I’ve had my pup since she was about 3 months old, and she’s now a year and a half. The first year was really rough, and I experienced major puppy blues. A lot of people told me to consider rehoming her, but I felt so guilty because I made the decision to get her, and I felt like she was my responsibility and I needed to stick it out.

Thankfully, she’s turned into a good dog, aside from the occasional mischief. She’s hilarious, and everyone who meets her absolutely loves her. I’m also incredibly fortunate that my parents help me out so much. She’s high energy and since they’re retired and have other dogs, she gets plenty of entertainment and attention at their house. Sometimes they even keep her for weeks at a time. As grateful as I am for their help, though, I also feel guilty because I sometimes feel like they’ve taken on the responsibility of another dog that they never chose to have.

The thing is, even though she’s a good dog and I have a ton of support, I honestly just don’t enjoy having a dog in my home. I love her and care about her, but I’ve come to realize that I don’t actually enjoy dog ownership. Not being able to leave her home alone is stressful and the biggest thing for me is the constant mess and filth. It’s something I genuinely struggle to tolerate.

I also get frustrated when people say, “Well, you grew up with dogs, so you should’ve known what you were getting into.” I did grow up with dogs, but I think people change as they get older, and what they were comfortable with at one point in their lives doesn’t necessarily work for them anymore.

And when people say, “Don’t have kids, because kids are even worse,” I honestly don’t think it’s that simple. To me, dealing with things like recurring anal gland issues, dog odors, and the general mess that comes with having a dog feels very different from changing my own child’s diaper. Maybe that’s an unpopular opinion, but I think there’s a difference between the kinds of responsibilities you’re willing to take on and the ones you find genuinely distressing.

I guess I’m just venting because I feel like the decision to keep her, largely out of guilt and a sense of responsibility, has taken a real toll on my mental health. I don’t think she’s a bad dog, and I don’t think I’m a bad person for feeling this way. I just think I’ve learned something about myself that I wish I had realized sooner, and I’m struggling with the guilt of admitting that loving my dog and enjoying dog ownership are two very different things.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Context first. My friend had to give up her dog for entirely valid life reasons and asked me to take him in. It’s a little chihuahua. Before I give any more details, I hold zero ill will towards my friend and I trust her judgement; I request that no one leave comments speculating that she was trying to screw me over or anything like that, because I know people on reddit tend to be skeptical. Just know none of this is her fault—me and my mom, who I live with, both agreed to take in this dog, and everything that has happened as a result of that is our responsibility now.

Okay now that that’s out of the way, here comes the complaining ☠️ So, before my friend had to rehome this dog, she says he was the sweetest thing. She told me a lot about his personality so I’d know what we’d be getting into if we took him and I thought it sounded doable. I didn’t want her to have to give him up to a shelter where god knows who would adopt him, plus this way she could come visit and see him after he settled in enough. I was painfully optimistic about the whole thing. Here comes the problem; it seems that after moving houses, this dog must have gained some trauma or abandonment issues or something like that and has decided that it wants to make it EVERYONE’S problem. Everything i’m about to describe, my friend said he was never like this before.

First of all, there’s the shitting and pissing. This dog thinks the whole house is a bathroom. He was house trained before, but somehow that has just flown out the window. I personally think it’s because he doesn’t see this house as his home, nor does he respect anyone that lives inside of it. We put down pee pads for him because me and my mom have jobs (and I have university) so we can’t be there to let him out 24/7 but I can count on one hand the amount of times he’s actually used the damn things. Nope, he’d rather treat the living room carpet like a fucking toilet. We have a carpet cleaner, and I tried to clean it with that, but it genuinely did nothing. Me and my mom have agreed we just need to take the rug outside and wash it with the hose or otherwise just scrap the damn thing because every time I come home from school or work and step into the house, I’m struck by the scent of dog urine. It’s fucking repulsive.

Second of all, this dog is the clingiest thing I think I’ve ever met. Before all this, we already had one dog (my late grandma’s dog, a dachshund mix) and I thought THAT one was clingy. Boy was I fucking wrong. The new dog makes that one look like the most reserved, polite, and well behaved creature on the planet (spoiler alert; she’s not. It almost feels like she just made a little tiny chihuahua clone of herself but made the clone 10x as annoying). Anyways, this dog loses its absolute SHIT every single day when my mom or I comes home from school or work.

