Do you want a great dog?

I have a black lab that's going to go, I hate to do it but I just can't justify keeping him.

He's about 110 lbs, male, about 7 years old. He's loyal (protective and obedient) to females and obedient to males and male children. It took him less than a month to learn the cars, knocks and footfalls of my family so I consider Winston a great watch dog. He'll bark up a storm when the front gate opens without our cars proceeding it. He actually bit my father-in-law the first time he came over and he happened to touch my wife, it was a perfect warning bite with no blood but it pissed him off and scared us all. Winston knew what he was doing, I really wish I could keep him.

Cost is a serious issue for us, he eats twice what my other dog does and with the wife in a new, minimum wage job it makes things tough. Winston also has a issue with 'available foods', the kids walk away from their plate and it's gone. He'll drag anything out of the kitchen garbage can that smells like food, so every time I get a 5lb tub of hamburger I throw it away once when I cook it, and a second time when I pick it up out of the back yard after Winston has licked it.

We took on Winston because we wanted a second, younger dog for our boys and the family in general. We'd both been through a case where our dogs had died and nobody wanted to replace him, we wanted a place holder for the affection I guess. Winston is well loved like the black sheep he is. When he steals a 7 year-olds dinner off his plate when he runs off to the bathroom he's not that popular. He was abused at his last home and abandoned for close to a month without food. I used to walk into the house with a newspaper and toss it on the couch and he would make a puddle, If I could find his former owner I'd beat him with a lead filled newspaper. I made a 'baby' out of 2 newspapers and played with him until he now trusts people again. Winston no longer 'puddles', not even if I wack him for fun, his tail just wags. He's a true family dog now with indoor mentality.

I've been fighting this problem for over 6 months, if you want a great loyal dog that needs more than just a two hours a night I can set you up.

If I don't find a taker, Winston is going to a local shelter, I hate to do it because I know they aren't getting a ton of cash either and will have to find a solution at some point. For either a shelter or a new home I'm going to provide 2 large bags of food and all his toys.

I'll drive him a couple hours to find him a home if you're interested, he's a great dog that needs a suitable life. What I see for him is an indoor dog at night that can work a farm during the day, while having human contact most of the day. If kinda sounds like what I want for myself.

You have to know it's serious when we give up our friends..

Rick