Rescuing a Ridgeback.

[dashDustin]

was it APA ?

your pup is super cute!!

No...I think it was called Forgotten Friends Mixed Breed Rescue.

[j44ke]

Nice antennas. He's not going to miss a thing.

[abbeyQ]

We've adopted both of our Weimarner's person to person. The second one, who's skinny ass is currently curled up next to me trying to stay warm, we got from a local lady who was having a rough go with him as a pup as a single mom in an apartment. My wife just happened to give her a number and ~6 weeks later she called and said she had enough. We picked him up the next day. The first one didn't come from a rescue either. Don't feel like you have to go through a rescue, I've heard plenty of stories of those people being a little too diligent about the dogs going to a good home. I guess if you don't mind keeping them forever that's not a bad way to go about it. It would be nice if they would do that for the pound dogs that are on their way out the back door though.

[GonaSovereign]

Rescues are amazing, albeit sometimes frustrating. Think about doing that job.
All our animals have been from rescues. Coincidentally, I learned today that one rescue we worked with just adopted its 108th dog for the year. It brings me great joy to send the woman who runs it the occasional chunk of cash.

I recall we were put through a bit of a ringer to get Freda, who was a 13 year-old no one else inquired about. She was a ton of work and totally worth it.

My friends at Cervélo offered to build a carbon chair for her, but she was fast enough without the aero and weigh advantage.

Freda at the park 2010

[j44ke]

Remember that rescue organizations often start in response to the overwhelming popularity of a particular breed among potential owners who have a very low awareness of the actual behavior characteristics of the dogs and who often have none of the well-managed breeding practices that screen for adverse magnification of those characteristics.

Dog appears in movie, everyone wants one, everyone breeds one, a bunch of them end up in shelters because owners/dog get frustrated, and a bunch of them end up with in-bred personality disorders.

This happens a lot with working dogs. I wish the movies would just pick "Heinz 57" mixes for all their dogs, because replicating and marketing dogs like that one would be a lot harder and actually protect dogs from over popularity.

Rescue orgs are well aware then of the popularity and the high likelihood of unprepared or unprincipled dog owners looking for that breed. They are tough, because they have to be. Otherwise there wouldn't be any "rescue" aspect to their efforts. They'd just be perpetuating the problems.

[jumphigher]

I hear you. But many dogs that show are also excellent at what they are meant to do. We have two standard (not the mini) dachshunds that come from show lines (our older one's littermate won best hound at Westminster) and they both come from long lines of blood-tracking dachshunds often used in the field (yes, believe it or not, dachshunds are REALLY good at this); litters are spoken for immediately, usually by hunters, upon the announcement that the bitch is pregnant.

Other show breeds have become a disgrace. IMO (show) Labradors. Your average show lab now is 20 pounds too big, looks like a Rottie, will have 100% hip dysplagia by the time they are three, and wouldn't retrieve a duck in a pond if its life depended on it.

Responsible breeders - the good ones, the real ones - will always have their litters spoken for immediately by good folks. The backyard types.... not so much. They're a friggin' disgrace.

Except that we dont need any pet breeders at all - 'responsible' or otherwise. There are way too many homeless animals. People that insist on some designer breed are essentially dooming some other animal by buying it from a pet shop or breeder. Spin it any way you like, but breeders are a big part of the problem, and buying from them only makes things worse. 'Good folks' dont buy animals from breeders, period.

[monadnocky]

Except that we dont need any pet breeders at all - 'responsible' or otherwise. There are way too many homeless animals. People that insist on some designer breed are essentially dooming some other animal by buying it from a pet shop or breeder. Spin it any way you like, but breeders are a big part of the problem, and buying from them only makes things worse. 'Good folks' dont buy animals from breeders, period.

Including me? My wife's a vet, does that make us responsible yet?

(I've also rescued two Greyhounds, an elderly dachshund that had no place to go and certainly would have been put down if I didn't take him, one retired Seeing Eye dog, and yes, one shelter dog).

It's not that easy. for instance, Here in the northeast, shelter dogs are almost ALWAYS pit bull crosses. No thanks.

[rec head]

Well, the house visit was what we expected.

Our downstairs neighbor (65-70lb rescued dog with trust issues but not a mean bone in his body) barked at her and she decided that it was aggressive.

Two fun moments:
1. We have a 5' section of 4' tall fence
"That will be how the dog escapes."
"I've had a few larger dogs in the past and decided that you never keep them in a yard unattended. Especially in LA."
"It doesn't matter. The dog will escape."

