Tiller- (Skansen's- Ira in the M
I DO Exist...To- Drive You Batty | 
 | | Barked: Sun Dec 30, '12 7:08pm PST |  | |  | | OP, you are being very level headed and I am not going to rag on you....I never post to lock horns with anyone any way....it's more general info.
I have two concerns. First is that you do have a hard line. That's nothing I fault or find problem in, but with it you do have to wonder when you are starting out with a baby, aka a puppy. There are experiences puppies can have, something you obviously note and identify with, but there are also raw genetics. Less palpable by some counts, and yet far more of a threat than experience. Far harder to work with, far more restrictive in terms of potential outcome. These are things that can be overt from a very young age, *or* they can crop up during the teenage phase also.
That's why I say, if something MUST be, then you get an adult. Then you're clear. I would tell that to anyone. If not, then you are basically putting a dog at risk by taking them on, simply by having that hardline. Fear aggression can pop up in the teen stage, and quite frankly in the long run it is far easier to deal with a genetically sound dog young puppy who has had a bad experience vs a genetic matter that crops up during the second fear imprint. So your best shot is to deal with a sound adult who has all that good foundation under him.
In terms of bad experiences and puppies, I want to share a dog with you HERE. This is Peter, and I don't think I need to say that he was almost dead. In such horrid, horrid shape that my rescue partner spent an entire day with him stuffed in the back of her car, getting turned down by one vet after another. They didn't want to touch him. Finally one agreed, the puppy started to twitch when the IV was inserted; he was pretty sure then that puppy had distemper, him surviving the night was in question. A rescue associate...GSD breeder who actually won an AOM at Westminster last year and is a superb fund raiser for rescue....found a dogless EMT foster (to maintain him on IVs) for this poor thing, who was raised in a barn, completely unsocialized and now near death. He had not known a good day in his life and was four months old.
Long story short, he survived, did not have distemper, the foster ended up failing and adopting him herself, and today he's a SAR dog. He ended up absolutely fine and quite fearless, her explanation being "he's already been to hell and back."
This outcome did not surprise me. Puppies are resilient. I am all about the fear imprint myself, but it is about ensuring ideals. A fact that bemuses me in this context, for if you respect the fear imprint....if it is that defining for you....why you would have taken on a puppy rehomed DURING a fear imprint and now gets shuffled off again is something I can't grasp. That is of equal, if not MORE, concern, as it is a lot more "natural" for a puppy during this stage to get attacked (let's say by a over zealous teenager in a natural pack) then to get sent away to a strange place during such a critical time and end up getting bounced around. I have been around puppies many, many years and have had some great mentors. I would far more readily take on a puppy who had suffered a bad event, vs one who at such a young age has been bounced around so much. In the end for her, and I say this in the gentlest way I can, that's what upsets me here. She's four months old, and keeps on learning how unstable life is. Terrifically sad.
It's not that I am ragging on you, but that I need to stress generally that puppies can come with some issues. Not all my perfect....and I mean PERFECT.....breeder puppies have been free of some funky stuff. Onyx commented, and she had a great experience. But one  My GSD Pogo was catatonic on arrival and just a walking drama for the first year of his life (ended up being a legend), my Cocker Chester had a very vulnerable tummy (matured out of that, is 13 now and hasn't been sick a day in his adult life), Tiller himself was exasperating as a young-un as he lacked interest in the entire socialization and outside venture routine (he's now bold as anything).
There's a MYTH that if you want a guarantee, you get a breeder dog. That's not so. If you want to stack the cards most in your favor, you do. And of course breeder selection is critical. Not just for the puppy, but as someone whose judgement you can trust/invest in, and stick with it for the long haul as they really know the pedigree, raised the puppy, did the assessments, so if they are not red flagging what I am experiencing, then I trust that and work on these matters.
In terms of rough starts, I've lost count of how many I've dealt with through rescue. The genetic ones you can see pretty quickly and those sorts require a ton of investment in their raising. The bad experience ones, on the other hand, tend to come around. I dealt with a Mastiff mix female who was completely shut down....she'd freeze if you even made eye contact. But she's very naughty and thriving today. She had had a very rough beginning, but really only needed good experiences to completely come around.
I am not arguing with you, Tonka, but I did need to put that out, just for general info. My moral of this story being that just because there is a return clause doesn't excuse the level of commitment. As returning a puppy or dog is a serious matter....it sets them back....tremendous forethought needs to be invested before you sign that dotted line, even if there is a return clause above it. |  |  | |  |
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