How can I get up the courage to take my dog to the shelter?

My wife says we cannot keep our pitbull-akita mix because we have a baby in the house and she is too wild and aggressive. My wife has demanded that I take her back to the shelter.How can I cope with the fact that I know, since she is older and part pitbull, she is probably going to be put to sleep.I feel so sad, I don't want to take her, but I cannot make my wife angry. What should I do to cope.

find a breed specific rescue group to surrender her to. they will not put her to sleep and will usually foster until the can find a new home for her.

give her away to one of your closest trustworthy friends....not a shelter..there is enough dogs as is....give it to a friend that wants a dog!

Face reality, which one is more important your dog or your child?Would you be more sad if your child gets hurt by the dog or getting rid of the dog?

Maybe an ad in the paper?That's terrible.

They do have no-kill shelters out there that you might be able to take the dog to.If you feel sad now, what will you feel like if the dog does something to the baby?

Can you not adopt her out yourself? I think that the animal shelter only put dogs down as a last resort. They do everything they can to change the dogs behaviour so that it will be adoptable. Just because she is part pitbull doesn't automatically mean she will have all the traits typical of a pitbull. Also, what if you kept the dog outside? Lots of people shift the dog outside when a baby comes... ever seen Lady and the Tramp?

HiNot sure what you mean by wild & aggressive. Has she attacked someone? If not, perhaps you can re-home her. This should have been discussed prior to having a baby, or getting a dog. Not sure who was there first.Best of luck.

Unfortunately an untrained, aggressive dog is not at all likely to find a new home. There are too many gentle, semi-trained dogs looking for homes. The responsible caring thing to do it to take the dog to the Vet and hold it while the Vet puts it to sleep. Don't foist the responsibility off on the shelter. Make the last thing your dog remembers a loving face.

Instead of taking it to the shelter, I would bring it to a local rescue group or a non kill shelter.Good Luckx

Well find a shelter that doesn't put dogs down.And remember, keep your dog in mind. Imagine the treatment your dog is going to get when the baby gets older. The dog will be ignored. Help your puppy find a better home.

Is the dog wild and aggressive or is it that your wife does not like the dog. A pet is forever and it is not right to throw the dog out because you have a child. The only reason for this would be if the dog were vicious. If the dog does not display a bad temperament there is no reason to take a dog to the shelter. Look for a good forever home for your dog. Asl friends and relatives and coworkers. Tell your wife the decisions should be made as a family and not by one dictator.

HiIm sorry you have to give up your dog. You can try posting an ad in your local newspaper under free mutt and if anyone calls just explain the situation to them. Someone out there will understand how desperate the situation is.

find a rescue.

Give her to a close trustworthy friend. Or (if possible) make a compormise with your wife. You pooch can be left in the yard or left in another room. If that dose not work, do first option.I hope I helped...

You should contact APBT and/or Akita rescue ... hopefully a place can be found for your dog.True ... your dog is part pit, so that narrows her chances. Akita is another hard-to-place breed.People with dogs need to plan their children ... people with children need to carefully consider dogs ... they don't all co-exist happily. Very sorry you're finding this out the hard way, but I have to agree with your wife ... if your dog presents any threat or danger AT ALL to your baby, the dog has to go.Pretty much killed me to say that, but humans come first.

You knew when you got the dog that Pit Bulls and Akitas are very aggressive dogs. You knew that this was a mixed breed dog so the chance that it had an even temperament were slim. You knew that because she came from a shelter, there were probably some issues.You had ample opportunity to properly socialize and train your dog and figure out how she could continue to be part of the family even with a baby. But you did none of those things and now you want us to make you feel better because you have to kill your dog for not knowing she was doing anything wrong and telling her what to do right.Quite honestly, I'm afraid for your child. If you didn't set limits and teach a dog right from wrong, what makes you think that you have the patience and wisdom to do this with a child? Will you just let your child run wild until you feel he/she is uncontrollable and then euthanize your child, too?Sorry, the only sympathy from me is for your poor dog.

either find a breed rescue or take her to the vet and have her euthanized yourself. that way you can hold her and be there with her as she leaves this world. I am sorry but I am with your wife on this. If the dog is too aggressive then you should not endanger your child. All it takes is one little slip up for there to be a horrible accident. The shelter would have to euthanize her because of her aggression as they would not want to take a chance of her hurting or killing any person if she was ever adopted out again. Really the kindest and most responsible thing would be for you to take her in to the vet and have her euthanized. Feed her, her favourite foods and be with her when they euthanize her. I am sorry.ETA: I agree with Marci

put an add in the paper, and make sure she goes to a nice home. Thats what we did when we had to get rid of our dogs )=

No offence, but part of being a couple is that you compromise. You seem beaten to the ground. Firstly, address the aggression issue. You wife is right in saying that it would unwise to have such a wild dog in the same house as very young child. Do you want your kid to be mauled to death?This does not mean, however, you should give up straight away. Take her to obedieence school. No dog is untrainable. Start offering to compromise with your wife. Perhaps enforce certain rules - she isn't allowed upstairs or in the baby's room, she isn't allowed on the sofas, whatever. Perhaps agree on a trial period - if there is no improvement in 3 months, you will give her up. Could she stay at someones elses house until things improve?Some may find this answer too lenient, but I find it very sad that a dog, who should be a member of the family, is just discarded when things become too hard. Yes, there are very serious issues to address, but plenty of people have dogs with children. The difference is, their dogs are trained to be safe around kids. Why isn't yours?Honestly, why she wasn't trained before the baby arrive is beyond me. You're very stupid. You could also offer to sell her directly to somebody, rather than going through a shelter. Put an ad in the paper.Breed specific rescues will also not put down a dog.Finally - NEVER LEAVE THE BABY ALONE WITH THE DOG!!