the chain

a month ago a pit bull was confiscated from his owner because he was wearing a 7.5 pound chain around his neck. the chain was connecting the dog to a fence. the officer saw that this chain wasn't safe, or humane, and brought the dog into the shelter. he left a note on the door, explaining to the dog's owner how he could reclaim his dog.

the owner called back and said something to the effect that the dog wasn't wearing a chain. the officer had taken pictures. animal control explained how to properly confine a dog, and gave the owner a time frame to build proper confinement and get back to us. the guy called back, saying he had erected proper confinement. officers went out, and nothing had changed. the pit bull stayed with us. the guy never called back.

after 10 days, the dog became ours. of course, being the sucker that i am, i had taken this chained up dog out, to see just what we were dealing with. the dog was another one of the perfect temperamented, poorly bred pits that shelters everywhere are overrun with. his ears flopped every which way. he had no manners. he was perfect. i brought him out a few days in a row. he was a humping fool- i gave him a blanket to lie on in the front office. he acted as though he had never seen a blanket. he grabbed one side of the bed with his mouth and the other side, he started to hump like it was the only thing that would save him. i worked with him on some manners- spraying him with a water bottle when he was naughty and treating hiim and praising him when he was good. he let me know that he knew "shake" and "sit". soon he was passed out next too me, snoring his fool head off.

"C"'s owner never called back. i'm guessing once he realized that the officer was serious, that he really was going to check and see if he had built some proper containment, he realized it wasn't worth it to get his dog back. C failed his evaluation. he had prey drive.

RIP, C. you're another product of irresponsible breeding and irresponsible ownership.