# Hardest decision in my life (very long story)



## Ace401 (Dec 25, 2020)

It has been almost 3 years since I made the call to my vet about euthanizing Ace. I still remember that day very clearly and just about every detail. He was 18 months at the time and even now, there is still some regret deep down. 

My family got Ace for me as a highschool graduation gift, we had talked about getting a dog for a very long time and after years, we finally got one. He was from a BYB, which now I look back, there was so many red flags we ignored and were ignorant about as we weren't educated at the time. He was very smart, learned very quickly and knew all the commands within just a couple months. He was also very social, loved everyone he met and everyone loved him.

His first issue was food aggression which started at the age of 6 months old. I bought his first higher value chewy which was a beef taffy. He chewed on it on the carpet and when i walked by him to sit on the couch, he got up and hunched over the chew with all his fur standing and growling, bearing teeth. I was mortified. He had never been aggressive with his regular food so I did not know of this issue until then. Ever since, we always had him eat him in crate, whether it was higher value treats or his regular food. My dad had also been bit because of his food agression and I have had to pull him off by dad before. 

His second larger bite was on my mother, which ended with her needing to go to the ER for stitches. We were getting ready to go out and Ace was on his bed, just woken from a nap and we went over to pet him like usual and say bye. My mom was giving him neck scratches like usual and all of a sudden he latched on to her arm. I had to pull him off as he was not letting go. We dont know what provoked him to bite that time, as neck scratches was something we gave almost everyday. This happened just before he turned one. 

We looked into trainers and everyone in the house hold did obedience with him, he did very well. We also did blood tests to see if anything was abnormal, everything came back normal. For a few months, everything was going well. We continued trianing and everything just seemed so normal for once. 

Then came his second to last big bite incident. This was on my younger sister who was 11 at the time. After our normal morning walk, I was looking at some mail on the dinner table with Ace sitting next to me waiting to play in the back yard. My sister comes up and held out her hand for him to sniff and saying good morning. Next thing I know he latched on and I was trying to pry him off my sister. She went to the ER to get stiches on both the front and back of her hand. 

From then on, our whole family lived very carefully. The younger children could not be alone with him and could not pet him. They had to sit on the stairs to watch TV if he was not crated and many times just spend thier time upstairs (he was terrifed of stairs and could never go up them). 

After that inceident, he also changed. More smaller bites occur, a couple times simlply just trying to put a collar on him for a walk even. His warning was almost never vocal, it was a look in his eye right before he flipped. There were times where he would growl just for us walking by him. 

The last bite he did was on me. I went to get him a treat and told him a few comands and went to feed him. I still remeber the look he gave me as his mouth slowly closed and looked at me and then bit me right in the hand. I was home alone at the time, and when I finally got him off of my hand and into a room, I was in shock. I sat on the couch with blood dripping from my hand, with my vision just white. My thumb was severly bit and when I bent it, I could see bone. Of course I did not go to the ER because I'm an idiot, and luckly my thumb healed fine. 

From that incident I knew, we could not continue living like this. I called by vet who said without animal control going the go ahead, they could not put him down for behavior. I called AC and they recommended me to a trianer who took in bite cases and would evaluate them to possible rehome is possible. I thought this was his last chance. I made my way to them and during the meeting ace went around, licked everyones hand and the trainers even petted him. I handed him over and kissed him bye. 30 mins later I got the call, you need to come get him, he just bit one of the trianer and it took 2 people to get him off. One of the trainer told me the trainer was petting him and he turned around and bit the guy. When they got him off he looked like he ready to bite again if given the chnace. He said that since Ace bites even when nothing provokes him is a serious concern and then best thing to do is put him down. 

The next day I made the call to AC and they let the Vet know. We scheduled for Jan 20th and that call was the hardest call I ever had to do. I felt as if I failed him and that it was my fault. To this day I still feel some regret about this decision. But at the same time I knew it was the right one. 

