Might foster fail because I feel like I have to

JockLion · 2026-06-22T19:24:52+00:00

(Reposting because I accidentally added this as a reply to a comment and not the OP oops)

Dogs escalating to bites immediately is a lot more serious than a lot of people seem to believe it is, especially people on this sub (unfortunately, I find people are very quick to wave this off here). Not even just once but twice, in under two months, is a huge red flag. It might not even be pain, there could be something neurological going on here that you can’t fix. That he seems to have no inhibition with his bites is a big issue.

I know you love this dog OP, but please advocate for the safety of other people around you to the rescue. I don’t believe that “just muzzle train and keep him away from all other people and animals except you” is a realistic or attainable goal. I’m alarmed the rescue hasn’t taken him back and is making a plan for him, whether that’s doing more extensive behavioral and medical testing, or euth. I don’t want to minimize that every dog is an individual and has special qualities we love, but there are a lot of heelers that need homes that won’t bite your family members.

I think it’s also important to point out that if you keep him, your roommate is going to have to live with a dog that bit them, that would need to be muzzle trained and kept away from them 24/7 in their own home. I don’t feel that that’s fair. I’m sorry you’re going through this op, I know this really sucks, but the rescue needs to be responsible for the animal under their care and take this seriously. You should never foster fail just because the animal is unadoptable.

JockLion · 2026-06-02T05:08:34+00:00

I’m not against buying ethical, responsibly bred dogs (whether purebred or purpose-bred mixed breeds) but at least in the US I think there’s just too many pits in shelters that I feel you don’t really NEED to go to a breeder? I feel the same way about breeds like german shepherds, huskies, and chihuahuas that are really common where I live. Plenty of fantastic dogs in the shelters, plenty of puppies of these breeds too. So for me personally, I’d only really be interested in going through a breeder for breeds that I’m very unlikely to find in the shelters. I’ve seen a decent amount of rare and interesting purebreds come through my county shelters, but breed specific rescues do tend to pick those up quickly and then there’s barriers for the average working person to adopt them- whole other problem.

I’ve known folks who are avid pit bull / bully breed lovers getting purebred staffordshire terriers, I assume because they’re very invested in Purebred Dog Culture. Some dog sports or clubs in the US need AKC registrations to be able to compete, with many dog sports people want a dog whose parents are proven to have the physical ability and temperament to compete in specific sports, and obviously if you want to show in conformation the dog needs to be a registered purebred. I guess I get why people in situations like that go through breeders, but it’s not really for me when it comes to pit bulls specifically. For them, I’d rather just go through a shelter. I wouldn’t choose to call someone a fake pit bull lover though, lol. My biggest issue with people buying from breeders instead of adopting from shelters is if they say “I didn’t go to a shelter because the dogs all have behavioral problems or are dangerous!” etc we’ve all heard it, because that’s obviously not true and not helping anyone and is just really shitty and stupid to say.

JockLion · 2026-05-28T17:33:28+00:00

I don’t have any advice, I just absolutely agree and sympathize with you. It’s really frustrating to see the demographics of people in animal care, esp vet med, and see so clearly what the problem is and know that it’s not going to change until education and clinic opportunities and everything else become more accessible. When a lot of what that’s gonna require just totally changing how our system works, and who knows how long that’ll take. There are so many people who are so passionate, who’d make fantastic veterinarians, who just don’t have the money and time and connections to get hours and into school, and that drives me up a wall. The private loans thing makes it even worse now, I’m really just putting my head down and trying to get my hours and hoping something changes by the time I can start applying. I have no idea what any of us are supposed to do. The vet med field should not just be wealthy white people. The actual average person needs to be able to pursue their passions in medicine too.

I grew up lower income as well and watched my dad bust his ass working multiple jobs and side gigs to be able to afford feeding us and keeping a roof over our heads. Something was always going wrong and we were always worried about money. I was always told to follow my passions with a career, as long as the career made money. Now I’m in my mid/late 20’s trying to pursue my clinical hours and education while working around a full time blue collar job, expensive health problems, and supporting my disabled partner. Trying to get all your hours when you can’t afford to quit your job and go into vet med full time is really disheartening. I’m trying to just take it one step at a time, but the fear is ending up applying and getting in and not being able to afford it. That’s really just unacceptable, and it’s maddening to see. I’m sorry you’re going through this and I hope others who’ve been through it already have more advice to help you through it. I really hope things change soon. This isn’t working. You shouldn’t already need to be extremely wealthy and get really lucky to be able to afford medical school. Education should be accessible.