Every day, like fucking clockwork, when anyone walks through that front door, it’s whining, crying, jumping—I swear to god this dog would climb up our legs if it could. My mom is a lot more tolerant than I am (though we’re very similar in temperament and we’ve both been commiserating about how we wish we could find a good home for the dog) and will indulge its pleas for attention, but I just cannot. When I get home from work, I’m usually tired and pissed off. I work at a grocery store and I already have to deal with annoying customers all day. I don’t wanna come home and deal with annoying DOGS for the rest of my day!

Third of all, there’s the FUCKING BARKING. Like I said before, I thought my grandma’s old dog was bad. Apparently I had no earthly idea how bad it could get. This dog barks at EVERYTHING. And call me crazy, but I’ve started to lose my marbles so bad that part of me believes he does it because he KNOWS it pisses me off. He’ll sit on the couch (oh yeah forgot to mention, his little ass can jump like hell. Now the couch smells like dog. Fuck me.) just staring out the living room window, just WAITING for something. A car, a neighbor kid riding their bike, an animal, a leaf blowing in the wind. You fucking name it. I swear to GOD he just sits there all day waiting for something to come by so he can bark at it. And when he starts barking, the other dog starts up too. I’ll go in there to yell at them to shut up and my grandma’s old dog does shut up if you tell her to, but NOT the new dog. I’ve told him to shut it before only for him to stare at me and RUFF AT ME. Like okay you little asshole I see what you’re fucking doing. I swear to GOD he has to be doing it on purpose. He’s got this insolent way about him, like if you get onto him, he’ll hold a grudge against you (I’ve also seen him do something he knows he’s not supposed to right in front of us and then run and hide before we can get onto him.) He’s too smart for his own good, for sure.

Fourth of all, I was unsure of where to say this, so I’ll just say it here. Lately, he’s figured out how the cat door works. It leads into the garage, where we keep the litter boxes. This fucking dog will go in there, take cat shit from out of the litter box, TAKE IT TO THE COUCH, and EAT IT THERE. I wish I was fucking joking. Wanna guess how I found out? I found a half-eaten fucking cat turd on the couch with litter on it 😭 fuck my life to death 😭😭😭 this fucking dog is slowly ruining every piece of furniture in the house I swear!

Fifth of all, THE BEGGING. We eat dinner in the living room (not at the dinner table, sue me, but this house is tiny and our little dining table is more being used as a shelf at the moment). Anyways, remember how I said the dog can jump onto the couch? Well, every meal has now turned into a game called “let’s place the dog back down on the floor and tell him no for the four hundredth time only for him to ignore us and jump back up 5 seconds later”. To be fair, eventually he gets tired of it and just stands there, but I don’t want his beady little eyes staring at me while I’m trying to eat. I thought wolves had a thing called food aggression, so pack members won’t do this shit, right?? I mean whatever, what do I know about wolf and dog behavior, but I wish chihuahuas would understand that begging for someone else’s food is FUCKING RUDE so that I didn’t have to deal with this shit.

Sixth of all, he CONSTANTLY is stealing my candy. Both me and my mom are scatterbrained as fuck, and try as we might, sometimes we forget to put away the bowl of m&ms that sits on the table beside the couch. I can’t tell you how many times we’ve caught him going over there to EAT THEM. It’s like the little mf is addicted to eating poison! And if it’s not that, it’s him breaking into my room the ONE time I forget to close my door (he’s like a fucking vulture, always laying in wait for the opportunity to steal food) and finding some candy I had in a grocery bag on the floor or sitting on my bed. I like chocolate, and I have a job so I use MY money that I MADE to buy chocolate sometimes. Do you know how bad it fucking pisses me off when this little dog EATS IT? I don’t know how he’s even survived it. I’m convinced he’s built up an immunity! And I promise you, this is not negligence on our part. My friend had the same issue with him. One time, he literally did doggie parkour to reach the top shelf she’d been hiding some chocolate on. (This is actually the one behavior I did know about going in—he’s just always been a candy addict for some reason). We also have cats, and lord knows cats love knocking stuff off shelves—one time they knocked over my Reeces Take 5 only seconds after I stood up from my chair and he immediately ate it. I was livid! He’s a fucking fiend for the stuff and will go out of his way to plot a way to steal it. It makes me unreasonably furious the way he KNOWS that it’s people food, KNOWS he’s not supposed to have it, KNOWS he’ll just throw it up on the rug, and KNOWS he’ll just get yelled at, yet continues and continues to keep doing the same thing every time. I’ll never fathom, I’ll just never fathom why.