2. "What will you do when the Ridgeback gets into a fight with your neighbors dog?"
"Excuse me?"
"The dog downstairs is aggressive. What will you do when they get into a fight?"
"Ollie definitely isn't aggressive. She hangs out with 2 little girls - under 10- and has absolutely no issue with Boo (our 8lb dog)."
"Ok, so if the Ridgeback gets into a fight with another dog, what will you do?"


WTF am I adopting a 16 year old punk-as-fuck dude?

I got timed out of my original post a few days back. So here is the gist:

It sounds like you are dealing with the same rescue we did. My wife (a general practice veterinarian then, now one of about 80 board certified veterinary behaviorists in the world) was too upset by the rescue people to keep dealing with them. They treat you like shit. It is too bad for the dogs. I'm sure lots of other good people get fed up or denied. We ended up using a breeder. We have 2 now. Neither have been in fights. Neither has jumped our 20' section of fence that is only 4' high. I do think there is a good chance that our female would do it if left alone too long but we don't leave her outside unattended long enough to get bored. If you have any question about owning a ridgeback PM me. Mine are very different but share some of the main RB characteristics. One thing is for sure, they are great at being lazy.


Oh, and I just remembered. One of our references was one of the oldest RB breeders in the country. Didn't matter at all.

[caleb]

'Good folks' dont buy animals from breeders, period.

I'm going to assume you're excluding working dogs. I grew up with a working border collie who was herding cattle and sheep on a daily basis, and who saved my Dad's ass on more than one occasion from a protective mother cow. That dog had to be bred, raised, and trained from day one in the right way. For much of our history as humans, we've bred dogs deliberately to accomplish tasks for us. I'd go so far as to say it's a basic component of human history and the human experience, and we'd be losing something significant by condemning it.

[ides1056]

Suggesting that those who have a fondness for a particular breed are not "good" is just plain silly. Period.

Most animals in the US are better fed than a significant portion of the least advantaged in the world. I can't quote statistics, but then I am not wielding a cudgel and claiming those who own dogs are not good, never mind whether they are pure bred or not.

[Corso]

My eldest daughter adopted this rescue Greyhound 2 years ago. He raced in New jersey, won a bunch, fractured his leg (not so bad, but not race worthy) and was sent to be put down when he was rescued at the vets office. He’s a FANTASTIC dog, I could go on and on about how great he is. Greyhounds don’t need any special care, as one may think.
Uchair.jpg

[monadnocky]

My eldest daughter adopted this rescue Greyhound 2 years ago. He raced in New jersey, won a bunch, fractured his leg (not so bad, but not race worthy) and was sent to be put down when he was rescued at the vets office. He’s a FANTASTIC dog, I could go on and on about how great he is. Greyhounds don’t need any special care, as one may think.
Uchair.jpg

What a cutie.
Fabulous, fantastic animals. Hard to believe that such enormous hearts can fit into such skinny bodies. Those of you looking for an all-around house pet, good with kids, great general companions.... rescue a greyhound.

[Matthew Strongin]

What a cutie.
Fabulous, fantastic animals. Hard to believe that such enormous hearts can fit into such skinny bodies. Those of you looking for an all-around house pet, good with kids, great general companions.... rescue a greyhound.

Yep. Greyhounds for the win. Our last two dogs were both amazing mixed breed rescues. Our next dog will be a greyhound rescue and until we're ready to adopt, I'll keep donating cash money to the rescue group in town.

[Corso]

What amazes me about my Daughter’s greyhound, is that she was able to track his “track” history (tattoo in ear) and we have web-video of him racing! Then I look over to him sprawled out on the couch. Same dog?

The “40 mph couch potato” nickname is well deserved. She’s taught him to bark on command, and to sit like a normal dog, something they are not used to. Yes, great with kids too!

A Rescue Greyhound will absolutely be my next dog.

[j44ke]

The breed isn't the problem. It is the breeding that is the problem. And the selection by the owners.

The classic is a lab or a golden retriever. Super cute puppies. And everyone wants a laid back lab sleeping by the fire. But they don't get that way until they are 5 years old OR with attentive training and regular work outs. We got so many 2-3 year old labs in at the shelter from owners who lost patience with the dog eating sofa cushions, etc. etc. etc. No training, no work, over-rested hyperactive bored dog. Working dogs need jobs.

The reason retired Greyhounds work out so well is that they've burned through their active days racing. They are literally ready for retirement.

