I dont want to start a fight here, but I thought I would share a different point of view. Perhaps we are saying the same things but in different ways. And I am always open to other points of view, so this is being sent in that vein.
maddyfish said:
Yes, I do feel dogs are lower beasts, because they are. To equate a dog to a person is silly. This situation could easily get out of hand if not handled properly through strong, assertive leadership.
An animal need not be "lower beasts" to be treated as different species. Although I fully understand that my dog is a dog with all the inhereted traits and behaviors of a dog, I still feel as though she is my daughter. She is a fur-kid to me, but I never forget that she is a dog with behaviors and such related to her species. It becomes very imperative to remember this when working with rescued dogs. Not knowing anything about past enviornments or quality of breeding (although we assume the worst breeding
) it is very important to understand, read, and predict behavior for the safety of all.
maddyfish said:
You don't want to pretend to have control? You own a 50-70 pound animal with teeth, and a mind of it's own and you have no interest in control? That is dangerous.
Now, I personally think the problem here was communication (human communication
) Every single person defines words differently based on their own lifestyle. Case in point, I think my male is "out of control" but someone else may just think he is a little over exuberant. Both may be right for the person, depends on what each defines "good behavior" as. So if the OP stated she wasnt interested in control, she might mean something different that what you define control as.
Now, personally, I agree, dogs in general are a big responsibility. And unfortunately because of the way the world works: people with bigger dogs have more responsibility. Safety for all involved should be practiced at all times. And not being able to have your dog "Under control" is very dangerous. But again here is the definition of control causing issues again.
maddyfish said:
There is no touchy-feely technique that will take care of these issues. You need to start over from the beginning. Crate the dog. Alot. When the dog comes out, complete control, until the dog begins to realize that he lives by your rules, not his.
Personally, there are much easier ways to solve the "control" issue without using a crate and any kind of force. Do a search on NILF program. Again, I am going to pull on my experience with rescued dogs here. There is no way on this earth that I would take a foster dog and do anything more physical than a pat. Especially on day one. I had to find an alternative method to show my leadership without "stressing" the dog to the point of damage. Now, I will qualify this to say that over a period of time, AFTER THE DOG HAS SETTLED DOWN. I will "test" the behaviors and events that a normal family dog will be dealing with to ensure the dog is safe to place in a home. But NEVER do I do this on the first day or so. Their stress levels are too high and they are too aroused for this to work. So I had to find another way, the NILF method works great, it works fast, and most importantly it works SAFELY! With a person that is pregnant the last thing you want her doing is stressing the dog or putting herself in a mexican stand-off with a "50-70 pound animal with teeth, and a mind of it's own " But this is my opinion!
maddyfish said:
I know this sounds harsh, but I believe it is less harsh than a newborn baby living with a dominant, out of control, 50 -70 pound animal with teeth.
No-where in the OP's post is there anything to indicate dominant behavior. Please take a moment and review my prev. post about the pooping behavior. There is no way on this earth that anyone can convey enough information in this type of environment to accurately assess dominant-submissive behavior. Although you have some very valid points, points that the OP should be very aware of and understand the issues at hand, by planting the dominant-submissive thought in her head without accurately assessing the situation, it makes your post appear very alarmist and harsh.
Self control and dominant behavior are two different things that require two different types of training and management. Confusing the two is not useful at best and down right dangerous at worst.
With the extensive research and study that I have done in animal behavior; I have not seen any documented, valid cases where defecating/urinating equates to dominance issues. But if you found something that is documented and valid, I would love to read it.
Anyhow, Kilcommons book takes care of the dog in bed before baby -> dog in his own bed after baby point without sounding rude or harsh. Very valid ways to help this lady out.
Anyhow, I just thought the points you made and my feelings on them were important enough to state, again I am not trying to start a fight, just showing my own opinion to your responses.
New Borns can be so tiny and we decided that the Crib was way too big for her when we brought her home. 