Seventh of all, the cats don’t like him. I know cats are considered off topic for this sub, but it is on topic as a part of my gripes against this dog. He is the most jealous little creature, and every time I show even an iota of affection towards the cats (even just saying their names; yes he’s learned them after only a couple of months, I said he was too smart for his own good), he runs towards them and starts bouncing all over the place, jumping on them. They hate it, and I don’t blame them. It makes me feel so bad that we brought this dog into the house in the first place. We had enough animals as it is, and as much as I’d feel bad for my friend having to give her pet away to a shelter, I think that would have been better for everyone. I’ve complained to her about all this and even she told me we can give him away if we want because SHE feels bad too ☠️ only thing is that my mom will not go for that. She wants to find a good home with someone she trusts. But who in their right mind would knowingly take this dog into their home??

Idk, I’m really hoping someone from work tells me they want a needy, loud, gross, attention seeking little gremlin soon so he can find a home with someone who appreciates him for who he is. God knows I don’t. I’ve bounced back and forth my whole life between claiming I hated dogs, to then deciding I liked them, then to being ambivalent towards them, and now I’m starting to creep back towards the outright dislike again. I like them from afar, but I don’t want one in my house. And before anyone says “you’re an adult, move out!”, have you seen the economy?? And I like living with my mom, thank you very much. I’m only 19 and I think it’s normal to not be ready to move out yet at that age (my mom also told me she’ll be sad when I do eventually move out, so it’s mutual). All that said though, this situation has had me genuinely fantasizing about moving into my own house, having no dogs, and coming home every day to the smell of air freshener instead of stale carpet urine. And of being able to complete assignments for my classes without my train of thought being interrupted by shrill, eardrum-piercing, sound barrier breaking barks just because one of the neighbors DARED to step out onto their porch a hundred feet away (god I wish dogs understood how property works).

It just pisses me off. Maybe I’m being childish about it, especially considering my mom is the primary care taker of the animals in this house, but I cannot help being endlessly annoyed by this dog. I don’t think she’s as annoyed by him as I am, either. Which is good; I’m glad she’s not, but god knows I don’t understand how ☠️ I wish I could get my friend to take the dog back, but she can’t. I wish I could convince my mom to try to find a home for the dog, but I think she feels too bad. Sometimes when I bring up how annoyed the dogs make me, she’ll sarcastically say “well, why don’t I just take them out back?” And I get her point; we’re stuck with them and we have to take care of them. But it’s not like I want any harm to come upon them. I just want them to go to a new home where we don’t have to deal with them anymore. And maybe I’m anguishing for no reason; I don’t think the chances are zero that we’ll find someone who’ll be willing to take him in. But none of that changes how I feel now. I find the cat shit eating particularly egregious. Like genuinely it’s making me fucking sick to think about.

Dogs are SO fucking gross and it just makes me angry that society always treats US like the weirdos for pointing out how fucking gross they are. I never even found a place in this already essay-length post to complain about the stench of these animals. I’ll walk past one and just get this whiff of god awful odor. It makes me nauseous. We give them baths, but, as im sure everyone in this subreddit already knows, it doesn’t matter how well you scrub, how often you bathe them, it just doesn’t fucking matter. Dogs will always smell like dog. And anyways, both of ours are so nervous, baths just stress them out unnecessarily. It’s really an exercise in fucking futility. In fact, futile is a good word to describe this entire ordeal. Why do I even bother yelling when he starts barking? Why bother reprimanding him for begging or for shitting on the floor or for stealing food? What the fuck is the point? He doesn’t listen, in fact goes out of his way to do shit that fucking pisses me off. So why do I even waste my breath? I don’t know.

