Cooper

I love dogs. I always have, probably always will. And if the dog is not very likable- I usually think it can be attributed to its owner more than the dog's nature. Dogs, generally, are loving, selfless animals so long as their needs are met- food, water, security, love... I even believed, until recently, that if a dog had been deprived of any of these things and developed issues- these issues could be overcome with consistently meeting their needs over a period of time. That was 3 years ago that I last firmly held to that belief... 3 years B.C. (before Cooper).

Cooper is our weimeraner. He is a rescue dog that was starving in a metal crate when he was found in about 4 inches of standing water and covered in sores. The rescue group took him in, nursed him back to health, and we adopted him. When we got him- you could still see his ribs and the scars from the sores. But, we firmly believed, love would overcome all and he would turn out to be the best dog we ever had. He was terrified of being put in a crate and if we tried he would wet all over himself and the person maneuvering him into the crate. He was ravenously hungry all the time- even if he just ate. He had separation anxiety and thought he needed to sit on the couch by you and sleep in the bed with you. He refused to go outside by himself for more than the 20 seconds it took him to pee off the side of the porch. He was terrified of the water hose (we think his previous owners would spray him with the hose when he was locked in the crate- probably to keep him from barking- which is why he was found in standing water and why he was terrified of the crate as well). And last, he was completely obsessed with tennis balls.
So 3 years later- what has changed? After eating 2 meals a day, every day, for 3 years- being showered with love and attention from a house full of dog lovers-being walked, played with and surrounded by doggie buddies ( we have 3 others)- Cooper is no longer afraid of the crate. Yes- that is all we have accomplished. He is still hungry all the time- in fact just yesterday he ate a granola bar still in the wrapper while 3 of us tried to wrangle it out of his giant slobbery mouth. We finally gave in and gave him his own chair to keep him off the couch so I consider that a compromise instead of a failure. He still does not want to be outside unless someone is with him (and he has let us know that does not include other dogs). And he is still utterly and completely obsessed with tennis balls. He is the only one of our 4 dogs that makes me want to curse on a regular basis and I am quite convinced he is the most selfish dog that has ever lived (there is a general consensus in our home on this point).
We have discussed getting rid of him- giving him back to the rescue group or tossing him off the side of a building- but there is always a majority that votes the idea down (the members of this majority change from day to day, depending on what Cooper has done to whom). I think because , despite all his issues and selfishness, there is a sweetness to him (it has been debated that this he is just a master manipulator- but we have no verifiable proof) and somewhere deep down we still believe like we did B.C.- that maybe one day love will overcome and he will be the greatest dog we've ever had. Until then, I will bite my tongue and hide the granola bars.