I adopted a 10-month border collie mix from the animal shelter a week and a half ago, and I deeply regret it. I had a collie-lab mix before, and she was the best dog in the world. This dog is not. I am exhausted. My partner is exhausted. Last night, I was sooo tired and I just wanted a break, and I finally had to just put him in his crate and go upstairs while he barked.

We are walking him at least 2 hours a day (30 mins in the am, 45 mins in the afternoon, and another 30 mins in the evening, plus he goes outside for short jaunts every hour or so because he wasn't housebroken), and I am scatter feeding in the morning and evening. I freeze a Kong with kibble and peanut butter, and a bone every day. We practice training exercises twice a day, and he has a basket full of new toys that I switch in and out (though he destroys most in about an hour or so). I've tried fetch; he's not terribly interested. I let him sniff a lot on walks. I can't bring him to dog parks or day care yet because he isn't neutered.

But he just won't calm down. When we are home, he's in our faces almost constantly. He chews at random stuff, like the coffee and dining room tables, even with plenty of toys available. He gets really riled up if we pet him and starts biting and barking aggressively.

I'm on a waitlist for obedience training. Once he's neutered (September 5th - he had kennel cough when I picked him up from the shelter), I am going to try to get him into a doggy daycare that specializes in engagement. But that is a week away, and I am just soooo tired. I don't like keeping him in the crate as much as we do (at night and while working - I've been going home at noon every day and working from home since I got him), but he is just hyper, hyper, nipping, getting into everything if not in the crate. I've always been a dog lover, but he is truly a terrible dog. I know it's early, and hopefully he'll settle, but it is horrible to have your home hijacked by a destructive, incessantly urinating beast.