So sad....good food for thought.... http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/heavy_petting/2004/07/poor_little_rich_dog.html
Re: Poor Little Rich Dog ....."I've watched him become more detached, neurotic, and unresponsive. I've seen the soul drain from the dog's eyes." :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( :'( Can't bear that :'(
Re: Poor Little Rich Dog Very sad. It's food for thought when the author suggests this may be very common.
Re: Poor Little Rich Dog Sadly, I think it is very common and true. I've even heard (from an animal shelter) that cross breeds and mongrels may be better off in this regard - as they are not a status symbol, if they don't suit a family they have more chance of being rehomed. A family that pays a lot of money for a pedigree is more likely to kennel the dog, keep it in the garden, or confine it to the house, complaining that the dog is wild, but not even realizing how unkind or worse they are being. We have a family in our neighbourhood who has a Gebirgsschweisshund, a very specialized hunting dog, used to track injured deer and wild boar. These dogs need very intense and careful training, and although beautiful and delightful dogs, are really working dogs. The father goes shooting two or three times a year. Everyone knows this is a disaster in the making. Why they bought the dog is obvious - he suits the image. No thought about how this dog will fare over the years. He already runs away at every opportunity, at the age of 8 months..
Re: Poor Little Rich Dog I do suspect there are many dogs living this life...I would say this is pretty close to Simba's life before we got him, with one exception- I know my son's girlfriend did try to look after him, but she just didn't have much clue as to what to do. And as he got bigger he just was unmanageable. While she was at work he spent his days in her bedroom or roaming the neighbourhood, mainly the former.
