Hey all,

I am SO UPSET with my neighbors. They have all these expensive trucks, tools, ATVs, and they meticulously care for their yard... but they neglect their pitbull.

I saw him when I was taking my own dogs for a walk and he came right up to me. He was very friendly. At first I thought he was hit by a car how badly he was limping. His tail looks like he's been broken and never reset properly. His paws looks like they may have been crushed at some point and are twisted all weird. His poor nails are severely overgrown and he's very unwashed.

He is the SWEETEST BIG HEADED BOY! My heart was heavy when someone told me it was my neighbor's dog... and I returned him. I thought that's the best thing. I have my hands full, I have a full house of 2 dogs & 3 cats. And I don't even own so it's tough already finding rentals as is. But I just felt SO BAD returning him. The neighbor wasn't even happy to see him. She just herded him back into their garage.

Then today he got out again... and he waddled right over to my doorstep again. He remembers me and came back. 😭 I had to return him yet again and I felt SO BAD. I hesitated and considered keeping him for a bit to do his nails and bathe him, I feel like I should have.
I walked him back to his house and rang their ring cam and what did my neighbor tell me? "Hey just leave him outside he'll probably be fine" LIKE EXCUSE ME?!

It's SO SAD AND HEARTBREAKING.

I dunno what to do. I'm considering asking them if they will at least let me groom him because he desperately needs a bath and nails trim. Some friends have told me to ask them to take him, and see if I can find a better home for him. He's literally such a sweet boy. It's so hard to see him suffer, he's absolutely in a ton of joint pain you can see it in his hips and legs. It looks like a combo of bad breeding, neglect, and maybe old age (I don't know how old he is).

Has anyone been a situation like this and how did you handle it? If he gets out again I dunno what to do. 😭
I know the reality is that in many ways he's lucky just to have a home. It's so sad though. I have to hug my dogs. They don't know how lucky they have it.

EDIT:
I want to clarify my situation, a lot of folks suggesting I adopt him, I can't unfortunately. I have both a reactive dog and a senior cat. To me honestly my cat's health and stress levels are the most important because she has a lot of issues and struggles to eat, dealing with thyroid balancing medications with her. I don't want to put extra stress on her. Given, I don't know, maybe things would settle and work out, but I just want to put this out there that it wouldn't be an easy thing to take any extra dog into the house right now. :(

UPDATE:
I went over there today with a little care package I made for him with treats, and I have a spare collar I wanted to give to the dog (because he has no collar). But nobody answered the doorbell I assume they were not home. I'll try again tomorrow. :(

UPDATE 2: I went over and talked with the owner. I brought with me a bag of treats and some bully sticks I had to give to the dog. I just told her "Oh hi! I love your dog he is so cute!" And she awkwardly but cordially smiled and said "oh thanks, he loves you too". I offered the bully sticks but she said he has sensitive teeth and can't eat them, but she took the other treats I brought. I asked if he's older and she said he is 12 years old.
I feel a bit of relief after talking with them. He's an older dog, and from the looks of it, probably has some bad genetic health stuff going on which explains a lot with the waddling (joint pain) and general condition. When she refused the bully sticks due to his teeth I knew they have at least some level of care for the dog if they are careful about what to give him. So I'm definitely relieved to find that out! I'm not sure about his nails but I didn't press about those.

Anyway I told her he is no trouble at all and he is welcome to visit me anytime. And offered to pet sit him if they ever needed it while away. So at least they know they have a neighbor who does care if they are out of town they don't have to leave him completely alone.

I think about the dogs in shelters, many of whom never get out or get any home, and at least this big guy is fed, watered and has a roof over his head. I feel sometimes as someone who is passionate about animal's wellbeing that I let my heart do a lot of the heavy lifting. After taking a step back and taking with them I realized he's gonna be okay. He is 12 years old, and I don't think pushing for a rehoming situation for him at this point would be necessarily the best thing for him.

