** Urgent ** Patterdale Terrier - Rehoming/Advice

[xoxprincess-zaraxox 1]

Hello

 

I've just joined on here in the vein attempt for someone to be able to help me with my Patterdale Terrier. I have a beautiful terrier called Betty, she is about 8 years old now having had two litters of puppies in her lifetime. Most have gone on to be excellent working dogs with game keepers etc and a few have become household pets.

 

Anyway due to recent events I now have to look for a new home for Betty.

 

Issue no 1. : I have another entire 13yo labrador bitch and she is intent on trying to kill Betty. 90% of the time they get on but more recently they fight all the time, particularly around when they are in season. Now Betty isn't the instigator of this but as you all know terriers often fight till the death and Betty certainly falls into that category. Just two weeks ago they had two massive fights and have ended up in the vets. I now have to keep them seperate all the time as we just can't risk them hurting each ohter any more, as well as it being a very traumatic experience.

 

Issue no 2: Betty is very well trained when in close quarters but if she's left to her own devices or picks up a scent she's off. If Betty isn't tied down or in her kennel she will run off too. Now where we live this hasn't been an issue, most people in the village knw Betty and are quite used to her tootling about. One lady feeds her steak on her bed (this probably is the reason she runs off to be honest) and she's quite a favourite at "teas on the green". Anyway to cut a long story short a walker was walking passed my house one day and Betty was coming back from her travels. This walker shooed Betty away from her and then proceeded to hit her with her walking stick very hard ( I saw this event outside the front of my house so I know exactly how it happened). Now Betty never fought back on this first occasion, I think she was rather taken a back by it and ran home. But ever since then if this walker comes passed our house with her stick (which she does on a dialy occurrence) and Betty is loose she will go for this woman. Last week she bit this woman on the leg and drew blood. I dont believe it was a prolonged or particularly aggressive attack but none the less she still bit her. This woman said she was going to report the event to the police/dog warden. Now my argument is that Betty would never have done it if she hadn't beaten seven bells out of her in the first place but she was loose and by all means not under control so I didn't argue the point when it first happened.

 

After many discussions we have decided that it is in Betty's interests to remove her from this situation and look at re-homing her. She is our beloved pet and we couldn't ask for a friendlier more loving animal and this is why it is particularly difficult to stomach, however if such an incident happens again here I do fear she will have to be euthanased if the police get involved. She would make an excellent working dog as has all the natural instinct for hunting. She would suit a household on her own or one with other larger dogs which are no longer entire.

 

Anyway if anyone has any ideas as to what I could do with her it would be much appreciated as I do understand that terriers take a particular type of owner who understand their nature.

 

Look forward to hearing some suggestions

[j j m 6,538]

wouldnt knoe how to advise you on this one,i hope things work out for you

[skycat 6,173]

Firstly, in this day and age it is not acceptable for a dog to be wandering loose: you've already seen what has happened. Secondly, once two bitches have taken a grudge with each other, it never ends well: all of this you know, but seriously, how many people would be willing to take on an 8 year old terrier which is known to have 'issues'?

 

You say you don't want to put the terrier down, but believe me there's not many people who would want to take on a dog of that age which, by the sounds of it, has been allowed far too much freedom to do as it pleases, and has, as a result, become somewhat unmanageable. Pigs will fly before someone sensible wants to give the terrier a working home. In my opinion, you have three options, none of which you are going to like.

 

Either put the terrier in a kennel and run, OR fence in your property securely and put the Lab in a run, OR have one of the dogs put down. Sometimes hard decisions have to be made for the greater good and peace of mind.

[Guest Moscow]

Trying to pass a problem 8 year old dog on! priceless

[IanB 0]

Get a kennel and dog run. Keep her in that when your out or at work.

 

To be honest I know its not nice but I would rather get a dog PTS than risk it ending up with an idiot owner, that would mistreat it or abuse it. I'd only pass it on if I knew the person and they were 100% trustworthy and genuine.