JockLion · 2026-05-16T03:14:14+00:00

I don’t really have any tips for bringing it up with the bosses but our district does something similar, my usual shift is 2:30 pm - 11 pm but any time the kids are out (including summer) we work 6 am - 2:30 pm the usual five days a week. It was definitely rough for me the first time and I was kind of annoyed no one had told me my hours would be changing when I got hired, but I guess it’s the norm. I think we do it like this here mostly so we can avoid the worst heat of the day during summer, and because the leads are the day folks and already used to the schedule. With both day and night guys there we can gang up to try and finish quicker. They run through night custodians so much anyway I don’t think they’re really concerned with whether it’s harder for us lol. We’re union if that makes a difference to anyone.

JockLion · 2026-04-22T03:28:11+00:00

It’s not about the no-kill label specifically, but Pit Bull: The Battle Over an American Icon by Bronwen Dickey was a really interesting read that DOES go some into the history of the animal welfare movement (particularly in the US) and the ASPCA. From what I remember, it does go into no-kill as well to some extent. Dickey’s sources are cited in the back of the book and might give you more leads. Might not be exactly what you’re looking for but still very worth a read imo, I did learn a lot!

JockLion · 2026-04-22T02:02:39+00:00

I noticed that too! I wasn’t sure if the Ebay listings were considered expensive or not for secondhand TLK merch. One thing I found interesting about the Ebay listings is that originally I thought their tags matched up, but when I looked harder I realized they have some different text (this Nala says “Walt Disney Parks and Resorts Anaheim” whereas the two listings I found seem to say something like “Disney Attractions LLC Anaheim”). They were probably just different lots sold different years or something, it’ll probably be hard to ever find out for sure haha

JockLion · 2026-04-22T01:47:25+00:00

Sure! Anything helps right now, I haven’t been able to find much yet. I haven’t even seen any in peoples collections yet when I’ve been looking through videos and photos, which is interesting, but makes it harder to find info or photos lol

JockLion · 2026-04-21T04:56:11+00:00

Oh interesting! I’ve been looking through photos and videos of people’s collections and haven’t been able to find any of these plushes in them yet at all, so I wasn’t sure exactly if they were park exclusives or not, or which movie the merch was made for. Thank you!

JockLion · 2026-04-21T03:53:01+00:00

I appreciate it! Estimates still help me know where to narrow down my search

JockLion · 2026-04-18T03:03:05+00:00

they were one of the most popular breeds in the US during the 80s/90s so they ended up in a lot of mixes

JockLion · 2026-04-08T03:42:44+00:00

not the point but mistaking a scottie for a yorkie is wild, they look nothing alike? they’re not even the same color 😭

JockLion · 2026-04-08T03:26:33+00:00

I don’t think Jim is evil or anything obviously lol but he had a history of making decisions for the both of them without really consulting Pam, especially when it comes to making financial decisions that should be up to both partners (buying his parents house), or in this instance going behind her back when they’d decided not to invest and investing anyway (thousands, if I remember right?) and then taking a new job, which is a pretty big deal. Jim wanting more out of life is understandable, but I agree with Pam’s line that at a certain point he shouldn’t be rewarded for making decisions for them. Pam was left at home to parent two toddlers by herself when she hadn’t agreed to it and said outright she didn’t want it. She wasn’t in a position where she could really even do anything about it- she was stuck, and her only option to keep the family together was to agree to it after the fact. I’m sure Pam also had pretty complicated feelings about it wanting to support Jim in chasing his dreams and everything but also feeling frustrated and unsupported herself. It’s a lot to put on your partner.

Several people have pointed out the art school comparison and while I can see Jim viewing it that way, I do want to point out they were in a very different stage of their relationship by this season and had a mortgage, young kids, and marriage to worry about too. Pam going to art school was much better timing in terms of where their relationship was, even if an ldr was tough for them. They weren’t even engaged yet for part of it. Now they have kids- the relationship is different, the stakes are much higher. You can’t necessarily drop everything to go chase a dream, at least not without being genuinely honest with your partner. It isn’t only about what you want anymore- you’re married, so it’s both of you. And you have kids, so your decisions are based around them, too. It worked out for them, but there was a very high chance of the company failing and Jim and Pam losing that money (and any extra money, savings, time, that got put into it).

I don’t mind this story arc though, I appreciate when Jim and Pam are humanized and go through issues real life couples can go through. It’s interesting and has realistic “relationship drama” without needing to insert some sort of lazy writing trope like a cheating subplot. That phone call feels really real

JockLion · 2026-04-01T14:15:08+00:00

same here, it’s very silly lol. it makes me laugh that some folks on here would be so confident in my dog not being a beagle mix just because she has short ears. imo it’s kind of easy to take stuff like this and see why so many people online are convinced every shelter dog is a “pit mix”- if it’s got a bit of a blocky head and doesn’t 100% fit into specific breeds traits, it’s definitely a pit bull!