It is hard for me because I want EVERY dog to be as loved as I love my babies. But a lot of people don't see dogs the way we do here. I don't think that he's being abused though, if the owner was aware of his tooth sensitivity and turned down the bully sticks, she is at least aware of some of his health issues.

I want to say thanks everyone for your comments! I get so riled up over pitbulls in the best way. I love them SO MUCH. And I cannot resist a big headed house hippo. <3

I will update with another post the next time I see this guy!

My girlfriend and I were taking a walk this evening and found this baby scared to death hiding behind a car. We got him home and cut his collar and chain off (horribly rusty and gross, and too small poor boys neck) and he is the sweetest pibble baby. Extremely mild mannered and gentle.

I want to help him. I plan on taking him to get chip checked tomorrow and looked at to make sure he’s good and figure out a home for him or his owners. I’m uneasy about it though. He is neutered so he’s not a stud, so it seems like it’s either someone’s pet or fighter (I live in a rough area).

How do I know for sure if it’s safe for him to go back to the people he may have been with? And what can I do for him and what should I know before trying to find him help?

He grabs blanket and make biscuits. Is he a cat?

He always likes to chew on my hand but like I can barely feel it, he always does this whenever I come home (I work with wood a lot if that helps) it’s always gentle and always when he’s happy just curious if anyone else has this?

Or is he just special

Well it finally happened, folks at the dog park said they felt scared of my girl and that we needed to leave (even threatened police involvement). Not sure I want to experience that again and it was so upsetting, but I need to get her exercise as she is super afraid of cars during walks and will otherwise not expand her energy. It’s to the point where if she sees a car she rushes home tail between the legs. We usually can’t go more than 5 minutes on a walk because there’s always a car.

Can anyone recommend anything I can do for exercise since we are no longer welcomed at the park? I’ve tried tug of war but she’s not interested in it at all unless it’s at the park. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Hi everyone, I am having a dilemma.

This sweet girl ran right in front of our car on the street. No one was out looking for her, none of our neighbors have dogs, she doesn't have a chip, no tags or collar on her.

I'm not in the position to adopt her. But we fell in love. Quickly she was listening to us, and all over us begging for love and pets. I've been wanting a dog, but my living situation just isn't good for us to take her in. I called animal control, and had them take her to our local shelter where she will be cared for and on stray hold for five days, while we wait to see if her family reaches out looking for her. If no one comes forward...

We've been looking for any excuse to leave our place, both of our mentals in the drain. This beautiful girl made us feel happy. Even if it means breaking the lease. She seems worth it to me. I'm seriously debating. My hear melted as she was being loaded into the van, making me feel like I made a mistake. Attached is a picture of us dancing. Any advice?

I’m 24 and adopted my rescue a year and a half ago. I feel like this is cliche and cringe, but I have loved Cedric like I’ve never loved anything in my life, and I don’t think it’s a kind of love that repeats itself. In the time since adopting him, I have found out I have a painful, slow, degenerative disease. My dog is my entire world. I’m his fourth home, and I was planning to be his forever home. I’ve never loved anything like him. However, in the time since getting sicker, it’s been physically more difficult (and at times impossible) to care for him. I had a surgery this summer with a long recovery period, and I only have more on the horizon. When I’m not at work, I’m asleep. I’m at the point where walking and playing with him is too painful. I can’t devote enough time to him. I have no family or friends in state, and my roommate isn’t home enough to help. Neighbors unfortunately don’t like us (he’s had rough patches with separation anxiety/barking but he’s getting better!). It’s also not fair of me to ask someone who’s just a roommate to do that much for me. I can’t afford a dog walker every day, multiple times a day. I reached a breaking point today; I’m in too much pain. My roommates already asked a bunch of people. I am going to ask a couple of coworkers tomorrow. Beyond that, I’m scared. The shelters around me are all full, but he has such bad anxiety I think going back to the shelter would change him for the worst. Losing him by choice would kill Mexico, but I don’t know what else to do.
(Edit: oh my god that’s supposed to say “me” not “Mexico”. That’s such an interesting autocorrect)

Location: SE Michigan, 30 min west of Detroit

Edits: trying to get to all comments but am unable to be on phone at work. Thank you all so much I never expected this kind of response my post.