I’m not sure where to even start but I’ve been teetering on the edge of this decision for 3 out of the 6 years I’ve had my dog. I impulsively adopted him when he was just a puppy when I was in the worst mental state of my life, and I acknowledge that. I’ve taken full responsibility and accountability for that decision by doing my very best to cater to his needs and see it through. It’s not enough. What I can’t reconcile is everyone around me saying he’s so happy just being with me, my love, and that I’m doing everything I can, but I just don’t believe it’s enough. I truly believe we’re both miserable 80% of the time, and doesn’t feel like companionship. It feels more and more like a burden, which feeds my guilt and resentment. I’ve come a long way in my recovery, despite dealing with mental disorders but it’s reached a limit with this situation. I don’t have the capacity to properly balance his needs with my own, so I end up either neglecting and backsliding on myself or him—more often both. I can’t go on like this—I don’t feel it’s fair to either of us when I believe in my heart we both should be happy if it’s truly a good thing. My resentment grows each year with the same cycles yet I don’t blame him because I know it’s on me that I didn’t consider the depth of responsibility this would be for years. I hate that I can’t give him what he needs and deserves; to have the quality life he should. I hate that he wouldn’t understand why I have to give him up. I hate thinking he may feel I’m throwing him away. I don’t want him to feel abandoned..yet I finally want better for myself and I really thought we could achieve that together, but I’m deeply unhappy and can tell he knows it. I never thought adopting my dog would ever make me feel so helpless and defeated. I’m disgusted with myself..I just needed to vent, thank you for reading

I’ve had her for about 3-4 months. I feel terrible for her. But She pulls extremely hard on the leash during walks and is very reactive toward dogs outside. She can pull with so much force that she becomes extremely difficult to control, making walks very challenging and difficult for me to safely manage.

She is also very uncomfortable around people. She does not want people to approach her or touch her, and she is not friendly or comfortable around our friends or family members. She has growled at people and barked at a young child who tried to pet her.

she is friendly with my three cats and has been good with them inside the home. She is very calm and relaxed in the home with no guests. She will literally sleep on her pillow all day.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Mostly a vent so I can get this off my chest .. but Im starting to feel like I made a big mistake getting my dog.

He's a one year old, intact male and we've had him for about 11 days now. He doesn't bark, doesn't chew on anything, and is trustworthy enough that we can leave him out at night and he doesn't get into anything. Not even reactive with other dogs or people. For most people, he would be a dream dog.

It's the energy. It's constant. We've tried crate games, worked on the relaxation protocol, teaching place, even enforcing naps when we feel he needs it, but he still constantly wants attention from me and my husband specifically. He's not very food motivated, so using any high value treats to train him only works when he decides it wants to work. He doesn't like to independently chew or play at all. Worse off, when we try to ignore him, and encourage downtime, he nips at our arms and pant legs until we engage with him. This leads up to either 1) put ourselves in the other room for a time-out, which only hypes him up more when we get back or 2) we put him in a small time out in his pen, which I feel is making him regress and start to feel like his pen is a punishment. Both my husband and I work full time jobs, so he unfortunately has to be left in the pen for around 5-6 hours at a time. Otherwise, we gets 2-3 30 minute walks per day, and as much mental stimulation we can provide. But it still feels like it's not enough for him

I miss my life. I miss sleeping in. I miss not having an anxious lump in my throat whenever I have to leave him alone. I sometimes dread waking up because I know he'll be there in my face, biting me, and begging for my attention.

I know everybody says that our home is better than a shelter, and that he's just happy to have a home, but I'm starting to doubt if that's even true. I think he can start to sense that I'm unhappy with him and it's effecting his training too.

I don't want to rehome him again. We've slready spent so much money on toys, food, and vet care. We're already his third home, and like I said before, to some, he would be such a dream dog. I just can't help feeling like something is wrong with me to feel so fed-up and tired with him already.

