oh crap. :(

Well, if it's one thing I've learned from watching "The Dog Whisperer," the breed has nothing to do with aggressive behavior.

I'm so sorry to hear you have to lose Donna, though.

we had a chow chow that cornered people and but a few too....she was perfect with my oldest daughter who was crawling at the time and our chow was her favorite toy...the 2nd time she bit the mail man and my friend in the same day....we had to make the same decision...although not easy to make you made the right one!

My heart hurts for you, but you've got to listen to your instincts.

Sorry to hear about having to send Donna away. My parents did the same thing when I was little. We had other dogs but it was still rough. Thankfully you can get her to a loving home and not some shelter that puts them down the moment it seems they aren't family friendly. Hope the kids (and you guys) recover soon.

My young dog is also very protective, she is only 8 months old, and hasn't bitten anyone yet, but we are working on trying to train her differently - I hope something works, because I can't imagine having to give up a dog as you are having to.

My regrets, Tricia
(de-lurking)

I'm so sorry, hon. I applaud you for doing the right thing for your family (I'm still waiting for someone to come along and try to tear you a new one, ala "would you send away an unruly CHILD?"), but I know it's got to be killing you. I felt the same way when I had to find our dog another home. :(

You're doing the right thing. People before animals.

So sorry! Our dog has issues as well, but hasn't bit anyone yet. Last year we had a dog that kept showing up here and hanging around and we loved him, but he was way too aggressive with strangers. We had to call Animal Control to come get him and get his owners to keep him in their yard. I miss him, but if he had bitten anyone... you know. And heck, he wasn't even my dog!

I'm sure she'll find a home that is right for her kind of crazy.

Lots of hugs to you and the kids!

So very sad. I couldn't imagine the heartache. Only you knows what's best, remember that.

I am so sorry. Hugs to all, especially the kiddos.

I'm so sorry. That must be so hard.

What a terrible thing to have to deal with. I sincerely applaud the approach you've taken, in making sure the appropriate steps were taken with both the delivery person and the authorities. So many people just wouldn't have done so. How are your kids handling the decision? It must be hard on them, too. You are all in my thoughts.

Oh my gosh. I am so sorry. It's a horribly sad situation. And a tough decision for you to make. I am feeling for you.

Oh man, that sucks. I've had to give away a dog before and it's so hard. But it is the right thing to do. You know it is.

But it's still hard especially when you have crying kids involved. Ugh. Sometimes I hate life as well as learning experiences and all of that stuff.

Jenny, I'm really sorry you're having to deal with this. We have a dog, so I can only imagine how difficult your decision was to make, but I, too, think it is the right one.

Our dog has major seperation anxiety too. Fortunately she loves everyone (but is picky about dogs) Sorry, that's a tough thing to do!

I have been a huge fan of your blog and a fairly consistent reader, until now. Maybe you should spend a day in your local animal shelter, and check out adoption rates. For adult dogs, with aggression tendencies, she will likely finish her years in a kennel or run at the shelter. If she does get lucky and wind up in a foster home, if she bites she will be put down. It is your responsibility as an owner to protect her. No dog should be left outside unsupervised in the first place, even if gated in. Now your dog will pay the ultimate price for your reckless behavior. If you know that she is aggressive towards strangers and males, why would you leave her out there? People walk by homes all of the time placing their hands in to pet strange dogs. You are lucky it is just now happening. I am so utterly disappointed by this. It is people like you who don't deserve to own animals. There are many other solutions to this problem, but it seems all too easy for you to toss your dog away and make it someone else's problem.

And also...for liability reasons, shelters are not going to be able to adopt Donna out. Why would you want your dog to live in a shelter the rest of her life, never having a family or home again? Sometimes the more humane thing to do is put her down. Would you like to live the rest of your life in a metal box with a concrete floor? I volunteer in a brand new, kind shelter, but it is not a home for animals. They become extermley depressed, more aggressive, and lonley. There are so many minutes in a day, and unfortunatley too many unwanted dogs.

And there it is!!

Thank you, Tamie. We knew it was coming. And you know, Jenny made this decision so cavalierly and without a second thought. I'm sure she appreciates you feeding her every anxiety about the whole situation. Because she obviously didn't feel bad before.

Oh, Jenny, I'm sorry. I know you hate every single thing about this. You made the best decision in an awful situation. There were no "good" choices here.

My heart goes out to all of you.

I whold heartedly agree with TAMMIE. I had a dog many years ago that was worse than Donna. I worked with him and gave him my time and patience and I learned a great deal by doing some research on the internet and reading books on agressive dog behaviors and my dog (Sam) became the most gentle and well behaved dog. If I can do it then you can too. If your not willing to put forth the effort in trying to save a dog you claim to love then please don't get another one. Donna deserves better and as Tammie stated it was your responsibility in the first place if you knew she was agressive to not have her out in the open for her to bite people until she was worked with. I reccommend you watching the Dog Whisperer if you never have. I don't mean to be cruel, just honest. So very many dogs are put in shelters for this very reason and are NEVER adopted out. A little snip on a man's finger is costing Donna a life sentence. Please see about calling a professal in this area or do some research and put the time in effort into helping Donna instead of throwing her out. She already suffers from separation anxiety (which is something else that can be worked with if you read the proper materials), think of how she will feel if the only home she knows is gone forever and the "family" she thought loved her just dumps her. I understand your pain and delema and I sympathize but there are other options. PLEASE PLEASE think of Donna.