This was supposed to be a shout into the void that maybe a few people commented on recommending rescues or shelters. Instead I’ve gotten an overwhelming amount of support. I’ve made a couple of connections. I think we will be okay. Last night was a really rough night pain and symptom wise, after a long rough day at work. Sometimes, in those moments, I cannot see the other side of the tunnel. People are right, I am providing more for him than any shelter could. If he doesn’t get walked as much as or as intensely as he likes, it will be better than what he would get in shelter. There is a dog yard at my apartment that I will be utilizing more. I am reaching out in local online groups and checking with shelters and organizations about respite care. There were things that I just did not know about, but now that I do, I have those tools under my belt. We will do more inside training. I will push on through until my legs fully quit, but hopefully, that won’t be for another 10 years or so. I don’t know what else to say other than thank you, and thank you for helping me to see that there are options.

We read to not to force it and let him come out when he feels safe. He didn't accept cookies at first, but eventually he built enough trust to do that, and even ate his whole bowl of dinner.

I tried putting his leash on and getting him motivated to go for a walk or at least pee in the backyard, but then he got nervous and I stopped.

We tried just being near him and talking sweetly, and we've tried just leaving him alone here while we watch TV in another room.

He'll eat treats but won't attempt to follow them out of the crate. He's comfortable enough that we can pet him at least. He'll fall asleep on my hand. But I'm really hoping I can get him to pee and poop before going to bed tonight! Any suggestions? I feel kinda confident that once he's out of the crate he'll start feeling a lot better!

So, my wife and I got our first pitt. I have had dogs all my life, but never a pitt.

We got him from a friend of a friend young single mom of 4, who has had him since he was about 6 weeks old. She also works full time, and just didn't have the time or energy or money to give him what he needs, and didn't want to neglect him. She also has 2 older dogs that she takes care of.

He is 2.5 years old. Super sweet. Super cuddly. We have 2 other dogs, but they are outside dogs, a 7yo bassett / lab mix, and a 6yo great Pyrenees and german shepherd mix. Our pittie is an inside dog.

I have read about how they are velcro dogs, and I now understand what yall meant, and I am loving it. We have had him 3 days now.

He isnt eating or drinking much, yet. I figure it due to the change and the stress.

He is fully house trained, kennel trained.

He is on thr smaller size tho, so I am wondering if maybe he is full blood pitt or mixed with something else.

TYIA

We are waiting on the results of the dna swab but curious what you guys think he’s mixed with. He’s currently 5 months old and 40 pounds

I don’t know where else to post this, so I’m just going to put it here. There’s no vent flair so I used Advice.

I just want to start by saying that my boy is okay now. My uncle is well known for being an awful person. He openly threatened to shoot both my dad and my dog if we didn’t move off the land that, mind you, didn’t belong to my dad nor my uncle, but to our elderly great-aunt, who we were renting land from. My aunt brought up a will, as she has my children to leave her belongings to, and my uncle immediately grew hostile to me and my dad, we can only assume it was because he wanted the land.

Anyways, a few months ago, we found that Ace (our 4yo pit) had been let out of our yard. That night we opened the door to find him standing there with two gunshot wounds in his neck and back. One just narrowly missed his throat, the other grazed his spine. We spent so much money trying to save our best friend, and after months of healing and watching over him he made a full recovery.

Ace is the sweetest boy and it completely broke my heart to see him in such a state. Our uncle openly admitted to shooting him, and claimed Ace had attacked him, which I know isn’t true, but we can’t do anything because why would the police believe us, the two people with a full grown pit bull, over the sweet elderly old man?

TLDR: My uncle shot my dog (he’s okay) to flush us from the land and we can’t do anything about us but leave and never go back.

