Found a Chow, and the shelter plans to kill her.

[charliearalee]

I don't know if this is within the guidelines, but I am an animal lover, and I recently found a chow. She was starving, and not taken care of. I have checked the lost listings everywhere for a few weeks and nothing had popped up. I cannot keep her or I will loose my home, I called our local shelters and they informed me that they would kill her immediately. She doesn't deserve that. She is older, and gets along well with our other dogs, but she needs a kind loving forever home. Does anyone know any place/agency that could help me out? I live in Forida, and am willing to drive depending where it is, as I have a fixed income. Thanks! And I look forward to hearing some possible solutions.

[ChowServant]

try http://www.chowwelfare.com/cciw/states.htm to find a chow rescue group near you. Don't let the shelter have her, shelters are notorious for deciding that Chows are aggressive when they're really just scared. My local shelter refused to let me have a chow last year and insisted on killing him because he growled at them when they tried to get him out of a cage. Poor guy probably thought he was in a safe place and didn't want to come out into the scary open area with frightening people. My Chow growls when the vet asks him to come out of a cage but the vet just shakes his leash and says "Want to go for a walk?" and he hops right out.
I live in NC so Florida is a long haul away, hopefully some chow lover closer to you can help get this girl a home.

[reddog]

Just a thought/suggestion – you might have some success in finding her a home if you also put this post in “Chow Chows That Need a Home” forum on this web site.

She sounds like a great dog for someone who would like an older chow. I’m partial to older dogs. My Whitby was 6 when I rescued her 2 yrs. ago.

Bless you for taking her in a trying to find her a forever home.

Fingers and paws crossed here for you and her.

Pam

[christina chow mum]

Good for you for trying to find a home for the poor thing and do hope someone, somewhere will help you out. I can't really contribute to your efforts as I don't live in the states and do please excuse me for pointing this out but you say you will lose your home if you keep her yet that she gets on very well with your OTHER dogs. If this is the case and you haven't lost your home due to the other dogs, could not the person who owns your home not accept her AS WELL or have I missed something in the written word, which having "writ" moves on.... A little bit confusing but I wish you both all the very best. Do let us know if you find a home for her.

[Me & Tess]

Unfortunately, there are some insurance companies in the US who will not cover the home (owner) if they own Chow. We went without homeowners insurance for years when we moved up here. One of the first answers they ask is "do you have a dog" "what is the breed?" Say Chow & it's a no go. Some military bases have even banned Chows from living on base.

[christina chow mum]

Oh my goodness! Unbelievable to think that what I have said on the forum a couple of times about Chows being looked upon as some kind of "yoda ufo's" from outer space, with suspicion and fear, consequently being ridiculed (him and me) frequently during our walks by adults and kids alike also happens over there! Some military bases are really losing out in my opinion! Good heavens, well I never...Now I understand why the Chow must go and the others can stay. Really awful! Sorry about my confusion. At least, over here, despite all the flak we take, they are allowed to live in houses with their owners like normal human beings, which Chows are! Thanks for the input!

[Rory's Dad]

As an FYI, some insurance companies have relaxed their rules a bit. They do still have Chows blacklisted, but if you can get a CGC certificate through an AKC approved tester they relax the rules. Most allow for a training and testing period to allow you to get it done.

[christina chow mum]

Hi again, charliearalee. Sorry I can't really be of much help physically as I am way across the Atlantic. Have been thinking about your U.S. laws about not insuring Chows. Please note I would take her even if the entire U.S. Marine Corps was camped out in my backyard However, that is no help to you right now so as additional input I would say that Internationally, it is illegal for any breeder (licensed or not), exporter, importer, pet shop owner, private seller to release a Chow without a Microchip inserted just after birth under its skin. My Ming was born in Czechoslovakia and imported into Greece. By law I registered his microchip number certificate (his chip is inserted just under his right shoulder) with the Hellenic Veterinary Association annexed to the Greek Foreign Office and with his Vet. I don't know if this law also applies in the U.S. or you have a similar Association where chips are registered but if so, your Vet or any Vet will be able to find out if your Chow has a chip inserted, the number and her OWNER. If affirmative there are various avenues to go down: She's a runaway, got lost, her owner moved away, her owner died, her owner disowned her (it happens with Chows unfortunately) or any number of reasons why you found her lost and starving. Does the U.S. law about home insurers not covering Chows still apply if the Chow has a microchip and is therefore "legal"?? This could be bunched together with Rory's Dad's very good advice I think. So think about that and keep me posted about the microchip... please

[Juniper]

Internationally, it is illegal for any breeder (licensed or not), exporter, importer, pet shop owner, private seller to release a Chow without a Microchip inserted just after birth under its skin.

Microchiping your chow or any animal is voluntary in the U.S.

[Cocoa]

Microchiping your chow or any animal is voluntary in the U.S.

Same in Canada.

[Rory's Dad]

There is no such International Law..

Microchipping is a voluntary procedure performed by a vet at the request of the owner of the dog. It is designed to minimize dognapping and to facilitate the return of missing dogs. Very rarely do breeders microchip a litter as it is expensive and serves no purpose to them. The microchip needs to be registered to the end user (owner) so if it is scanned it provides info to contact the proper persons.

It has nothing to do with insurability.

[christina chow mum]

O.K. Thanks for all that. When I said "Internationally" it should have read "Europe i.e. Greece". Basically I believe it is a law covering the "import of rare and/or wild breeds of dog" so the owner can be found and sued in the event of any "aggression". Frankly, animals nor their owners nor their houses are "insured" with dogs in mind. The only prized possessions insured over here are possibly Cabrio Cars, Mink coats and Tavernas on Mykonos Island! Appreciate the input. Thanks!