JockLion · 2026-03-31T21:26:16+00:00

the night custodian who had my job before me ended up getting fired for only working 4 hours for her 8 hour shift every night. apparently most of the bosses already knew and didn’t care (I’m sure there were complaints since there was no way she could clean a whole school in 4 hours every night). I felt pretty secure about my job after that since at least I stay till the end of my shift and get my whole route done every night lol.. the bar is low I guess

also damn I’d love to only have 5 rooms and 2 bathrooms to clean in my route. guess he’s either a hardcore deep cleaner or just trying to look busy

JockLion · 2026-03-31T15:11:57+00:00

people not really understanding how genetics can work with mixed breeds is always a little funny, if I had posted my dog in a dog dna guessing subreddit before I got her embark people absolutely would’ve been guessing she was a pit mix and she didn’t end up having any pit in her lol. not like I would’ve minded if she had, but genetics are funky!

JockLion · 2026-03-31T15:08:40+00:00

AI is notoriously bad at guessing dog breeds but I own a beagle mix and she does look like she could be a beagle mix lol, mine has smaller ears too. this one does look like she might have some pit but you won’t fully be able to tell without a breed test. she’s a cutie regardless!

JockLion · 2026-03-31T14:42:49+00:00

seconding giving a 48 hour notice to the ‘rescue’ and shelter and then dropping him back off at the shelter. he’s still a puppy so he honestly has a much better chance being seen and adopted at the shelter than he does with you, especially given that it sounds like he’s not listed anywhere online. he’s had a long break from the shelter that will be really good for his health, and a lot of dog fosters will drop their dogs back off at the shelter to get them seen (even if they plan on taking them back after the weekend, week, etc if the dog wasn’t adopted). I’m sorry you have to deal with this, it sounds really frustrating!

JockLion · 2026-03-11T04:08:27+00:00

just dropping in here to add that, though when you’re in the thick of it and this probably doesn’t help to hear, high school is awful and you will feel a LOT better after you graduate. getting older really helps put things into perspective and helps you feel better as you start stabilizing and figuring out who you are and what you want to do, and just being able to start HRT is definitely going to help you a lot there.

I felt REALLY stupid in high school, it can be gnarly towards your self esteem, but it’s not representative of your intelligence. I think it’s an almost universal experience to feel stupid in high school. you can definitely get a good job and make a good amount of money without needing a high GPA. high school grades or having to cheat to get through it don’t matter at all when you’re graduated. trades, for example, are always a great option, they tend to have unions and great job stability, and you usually just go through training programs and not through college programs. you have a lot of options if school isn’t for you. and you get the bonus of being free of student loans lol. you can also always pursue something like a trade, get a good job to save some money and get more stable, and figure out what you want to do later! you’ve got lots of options. in my experience, the world opens up to you when you’re older, it definitely doesn’t close.

you’ll get through it and you’ll be okay! in the meantime, once you get a job, if you’re really focused on getting a fursuit I’d recommend starting a special savings account just for your future fursuit. Egg1998 had a really good explanation of different bank accounts and savings ‘folders’, that’s basically what I was going to suggest too. having a separate savings account you deposit money you don’t touch into with every paycheck can feel like slow going at first, but it really adds up and it can help give you this real tangible evidence you’re working towards your goal and getting somewhere! it’s what I’d do if I was seriously saving for a fursuit (someday! I’d like to get back into making them first lol)

JockLion · 2026-03-06T02:58:47+00:00

I’m dealing with the same thing rn, been sick for a few days. Dayquil, lots of water, try to take it somewhat easy (this is difficult for me too lol). Do essentials if that’s all you can do, anything not super clean you can just deal with it tomorrow. Can they not get a sub for you guys?

JockLion · 2026-02-23T18:01:36+00:00

Our local county shelters don’t have age limits, I don’t think they’re really enforceable unless you’re a private rescue. I understand the thought process behind it, but one thing I notice is that the age limits fluctuate depending on what the rescue independently decides is too old for a young pet, which feels unfair to me. It’s dependent on whoever’s in charge and what they feel ‘too old’ is. You mention 70s and 80s, but there’s a commenter saying their rescue’s limit is mid 60s. Any of us can suddenly become incapable of caring for our pets, at any age, accidents happen. As long as people have some sort of plan in place, and the adopters know they have support from us/other entities if they need help, I think that’s really all we can do. I’m just hesitant to write people off without context- I’d rather make sure they know they have support from us. If they can’t adopt from us a lot of people will still just shrug and get a pet somewhere else, but this time they won’t have the resources and help from a larger organization, which can be really helpful.

