When we see a pet who was obviously mistreated, as Ari was by leaving him tied to a box in a field in the cold, we immediately think of the cruelty of that human. No doubt, completely cruel. However, very few of us stop to think about what may have driven that person to do such a deed. After living with Ari for the past four days, we have a bit of a glimpse of what may have occurred. Ari seems to have separation anxiety. He barks relentlessly when crated. On his first two nights here, he barked from 9:30pm until 3am. When left alone in a room, he will claw at anything that gets in his way of trying to get to be with you. He ripped the skirt off of the sofa in an attempt to move the separation gate. He barks when he cannot see you.
Could his behavior be due to the trauma he endured from being left out in the cold? Absolutely! Could his behavior be due to living in a new, strange environment filled with smells of other dogs? Certainly!! We take all of this into consideration when we work with incoming dogs. Our patience is vital. But we’re only human. It’s so challenging to deal with these behaviors, especially after losing so much sleep due to Ari’s barking.
That’s why we need to be a little more understanding and forgiving of the person who left Ari in the field. Did he push them to the edge with his behaviors? If a person is already having mental health issues, it’s easy to see how this can happen. We just wish they had been kinder and taken him to the shelter.
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