I ended up owning him for 2 months. I knew almost immediately that it wasn’t the right fit, but I tried sticking it out. I started seriously looking into rehoming on Labor Day and successfully rehomed him today. I was able to go through a rescue that had an open foster home, so it makes me feel better that he went from my home directly to another and will have the backing and adopter vetting process that rescues offer.

I have a ton of emotions: shock, guilt, embarrassment, relief, happiness.

I genuinely love dogs so I never thought I’d be in this position. It has opened my eyes and caused me to realize that you shouldn’t judge another person’s situation when it comes to having to give up a pet.

Of course I’m a little worried about how he’s doing in his foster home. I hope he gets along well with their dog and with his foster parents. The surrender contract I signed said they could ask me to take him back if he’s “not adoptable”. I’m really hoping that’s just there for extreme behavioral or medical issues (none of which he has). But naturally, there is that fear that like they may want me to take him back. As terrible as this sounds, I would probably just not respond to them 😅

Anyway, huge lesson learned for me and just going to focus on enjoying my freedom.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

My father died recently. Now I'm the sole caretaker of his dog. Since I lived with Dad, I've been taking care of her for years. But she was his dog emotionally. I pet her and took care of her needs, but he was the one who adored her.

The dog doesn't really do much for me emotionally. I take care of her, but she doesn't make me happy. I don't hate her. I just... feel neutral on her?

I hear about other dog owners, how their dogs help them emotionally and how snuggling with them makes them feel good. I don't get it.

When my dog asks for pets, I either feel an exasperated "Great..." at worst. At best, I pet her just because she likes it. I don't feel a dopamine hit. It doesn't make me feel good. I don't really feel anything.

I'm not sure what is wrong with me. Why does everyone else get good feelings but not me?

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Ugh, I don’t even know where to begin with this post.

Let me start by saying I love dogs. I owned a dog for 13 years and he was the best part of my day.

He passed in January and I felt like by the end of July that I was ready to adopt again.

So, I stupidly went to a shelter and adopted a stray. I can’t tell you how many nights I’ve spent wishing I could go back in time and change that choice.

Since then, it has been nothing but stress and anxiety. This dog needs to be trained on basically everything. Every single aspect of life with him is something we need to work on. The most difficult though, is his leash reactivity with other dogs. My previous dog was incredibly reactive. And I feel like I have PTSD from living with that for 13 years. I really wanted a different situation this time. I wanted a dog friendly dog. I wanted a dog I could take places. I wanted a dog I could walk easily. Sure, I could spend money and time and effort to work on the reactivity but the biggest issue here is that I don’t want to. I have no desire to.

The worst part about all of this is that all this new dog has done is make my grief towards my previous dog worse. Makes me miss him more. It’s really hard to deal with.

I feel incredibly guilty about wanting to return him. Especially because I have lived the last 13 years as this stellar rescue pet parent. When I adopted, all I heard from everyone was how this new dog has “hit the jackpot” and is “so lucky” to have me as an owner. I feel like a failure and a fraud that I want to return this dog to a shelter.

I just don’t know if this is something I should give more time to or move on and surrender him. It’s been six weeks of straight stress and anxiety. I thought a new dog would bring me joy and love. It’s been the opposite.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

I adopted a 4-5 year old Great Dane pitbull about 7 weeks ago who was a starved stray and he has been a handful ever since. The house training isn’t going so well, he will go outside but then come in and go. My upstairs has become disgusting from all of the accidents and I hate it. He is constantly searching around for food and crumbs. I keep thinking he wants out so we go downstairs and all he wants to do is sniff around for food even after he has eaten and had treats. He does some very aggressive cobbing that I do not like and have not been able to stop him no matter the method I try. He injured my finger the other day by grabbing a bagel out of my hand and biting down it hurt so bad and was bleeding. He does have a soft calm and cuddly side, but I feel like a prisoner. I do not want to deal with this for the next however many years he is alive, but I feel like he loves me and I feel bad about taking him back, I don’t want him there and no one adopts him as he was there 10 weeks and not a single interest in him.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

I’m thinking about giving my dog back to the shelter. He is just causing me too much stress and I don’t want to deal with this for years to come. I’ve had him for about 7 weeks now and I can’t imagine it getting any better.

