Dear dog people on PT, I need some help. My college roommate and her husband adopted a 1 year old Black Lab mix puppy from a friend of theirs who couldn't manage a dog and a small child in the same home. His name is Shadow, he weighs 80 pounds, and he's neutered. The problem is that when he goes outside, he won't come back inside. My roommate's husband plops him down, puts the leash on and in they go; but my roommate isn't able to do that. He started taking a nip on her when she tried to bring him in, and now he is baring his teeth and biting her. Today she gave him to a neighbor who has 3 other dogs, who said she would either keep or re-home him. That's his third home in just over a year. My roommate is heartbroken because she always had a dog growing up and was delighted to have one again. I would like Shadow to be back with them - he deserves a successful home environment after the previous one. He was dismissed from puppy training class because he got aggressive after another dog took a nip in his genital area. He has not had a second attempt. Today he refused to come back inside for her because the dogs across the street were just let from the house into the garage. She didn't take him to the vet so I know of no medical reason why he won't go indoors. At times he is well-behaved indoors, stays in his puppy pen for up to 5 hours when they both are not home, and has even come up to them for petting. She wants it to work out and I do too. She even tried putting tabasco on her hands to get Shadow not to bite - he just licked it off. I don't know what to advise her - she's afraid of him now and doesn't feel confident about her ability to control him enough to get him from yard to house. HELP, please, dog people and I thank you very much!
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