When he was good, he was the best. I loved him and I still do. He has a special place in my heart and forever will. 

Thank you for reading my super long story and I wish everyone a Merry Christmas from my family to yours.


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## selzer (May 7, 2005)

You did the right thing. Sometimes a dog is just off. And he was. It wasn't your fault. I put a dog down at 7 who was a little similar, mostly my fault though. He ended up biting my hand, and looking back there was a lot of bite inhibition in that bite, and I don't know if I had that dog now it would have never turned out that way. But we can always second guess ourselves. Your dog was not showing bite inhibition and hurt family members seriously. We don't know if it was a rage-syndrome which I think is connected to a form of epilepsy, or maybe he just wasn't wired right. The thing was, he was dangerous. The younger kids in your family do not deserve to grow up with an unsafe dog, and the older members don't have a pet to be afraid of it. 

I am sorry that it turned out that way. GSDs are great family dogs for the most part.


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## Jax08 (Feb 13, 2009)

I am so very sorry you went through this. Thank you for doing what was right for Ace and for you. There is such a thing called "pack drive" and a stable dog would never bite their owners like this. You released Ace from whatever demons played in his head. . It was truly the kindest thing you could have done for him. 

Thank you for sharing your story. Many people come here hoping for a miracle. I hope your story shows them that genetics are genetics and there is no shame in releasing a dog from this.


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## cagal (Sep 3, 2013)

What a sad story and awful thing for you and your family to have had to go through. You did the right thing and the only thing you could have done. I hope you can be kind to yourself in looking back at this. I wish you and your family peace this Christmas.


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## wolfy dog (Aug 1, 2012)

You did the right thing. You gave him many additional chances. You saved him from a life of misery for himself but also your own. This dog had something seriously wrong with his brain. GSDs when treated fairly are devoted to their families and many can handle training mistakes without turning into a wild animal. Don't give up on the breed. Heal well.


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## Kathrynil (Dec 2, 2019)

I'm so sorry! I understand how hard it is to make a decision like this, and I'm glad you took the responsible action. You did what was best for you, your family, and Ace. I hope you have a wonderful Christmas filled with fond memories.


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## WNGD (Jan 15, 2005)

I'm sorry for the decision you had to make but no teeth on me or a family member in anger, not after the first time.


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## mere_de_tous (Dec 23, 2020)

Thank you for sharing your story, though I’m extremely sorry for your loss. I’ve gone through something very similar and had to make the difficult decision to put down my Akita/GSD mix. He was only two. I had given birth to my first child and there was literally no other option. I waited it out about 4 months, and when my baby started lifting his head up during tummy time, my dog got that crazy look in his eye like “wtf is that”..... I had seen that look before when he attacked other dogs and bit a few of my friends (always without warning, kinda like you mentioned). I didn’t know what I was doing when I first got him as a puppy, I didn’t know which behavior was going to spiral into something I couldn’t control. I do feel like I failed him and I miss him so much, every day. He was near 100lbs, I tried to imagine re-homing him and doing something even as simple as handing his leash over to a stranger, he wouldn’t have let it happen. It’d be another bite situation.
He was my buddy though, he made me feel safe when I lived alone. He taught me a lot and I can’t thank him enough for his sacrifice. I hope someday the loss feels a little less painful, for both you and I.


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## Honey Maid (Dec 25, 2020)

wolfy dog said:


> You did the right thing. You gave him many additional chances. You saved him from a life of misery for himself but also your own. This dog had something seriously wrong with his brain. GSDs when treated fairly are devoted to their families and many can handle training mistakes without turning into a wild animal. Don't give up on the breed. Heal well.


I agree with wolfy dog. My first thought was that I wondered if the dog had a brain tumor. Ace401, you did the right thing, but sure pisses me off that the Vet would not euthanize him without okay from Animal Control, it's not Animal Controls dog, it was yours. You saved your dog, and many people from a lot of misery, by having him euthanized. Give yourself a hug!


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