne, I must admit I do not agree to sending her away for your child...there must be something you can work out on?...I would be torn apart if I have to send Buta away, I just can't do it...wil prob buy a playpen for Buta & divide the time between letting my child or Buta spent time with me separately.

Cardiguy · 09-25-2006, 06:26 AM

Put your thinking cap on. Isn't there someway to keep the 2 apart?

Jespah · 09-25-2006, 06:35 AM

Oh Cheryl, it must be so difficult for you. What about Cheyenne wearing a basket muzzle at home? I know you may be thinking she could never get used to it at her age - but then a whole new life for her is a lot too. I agree with Cardiguy - there must be some way she can stay with you and your son can be safe.

corgimom · 06:38 AM

Cheryl,

I know this is so difficult for you - I can only imagine.

And Cheyenne is not used to having crawling babies around; and obviously, you have to protect your son from being bit in the face or worse. I wish something could be worked out in your case.

Is there a spare room in your home that you could put Cheyenne in with baby gates put up to keep your baby and Cheyenne seperate?; and then when your little guy is napping Cheyenne could be let out for time with you? What are your husbands thoughts on all of this?

Is there anyway you could contact a professional in dog behavior before you make this final decision?; Maybe they will have another suggestion or advise you to do what you have already decided, but then you will know that you have weighed all options.

Good luck to you.

PS. and I just read Jepah's suggestion, and I think her idea could be something you could consider.

tandemgal · 09-25-2006, 06:58 AM

When our schnauzer bit our son's face and he needed stitches to sew his lip back together was my final wake up call. I am not saying that Cheyenne would ever bite Cheryl's baby - just saying my dog did. I am not making a judgement one way or the other in her case because I haven't met Cheyenne.

I believe our dog would have bit again... we had to decide that our pet was our pet and our son is our child and his safety came first. That time it was just a few stitches - we didn't wait to see what the next time would bring.

corgimom · 07:47 AM

T-Gal(Deb)

That must have been a scary thing to experience in regards to your son. My children are older now, but had they been babies and that would have happened, I would be thinking exactly what Cheryl is thinking.

It is definitely a tough decision for all involved regarding Cheryl.

And of course, I am looking at it as a pet lover and the heavy weight this must be on her heart.

Cheryl you need to do what is best in the interest/safety of your son. A crawling baby soon becomes a busy moving toddler and that can be stressful at times in itself keeping him out of harms way. You know what the right decision is for you because you are experiencing it. My thoughts are with you.

Checkers · 09-25-2006, 08:57 AM

I appreciate all of your replys... and I have thought about this from many angles. Please understand my son has been crawling for only two days and she has already scratched him and bit at him twice now... both times have left marks on his face, one very close to his eye! I can try to take all the precautions in the world, but the fact of the matter is, at some point if I keep her, she will be around Justin... and if something happens then (as she has already shown me it likely will) he could be seriously hurt... or even killed. Could you live with yourself if your dog hurt your child because you didn't follow your heart? Would it honestly be fair to Cheyenne to expect her to deal with being muzzled all the sudden after almost 11 years... or to lock her away in a room away from the house where she would cry (btw.. she jumps baby gates so that isn't an option). If (and this may be a big if) I can find the perfect home for her, where she can continue to have all the love and devotion she deserves, without fear, I can't help but feel that would be the fair thing to do for her sake, as well as ours. I have helped with rescues and I have seen how well many dogs do after just a couple of weeks or a month or two with a new family. Yes, it takes time and patience on the new owners part... but it can work. It is possible, even with an older dog... and I hope it is the outcome we get for Cheyenne... nay, I won't accept anything less.

corgimom · 09:14 AM

I didn't realize that she had bit at him twice and scratched him once already; you are right; that is not acceptable and a risk you cannot take with a baby/child.

Since you have worked in rescues you have seen the positive outcomes; hopefully there will be a single person or couple that can take Cheyenne.

milles2 · 09-25-2006, 11:05 AM

Here is the rescue chair from the national organization web site:

http://www.pembrokecorgi.org/rescue.html

PWCCA, Inc.
Rescue Chairman
Mary Day
5447 89th Ave.
Olympia, WA 98513
360-456-1226

And does Cheyenne have a breeder you are obligated to return her to? I signed a statement that if I ever give Lulu up, she has to go back to her breeder.

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