What would you do in my situation?

[bksheppard]

So here is the deal. My husband and I are contacting the exam doctor for pets tomorrow and getting Silas an appointment to get his eyes checked out. We are stuck in between two rocks with this. The breeder we bought him from said that if there are any genetic things wrong with him that she would allow us to choose another dog and give her Silas back. We are trying to figure out if we think it would be best to keep Silas no matter how the exam turns out; If there is a treatment that will help his site then we would get more details; or if there isn't a treatment then exchange him for another dog. This is a very difficult decision to make but I am asking for anyone and everyone's input on this.

First off, here is what is happening in the future. Brad (my husband) is being deployed to Korea for a 14 months. He will leave this April and I will be moving back to Texas to finish my senior year of college. I will be staying with my parents to help us save money. However, my father does not allow dogs in the house and there is not a fence around my parents house. I am going to school to be a high school teacher; therefore, for one semester I will be extremely busy with internship at a high school. After Brad gets finished in Korea, our next base is in Italy--so we will have to go through moving and quarantining and whatever else goes with it.

If we decide to keep Silas and there is a treatment will we do everything that we can to help.

If we keep him and there isn't a treatment I am worried that all the moving--along with the quarantine--will be too much for him. Also when he is in Texas he has to get use to his surroundings. Oh, while there are in Texas, there is an underground electric fence around our house for my German Shepherd that is with my parents, so Silas and Koda will both wear those "shock" collars, in which Silas will probably be even more skittish. In Texas, people come over to my parents house all the time, it's the hang out place for my brother's youth group and pretty much anyone who wants to stop by. I'm worried with him being in a new place, meeting tons of new people might make him aggressive. The good side of it is that he will be with his brother and Koda is pretty much his seeing-eye-dog. Also in hopefully three or four years Brad and I want to have children and we don't want Silas to fearfully bite our baby because he/she came up behind Silas and startled him. He has rubbed off on Brad and I and we love him so much. Also, we want whats best for him and we just don't know what that is yet.

If we decide to give him back to the breeder then we will have to go through all the new puppy things again. Also, Koda will probably be depressed--at least until we get the other puppy--and we don't want that. Silas may be depressed as well because he will be away from his litter mate. The pros though are that the breeder has more experience with huskies than Brad and I--these two are our first. Also, he sled races so she has several huskies at her house and Silas may feel more at home. Plus, the breeder has lived in that house for a very long time and she doesn't plan on leaving anytime soon.

Brad and I don't want to feel like Silas is a car, were we exchange a broken one for a better one. We really want what is best for Silas. But we don't want to feel like we let him down or we failed him. We just don't know what to do. If you were in our situation, what would you do?

Please help us out on this because we are just so confused on what the best choice for Silas is.

[taz291819]

First, I can't tell you or your husband what to do about exchanging dogs if something is wrong with Silas. That's totally a decision for the two of you.

With that said, if you do keep Silas, he'll be fine in his new surroundings. Those "shock" collars don't really give out too much of a bite, trust me, I've tried them out on myself. And Sibes have very thick fur, especially around their necks, so don't worry about it.

The deal with a lot of people coming around is not a problem. More than likely, he'll be happy more humans show up. The only problem is with the German Shepard, the way it acts will definitely influence the way Silas will act. If the GS doesn't like people coming around, and gets aggressive, there is a strong possibility that Silas will act the same way, when the GS is around anyway.

Other than that, I wouldn't worry about it in the least.

btw, good luck on your schooling!

EDIT:

Forget to add something. If the yard isn't fenced in, you'll definitely need to get a runner. You can't trust a Sibe off leash, especially with other dogs around. Hopefully your parents have two trees in their backyard in order to attach a runner.

[bksheppard]

The German Shepherd is only aggressive when I am home alone at my parents house. She is my dog and she is very protective of me. Other than that she is use to all the people that come around and she is getting old so I don't know how much longer she will be around. The GS is on a shock collar and it doesn't bother her in the least. After she got use to it being on and knowing how far to go around the house, my dad just turned it off but left the collar on her, its worked for 11 years.

I'm more worried that we will be "hurting" Silas by us keeping and thinking that it was the better thing to do.

[taz291819]

Honestly, I wouldn't worry about it. Bringing Silas to a home well there is already a well-behaved dog is a good thing.

I'll add one more thing, since I'm an ex-Army guy myself. If the hubby has to deploy for 18-months, anything that you two share will be a comfort for you. And, just something else for him to look forward to returning home to.

