Sorry our first post is such a downer. . .

(I wrote this on Saturday, and firefox quit right as I went to post.  I didn't realize it was saved here til now, thought I might as well post it). 

We have a sad day at the Murdoch house.  Three months ago we got a mixed breed dog (chow and dachsund we think) from a shelter.  He has been a fabulous play mate for Nolen, has always been well mannered and patient.  He was also a good exercise partner for Brandon.  On Thursday the dog was asleep, and Nolen went and laid on the dog.   The dog got startled and bit  Nolen's face, cutting his eyelid.  With the new baby coming, this really concerned me.  Try as we might to teach Nolen how to act around the dog, he wasn't always gentle- I knew I wouldn't be able to watch every moment, and the thought of what could have happened wouldn't leave my mind.  After a lot of thought and talking to dog people, we decided that Chuck was better suited to a home without unpredictable little kids, and set out to find a new home for him.  Brandon's mom agreed to take him until we could find a home- Brandon's teenage brothers loved Chuck.
    We drove to Alpine last night to drop Chuck off.  When we arrived, we went to help Chuck get settled with their dog, Oddie.  The dogs have seen each other every Sunday since we got Chuck, we always took him with us to Sunday dinner.  Chuck started growling at Oddie, lip snarled and all.  Brandon held Chuck so he wouldn't attack Oddie, and Chuck turned on Brandon, breaking skin on Brandon's face.
    At this point we, didn't feel comfortable giving the dog to anyone, and we just couldn't take the risk keeping him with the kids, so we took him to a shelter this morning.  We have been crying all day- except Nolen who always just makes funny comments about dinosaurs whenever we tell him Chuck had to leave.  We have heard sudden acting out is typical of the Chow breed, and if he is indeed Chow, that would explain the sudden outburst.  We also wonder if he had trust issues because he was abused by a previous owner because he would run for the door everytime I took the broom out to sweep.
    Broken hearted as we are, we learned that shelter dogs and kids don't mix.  We want to try a dog again, raising it from a puppy, and selecting a breed known for being patient and gentle in about a year's time.  What a waste- we feel guilty about the whole thing but know that we ultimatly made the right decision.             
    Hope you all are well.  Love to you all.