This is a long one because I love to over-explain but I need to get this off my chest because it's killing me a little inside.

I am cat person who loves dogs, I have lived with dogs here and there but was raised a cat person. We currently have 3 indoor-only cats, and due to the sudden traumatic death of my soul cat 2 years ago I am unhealthily and obsessively anxious about their well-being.

My partner has grown up with both cats and dogs, and has always lived with at least a dog in the house until mid last year when we had to put her beloved 14yo dog down due to age/deterioration which obviously was (and still is) really difficult. I had lived with that dog for 6 years at that point and loved her deeply also. She had her faults (reactivity, health issues etc) but she was a great dog who was loved by all of our cats - they would cuddle, sleep, and play together. It was honestly a boon because being dog reactive she got her social quota met by interacting with them.

After our last dog it was always sort of a given that we would get another dog eventually, and so after a time we started discussing breeds, training styles, expectations of lifestyle etc. We both had a few breeds that were not on the table, and a vague idea of how we wanted our life with a dog to look when we thought we'd go to the shelter to 'have a look'. We were introduced to a 10mo collie x staffy and you can guess what happened. We took her home that day!

It was initially just a foster to adopt situation but due to the neglect this puppy had suffered prior to the shelter she needed to stay with us longer, and we got more and more attached and found that she is incredibly smart, friendly, fun, and sweet.

Unfortunately, I think in part due to our lack of planning, she pretty also much turned our lives upside-down.

My partner and I have fought more since getting her than we have the entire time we've been together. Partially due to the stress of the change but also the dog itself. In terms of training I think my partner is much too permissive/lax and they think I am too harsh/strict.

We spend all our time talking about her, and so much money on enrichment, food, toys, gear, and other dog related kit. We bought cameras to put in our house (despite both of us being very anti-surveilance) to monitor her in the few hours at least one of us isn't home. She has chewed on so many things and only does it when you least expect, to things you wouldn't even consider (the FLOOR).

We've rearranged half the house, had to shift up our schedule (I work a rotating roster and she starts whining at 530am every damn day), and have had to fence off parts of our backyard because she will eat anything and keeps digging holes.

We spend all of our spare time training, socialising, and desensitising her. Everything has to be a learning opportunity. If she is around my hand always smells of dog food.

She is very vocal which is incredibly overstimulating for me at times and if she knows you're home but in a separate area of the house she will bark and cry incessantly, so I literally can't spend time with my partner without her.

It's worth noting also that one of my black list breeds was border collie as I have been bitten by multiple in the past, they have high care needs due to energy levels and their need to herd/chase, and they have a tendency to become neurotic or reactive in the wrong circumstances.

She has definitely improved in many ways since we brought her home but the real kicker, as you might have guessed, is that she is waaay too excited about the cats.

The cats are welcoming of her because of the relationship with our last dog but being a neglected shelter puppy she was never taught to be polite with them. She will stare obsessively if restrained and if not she will just rush up and bark loudly in their faces, causing them to run and her to want to chase (which we have interrupted every time as she is always on leash in the house). If they are running, meowing, fighting, or playing in other parts of the house she cannot focus on anything else.

We have been trying to desensitise her and encourage neutrality - and she has definitely improved - but I am constantly stressed about her killing one of them either accidentally or on purpose. Today she rushed at one of them and as a result I've felt so sick to my stomach that I haven't been able to eat or drink for 12+ hours.

My partner is obviously also struggling with/concerned about all of these things but feels that if we 'push through' everything will settle eventually, and is comfortable with a future where they are just never left alone together. I don't know how much more I can take, or if I'm even that willing to put in the effort anymore.

At this stage we have had her for 3 months, so I have spent that time envisioning worst case scenarios. Dead cats, vet bills, and cremation costs dancing around my mind when I'm at work or trying to sleep. And, due to my hang-ups, I would feel 100% responsible for any death or injury that happened.

I am becoming less capable of controlling myself when I'm upset with her and despite the fact that I hate the idea that I'm damaging my relationship with her I still find myself yelling at her - sometimes over things that really don't matter retrospectively. The last few days have sucked, I don't even want to look at her. Everything I do I have to consider managing her through it. I can't escape her in my own home, which was my sanctuary.