[Mael]

I understand how you feel-there is guilt about potentially returning a puppy that is "flawed". I think that the first thing you have to do is to get those exams done. You can worry all you want but you won't have any real information until the pup sees a vet. So, while you are trying your best to be as prepared as possible, you really can't control the situation right now. There are just too many variables. Your pup could be perfectly fine with some meds, he could have a minor problem, he could have a major problem, etc. Under each circumstance, the situation changes. Therefore, I recommend putting off any decision until all of the info is in front of you. If the puppy has a serious problem that will make it harder for him to live with you guys, it's ok to return him. You aren't doing it for selfish reasons, you are doing it for the good of the puppy. If the puppy has just a minor problem, well then there's no problem!

I hope that everything will work out great for you and your puppy, best of luck!

[Dunc]

The way you make it sound is there is already somthing wrong with your puppy ( sorry it comes across that way )

1st thing is what till the tests are done.

2nd only you can deside after test no-one else sorry.

3rd is a question more than an answer why have you 2 puppys in your life right now with so much going on ? its not fair IMO

[HuskyCouture]

you've had him for long enough that i'm sure you guys are attached. you can't just bring him back because there's something wrong, he's part of the family. also you're not even POSITIVE there's something wrong.

electric fences don't work on huskies, you will need to get it fenced, or leave them on 30ft tie outs outside. there fur is too thick for the shock to even go through to them.

i agree with Dunc, why did you guys get a puppy, let alone two when you already know you will be moving around so much? Quarantine is so stressful on dogs, someone on here has one in quarantine right now, he's been there for months. It's so unfair to the dogs

[bksheppard]

Thanks for all the input so far. We already know he is visually impaired, we just don't know how severe it is. Which we do need to wait to make the decision depending on the results. Also, the reason we were going to get a puppy was because I was a stay at home wife--I was job hunting with no luck for several months--and I had just moved away from all of my family and when Brad would go to work everyday I would be at home by myself. I don't have many friends here and the ones I do have work during the day so I was just alone a lot. Brad wanted to get me a puppy so he told me to find one online close to home and we would get one. I found Koda and just feel in love with him. After that we were talking to some of our friends and family about what we would do with the puppy when we weren't there, if I got lucky and found a job, or if he had depression anxiety, We didn't want the puppy to be alone and to have a companion to play with when we weren't home. The breeder had told us that the puppies weren't very socialized and that worried us, so we thought if we got two of them that would help. I was honestly set on Koda; however, when I saw Brad's face light up when he saw Silas I knew for certain that we were going to get him. At the moment we got them we didn't have much going on, Brad was just going to Korea for a year and I was going to get an apartment when I went back to Texas so I could keep them inside. We didn't expect for us to have some money issues to were I would need to stay with my parents. We also figured that since they would be together then quarantine wouldn't be too bad, I just don't really know how that all works so now I'm worried that if Silas isn't right next to Koda than he will freak out.

[HuskyCouture]

I'd talk to Rich. His husky Kody has been having a tough time in quarantine, maybe PM him about it. http://www.husky-own...2910-rich-kody/

if it's just early stages, it might just be juvenile cataracts, the surgery usually runs around $5000, but I'm sure there are tons of people who would donate to help Silas

[sutsibe]

I assume that Silas has juvenile cataracts? It's difficult, but I've known several dogs that have had this problem, and have been visually impaired because of it, and have done amazingly well! Several friends have run their visually impaired dogs on their sled teams. Dogs do not use their vision in the same way that we humans do - they are more dependent on hearing and smell than vision. As long as he has his brother to help him out, that should be a big help and comfort for him.

That said - get each puppy out on his own, with you or with your husband, and work on socializing them separate from each other, trying to build up their confidence! Get them into puppy classes, if you can manage it, or simply take them out on fun trips with you by themselves, so that they get the one-on-one attention! Don't treat Silas like he's handicapped, and you may be surprised at how minimally handicapped he is! You will have to compensate to some degree for the lack of vision, but if you're calm and confident, he should likely pick that up - your attitude is very, very important! In my opinion, even though you will be busy student teaching and so on, Silas is still more likely to get individual attention with you than with his breeder, and that could be very important to help him develop his potential... Good luck!

