Ram, my precious Ramrod, passed over the rainbow bridge Monday, April 26th.
Ram's story is a sad one. He was such a beautiful Shepherd. He came to our rescue about three or four years ago from a breeder. He was the stud dog but they had to give him up with they acquired too many dogs. When he came in, he was intact and used to breeding. Life in the kennel was hard on him and he quickly deteriorated. A high drive, anxious shepherd should never be confined to a kennel.
Unfortunately, when fence fighting with another intact male, Ram severely bit an employee on the leg. We were able to find him a home after that but essentially, he was living on borrowed time. While in that home, unknown to us, his owners used traditional and confrontational training techniques on poor Ram. His behavior and anxiety worsened. When his owners decided to divorced and dumped their dogs back on us, Ram's behavior quickly worsened. He was not the same dog we'd had before. We could clearly see the destruction of training techniques like shock collars and prong collars in him. I hate those people for doing that to him.
Again, Ram deteriorated in the kennel. He became aggressive toward fence fighting dogs, accruing several bad bites on dogs through the gates. He also badly bit another person on the leg while fence fighting. It was the second bad bite for his record. We had him for 8 months total. Twice in those 8 months, we homed Ram with a family. The first time, Ram patrolled the home and became so overly protective that no one but the family could enter. We paid for a trainer/behaviorist to go to Denver to evaluate him. Her recommendation that Ram was a danger in that home and that he should be removed. We took him back. The second bite happened and we were faced with a hard decision.
Ram's behavior had become dangerous and unpredictable in the kennel. He would either be the sweetest dog you've ever met or lunge at someone out of the blue. I've known Ram for a long time and always had a good bond with him. One night I was standing close behind him during class. He looked at me twice but I did not feel any warning sign from him. Suddenly he lunged at me, straight up toward my throat and face. It was pretty startling and I believe that if an experienced apprentice hadn't been on the other side of that leash he would have gotten me. Then he was alright several minutes later. It was incredibly hard to read him. He didn't give warning signs and we never knew if he was going to be okay with a person or dog or not.
When things were not looking good for Ram, we were able to find one more family to adopt him and try. They were a shepherd savvy home that had previous experience with a patrolling shepherd. Ram seemed to love them and we did a slow intro to get Ram into that home successfully.
Sadly, the family contacted Angie Sunday and let her know that Ram was not doing well. He was cowering, startling, growling and unable to settle. We agreed to come into their home on Monday and try to help them out. Monday morning, Ram was growling at one of their sons as he got ready for school. He was having a hard time coping with the father. Before going into the home, the Board of Directors had a conversation about what we should do if this home did not work out.
Unfortunately, euthanasia was the option we came to. We did not make that decision lightly. We've all lost dogs but it is so hard to make the choice to end a dog's life because of the actions of people. Dogs are pure souls and I HATE the fact that people and ruin them so completely that they can not recover. We did EVERYTHING we could for Ram. Behavior modifications, training, medication... everything we had, we gave him. We loved him. He was getting worse. I did not believe that Ram was safe to adopt because of his behavior and unpredictability. Although we love our dogs, we have to think about the safety of the people around them. We can not adopt a dog out if we know he is a bite risk. The last thing we want to do is for him to badly bite a child and then be put down alone and afraid anyway. I also believe as a member of the board that we need to protect the well being of our dogs. If they aren't happy and have no quality of life, we need to think of them and not be selfish. Ram had no quality of life in the kennel. He also would have no good quality of life in a sanctuary. We came down to peacefully letting Ram go over in a loving and peaceful environment.
Angie and I went into the home and the family had already made the decision to send Ram back to us. All of his belongings were packed by the door. We did not tell them what we had decided but took Ram from their home. They did their best for him and it was no fault of theirs. They couldn't risk their children's safety, rightfully so.
We took Ram, letting him have all the treats in the world, and took him to the vet where he got to enjoy some quality time with peanut butter and pets. He passed over the rainbow bridge knowing he was safe and loved. Now he is safe and happy forever.
It doesn't change the fact that we are all heartbroken and hating ourselves for having to make that decision. I cried myself to sleep that night because Ram deserved so much better. We did our best but it was not enough to save him. We did the right thing but... I'll always regret it.
There was huge fallout over it but that's not why I'm writing this. This is for Ram. Ram was a sweet guy who loved getting scratched and rolling around on the floor with a squeaky ball. He was also a damaged dog. People can do so much harm and not have to deal with the consequences. Other good people have to be the ones to make the unselfish decision.
Ram deserved so much better. He will have a legacy of us helping dogs. We don't give up until we have exhausted everything. We will not let dogs go alone and unwanted. We will love every dog we come across, even if they are misunderstood.
RIP Ramrod. I will remember you in every hard dog I come across. I hope you're on my shoulder helping me out. Ram's legacy will also be a stronger rescue that can continue to save dogs.
