I've homed many dogs with people and always go with my instincts.If I had any bad feelings I would say no,end of.I'm not a believer in giving a dog to anyone who has given up a dog previously,call me hard but it's only because most of the dogs I have homed have already had more than one home.

I have just re-homed a wee cocker boy 7 weeks ago who had just came from his 4th home and he isn't even a year old.

What we all fail to see here is a dog is for life,people should always think long and hard before they even think about getting a dog.xxxxxxxxx

Yes people should think long and hard i agree but sometimes there are circumstances which cannot be foreseen.

I have voted for option 4, as I would imagine there are all sorts of reasons for people to give up their dogs where they have no other option. It is very easy to judge other people, but no one can say for sure what they would do unless they were in that person's shoes.

I can't imagine ever giving up any of my dogs for any reason, but who knows what the future may hold. There are definitely some situations where it would be the best thing for the dog - ie two dogs fighting, dogs being left for long hours alone etc etc.

In the situation you describe Dani, I think I would speak to them in depth about the reasons for giving up their previous Rotties and how they feel about it now. If your gut feeling is a good one, then say yes. People change and there is a good chance this dog will stay with them. As you have said, they are perhaps older, wiser and more settled now.

Unfortunately no one can say with 100% certainty that the home they have vetted and agreed to will keep the dog for the rest of its life. I think gut instinct has to play a large role in a situation like this - (when the home fundamentally seems to be a good one).

Interesting thread. Would like to know what people think of this one...If a person rehomed their dog responsibly to people who would keep the dog forever (or that owner would take it back) because of health problems the person was experiencing at the time.. is that a good enough reason to rehome the dog? If at a later date, the person's health was given the all clear.. then would it be ok to rescue another one?

I voted 4, as I have had to rehome a dog, and believe me it was not an easy decision, and I still feel awful about it

I have always had more than one dog, and years ago when the kids were much smaller we thought we had found the perfect dog, for our family and our dog at the time. We had lost our GSD earlier, and we wanted a friend for our girl. We had decided on a Rescue as we always had them, found the perfect boy, another GSD, 3 years old,he was a cracker, bright,obedient, great with the kids, and our other dog, or so it seemed.

Anyway,we met him several times, went for walks dogs got on great, he came home on trial, and settled in so well, it was like he had been there forever. But, very slowly, as he setlled in, looking back I can see he gradually changed in his behaviour, but at the time , you don't notice the little things

To this day I get angry with myself for noticing the little things, in his day to day behaviour with our other dog and feel stupid. After about six months of being with us, he became more and more bossy with our dog, she would not back down , and it escalated into a bit of argument, nothing major. Then we had little growls etc at each other every so often, little things.

Then it kicked off one day, she walked pass him, he must of picked up on something I couldn't see, and he really went for it, this happened in a hallway that one of the kids was walking down, and both dogs were oblivious to my son, I managed to get to my son, put him safely out of the way, and somehow split the dogs up. But, it was a huge wake up call!
My girl ended up with thirty stitches to her neck and chest,torn ear, and Eddie had puncture wounds to his legs

The rescue who I rehomed him from took him back, as I was too worried the kids would get caught in the crossfire of the dogs.

I cried for such a long time when I had to take him back, and know he would be in kennels, it really did break my heart. I don't regret the decision though, as I did what I had to do to keep the kids safe,if the kids weren't around, we would of tried to work it out.

But it has not put me off rescues, and apart from Meg, all dogs since have been rescues.

OMG I have waffled It is just sometimes, it doesn't work out, and I will never say I wouldn't give a dog up, as I have been in that situation, and it is really awful.

If you are wondering what happened to Ed, he was rehomed with a lovely lady, only dog and had a wonderful life.

Sounds perfectly reasonable, you didn't have a choice, and good for you that you didn't give up on rescues. Food for thought with your post. I think the answer is not always clear cut.

Woohoo! I'm in the majority for once!

I've watched this thread with interest and always with tears streaming down my face. It is a very interesting topic and one that will always have conflicting ideas brought about by peoples own experiences.

If anyone had asked me this question last year I would have said, no, definately don't give them a second chance as a dog is for life and I would die before anyone got their hands on any of my dogs.

However, having been faced with an illness and not knowing for certain whether I had any time left I had to make the dreadful decision of rehoming all my babies, for their sakes rather than mine. Even though I have now been given the all clear health wise I no longer have the house, the job or the money to look after them so they are better off in their wonderful new homes.

That said, although I managed to keep one of them, if someone told me I could never have another dog because I gave my others away then I would simply give up on life itself..they are my reason for living and I need to have a regular input as to their wellbeing otherwise I panic about them. Just because they no longer live with me doesn't mean I don't think about them every waking hour.

I now believe, having been through the trauma of rehoming beloved pets, that I would seriously consider the reasons behind the rehoming before making any decisions.

I know I'm not alone in having to rehome a dog or dogs and I think most of us that have been there can empathise with a valid reason.

I agree with Scorpio. It is all well and good saying that you'd never ever give a dog up, but unless you've been in that situation you just don't know. I gave my dog up because it was the best thing for her, she was unhappy in the circumstances we had her in and we couldn't change that- why should that mean that I shouldn't be able to rescue another dog?? I am a good owner, and now I have the knowledge about dogs I wouldn't dream of giving Jobie up unless it would be the best thing for him.. But not everyone has a Dogsey to fall back on to, not everyone has a good breeder, not everyone can afford a behaviourist, not everyone has access to a training class that uses positive methods, not everyone has friends with dogs who can give advice, not everyone has a helpful vet, not everyone understands why a dog acts like it does, so what do they do? Hopefully they do what's best for the dog, and if that means rehoming them into a better situation, then that's the right decision. If you got into a situation where you knew that rehoming the dog would be the best thing for them and not rehoming them would mean that they would suffer or continue to suffer, but you kept them for selfish reasons... Well, you've obviously not got the dog's best interests at heart, have you?

I think that's the point of the post. Each re-homing case should be judged on it's own merits. Re-homing your dogs because you were poorly is abit different because you can't afford them because the cost of beer has gone up in your local, if you see what I mean.

There are an awful lot of charities out there these days that can help with people who might have to re-home too (Cinnamon Trust etc) so it will always be either a) couldn't give a **** or b) literally of no other option. B would get another dog imo, a wouldn't.