If you can get your hands on a copy (see if your library can get a copy for you, maybe?) there's a book you may enjoy about a sled racing dog up in Alaska who is blind "Rivers". It's a true story - a friend who works for the veterinary clinic where he's a patient says that Rivers is a really cool dog! Here' a link to the book on Amazon...

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Dstripbooks&field-keywords=Mike+Dillingham&x=0&y=0

[Rosemary]

It will be very sad to separate them as Silas will obviously be lost without Koda, not just because they have been together from the start, but because he must be quite dependant on Koda, and Koda probably understands what is going on. Has the breeder said what will happen to Silas if he is returned to her?

Edit: Great post Gigi. Thanks for the link, I bought the e-book version for my Kindle. Looks good

[meeshsalts]

You have some difficult choices to make,

What will happen to the pup if you return it to the breeder?

Lots of dogs are Ok being blind. When I was a child my best friends dog went blind and it soon learned to cope with it and had a long life.

Your situation of your partner going away for a long time and you needing to be at college is not an ideal situation to have a dog let alone a Husky which as breed hate being on their own. Don't get me wrong I'm not attacking you, sometimes things change in our lives which seem to happen overnight, this seems like one of those moments.

[SarahNukka&Shadow]

OK my brutally honest opinion... not ment to offend just the way I see things.

The blind thing not an issue at all, dogs have extreamly accurate senses of smell and hearing that they use WAY more than sight anyway so looseing their sight actually isnt that bigger deal to them although they will need some time to adjust they will and quickly.

Taking a puppy back to the breeder just because it is "faulty" to me seems like an incredibley heatless thing to do and Im sure from the way you talk about the pups that you are not heartless so really I dont see you doing this.

Moving to Texas, yes that will be a big change for them, as will being left outside all the time. They will need alot of help adjusting to this and as has been mensioned electric fences do jack all to a husky they will totally ignor them and go walkies on their own so you will need to invest in a proper dog kennel and run seeing as they will be living outside constantly... As I said they will need alot of help and socialisation to adjust so if you are going to be massivly busy actually what you should be worrying about is should you even have them at all given that you wont have time for them?

If you do deside you can give them the time and effort that any sibe pup needs then the quarentine thing SHOULDNT be an issue so long as you are smart about it, you wont need them to go to quarantine at all.. you can get them passports on the PETS scheme DEFRA bascially it means as long as they have had rabies jabs and tests to show they dont have it they can be cleared to travel to any Europian country without having to do qurantine. So again this is not a problem.

But I do urge you to think when you are going to be as busy as you say, is it fair on them? Will you have the time to, take them for at least a couple of good walks a day, train them, socialise them so they accept everything thats going on around them? just BE with them? If you dont do this stuff and do it regularly you will loose you leader status and they will no longer listen to anything you say, they will bond with eachother and you will get ignored and with a breed like a sibe who has seletive hearing at the best of times this is not a good situation to be in!

So thats your situation as I see it, hope thats been a help to you at all. Good luck and I hope things work out for you and the pups for the best.

[Staceybob]

If I can be honest here, You don't seem very confident in your care for Silas.

According to your signature Silas is only 3 months old, so you probably haven't had Silas that long. Silas has a long life ahead of them, but if they have problems with their eyes, Silas is going to need a lot of extra support. If you think that the breeder can offer Silas a better home than you can, then by all means, I would take Silas back and keep in contact as much as you can. But I would consider the idea of whether 'swapping' the dog is the right thing for you or just sticking to having the one dog.

With all the move you've got going on and everything, it doesn't sound like having 2 brand new puppies is a very good idea nor is it easy to cope with.

It's sad that they are friends, and I think it will be very unfortunate if they have to split, but at the end of the day, where is the dog going to get the most care? If you think you can look after Silas confident, then by all means, keep Silas, love them and give them a forever home.

Do what you think you can cope with, and if Silas has to go back to the breeder, Silas has got all their life to make new friends.

Stacey xxx

[BingBlaze n Skyla]

im curious - u mention everything about silas, but nothing about your other puppy? apart from that he might be lonely, is he going to be kept outside too - can you not get fencing put up around your parents property? , and can you not talk to your parents about having them in the house - but only contained to a certain area?? - like when we go out blaze n skyla are kept in the kitchen

also to echo what everybody else said - dogs can get around just fine and have a happy life being blind, they use their noses and ears to get around, i read one story that this dog used to bark, and the echo of the bark would tell him if there was anything in his way, and he learnt to monuver around just fine, and only bumped into something when it was moved out of place as the dog wasnt expecting it to be there

[Arooroomom]

This is what I think. After the tests are completed and IF his problem is severe enough you need to contact this breeder about them fixing this issue. If I were you I wouldn't want another puppy from them because who's to say that puppy doesn't have cataracts too? Also, I know it's water under the bridge... but when getting a second (or third or fourth dog) it needs to be because YOU want the dog. Not to make your dog feel less lonely or to have them entertained. This is the wrong reason to get a dog. I'm not trying to shun you, but i've worked in rescue for some time now and a lot of the time this is when things go downhill.

