I moved into a roommate situation recently and have a problem with the household dog. No one claims to own it personally, nor have they taken any responsibility for its health care in the last 3 years. The dog has an obvious, terrible skin condition with raw looking raised patches, infection all over his tail and even under the fur on his back as well as swollen rawness on his elbows and feet. He smells AWFUL %26amp; the stench has permeated my entire part of the house. He's a nice dog, 3 or 4 yrs of age %26amp; part pitbull. He is still an attractive, sweet pet but I fear if I take him to the Humane Society for adoption they will just put him to sleep. In his current itching and biting state he might not be eligible. I don't have money to get him to the vet, and I feel he deserves to get better. He just sits inside scratching and worrying at himself all day. The rest of the household might not appreciate me having him snuffed, however. Will the HS heal him or consider it a lost cause?
Will the Humane Society euthanize the dog?
Many Humane Societies and shelters have an immediate euthanasia policy when it comes to Pit Bulls and Pit mixes.
Why don't you take him to the vet to be treated instead of the Humane Society?
Reply:They sell stuff at like petsmart for skin conditions i think its like 7 dollars a bottle and that should clear it up or he might just have fleas and scratching himself.
Reply:If it's a kill shelter, the dog will probably be killed in the first 48 hours. Especially because he's an unhealthy pit bull mix.
You can try contacting a pit bull rescue or a no-kill shelter (start here: http://petfinder.com and http://www.pbrc.net/ ) and see if they can take the dog for good.
Right now your roommates are violating the law. You can place a discreet anon. call to Animal Control and they will issue a "fix-it" ticket to your housemates. If they don't get on the ball, either you'll have to by caring for the dog, or taking it to a rescue group.
GL in this hard situation.
Reply:They will try to work with him, give him medical attention and try to place him in a home. Since you don't mention any behavior problems, he should have no problems getting a new home and therefore will not be put down. They usually put dogs with to many behavior problems to sleep.
Reply:The HS may give him the medical care he requires and put him up for adoption.
I would call and ask if they are 'full' or not. If they are, then often highly adoptable pets are euthanized, just because there's no room for them.
Try contacting local rescues, to see if they can help out. (www.petfinder.com)
Sounds like this dog would do best in foster care while he gets the care he needs.
Reply:It depends on what is rong with him. If its only fleas they will get rid of the proublem and adopt him out. If it is something else but easily taken care of then they still may try to adopt him out. If it is a spendy condition they may not have the means to care for him. You also need to be careful of shelter policies if it is a pit mix some selters atomaticly euthenise the dog because they don't want to be liable if the dog later on bites someone. If you can try giving him a flea bath that may be his only proublem. If no one is claming him it may be better to have him euthenised then to sit around in misery like he is.
Reply:Its a shame that a pet would be neglected in the first place to get to this point, And the term having him SNUFFED tells me that there is in-maturity with in that living situation. The humane society can and should press charges of animal cruelty!
Reply:Your best bet is a local private rescue, but that's a tough case. In many county facilities, and probably HS as well, skin conditions are an automatic death sentence. Why? While they can sometimes be fixed easily, sometimes there are multiple causes. From what you say, my best guess would be mange (there are two types, one easily cured, and one not) or flea allergy, plus a bacterial infection that worsens either condition. The reason that they don't usually try with skin conditions is that recovery can take a loooong time. Fur doesn't grow back quickly, and sometimes not at all in these cases, leaving an "iffy" adoption candidate. I have two that have skin conditions, and neither has ever completely resolved. They are still wonderful, wonderful Furkids.
Try googling "dog rescue" including your city or county, and start calling. There's usually someone who will take the really tough cases, but it may take time to find them. For now, can you bathe him? If a Vet visit is out of the question, get an OTC medicated shampoo and an oatmeal conditioner, and you'll be a Christmas Angel to this poor guy. Don't use really hot or cold water, just warm, and no human shampoo, that can dry their skin, and make itching worse. Even a supermarket dog shampoo (one having sulpher might help) would be a relief. He'll also smell better. Thank you for at least thinking of helping him, and I hope you'll take it a bit farther. Happy Holidays,
Margo
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