I am sooo mad right now...GOOD update #28

[pomtzu]

good grief, dogs have been living outdoors for centuries. You think the first tamed wolf came right in thru the doggie door and plopped himself in front of the fireplace? I've had dogs before. They lived outside and were perfectly content to do so (although I brought them in at feeding time). I know tons of people who still own dogs. Those dogs live outside too... and it gets chilly here (was 20 this morning). Bottom line, just because a dog lives outside doesn't mean it's gonna die. People don't keep their packs of hunting beagles in the house. As long as the dogs have a warm place to curl up and get out of the weather, they should be fine....especially if they're grown and have lived outside all their lives.

And Cindy said all they have is a bed and 2 blankets. That's adequate shelter from the weather??? It appears that these dogs do not have a warm place to curl up and get out of the weather. She wouldn't have been looking to find a dog house for them if they did!!!

[Medusa]

A bed isn't a shelter to protect those dogs from the elements; it's a place to sleep. Some people just have no common sense. Do what you can to help, Cindy, b/c it appears that these people just don't get it.

[Taz_Zoee]

A bed isn't a shelter to protect those dogs from the elements; it's a place to sleep. Some people just have no common sense. Do what you can to help, Cindy, b/c it appears that these people just don't get it.

Oh I am.

[phesina]

God bless you, Cindy, for caring about these dogs more than their owners seem to. Thank you.

[Alysser]

good grief, dogs have been living outdoors for centuries. You think the first tamed wolf came right in thru the doggie door and plopped himself in front of the fireplace? I've had dogs before. They lived outside and were perfectly content to do so (although I brought them in at feeding time). I know tons of people who still own dogs. Those dogs live outside too... and it gets chilly here (was 20 this morning). Bottom line, just because a dog lives outside doesn't mean it's gonna die. People don't keep their packs of hunting beagles in the house. As long as the dogs have a warm place to curl up and get out of the weather, they should be fine....especially if they're grown and have lived outside all their lives.

Dogs may have decended from wolves, but they are not the same by any means. Thousands of years of breeding has changed dogs. Dogs are no where near as suited to living in the wild as wolves are. I am sure some can, but many breeds would never survive, they ALL decended from wolves. That's like saying your cats would be perfectly suited outside because they decended from lions and tigers.

I am not against outdoor dogs by any means, However, I am against people who keep their dogs out with no shelter, no food, no attention and no medical care.

Cindy, I hope you can help these poor babies. They don't deserve that at all.

[caseysmom]

good grief, dogs have been living outdoors for centuries. You think the first tamed wolf came right in thru the doggie door and plopped himself in front of the fireplace? I've had dogs before. They lived outside and were perfectly content to do so (although I brought them in at feeding time). I know tons of people who still own dogs. Those dogs live outside too... and it gets chilly here (was 20 this morning). Bottom line, just because a dog lives outside doesn't mean it's gonna die. People don't keep their packs of hunting beagles in the house. As long as the dogs have a warm place to curl up and get out of the weather, they should be fine....especially if they're grown and have lived outside all their lives.

I'm glad you no longer own dogs.

[aTailOf2Kitties]

I'm glad you no longer own dogs.

My dogs had big comfy doghouses to sleep in, and plenty of attention. They got exercised several times a day, every day, rain or shine. They came inside for feeding and when it was below freezing.

both of my dogs lived to a ripe old age despite living outside most of their lives. The beagle came inside as soon as she got old and we couldn't keep any weight on her, around age 10. She died in my arms at the vet's office of a seizure despite being on meds for many years. She was 15 and also had arthritis, and chronic pancreatitis, both being treated. Living outside or inside had no relevance to what ultimately killed her.

My Elkhound became inside also around age 10, after having exploratory surgery to fix a mistake a vet made when spaying her as a pup (used non-absorbable sutures inside, eventually causing a pocket of infection, making her sick). She was left inside to recover since it was winter and I didn't want her incision getting filthy. Then I moved to an apartment and she came with me. Despite being an inside dog at that point, she was old and began suffering from "old dog" problems: arthritis, senility, incontience, worn out teeth etc, all being medicated. She died at age 15 when her poor feeble old body just couldn't take it any more.

I ask you, do you seriously believe that being an inside dog all of thier lives would have made any difference in their lifespan? Don't inside dogs suffer the same health problems mine eventually did? Does spending your entire life indoors prevent arthritis? Pancreatitis? Senility? Epilepsy?