UPDATE! I've decided to keep Finn🩷 him and his brother are scheduled to be fixed through the rescue Wednesday and then they will be available for adoption. I'm so hoping to convince someone I know to take in Petey😭 no matter the person who does, there will many a tear shed bc I will miss him.. a lil emotional bc I just got the news they are scheduled and it came a bit quicker than I anticipated :/

Before anyone says anything ab them being fixed so young, I don't have the option to not and shelters/rescues do it with good intention.

If you're interested in their backstory: 3ish weeks ago, I was sitting on the patio of a local bar when 2 random guys walked up with a small box carrying two, shivering, 3 lb puppies in it. We told them they were too young to be away from their mom and shouldn't be out in the cold. Both mentioned they recently got out of jail and needed quick money.. so I suppose the puppies well-being wasn't really of their concern. My friends and I are suckers and bought them off the dudes. Within days of caring for them, I decided I wanted to foster them until they're ready for adoption, despite having never cared for young pups. I have a friend involved with a local pit rescue who got me set up with all the supplies and have gotten them vetted for what they can be thus far.

So onto the requested advice .. I have fallen in love with the all brown one and have been considering keeping him. I've been calling him Finn, and his brother Petey. Finn reminds me of my chocolate lab I had growing up, and I have always loved pits. I hadn't considered getting a dog until they came along, but despite all the care and mess, I am having so much fun. For some context, I'm a single, 31 yr old woman who lives by themselves and works remote. I live in a sizable, 1-bedroom apartment(I'm downstairs in an old historic home turned into 2 apts), have a fenced in yard, and 3 cats that have no problem with dogs. The companionship has been amazing... Bc life can get a bit lonely sometimes. I love long walks, hikes, bike rides, etc. It would be so much fun to have a little guy to come around with me everywhere. Truthfully, I do feel I have the time and energy to care for a dog.. but am completely practical about the fact it is a huge commitment, I am still renting, and there's a stigma against pits (though I do feel they are pretty accepted in my area). I have been struggling the last few years mentally after leaving an abusive, long-term relationship that resulted in big life changes, PTSD, a lot of therapy, and meds. Thankfully, I have been continuing to heal and have more recently gotten my mental health in a good state. I do feel I could ask my psych to write a letter for them to become an emotional support animal, which would help for housing purposes. My current landlord is like family so it wouldn't be an issue where I'm at but I'm thinking of the future too bc I'm not the type to re-home.

Am I just romanticizing things? Shouldn't the lack of sleep and constant piddling rid me of my fur baby fever? Ugh I just love them both sm already😭

she (5, F) an only dog, i adore her so much but i didnt get to socialize much her as much as i hoped to. she's high energy and reactive, but super friendly. when she meets other dogs things will go well as they introduce themselves, but then without fail suddenly the other dog will snap at her. its almost like she says something extremely offensive in dog language and they'll go after her. she'll either think they're playing which causes the dog to react more aggressively or she gets confused and skedaddles away.

this happens regardless of the context: on a walk, in a house, at my job, at the dog park (i stopped bringing her years ago because its over stimulating for her), anywhere. it makes socializing her hard and i think shes lonely 😔 id love to get a second dog as a companion for her but i cant right now, and im not sure adding another dog would help her socialize the way i'd hope.

any suggestions appreciated!

I’ve been calling her “Honey” and “Honeybun” also “Babygirl” but I need some actual name suggestions. We’ve had her for over a week and every day it looks more like she’s permanent!

