A woman has revealed why she and her partner refused to give up their reactive dog, despite repeatedly being told to put him down.
Dog owner Shannon McCulloch, 26, has taken to social media to explain her decision not to euthanize her rescue pup after he displayed aggressive behavior. Bruce, the saluki bull greyhound was rescued 18 months ago by her partner, before moving in together with McCulloch and her son around five months ago.
McCulloch, who is expecting her second child this year, told Newsweek that Bruce “was reactive” towards her at first. She spent time training and socializing him, and although he showed signs of improvement, they suffered a setback shortly after.
“We first noticed there was something wrong when he latched onto my arm, and not in a playful way,” McCulloch, from the U.K, said. “Luckily, I had a coat on, so I only suffered a few bruises. But following that, he started head shaking and became extremely aggressive. He displayed aggressive tendencies such as barking, growling, lunging with intent to attack. He began resource guarding his crate and would try to bite our fingers as we opened the crate. He wouldn’t allow any physical touch.”
@the3romigos_ / TikTok
Bruce was taken to the vet, where he was diagnosed with a perforated ear drum, and the treatment involved having ear drops every day, which he certainly didn’t like.
He became more aggressive as time went on and McCulloch had to shut him off from their other dog and her five-year-old son until things improved. Numerous people told the couple to “get rid of him” before welcoming a second child, but she refused.
McCulloch told Newsweek: “A lot of the training involved building his trust as he lost all of it when we had to give him the ear drops. For a few weeks, he wasn’t allowed near our other dog or our son as he redirected onto our small dog a few times and onto us during walks. So, for everyone’s safety, only me and my partner were allowed contact with him.
“We went back to basics—working on obedience at home, moving onto the driveway, then progressing onto walks. It took weeks for him to trust again, it didn’t help that he suffered an abusive past before being rescued.”
McCulloch and her partner took Bruce on short walks, sticking to quiet routes to avoid seeing other people or dogs. His triggers are people (predominantly men), dogs and large objects.
Once he could go on short walks without reacting, McCulloch started venturing further afield and took Bruce on routes with more people. They have also started seeing a dog trainer to help with his “fear reactivity.”
It can be easy to label all reactive dogs as aggressive, but Annie-Mae Levy, a professional dog trainer and behaviorist at Woofz, told Newsweek that “not all reactivity is equal.” A dog that responds aggressively to strangers outside might be wonderful with children at home.
For that reason, Levy explains that owners must figure out the type of reactivity their dog is showing, and the history behind it.
Levy said: “I work with tons of dogs who are initially scared of a new baby in the home. They might growl, fixate, or vocalize when the baby cries. Often, with the correct training, we can have the dog adjusted to living calmly with the baby within a few weeks.
“It’s very important though to contact a dog behaviorist as soon as you notice signs of aggression. The quicker you start work the less likely something will go seriously wrong or any bad habits will become ingrained.”
There are instances when a dog needs to be re-homed, however, and Levy suggests that’s usually when they’ve had a serious traumatic experience, or they are genetically predisposed to fearfulness.
Sharing Their Experience Online
It required a great deal of patience and persistence, but McCulloch has seen many improvements already. She couldn’t be prouder of her family for standing by Bruce.
“I felt deflated when people told us to give him up, but I understood it,” McCulloch said. “That would have been the absolute last resort, failing everything else. I’m not naive in thinking that he’d never hurt my son, however I’m confident he wouldn’t. He has never shown any aggression towards my son, but he’s a dog with a mind of his own and it only takes a second.”
Through training and encouraging positive behavior, Bruce has developed a wonderful relationship with McCulloch’s son. They respect each other’s space, and the rescue pup listens obediently to his favorite five-year-old.
McCulloch documented their journey and shared a video on TikTok (@the3romigos_) explaining why she didn’t give up on Bruce. The clip went viral, with 148,800 views and 10,000 likes at the time of writing.
Layered over the clip, she said Bruce “wasn’t intentionally giving us a hard time, he was having a hard time himself.”
The online response is beyond anything she imagined, and she hopes it will encourage others not to give up on their pets.
“It’s so nice to hear stories from other people who have been in similar situations and not given up their dog,” McCulloch said. “I’m unsure how he will react when the new baby arrives, but I’m hopeful things will be fine. I’m not naïve about issues reoccurring.”
Among the 170 comments on the video, one user wrote: “Need more owners out there like this, too many people give up at the first hurdle. Thank you for making him feel loved & safe.”
Another person responded: “Thank you for not giving up on your first baby.”
While another comment reads: “Well done to you all! Look how far he’s come! Amazing!”
Do you have funny and adorable videos or pictures of your pet you want to share? We want to see the best ones! Send them in to life@newsweek.com and they could appear on our site.
