For those that aren’t aware, Staffie is just an abbreviation we use here for a Staffordshire Bullterrier.
This is one that tugs at my heartstrings and caused me so much distress, that I was relieved when the ordeal was over. Another damn Covid case! Wow, looking back, we went through a tremendous amount of crap during this period. Luckily, we all made it and we’re here, able to tell our stories and continue our journey through life.
I’ve always loved Staffie’s. I absolutely fell in love with the breed when I was a youngster after watching Jock of The Bushveld. Many of the younger generations may not know this movie, however, it was a hit that likely boosted the breed's popularity at the time. When I was in high school, I had a Staffie named Billabong. What a beautiful dog he was.
Anyway, moving along, let’s get to the story
Oreo grew up with our Labrador, Miss Peppa, and our Dachshund, Pika. They were all quite happy-go-lucky. Miss Peppa is quite old now, so she wasn’t as actively involved when it came to playing. Pika and Oreo were as thick as thieves. They would play daily since they were both still young and energetic.
Oreo with his new baby brother, Pika
Everything was great, until it wasn’t anymore. This was another one of those culminations of factors, that eventually led to a disaster at home.
Everything changed with Covid. Suddenly, we were all couped up at home. The kids couldn’t go to school and we were only allowed out for essentials. Stress levels were high while confusion and uncertainty were the order of the day. Our home isn’t very big either, so everyone was kind of in each other’s space all the time.
I remember how Oreo would also lie on my wife, especially when she was very anxious. It wasn’t just a case of lying with her. It was more like lying on top of her in a protective way. I guess he felt it and just wanted to stay with her to keep her safe.
Things gradually declined. We noticed how he started acting out. At first, he would try and pick fights with Miss Peppa. Initially, she fought back, but it was never a case of either of them getting injured. It was more of the open mouth, showing of teeth and making lots of grumbling and growling noises.
One day, he did manage to bite her front leg. No blood was drawn; however, she did limp a little for a day or two. Since then, whenever he got stroppy, she would simply move her head away and ignore him, which worked.
What started happening next, was where things got scary.
It all happened quickly and suddenly something snapped. Oreo decided to attack Pika. I rushed in, grabbed him by the scruff of his neck and his backside, then quickly pulled him away. I had him on the table, still holding onto his neck, as I figured it would be better than trying to control him on the ground or hanging in the air. He was still growling and trying to look towards where Pika was, however, I got my wife to get Pika and we managed to keep them separated.
Luckily, there were no injuries. Pika’s ear was a little wet, but other than that, he was okay.
After that, things seemed to calm down a little, however, we were very wary and concerned. I kept a close eye on Oreo, and it just seemed as if his tension didn’t want to ease up. We had some discussions about it, and I was just very uncomfortable about the situation. We knew we had to get a behaviorist in to assess the situation, so we got the ball rolling on that.
The second attack happened when I wasn’t at home. Luckily, my sister-in-law was there and she jumped in, pulled his jaws open and my wife again managed to get Pika away. This time, his ear was slightly damaged, but nothing that required veterinary help.
My wife called the behaviorist, who suggested we keep them separated until she can come around. This was a difficult task as the kids were stuck at home and we don’t usually keep room doors and the like shut.
We did the best we could, however, one morning there was another incident. It was early, I’d just woken up and that’s when I saw Pika making his way towards the sliding door, getting ready to go outside. The dogs usually got up when one of us did, so there was nothing unusual, aside from the fact that the room he was in was supposed to be closed.
As I saw him, Oreo did as well. He went straight into a full-fledged attack. As I grabbed him again and pulled him up, poor Pika was pulled up as well. I still remember seeing the fear in the poor little guy’s eyes. Then he fell and let’s just say it was a mess. His ear was completely ripped open from top to bottom. We took him to the Veterinarian, who stitched him up.
‘How are we going to keep this up?’ was the question on our minds.
Luckily, one of our friends took Pika in for a few days, until we were able to get everything sorted out.
When the behaviorist visited, she determined it would be an ongoing problem. Pika was working on Oreo’s nerves and we would have to make a decision to re-home either one or the other. Apparently, Dachshunds can be quite irritable to other dogs… something I’ve never even heard of.
The line was drawn in the sand.
Everyone was upset because how do you choose between your dogs. The final decision was to see if we could find an alternative home for Oreo. The thought was that it’s just too stressful for him here. Even if we let Pika go, he could act out against Miss Peppa again.
We contacted a local Staffordshire Bullterrier Rescue Organization. They were the ones that put us into contact with the behaviorist as well. Within a day or two, Katja came around. After some Q & A’s, she seemed to understand the situation and suggested Oreo be re-homed. Apparently, due to lockdown, there were so many dogs that couldn’t cope. The change in routine just caused lots of distress and Staffie’s were acting out left, right and center.
Katja was very impressed with Oreo though and felt she could assist. He was high strung, but he was a good, well-mannered boy all around. We were equally impressed with Katja. Her knowledge, professionalism, love and understanding was just phenomenal.
It was about a week later when we received a call. They found an old couple that loved the breed and wanted to meet him. Two days later, the old ladies showed up. They fell in love with Oreo! They were so committed, they even went so far as to redo their fencing, so he had zero chance of getting out.
It was such a blessing to be able to find this ‘Dream Home’ for him. He has a huge yard to run around in with a forest adjacent to their property, two lovely ladies that give him their undivided attention, and is spoilt rotten all the time.
To this day, they send us photos and updates on Oreo. He’s made a few doggy friends, loves chasing squirrels up the trees, and is getting a little chunkier than we’d like, but not too bad though, haha. He even has a Yorkie friend, who he rolls around on the ground with. The positive change in him is just amazing to see.
Although it was sad for us to let him go, we can rest assured that he has the best Foster Parents any doggie could ask for.
This brings an end to the little series of Life’s Imperfections. I enjoyed sharing these stories and as life carries on, or some memories return, I’ll continue writing about those and add them to the Life’s Imperfections blog. Feel free to do the same if you’d like 😊
Thanks for stopping by :)
Cheers!
