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Hi All today in this post i want to talk about one of my dog that was a rescue that was adopted out by the rescue. This was a very unfortunate adoption that the was made.Lets always remember that with every dog we rescue the challenges that we are sometimes faced with are not always easy to over come.
Todays dog of discussion is Bentley. Now Bentley is a mixed breed pit bull basset hound. Bentley was adopted out to a couple that really wanted him but was not ready to take on the challenges that would present.He was originally turned in buy his owner at just about a year old than he was fostered with one of our volunteers for about a month prior to his adoption. At this time Bentley was listed as very active smart alert and in need of someone willing to love and train him.Well lets just say that the family that adopted him was not up to the task that this dog would present.
OK with that said i will now explain how and why Bentley is now going to say with me.As with most things you always start with the intention to rehabilitate him and find him a new home.Well thats not possible now unless someone was willing to take several moths to gain this dogs trust!!
My wife gets a call from Kim the very passionate founder of Wet Nose Rescue. It started out with we need your husband to help retrieve this dog from that has just bit the wife and is attacking the husband.So at 9:30 on a Friday night the rescue mission starts.We drive to the house and are met with a husband that i my opinion was not the kinda of person to care for this dog. When i opened the basement door and realized this dog was not being kept as part of a family but more like a a slave confined to the basement much like a prisoner locked up in solitary confinement.
While i was trying to get this dog to trust me enough to put a leash on him. My wife and Kim were doing a little snooping trying to get info as to what the dog daily routine was.As they soon found out the dog was only let out of the basement 2 or 3 times a day to get walked than promptly returned to his basement cell.Now let me say Bentley was very scared very active and smart to boot.At the time we took Bentley he was acting as if he was being beaten and very unsure of how to trust.The reason we were taking Bentley was he bit the owners face and if we come get him they were taking him to the vet to be put down.This adoption was a lesson for us here at the rescue and it was a hard lesson to learn. The lesson was simple just because someone want a dog does not mean they are ready to have a dog!!!!
Bentley was here at my house for about 2 weeks when he snapped at my face while i was giving him discipline. From that experience i realized that this dog was going to take much longer to fix the emotional damage that was done to him in just 16 moths of being with the family from which we had just taken Bentley back from.This dog was going to present me with a challenge to my ability understand a dogs actions and the best way to fix his trust issues.With that being said after a while i was very clear he could be fixed but never really able to be adopted to anyone that was not able to commit them self to the needs that this dog would require.I say this with a heavy hart as he is a great dog with some very positive traits.
With much debate with my wife and this was after Bentley was with us for almost 7 months it was determined that as good a dog he was becoming it was clear he only had 2 options left to him.Yes you got it stay with us or be put down.Now having made the commitment to helping dogs it would not be right to put this dog down.Now after 7 months of building trust and having this dog become part of the family we found that Bentley who did not trust people was very good with helping the other dog and puppies come out of their shell. This dog was all play and willing to interact and teach other dogs/puppies how to play use the dogie door what sharing was.And from time to time we would be given an older dog that needed to be socialized and low and behold Bentley turned out to be the right dog for the job.His body language always showed to be play full and energetic.he has no problem being submissive to gain the trust of another dog just so they with play with him.All this from a dog that had a bad start in life.
So now more than a year later Bentley has learned a when dad calls me i better come and dads not going to bet me, but he might tell me to stop barking and i have to listen or he will come get me.

Some of the things I had to do to gain his trust was turn his fear of being yelled at into just that being yelled at .I would through my actions grab him pull at him poke him rub him hug and most important teach him that I am the pack leader and as pack leader I do just that lead the pack my word is to be followed. With Bentley being added to my pack that is already set with a pack leader (DUKIE),and other dogs with their position in the pack established it was now his time to find his spot. He did find his spot and is doing very well at this time.Next post will the pulling a Sarah! Or as i call it lying to the husband.For all the right reasons.
Thanks for reading and please feel free to post and ask questions.