Aislinn
February 20th, 2005, 09:56 AM
2 weeks ago we adopted a 2 year old female boxer named Tess. A family member gave her to us as she said she could no longer look after her. The next day we took Tess to the vet because we were concerned about her weight and some frostbite we had noticed on her ears and tail. Our vet was not impressed with Tess' condition, she weighed in at 32 lbs., severly underweight for a Boxer, and then with her frostbite on her ears and tail, the vet said she had been neglected. The vet then informed us that if she had seen this dog through the local shelter an investigation would have been pending to Tess' previous owner. Being that we got her from a member of our family we didn't think that was an appropriate route to go. All that aside, she is gaining weight and we are treating her frostbite with some oinment (and not making her stay out in the cold, which should go without saying). Prior to coming to our house, Tess had NEVER encountered any cats. I must mention that we already have 2 other dogs (5 yr old beagle, and 2 yr old staffie), who *were* living quite harmoniously with our 2 cats. NOT ANYMORE! Tess is completely obsessed with the cats and has tried to bite at them every time she gets close to them. Our Staffie in turn gets in on the fun and torments the cats with Tess. The 2 cats were here long before Tess ever came into the picture and they are now living in the basement as so much chaos ensues everytime they are out. We need help teaching Tess that the cats are alright and completely dog friendly! Any tips or suggestions I will welcome because this is becoming a serious problem and I am worried about the safety of the cats!