My own scared dog Sunny was rescued from a 477 hoarding site discovered after the hurricanes in 2005. The owner of the site convinced rescue groups that she ran a sanctuary for dogs. She was so convincing that close to 200 dogs were sent to her. Other supposed ‘rescuers’ turned out to work with dog fighting rings or sold dogs to research labs.
If you decide that you are unable or unwilling to keep a fearful dog be suspicious of anyone that offers to take it from you. No-kill shelters are often run by hoarders and most cannot offer dogs a decent quality of life. Out of sight may be out of mind but don’t be fooled into believing that your dog is going to a better life. No dog lover relishes the thought of euthanizing a dog but unless you know without a doubt that your dog is going to a place where it will be well cared for and have a good life, keep it in mind as an option.
I know that I would rather have my dog ‘put to sleep’ with a minimum of stress than to have him end up somewhere he will suffer. If you think any life is better than no life I encourage you to visit a few ‘no kill’ shelters or ‘sanctuaries’ where dogs live out their lives on chains, sleeping in dirt, with inadequate food and shelter, no medical care, no play time, no runs in the woods, no ball chasing, no couches to curl up on, no scratches behind the ears, just plenty of fear and misery until they die. Then you can decide whether or not to put that ‘free to a good home’ ad in the local paper.