[Rory's Dad]

Actually i thing that is exactly the point. In the US, the HomeOwners insurance plan includes a liability coverage. The risk is calculated based on potential negative attributes...if you own a home on the coast where a chance of large scale storms are increased you will pay more. If your home is more than 80 years old where wiring isnt updated or perhaps the home contains lead paint, you pay more. If you install a trampoline where someone is likely to get hurt or have a pool someone can drown in, you pay more. If you declare that you own an at risk dog (chow, rottie, gsd, dobie, etc) you pay more. Depending on the company, if they already insure you and you add that risk at a later date, they can cancel your coverage. If you 'hide' the risk and something happens, they will deny coverage for any claims.

In the past, the insurance companies kept a list that was based on the breeds most likely to bite, etc. Those breeds were blacklisted and if you owned one, you were pretty much uninsurable. Nowadays, some of them are recognizing that these breeds contain individuals, so if you can obtain a Good Citizen designation for your pet, they will allow them.

Christina, i would bet that the laws in Greece are designed to protect from disease. Microchipping fairly well establishes that a dog has been under quality vet care. In the fairly recent past Greece suffered from a large number of wild/ferral dogs. To mandate a chip program ensures that people dont purchase dogs, find them unsuitable, and then just make them homeless to run the streets.

[christina chow mum]

Well, Rory's Dad, after all the above amazing info I know have been in Greece for too long! (37 years in fact). Your input exactly in tune with English laws. I am thinking right now how "lawless" life is here. As you may know from CNN we are going through a crippling economic crisis, millions jobless, mostly corrupt civil servants being laid off by the thousands, 4 out of 5 shops closing daily or being sealed up by the police due to unpaid obligations to the State, Government Ministers, Surgeons, Orthodox Priests, Actors, TV personalities, Football Managers, ordinary civilians being arrested daily for tax evasion, corruption, blackmail, being members of illegal organisations, you name it. Anything goes as long as you don't ask for a receipt!! So it goes on with the European "Troika" attempting to sort out not only how much more the Greeks can borrow in addition to the many billions already loaned never to be paid back [sic] but also the prevailing lawlessness and corruption which, within a member state of the EU is a definite no-no! I am sad and ashamed to say that the 3 Troika members who visit Greece frequently to "sort out the mess" are often assaulted, jeered at, physically obstructed and pelted with garbage. (!) Riot squads doing a lot of unpaid overtime...

Ergo: I think it highly unlikely that any Greek civilian or organisation is going to bother about my old Chow Ming having a chip or not, biting anyone or not or living in a house with humans. They really couldn't care less. In the former Zappeion "Royal Gardens" where the Greek President now lives, there was a large Zoo. Half the baboons, monkeys, birds and antelopes died of disease. The 3 large African lions they had then in very small cages were frequently pelted with all sorts of rubbish, ice-cream, pop corn etc. When they were just about to breathe their last breath from neglect, emaciated from starvation and very, very sick, officials from the Regents Park London Zoo came over, rescued them and took them back to the London Zoo. Dream on Christina.... I am one voice, but there are no words...

Personally, having been brought up in an English village, born of very strict Catholic/Protestant parents, standing frozen to the spot every time I saw a policeman, this situation over here (animal and human-wise) has always been very difficult for me to cope with, let alone accept. Yes, yes, I know, I hear you, the years went by, and by and the price of a ticket on British Airways got more and more unattainable and I just got older. But there are the good things. There is Ming.... and there is Ming but never "acceptance" of illegality.

Ergo: The only things Greeks usually insure are their health, their cars, their yachts. Even then, mostly with crooked, unregistered "agents". Home insurance is certainly not the norm and if undertaken, there is no clause whatsoever covering "in situ" animals. There is no Royal Society for the Protection of Cruelty to Animals, no animal shelters, no Battersea Dogs Home, no Pet T.V. shows, just little old ladies going around at night feeding scraps to stray cats and dogs. Half the vets here are untrained. Until a few years ago I remember that if you saw a stray dog in the street the "Boyia" would be called upon to come round in his cart, catch the creature in a huge net, whack it on the head and take it to be destroyed whether it was about to "pup" or not. Even today in most Greek islands the milk and garlic gloves get delivered by a farmer on his donkey. Say no more....
At least, I am satisfied that I have "raised" Ming to be a good Beta Chow in all this chaos, that we are "legal" even though the rest of the country .... isn't.
Again, many thanks and thanks for straining your eyes! Christina.

[wokman]

State Farm Insurance allows Chow Chows to be covered on a home owners policy. I agree Post is confusing, maybe details were left out. Some Municipalities have restrictions on type and number of pets. Condominium Associations often have restrictive rules on number and size of Pets in a Multifamily dwelling. One Rescue person I spoke with this year said many Dogs are being given up due to people loosing their home and having to move into a situation where Pets are not allowed. Also as the population ages many Pets owners find themselves suddenly unable to care for their companions due to age related illness. For now it appears that the most intelligent creatures may be the ones that have four legs, at least they did not make such a mess of things and yes I can stand in front of a mirror and say this to myself.

[christina chow mum]

Hi charliearalee, just checking in. Did you finally manage to find a home for the Chow you found or did you manage to "fix" the insurance question and keep it? Hope the news is good news!