Is this guy for real ?

[BellaLuna]

So the story goes right before we got Bella we went to go look at a male gsd dog named Hunter first of all this poor dog was in rough shape patches of hair missing all over and he just looked awful. The guy told me he thought the dog was having an allergic reaction to bleach that he used to clean the house right there we were turned off. The guy assured me that hunter was good with kids b/c that was a must since I have 3 well apparently he lied b/c he lunged at my little 1 when she was was walking and fell he nipped at her bun and then quickly released but there was another strike and then she went to walk by him and he went for her again this time on her face the guy swore he was playing with her but I might be new to the gsd world and not to the dog world that was no way shape or form play. He told me he was trying to herd her away from the street not buying into it the hubs and I decided to pass on Hunter. The man tried so hard to push him on us and we respectfully declined. So the search went on and we found Bella she's everything we wanted and more in a gsd and couldn't be happier, but this jerk called last night and said try hunter out for 3 days and you'll see a different dog..NO WAY IN so that he could hurt 1 of my kids is he kidding me so I had to lay it out for him how this dog was a liability and wouldn't chance him around my kids and others. But how could he as a father knowingly put my kids in that type of situation what an irresponsible pet owner,just makes me sick.

[msvette2u]

Was the dog free??
If so, can you get him and get him into a rescue??

[BellaLuna]

No he was selling him for $500. I wish he was just to get the poor thing into a better living situation,if I didn't have kids the whole thing would be totally different and I would be more inclined to help but my children come first, I feel horrible for the dog and wish there was more I could do especially since I have totally fallen in love with the breed.

[shreya_poddar]

thats ridiculous!... the poor boy needs help!... i dont believe in god anymore... but... i hope my angel helps him out!...
n for the owner... disgraceful n unreal!... ppl like him do not deserve to be arnd!...

[BellaLuna]

Couldn't agree more and the worst part is he says he has 20 yrs of experience with the breed highly unlikely... Hopefully if someone comes to his rescue they will care for him and love him like he should be treated, my only hope is that there is no kids involved just for the brief time I spent with him he would be more suitable for an adult only house,hopefully the owner listened and is not in denial anymore about his dog and kids. NO SUCH THING AS BAD DOGS JUST BAD OWNERS...

[shreya_poddar]

OUCH... no wonder experts suggest us to socialise our dogs!...

[Jag]

BellaLuna- I really wish you'd stop saying that. Please go read the 'aggression' part of this forum. Maybe it will open your eyes so that you can understand the truth. The truth is there ARE 'bad dogs'. It's not their fault, it's genetics. However, it sure is NOT the fault of the owner that their pup was poorly bred!! If you truly believed that, you would've bought that dog because you'd know that your ownership would have changed the dog into one that was OK with kids, never inappropriate in behavior, etc.

[selzer]

I don't believe in bad dogs. There are dogs with weak nerves. There are dog's that just do not seem to be as well suited to domestic life as others. Some of the things prized or required in some working dogs can make the dogs unsuitable for a typical family pet: high energy, high drives, independent, hard, strong-willed. Such a dog might easily fail with the wrong owner and be labeled a bad dog, but is he?

I am not sure if weak nerves are a continuum, or if dogs do better or worse depending on management style of the owners, most likely both are true. Some weak nerved dogs are afraid of storms, some become fear-biters, some are so soft they shut down on the mildest corrections, but with management and time, many can make decent pets. They can be very intelligent and bond very closely with their owners. I think the wrong management can make them dangerous and their lives do not have much quality. I don't think the dogs are bad, but there is a defect in them.

Blaming the owners really doesn't help, unless owners can be open enough to try a different approach with the dog and it actually does create an improvement.

I guess my point is that I think that there are bad matches between dog and owner, and dogs have a spectrum of personalities that make them more or less suited for different owners. I don't believe dogs themselves are bad.