Now tell me again I was a bad owner. I guess I should have left my beagle in the drainpipe where I found her at 4 months old, blanketed in ticks. She clearly didn't deserve to spend her life in my back yard, she'd have been better off wandering in the streets until she was run over or attacked by other strays. Or sent to the local shelter which was notorious for being a filthy, disease-ridden hellhole. I guess I should have left the Elkhound wandering around the neighborhood living off of scraps and risking life and limb trying to get food from other outside dogs. God forbid I give her a forever home and lots of love and attention, albeit outside.

Truly the lady with the small dogs needs to get them a doghouse if they're outside. I think it's the law in most states. If she doesn't care about them then she needs to find a better home. On these 2 points we all agree. But don't you sit here and tell me that dogs should never be allowed to live outside, as I have known a lot of other people with outside dogs that are just as happy and healthy as your pampered indoor pooches.

[/rant]

[Genny]

I think that's nice of you to try and get those dogs a dog house where they'll have something to keep them warm It is sad that the dogs are kept outside-since they're small-I kinda think smaller dogs should be kept in-they are just so small and seem way more delicate-but I'm not against keeping dogs outside all the time. We have 4 big dogs a great pyrenees, a german shepherd and 2 lab mixes. They have to live outside cause we just couldn't keep them inside. Maybe if we had only 1 big dog then it could stay in, but we don't..so... We do have 4 small dogs tho and they all stay inside the house. We let them out everyday and they'll run around for 20 minutes or so and then come back to the door and we'll let them in. You know I'm not sure if this is the case w/ your friend or not but sometimes people can't keep their dogs inside-maybe someone's alergic to them? I dunno....I haven't read all the other post before this one, but I do hope everything works out for them and the dogs get taken care of better

[Taz_Zoee]

aTailOf2Kitties - I'm not saying dogs can't live outside. I'm saying these small dogs should not be outside when the temps have been below freezing. We had snow this past Monday!! These are California dogs, they aren't used to these temps. One of the dogs is a senior, I believe he's around 10 or 12 years old by now.
I'm pretty sure she takes them to the vet. At least she told me today she did. But I do know they do not have adequate shelter for this weather. That is why I provided a box and will keep bugging her about getting them a "real" doghouse.

Genny - nobody in the house is allergic to them. The husband is an a$$ and won't allow them in the house or the garage.

[aTailOf2Kitties]

if she can't afford proper doghouses, she should at least get some plastic totes with a doorway cut out of them. Those are cheap, easy to come by, and washable.

[phesina]

Oh the Channel 4 news last evening there was a feature on Michigan Humane Society cruelty investigators going out and picking up dogs and cats that had been left outside in the brutal cold here and had become seriously injured or even frozen to death.

They said that if a pet must live outside in this weather, it needs an enclosed shelter such as a dog house, with straw in it for warm bedding and insulation because towels or blankets can easily become wet and then freeze, leaving the animal with a bed of ice to lay down on.

[Taz_Zoee]

if she can't afford proper doghouses, she should at least get some plastic totes with a doorway cut out of them. Those are cheap, easy to come by, and washable.

Good idea! I'll suggest this to her.

Oh the Channel 4 news last evening there was a feature on Michigan Humane Society cruelty investigators going out and picking up dogs and cats that had been left outside in the brutal cold here and had become seriously injured or even frozen to death.

They said that if a pet must live outside in this weather, it needs an enclosed shelter such as a dog house, with straw in it for warm bedding and insulation because towels or blankets can easily become wet and then freeze, leaving the animal with a bed of ice to lay down on.

I will also tell her about the straw. Thanks for the ideas everyone!

[Taz_Zoee]

My co-worker and her husband (surprise!!) made a dog house for the dogs this weekend. She even sent me a picture of it. She said the dogs LOVE it! They wouldn't even come out this morning to be fed. LOL
I am so happy now. I feel so much better!

[gini]

My co-worker and her husband (surprise!!) made a dog house for the dogs this weekend. She even sent me a picture of it. She said the dogs LOVE it! They wouldn't even come out this morning to be fed. LOL
I am so happy now. I feel so much better!

And I feel so much better about this story too............and much of the thanks goes to you!!

[caseysmom]

Good job making those dogs have a safer, more comfortable life.