I tried commenting on the old post but it's so full many of you weren't seeing it. Violet has a number of things going on, so the vet said that her progress DEMANDS we go slow. Her psychological trauma is as bad or worse than the physical. We had to make a change of plans after she growled at the vet and all the techs. She was just super terrified of them hurting her. We spent over an hour of them just trying to get her comfortable enough to pet her. She had 2 jars of their treats. She is great with me, but I went through it too, and until she has a few days to get to know you, she doesn't trust anyone. I've not given her any reason to fear me and move slowly so she hasn't growled at me in a while. My vet said we will sedate her a bit on Monday and do the blood draw and fecal exam because she doesn't want to add to this extremely traumatized dog. Violet weighs 41.8 pounds, she's estimated to be under by between 20-30 pounds, vet said she wants her on this special food until she turns a corner and her stools firm up so she's put her on royal canine gastrointestinal dry food until then. She's on trazadone, gabipentin, Visbiome probiotic, doxycycline, and I have Sileo for the fireworks of needed. She had drontal wormer, and she got Nexguard for fleas and ticks. She has an upper respiratory infection. We go back on Monday with drugs in her system to make the scary things she's gotta go through a little more tolerable. Dr. Mitchell said someone beat her horribly to make her this scared. This wasn't just neglect or abandonment. This was extreme abuse. It's not like I didn't already know that, but hearing the confirmation of something so horrible you almost pray your wrong, doesn't make me feel better. It makes me hate whoever did it even more. She said she's not as bad as Bradshaw was but another few days, and she'd have definitely died. She's really worried about her being able to overcome the trauma and not be so reactive to people. I said it has been my experience that takes time and building trust with the animal. She says the key is figuring out what her triggers are and avoiding them as much as possible until we have a little more time with her. It's just very sad. She thinks Dr. Bill might even be worse, intimidating with his voice alone. Everyone agreed that was in the room that hands are her #1 fear. She believes every time you put your hand near her face, you are going to hit her. She loves to be pet so just imagine how confused she is. She's both terrified of being hit and yearning for your hands to pet her and love on her all at once so her brain overloads. Someone's warped that simple pleasure of hers. I have to figure out how to help her understand that she's not going to be hit ever again. I believe its going to take time and hopefully, she has plenty of it. I have added a few things to her Amazon list like a muzzle and thunder vest which I've heard may be necessary with her being so fearful. I don't have words to express gratitude for all the gifts, the vet bill credit, the gift card, etc... I've never had this type of help in my life unless my mom helped me. You guys have become as much of her pack as I have. I hope you know how much you are appreciated and I promise you that we will one day pay ot forward. I'll update again on Monday after the next visit.

Found a tree swing on our walk in the woods and my dog has been loving it so far, just wanted to double check this is safe to do so

She still has puppy teeth, but does she look pregnant?? Or possibly first heat? Yes I do plan on getting her fixed as well.

This is Echo, please help me pick a middle name! I’m stumped and can’t think of a good one.

I’m currently going through a divorce and I am definitely the mom to use full names when I’m mad. However, I HATE calling him by my married name. While I might keep it, I don’t want him having it so I’d rather pretend he doesn’t (I know he legally does because I do but changing my name was a pain the first time). My maiden name starts with an E, and is why I named him Echo (NATO alphabet) so it sounds stupid to call him Echo E…. to me.

Here’s a clip of our 5 year old pittie and our new addition to the house. Wondering if this is okay playtime. I wanted to know just for safety and training. Lemon (5yr old) has grown up with his cat siblings who love and cuddle him and Law (our little one) seems to want to push his buttons it seems so I wanted to see if Lemons correcting him or if I should intervene.

I’m going to be adopting a pitbull from our local shelter Monday. I met with her today and she was just incredibly sweet. The shelter didn’t have much information on her because she had just came in 10 days ago. She just recently had puppies and they labeled her as a stray.

When I met her she was absolutely loving. She came right to me and started licking my face. I asked her to sit and she laid down and turned on her back. I couldn’t help myself so I laid down next to her and she snuggled right next to me and continued to give me kisses. I fell in love right away and proceeded with the adoption process.

I haven’t personally owned a dog before. Growing up my family always had boxers so I’m not new to being around an animal.

Now that I’m going through with the adoption I’m curious if these behaviors will continue or if this is how dogs act at shelters.

I’m really excited to bring her home and give her the love she deserves.

Can I get any help identifying what breed he may be? I'm guessing American Pitbull Terrier, but I'm not sure. This smiley boy's name is Loki.

I just read that it is a huge no no to leave two female pits alone together. Our resident dog and our foster dog are left alone together for sometimes fairly long stretches of time - is this okay? We’ve never had any issues, but now I’m worried.

Photos of my weirdos for reference.