As a boxer lover, what would you do?

[PSUHeather]

I had an infuriating and frustrating experience with a boxer owner over the weekend. I brought my dogs to meet hers, in the hopes of "adopting" one. The one dog looked a little thin, had some hot spots, and a smelly ear. The other looked fine. Neither was spayed and both were being housed outdoors. My female didn't approve of either and was growling at them, which is uncharacteristic of her. She's usually very submissive and does a mixture of belly-crawling and kidney beaning when she meets a new dog. I contacted the local boxer rescue and one the next state over to see if they had space--because they are always full.

I contacted the owner and offered to help find homes for the dogs since my home wasn't a fit. She flipped the freak out, and told me it was wet dog I was smelling not an ear infection. That she rinsed the dogs off before bringing them to the meeting spot. That I was telling them lies and insinuating that she wasn't caring for her dogs.

My husband was upset enough about the dogs that he was considering paying her the $100 each to get them into rescue.

I have a series of emails that would make your eyes cross and head explode.

 

[sriley]

Is this woman looking to place her Boxers in new homes? Without the full context, it's hard to comment.

You mention that these two dogs were not spayed (obviously females) and that your female didn't approve of them. I've read other threads on BW indicating that females don't typically get along with other females. I have two males pups and before I brought my fur monsters home, I looked into getting males vs. females and was told by my vet that two males are okay, a male and a female are okay, but two females is a no-no.

We never like to admit our own faults. If this woman had of agreed that the dog is too thin or smells of an ear infection, she would be admitting that perhaps she's not taking the best care of these animals. I'm not saying she is an ideal owner as I don't know the woman in question, but if she is genuinely trying her best, I can understand how she might get her back up. Even so, this certainly doesn't justify sending inappropriate emails to you. Actually, receiving defensive (or offensive) email messages would only make me question the owner of these animals even more. Of course, I'm also not saying that you shouldn't have tried to intervene. I, too, love the breed and would want to do everything I could to ensure that any animal I was concerned about receives the care it needs. Perhaps this is just a case of being in the wrong place at the wrong time.

 

[sriley]

I just noticed that you've had two females in the past and I presume they got along just fine. I'm sure there are exceptions to having two females in the same household. I've never had a female Boxer, let alone two, so I'm only going by what my vet tells me and what I've read here on BW :D

 

[iluvfrankie]

The poor wee loves. Ive seen dogs for 'sale' on a website in Ireland saying 'much loved pets'. It was so clear form the pics that the dogs are in awful condition and where they were being kept was shocking it also said 'they love to sleep outside'-yeah right!

That woman knows well that the dogs are in poor condition and thats why she is being so defensive. I cant see how people can sell their pets anyway to me it like selling your soul or your child.

If it was me i would do whatever i could to help the little ones-no dog deserves to be treated like that. Poor things!

On another topic did ur females get along together?? i was looking to adopt a beautiful female a few months ago but the rescue said no because i had a female already.

 

[Caney Creek]

That woman knows well that the dogs are in poor condition and thats why she is being so defensive.

My thoughts exactly. If she were truly doing all she could for these dogs she would probably not have a problem admitting that one of them had an ear infection. I mean, my dogs have gotten ear infections, but that doesn't make me a bad owner! Responsible pet ownership is probably a concept so foreign to this woman that she doesn't realize that even dogs that are well cared for can still have health issues.

If she's trying to sell these dogs then she probably freaked when she heard you mention rescue because she's afraid of some sort of legal action being taken against her for her lack of care for the dogs. She doesn't care about the dogs and she knows that, but she'd rather be able to get rid of them herself and make some money from it. She doesn't want the "doggy police" to come and take the dogs and then pin her with a fine or a lawsuit.

Ugh, people like that just make me steam. :mad: And the poor dogs. I really don't know what to tell you, I'm sure it's very hard to keep your cool when talking to that woman. It sounds like she's not going to give the dogs up to rescue -- after all, that would mean they're "not worth anything." Have you tried contacting the SPCA? Do you think they would be able to do anything?

 

[PSUHeather]

Other than what I've observed, I only know what she's told me. That said, she's directly contradicted herself, and in one ermail says that she doesn't even have dogs. My suspicions is that she's running some sort of backyard breeding deal, and she's not getting anything out of the two females.

The dogs aren't kept on her property, and the story she gave me is that they are housed in an outside kennel at her mom's house. We met in a neutral zone to help the introductions. Animal control stopped at her house, which only succeeded in her threatening to file harrassment charges. (After that threat, she emailed me twice and sent two text messages to my phone.)

I've fostered two different female dogs, and they got along. HOWEVER, with Trace gone, Mella is now the top dog in the house which could change everything. She might not accept another female. The shelter I volunteered with back in Pennsylvania insisted that I bring my dogs to meet and greet each potential foster. This was a very good plan, because personalities can clash. I'm not going to turn my house into a war zone because I want another dog!