November 2019 : Rest in Peace
October 15, 2015
Oscar is not available for adoption.
This little man is Oscar. He was rescued from an abusive situation about 18 months ago, however his rescuer was no longer able to take care of him and he was surrendered to CCRT. This otherwise healthy boy had his teeth removed prior to being surrendered to CCRT and he will require soft food. He is not interested in the resident dogs and will snap and scream if they get too close to him.
The first thing to understand about a victim of dog abuse, be it neglect or physical abuse, is that there’s a range of difficult behaviours you may see, most of which will be fear based. Fear based behaviour is a term used to describe an abused dog’s reaction to unwanted and frightening stimuli. Patience is going to be vital to making any kind of progress with Oscar. If he is untrusting of you, you’re going to have to wait for him to come to you for affection.
Oscar is a very frightened little dog and is displaying a lot of fear aggression.
His foster home is committed to working with him to gain his trust but his progress is very slow:
“Currently Oscar does not seek out attention and prefers to be by himself. He does not warm up to strangers and will lunge and bark at them. He is very fearful of being touched or petted. We were told that he does not like men or children.”
In the meantime, establishing a routine will be the most comforting thing you can do. Getting Oscar used to feeding times, walking routes, etc., will help him start to trust you. Exercise and outside time in general is a great way to bond with him as well, especially if he’s not ready to play or be petted yet. Set up his bed so he has a safe place of his own to retreat to. Essentially, when adopting an abused dog, you need to resign yourself to the notion that he may never be “a normal dog.” But that doesn’t mean you can’t co-exist happily. Do your best as a caregiver to ease Oscar’s anxiety, but know that he may not ever fully recover from the trauma he has experienced. He is going to need time, patience, and a lot of forgiveness.
A behaviourally robust animal can adapt to a great deal before a situation becomes stressful for them. A behaviourally fragile animal cannot handle much without becoming dysfunctional. The same experience can have vastly different effects on individuals.
Oscar’s functionality reflects his current state. Not what he might be or what he was in the past, but how he is Now. He lives in Now; assess him in Now, support him in Now, train him in Now.
Oscar is not currently available for adoption.
You can purchase a sweater and/or blanket for him, or any of our other fosters dogs.
Please consider becoming a CCRT Sponsorship Angel for any of our fosters, by making a cash donation towards their care.
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Vital Stats
Age: 8 yo
Weight: 3.8lbs ( needs to gain a bit of weight–possibly half a pound)
Location: Ottawa
Adoption donation: $350
I am looking for a little buddy. I live alone except for my cat. I had a long haired Chihuahua for the last 5 years. He passed away about 3 weeks ago and I am lost without him. He was very much like Oscar when I got him at 2 years old. He was very aggressive with everyone else. He did however enjoy being around me and my boyfriend who has an exceptional way with animals. He never did change his attitude with others but he did become a very happy and loving dog with both of us. My boyfriend does not live with me and only comes to visit once in a while. I would be very interested in coming to visit Oscar and see if he responds well to me.
Thank you for reaching out to us. We are very sorry to learn you recently lost a beloved pet, it is so difficult to say goodbye. As Oscar’s profile states, he is not available for adoption. However, if you’d like to adopt another of our special foster dogs, please submit an online adoption application form. One of our amazing Regional Coordinators will review it and be in touch!
Thank you for your kind words. I have been blessed with a new little buddy today. My boyfriend found me a 2 year old dog that needed a new home. We are off to a great start. I sure things will go well.
Enjoy your new furry family member!
Just wondering how Oscar is doing… it breaks my heart.
Oscar is so happy to know you asked about him. He’s doing well in his foster home. He is healthy and is now at a good weight. He has a high level of anxiety and his foster family is committed to working with him to help him through his many issues. Oscar sends his best:-)
Will Oscar ever be available? What is the process?
That’s a good question and unfortunately, the answer is we don’t know. He is in an exceptionally amazing foster home who is working with him, but he remains unavailable for adoption at this time.
How is Oscar doing? Do you have a blog with updates? :'(
Our apologies for the delayed reply to your messages; it would appear all websites posts are going to our ‘spam’ folder. We are working to resolve this issue. Oscar is doing well in long term care and he’ll remain with us as long as he needs us. We’re happy to have him!