About your parents and that situation. Huskies don't do well on shock collars/e-fences. It just doesn't work. And honestly the heat in Fl is bad enough where I hate to take my dogs out for an hour walk during the summer. I can't imagine them staying outside all day. Huskies can do fine in hotter climates, sure. But they can't be outside dogs, IMO. There has to be some way to reason with your parents.. some sort of agreement you can come to to keep them in the house and not tied up outside. Even if they have to live in the garage.

Separating and socializing the dogs independent of each other is a GREAT idea and you should really try to do that as much as possible. You don't want them to be so dependent on each other that they basically can't function without the other.

[bksheppard]

I'm going to check out that book for sure. The breeder is a great woman. She had told us in the beginning if there was anything genetically wrong with either and if we gave one back then she would keep him and take great care of him. She said if there was a surgery or fix for whatever was wrong, then she would do everything she could to get it fixed.

The student teaching is only one semester--4 months--so i know that I can give the dogs enough time and love that they need. Plus I won't be working for those 4 months sinc the teaching will take up all of my day. When I was just doing observations for semesters--which were basically the same as student teaching except I wasn't the teacher, I was the assistant--I had enough time for a job and to take care of my German Shepherd. In Texas I live right next to the city lake so walks will happen a lot. Plus my parents will be there to help me out, and they go on walks every night together and they said that they would take the dogs with them. With people there all the time, if Silas wasn't aggressive, I know that they would help out too. Teenagers come over almost every night and since the town is a very small town consisting of about 500 people, I know everyone who lives there and I'm related to almost all of them so I know that they would help in any way they can.

I know that my parents won't allow them in the house, no matter what. We do have a "barn'--its more like another garage but I know the dogs could stay in there when needed. My parents have been thinking about turning it into a small apartment, don't know if that will ever happen, but if it does then I would stay in there with them. I can try to pursued my parents into getting a private fence, which it has crossed their minds a few times. Their is a family that has a husky about a block away from my parents house and they have a shock collar on him. All they do is shave his fur around his neck up a little bit. They've had him for about 4 years.

Oh, the quarantine information makes me feel so much better! We will get them that for sure! I don't want them to have to go through that. Ony question, does that include them getting shipped over into Europe from the USA or is it just from place to place around Europe?

The reason why I don't seem very confident is that is just how I am as a person. I don't know if I can do something unless I have the full details and every little thing possible about the pros and cons until I am certain I can do somthing. I'm a person who worries a lot about things when it comes to decisions that will effet the rest of my life--and I know that is a lot of things.

If Silas were to be sent back, Koda I know would be upset and I don't want that either. They have been together since birth and I want to do everything to keep them from being separated. However, if the breeder can take better care for Silas then I would want what was best for him. Koda I know would be ok in the long wrong. One, if we did get another dog, Koda would be just fine. Two, if we didn't Koda would still get the attention he needs from me and Brad and when I move to Texas, my German Shepherd would keep him company. Even though the GS is older, she is still a puppy at heart. She is very active, always wanting to play, so i know her and Koda would get along.

When we go to Texas, my parents yard is full of several huge trees, along with a huge covered back porch made of cement so it helps to keep the dogs cool during the hot months, especally if we water down the cement, it gets really cold. I was also going to get them two/three little swimming pools to put under neath a couple of trees in the back yard for them. Also, my parents leave the garage open to the GS during the days so she can go in there and keep cool. I know they would do the same for Silas and Koda. I'm more worried about night time with Silas. When he is outside in our backyard here when it is dark outside, he can't see a thing. If we have the porch light on he is okay around the porch, but if him and Koda play out in the yard, he runs into things.

