Click to read Part 1
Ollie’s aggression posed a threat to the volunteers and staff at the Animal Adoption Foundation’s shelter facility. They accepted that risk in hopes of improving Ollie’s aggressive behavior, however, and the gamble paid off. Next they had to consider the risks of having a dog like Ollie in their adoption program.

Placing an aggressive dog involves risks to the adopting family, the general public, the dog, and the shelter. The dog might bite someone in his new family. He might bite a stranger. If his behavior declines and the adopters return him to the shelter, it may be harder to improve his behavior the second time. It can also hurt the shelter’s reputation, and (although I’ve never heard of a case) possibly even expose the organization to legal liability.

There seem to be a lot of dog owners out there who are worried about being pushed around by their dogs. Clients come to me all the time asking for reassurance that they are not somehow being drawn into total control by their canine companion.

Here’s how I determine who is in charge. If you were trapped in your house with your dog, and the only thing to eat was a can of beef stew, who would open the can? Whoever opens the can is in charge. (If you're thinking your dog would simply eat you instead of waiting for beef stew, you have a bigger issue than we're talking about here!)

Okay, so we all know that the average dog is overweight and under-exercised. This is a fact that just can’t be disputed. We also know that many a behavior problem could be resolved by providing more exercise, mental stimulation and training.

However, in my own practice, I often come across dogs who have been swung all the way to the other side of the pendulum. They get lots of exercise, attend classes, go to daycare, frequent the dog park, go everywhere with their owners and participate in at least one sport. I call them the over-achievers.

Click to read part 1
Ann and Meredith returned Ollie to the shelter soon after our visit. AAF’s Executive Director, Eric Johnson, asked my advice about how to proceed. In other shelters I had worked with, the answer would have been obvious: euthanasia. At AAF, however, that option would not be considered before making every effort to improve Ollie’s behavior.

For now, I’ll dodge the question of whether committing resources to dogs like Ollie, rather than euthanizing them to make room for more “adoptable” dogs in need of scarce shelter space, is good policy. I’m hoping to clarify my thoughts on that issue with this series of posts. I’ll start with the first issue that any shelter considering keeping a dog like Ollie must evaluate: risk.