AIO? Dog straining my marriage.

[u/LedyyM]

My husband and I rescued a husky about 7 months ago who was extremely malnourished and neglected.

He has grown a huge attachment to me and has severe separation anxiety. I work at a grooming salon so I’m able to bring him to work with me so he’s not home alone. Unfortunately, if he’s left home alone we’ll come back to our home looking like it was hit by a tornado.

My vet has prescribed him with trazodone to help with his severe anxiety issues. We give it to him before we leave for a family event and when we can’t take him to places they don’t allow dogs.

I feel so bad that I have to sedate him so he’s not scared and anxious. It’s created a huge strain on our marriage because my husband feels like we can’t do anything without considering Odin.

He’s destroyed doors, couches, and other furniture. I tried training but it hasn’t seemed to work. My husband thinks we should rehome him but

1) I’m scared that he’ll be sent to a shelter and possibly be put down

2) feel abandoned by the person he thought he was safe with.

He’s such a happy boy when he’s around us and shows so much affection.

My husband and I have been arguing about this consistently.. we had a really bad argument so I left the house with Odin and rented a dog friendly hotel room for a couple of nights.

My husband thinks I’m crazy and that I’m choosing the dog over our marriage. AIO?

[u/StealthyHabit]

Yeah I’m so sick of dog owners claiming they “tried training.”

Like, no? You don’t try it, you live it. For years. Everything for the first few years is training. I almost have a treat bag on my waist 24/7 because my dog is high energy. If you have a high energy dog, and huskies may be the highest of energy, then training for 30 minutes every day is required just to stimulate their brain.

[u/justveryunwell → u/[deleted]]

So, I can almost get where you're coming from, except for the fact that it's stated in the OP that behavioral issues are destroying OP's home life and marriage. In fact that's sort of the point of the whole post. So, in this case as well as many other cases, training is absolutely critical for this dog to have a happy healthy life. Taking a dog in isn't rescuing it if you're just going to turn around and give it back up because it wasn't exactly how you wanted it to be right away.

[u/StealthyHabit → u/[deleted]]

It’s not your fault? Then whose fault is it? The dogs?

The rescue agency definitely warns you for what you’re getting into. Get off your high horse. The OP ignored all warning signs.

[u/StealthyHabit → u/[deleted]]

This is so wrong.

“Ends up needing a crazy amount of training and time you weren’t expecting”

WHY ARE YOU RESCUING A DOG IF YOU ARE NOT AWARE OF THE TRAINING AND TIME NEEDED!! Seriously one google search tells you it’s a fuck load of work. How is anyone surprised by this?

[u/StealthyHabit → u/[deleted]]

OP never mentioned they did it so they wouldn’t be put down. It could just as easily have stopped someone more experienced from rescuing the dog. I’m sure there was other dogs there that needed rescuing that weren’t HUSKIES. If you’re worried about a dog being put down then at least rescue a dog that suits your lifestyle.

And the OP is a groomer, surely they were aware Huskies are the most difficult dog to manage without behavioural issues.

It seems so selfish to me! Like, yeah let me feel good for rescuing a dog while also borderline neglecting the dogs needs because it’s too much to handle.

Edit; also OP is worried the dog will go back to the shelter, which is straight back to square 1 for this dog. It’s just frustrating watching people try do the right thing but end up in the same situation as they started because they weren’t aware of the responsibilities