My dog needs a new home.

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jtolbert

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It's killing me to post this, but I have no choice.

My dog, Quigley, is in need of a new home. Quigley is an 80-lb. neutered male American Bulldog/Catahoula Cur mix. He's a great dog...He's fun, energetic, great at letting us know when someone is near the house, wonderful at consuming small critters that get into the back yard and generally an all-around good dog. The problem? He absolutely hates my girlfriend and will attack her if I'm not around. This didn't start until she moved in with me in early August of 2010.

A bit of back-story...I've had Quigley since July 2009. I moved into my first house in August of 2009. Quigley was six months old when I got him. Quigley and I lived in the house with no one else (except for a cat which joined us in February of 2010) until Amy, my girlfriend, moved in with me. Quigley had no problems with Amy until she moved in. In fact, Amy played with Quigley quite regularly when she would stay for the weekend or week, but once she moved in, things got ugly.

Now, the dog will destroy anything of hers he can get access to if we're not around to stop him. If I'm in another room with the door shut, the dog will go after Amy. He's bit her several times. It's a bad scene all around.

We have spent no small amount of time, effort and money to correct this behavior. We've had several animal-behavior specialists here, some of them repeatedly. We've consulted with the ASPCA's animal-behavior group. We've worked long and hard with the dog utilizing the advice and directions we'd been given. We've tried everything. :( Even the ASPCA has advised us that his behavior isn't going to change and that he probably needs to just go to another home.

I'm not looking for more advice on what to do. At this point, everything has been done. Quigley needs to go. I'd like to find him a new home. So...Do any of you want a dog? He'd probably be best with an owner that can handle a large, strong dog with lots of willpower and a very hard head. A single owner would probably be best. He's fine with cats and other dogs...He tends to be curious about the other pets, but not aggressive in the slightest. He is fine with everyone else he's ever encountered once introduced properly, except for Amy. I'm betting that if he goes into a home with a pre-established "pack order" he'll probably fall in line pretty fast. Families with large kids that could play with Quigley would probably also work. The dog is not aggressive towards small children, but he's so energetic that he tends to knock small children around a lot. Quigley is crate-trained; he spends his nights and cold or bad-weather days in his crate.

Quigley enjoys being petted or scratched, having his belly rubbed, being chased around the yard, wrestling around in the yard, blasting full-speed around the back yard with branches or logs in his mouth, chewing on (large) rawhide rolls (without knots at the ends; otherwise he just eats the knots and leaves the gooey rest behind), trips to the dog park and consuming squirrels. He understands basic commands (sit, stay, down, come, shake) but his "stay" duration is about fifteen seconds without constant reinforcement. He is a very attentive dog and loves to be in the same room with his people.

Please help. :( Quigley will end up at the local Humane Society shelter in the not-too-distant future if I can't find a home for him. We're located in Illinois and I'm happy to work with a prospective owner to get Quigley to a better home than he has now. Post here or send me a PM if you have any questions.

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I can vouch for how great a dog Quigley is. I wish I had pics of a year and a half ago when he came to play with Titan in our back yard. They were both soaking wet with each other's slobber. He's energetic and if we didn't have Titan I would be all over this.

Somebody's gotta want/need a good dog....please help.
 
One option if you can't find a home is to look into your local recue groups. My wife and I do rescue/foster/adoption for Keeshonds. If it's a good rescue group they will put him with a foster family and then then post him for adoption. Some dogs are best with a family of kids, others in a quieter environment. Some are happier as a the only dog in the family others like the companionship of another dog or two. Recue groups work hard to make sure the dog & owner are the proper fit.

You can interview the rescue group to make sure you're comfortable with procedures and steps they'll use to find Quigley a good home. Ask the recue group if they do home a check to make sure the environment the dog will live in is what the adopdtees say. They will also do a Vet check to make sure the new owner has a Vet, and can care for any medical expenses down the road.

It gives you a good feeling that he'll be well taken care of and happy. You can Google "Bulldog rescue groups" to see if there is one nearby that can take him.

Good luck finding a home, I know how hard it is to give Quigley up.
 
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