A Visitor asked the following question on 12/31/2007
I have a heart-breaking situation. A family I know has a black male cocker who they had living outside at her mother's. Now the mother is going into assisted living and they have no home for "Lucky". She has checked all the no-kill organizations around here and none will take him because they either don't have room or don't believe he will ever be adopted because he's 8 years old and has had Bell's Palsy and so need ointment in his eye once a day to prevent drying. I have a 12-year-old black Lab mix and a 3-year-old Dachshund and am concerned about upsetting their world. I believe dogs should be in the house and Lucky has always been outside because they think he prefers that and can't be housebroken. Here's the worst part; she is prepared to euthanize him if they can't place him by January 5 or soon after but doesn't want him to go far away from East TN where she can't see him once in a while. My actual questions are: How adaptive are they to new environments and other animals? Also, How hard is it to retrain an older outdoor Cocker to be in the house?
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1/19/08
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A dog's ability to adapt will depend on several factors, such as how they were socialized as a puppy, if the dog is being placed with other 'intact' or alpha dogs, the old environment vs the new one, etc.
Housebreaking is possible, but requires a great deal of dedication on the owners part.
Has the owner thought about contacting the breeder and asking them to take the dog back? Another option is to look for a local Cocker rescue.
Should the dog be placed in a home far away, there are good people out there that will stay in touch via phone calls and email, and may be willing to send pictures or video of the dog.
Best wishes, take care.
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Tim & Samantha
USACockers.com
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