I do love this dog but everything has me second guessing if I ever wanted a dog at all. I don't think I want to but I couldn't even rehome her without breaking my partners heart and thus ending our relationship.

I'm exhausted, and feel trapped and alone.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Hello,
We’ve had our dog for about 6 months now;who’s a 8 month old terrier.Me and my husband bought him together but because we are separating we made the decision to turn him back to the adoption agency.It would be too much on me to have the kids and the dog mainly with me and he admitted cause of his work schedule he can’t be there neither.Aside from the clashing of schedules;the entirety of the puppy stage has been so exhausting.We’ve been strict on potty training and still he occasionally goes in the house,Hes chewed up our entire couch set despite having a lot of teething toys and no matter how much I pinesol my floor my home still smells like dog.We feel like it would be a relief to take him back and the kids also agree.But with knowing this is the best move;why isn’t it giving me the feeling of relief.Im scared he will fall into a depression with not seeing us anymore..Any advice on how to be at ease in my decision and restoring my home.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

A little over a month ago I adopted a dog from the shelter a few weeks after my last one had passed. These last few weeks have been so stressful. He was a starved stray and not house trained. He has been semi destructive, constantly searching for or getting food. I feel like I can not rest and have peace. Even walking him and taking him outside he will still go to the bathroom in the house. I regret getting him and have thought about surrendering him back, but I feel like I am abandoning him and that no one else will adopt him.

Whether your new, or you've been in this sub for a while, this weekly post is where you can share your story! We are glad to have you here and offer you a place of support.

If you would like to create your own standalone post in our community, please message the mods to become an approved user. We have our sub set to "restricted" to avoid unnecessary trolling. Please refer to the rules if you'd like to learn more about the sub!

Two and a half weeks ago, my husband and I rescued a puppy (6 months old maybe, looks like pitbull) and I don’t regret rescuing him, although I do regret incorporating him into my life as if I was going to keep him. I’ve decided that we’re just fostering him for now until we can find him a good home. And my husband is on board with my thoughts. I’m glad he’s off the street where I found him but ultimately, I’m having the same struggles that I’m reading a lot of people on this sub have had or are currently having with dogs. He demands attention or at least to be near me at all times, and he pees in the house, despite knowing better because of the training I’ve put forth. I’m 31 weeks pregnant and have been taking him outside at least 15 times a day. It’s gotten better, but a couple times right after a walk he’s come inside and peed on the floor. It’s those moments where I lose trust in how far we’ve gotten with potty training. He chewed up my charger cable this morning and at the beginning of all this when I wanted a 10 minute bathroom break to myself (as he literally follows me room to room otherwise), and wasn’t fully into crate training yet, he decided to pull a box of six donuts off my coffee table and eat them. Within 10 minutes. I know he’s a dog and I know these things take time and I know he’s probably traumatized from his past and being on the street. I keep that in mind with every interaction I have with him, but it seems like all the time that I had before to prepare for my baby that’s coming in two months is now taken up by a dog and I don’t get any real joy out of having him around besides knowing that he’s not suffering on the street.

My ultimate question is am I a doomed parent? I have always wanted a kid, but I’ve always known that. I didn’t necessarily want an animal let alone a dog. I have been a cat owner in the past and that was something I realized I wouldn’t be doing again, but it was much more bearable than this. I kind of feel like a monster for not liking having a dog because apparently “everyone likes dog.” And then I wonder well what justification do I have that I’m going to be a great parent and not feel overwhelmed by that? I have always wanted to be a mom, but this situation has made me feel like what if I’m not equipped to care for things because having a dog has been so overwhelming and undesirable for me? I feel like there’s a key difference between the two, and I’ve been racking my brain for weeks to try to justify it to myself because I truly feel like there’s a difference between caring for a baby and caring for a dog while both are difficult. There’s a reward out of raising a kid that I feel like it’s just incomparable. Do any of you have children and can you tell me what you think the difference might be if you think there’s a difference at all? Thanks in advance.