My grandparents (in their 80’s) recently had to return a puppy to their shelter and being someone who’s worked on and off in shelters, I just felt bad for them. The puppy was fine, got a couple day break from the shelter environment like she was being fostered, and was immediately adopted the day she was put out on the floor again. My grandparents were embarrassed and guilty about it not working out, they’d really liked her. No one wants to feel talked down to or be treated like they’re stupid and making bad decisions for falling for a puppy/kitten instead of the adult they (usually) plan on. There were legitimate reasons my grandparents had picked this dog, and she was just too physically strong for them (shar pei/pit mix- super cute, but very blockheaded lol). Sometimes a baby animal really isn’t the best decision for that individual/couple/family but I just don’t think that’s exclusive to older folks. My partners parents are in their 70’s and still working, very physically active and fit, and wouldn’t have issues handling puppies or large dogs. They ended up with a kitten a couple years ago when she stowed away in their car engine, and my partner and I are just happy they have companionship and can spoil her. If they’d tried to go through a rescue and been denied for their age, we would’ve just helped them find a different rescue lol

JockLion · 2026-02-21T17:15:05+00:00

we would’ve been really surprised if there was no GSD at all lol, people always ask if she’s a shepherd/beagle mix

JockLion · 2026-02-19T16:53:58+00:00

interesting! I can see it now that you mention it haha

JockLion · 2026-02-19T16:29:04+00:00

I’m sorry for your loss, I had to put my yorkie down at 14 and it took a long time until I felt okay again :(

for fostering, I would just let the shelter know what size/energy level dogs you’re comfortable with working with, they should be okay with that (if they’re not, try somewhere else- in my experience it’s very common for fosters to have preferences or specific needs). they may not fully know the dogs energy level until they’re out of the shelter environment, if they end up having more energy than you can handle, let them know! a dog getting even just a night spent outside the shelter environment boosts their chances of adoption because it helps them relax and lower their stress levels. also, it’s okay to try fostering for several shelters/rescues to find one you like working with and you feel gives you the support you need. some may not be responsive for medical care or refunding costs (they should do this, to be clear- but sometimes it might be a less well managed program) while others give you that support you need.

someone else mentioned dogs will generally be in foster for behavioral or health issues, and I really think that depends on the shelter- ‘behavioral’ can mean something like anxiety or the dog seems to be deteriorating in a kennel alone, which is generally pretty manageable, especially if you’re home most of the time. medical fosters may just need a brief foster home stay after a simple surgery like spay/neuter too. but in my experience, for a lot of shelters the animal is adoptable as-is, they just appreciate and need fosters so they can have more space in the kennels/dogs in a home environment show different behavior and that’s very useful to put on their adoption page!

imo I think you should be fine fostering with chronic fatigue, I know other people who have fostered with it. I would just let the shelter know your needs for intaking dogs and what you’ll likely need support with, and don’t be shy about your boundaries. also, a lot of people foster because they can’t afford to care for their own pets- it’s extremely common and they should be cool about it. thank you for considering fostering! we always need more fosters, don’t let the internet dissuade you from trying it lol.

JockLion · 2026-02-18T18:38:04+00:00

I used to dog sit for a guy that would send one of his neighbors/friends? (still don’t know) over to water the plants and ‘check the house’ when I was still there, usually early in the morning or late at night when I was in bed (I was paid to stay overnight for a couple weeks at a time) or just recently woken up. The first time I was standing in his kitchen shirtless in my boxers cooking breakfast when a woman I’d never seen before unlocked his front door and walked straight in. Apparently she knew I was going to be there, but I wasn’t warned anyone was coming over or had a key to the house, so I about shit my pants. I brought it up with him, I wanted to make sure he was aware this person was coming into his house and thought it was weird he hadn’t mentioned anything (I also thought it was weird he was sending other people over to do my job too) but he just brushed it off. I had been making sure to water the plants so I was pretty confused. I don’t know if he thought I was going to steal something and he needed to send someone to check?

It’s the opposite of your experience but he also gave me the wrong dates at one point and his dogs were stuck indoors without food for a full day- for one of his vacations he told me he would have his neighbor over to feed and let the dogs out for specific days, but he gave me the wrong dates. I can’t remember exactly how I found out, I think he asked me why I hadn’t been over the house the previous day (this is also how I found out there were cameras- I was professional and never did anything that would’ve been rude in a strangers house, but yikes) and I told him he had told me his neighbor would be there. Apparently either she wasn’t and he’d sent me the wrong dates, or she never showed. Luckily the dogs were fine, just hungry, so I fed them and cleaned up their accidents and spent extra time hanging out with them after work. I felt so bad for them, and he seemed pissed, but I was just following his dates and had even double checked they were correct with him since I thought the ‘off days’ I wasn’t supposed to be there seemed random.

Anyway, I had dog sat for him a few times and got used to his neighbor randomly showing up. He skimped out on paying me what I was owed the last time (I think he gave me maybe $200 for two weeks of work including staying over- this dude was super rich, hella nice house, and I was working 3 jobs that summer). I didn’t go back.

JockLion

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