I separate the dogs about 30 minutes a day and work on one-on-one training with them and also have some playtime too. I do need to take them out by themselves though, like to the dog park and everything. I've taken them both by themselves to the dog park once. Koda did great. However, Silas kept getting run over by dogs chasing after their toys that their owners threw. He always runs out in front of the dog not knowing and its too late for the other dog to react so Silas doesn't seem to enjoy it too much. When they are together, Silas stays right next to Koda so he won't get run over.

Thanks everyone for the feedback. I understand where you all are coming from and I appreciate all the help!

[Austinville]

I don't mean to upset you further, but I found it interesting that the breeder would state upfront that if there was anything genetically wrong she would take the pup back. That would have been a red flag to me. Is there any history of problems with any of her litters?

You say, "She had told us in the beginning if there was anything genetically wrong with either and if we gave one back then she would keep him and take great care of him. She said if there was a surgery or fix for whatever was wrong, then she would do everything she could to get it fixed. "

Does that include vet bills of thousands of dollars, possibly? If not, what is her alternative?

Each owner has to do what is right for them. I have a five month old pup and I couldn't return her for any reason.....but that doesn't mean that I believe you shouldn't. Take this step by step as others have suggested. Until the test results come back, you're getting a head of yourself.

[mrs_aggie]

In my personal opinion, I wouldnt return him no matter what was wrong, for me I'd of bonded with my dog and vice versa, He will already have alot of trust and faith in you and I personally believe that if there is something serious wrong you will be the best person for him to be around while adjusting to changes.

With regards to the move Italty wont be as difficult to enter as the UK, as when we thought Nikita's paperwork was messed up we could fly her striaght to Germany without titre blood tests done (therefore no need for quarantine, to have flown her to UK she would of had to go into quarantine for the 2 weeks we'd be there and then the company quarantining her would of had to either ship her to Germany or meet us at the port as we left England) as long as her rabies and all other vaccinations were up to date. If you are unsure then get the dogs titre tests done now and keep the rabies vaccinations up to date, as long as your dogs are chipped, then rabies vaccinated, the titre blood test done a minmum of 30 days later. Your dogs are legal to enter the UK (need tick and worm treatment 24-48hrs before entering) 6 months later. Our blood tests got sent to a lab in America from here in Canada x

[mrs_aggie]

Moving with Pets There are no visa restrictions on pets, but they will be expected to have a clean bill of health from the vet and have had a rabies shot between one month and 12 months before departure.

Cat owners will find kindred sprits in Rome, a city where felines roam free and have a fan club of so-called gattare looking after their needs. In fact, you might even consider adopting one of the many stray cats, making a furry friend and helping to solve a growing problem at the same time. There are also many stray dogs in Italy, but those lucky enough to have owners enjoy a pampering unlike anywhere else in the world. In the cities, they are paraded around in small jackets and occasionally hats, carted here and there on subways and to those restaurants that accept them, of which there are many. Pet owners in Rome have even founded what they call “Bow Wow Beach,†where canines frolic with their ilk and splash out the dog days of summer in the Mediterranean waves.

It is paradise for those puppies lucky enough to live in the countryside, but bringing a dog to Italy may not be a wise idea for those planning to live in a city. For one thing, police have started handing out long-overdue fines to dog owners who don’t clean up after Pippo on the street. More importantly, many apartment buildings have laws against keeping pets, which could restrict your options drastically in what has lately been a seller’s market in Rome and Milan.

I found this here, I dont know if it helps

http://www.transitionsabroad.com/listings/living/livingabroadin/living_abroad_in_italy_moving.shtml

Also here is the DEFRA sight about importing dogs to England

http://www.defra.gov.uk/wildlife-pets/pets/travel/pets/territory.htm

[husky princess]

i havent read all the other replies but only you can make a decision on keeping your pup depending on your circumstances - both time, living accomodation, support and finances.

However my own personal opinion is 6mth quarantine is cruel & after seeing cody (richard & cody on this forum) on the weekend who is half way through his quarantine and seeing myself the hurrendous environment he is living in and what hell they are going through i personally couldnt do it. Complete isolation, lack of company, no exercise is complete torment & cruel to ANY dog let alone a husky.

If you can plan shots and paperwork in advance to prevent this then thats a different story but its one heck of an ordeal travelling half way across the world to put an animal through. it coudl be very difficult getting accommodation in Italy to allow dogs, many live in apartments whcih would add stress to you due to no free access to a garden.

Also i personally hate shock collars and unlikely to work on a determined husky who has the desire to run. I've heard many times that desire to run is bigger & will put up with a sharp shock to get where they want to get to.