[dvancleve]

A few disorganized (pretty much stream of consciousness) thoughts from a long time dog owner who has adopted from shelters, rescues, kept dogs found wandering and even paid twice for dogs from "breeders" who had no business doing it. I think breed specific rescues for breeds that aren't particularly popular have it pretty easy and can be pretty picky. Something I think you can run into frequently is folks who conflate dogs with people and/or think they way handle their dogs is the only acceptable way (raw feeding, no prong collars, blah, blah, blah). Something to look for in Ridgebacks would be to contact quality, ethical breeders and ask about any ridgeless dogs they might know of looking for homes or dermoid sinus dogs that can't be used for breeding. On the idea that there should be no breeders or that there is something wrong with wanting a dog of a particular breed, all dogs would look about the same within 20 years if breeds were not maintained: medium size, pointy ears, moderately curly tail, short but not smooth coats (think Dingo, Carolina Dog, Canaan Dog). Responsible breeders only have litters to accomplish a purpose (improve the breed) and when they are reasonably sure they can place all the pups they don't want for themselves. I am involved in the Canaan Dog Rescue Network, I can tell you everybody I have interacted with through CDRN who is involved with the breed takes better care of their dogs than I do, and mine are all well cared for. Most folks should adopt a shelter dog, most litters do not come from truly responsible breeders, but that doesn't make breeds or breeder bad.

My family currently has what I am pretty sure is a purebred American Bulldog that we got for $80 or something from a nearby no-kill shelter, poor guy was there for 6 months. We have a Greyhound from a Greyhound rescue, she is a foster fail. Her litter was either weird, neglected in some manner, or both and they placed all but one as pets rather than sending them to the farm for training. She wouldn't even move when we got her at ~3 months, had to carried from place to place. She was sorta normal within a week or so. She is functionally a tripod now, tore a CCL and the surgery didn't really work. She is the second Greyhound we rescued, the first was a 31" tall stringbean who died of osteosarcoma (the dirty little secret of Greyhound rescue, BTW) just shy of his 11th birthday. We also have a small female Akita (or mostly Akita) from an Akita rescue. We don't really know how old she is, just that we've had her about 11 years now. In my heart of hearts, I think getting a pit-mutt from a shelter or rescue is the right thing to do, there are SO many that needs homes and its a pretty neat breed that doesn't deserve its reputation. That said, there are some pretty exotic breeds that really interest me (Azawakh, Chart Polski, Komondor, Akbash Dog, another Canaan Dog mabye) so who knows. They all need good homes...

Doug

P.S. The fence thing is BS IMHO, dogs really shouldn't be left alone outside for long anyway. Too easy for them to get too hot, cold, barky, trash the yard, get bored and try to get out etc.

P.P.S. I almost forgot to mention, unlike my 2 Greyhounds that never set foot on a track even for training, my folks adopted one we fostered who was a very successful racer. Unlike most, she won quite a few races (Google Rapid Succession). She is lazy even by Greyhound standards, she often doesn't even get up when I go visit. Greyhounds like to tear around the yard for a few minutes every day or so, then just lay around. They don't have very good endurance and surprisingly don't tolerate heat very well.

[GonaSovereign]

Remember that rescue organizations often start in response to the overwhelming popularity of a particular breed among potential owners who have a very low awareness of the actual behavior characteristics of the dogs and who often have none of the well-managed breeding practices that screen for adverse magnification of those characteristics.

Dog appears in movie, everyone wants one, everyone breeds one, a bunch of them end up in shelters because owners/dog get frustrated, and a bunch of them end up with in-bred personality disorders.

This happens a lot with working dogs. I wish the movies would just pick "Heinz 57" mixes for all their dogs, because replicating and marketing dogs like that one would be a lot harder and actually protect dogs from over popularity.

Rescue orgs are well aware then of the popularity and the high likelihood of unprepared or unprincipled dog owners looking for that breed. They are tough, because they have to be. Otherwise there wouldn't be any "rescue" aspect to their efforts. They'd just be perpetuating the problems.

Agree on all points. It's sad to know there will be plenty of corgies and husky/malamutes in shelters soon b/c every a---le in the universe watches some dumb shows that feature them.

[GonaSovereign]

My eldest daughter adopted this rescue Greyhound 2 years ago. He raced in New jersey, won a bunch, fractured his leg (not so bad, but not race worthy) and was sent to be put down when he was rescued at the vets office. He’s a FANTASTIC dog, I could go on and on about how great he is. Greyhounds don’t need any special care, as one may think.
Uchair.jpg

Adore.

[Vancouverdave]

We have the world's most beautiful, sweetest small-size beagle because she didn't "meet standard." She exceeds any standards that we can think of for sure!