Death for Canine Victims of Black Dog Syndrome

Posted on July 15, 2011 by: WayCoolDogs

Dog owners who relinquish their black dogs, handing them over to a shelter or turning them loose on the streets, may be signing a death warrant due to Black Dog Syndrome.

Unfortunately, black dogs are euthanized more than any other color according to rescues and shelters across the country. Black dogs have been considered the underdog of all homeless dogs for many years, their lives ending with two counts against them. One is their size and the second is their color. For this reason, the black dog is almost always the first to be euthanized and the last to be adopted out to a forever home.

The majority of black dogs are large breeds, such as Lab or Retrievers, or their crosses. Their intelligence and personality makes them excellent choices for therapy dogs and search/rescue dogs…yet they are destroyed because of their color and the fact they do not photograph well for their owners.

Called the Black Dog Syndrome, dislike for black dogs is a phenomenon that dates back to early history when anything black was considered evil. Quick to mind are the black cats of black enshrouded witches, the latest trend of Gothic black designs, the black clothing worn by the mafia or black-jacketed gang members who are “cool.”

The Black Dog Institute, specializing in bipolar and depression, have associating the term black dog with their institute. They have a document titled, “The Black Dog” by Joan Webster, which quotes some of the cases of Freud regarding the Black Dog. “One was called the Wolf Man – about a Man who had a phobia about wolves. His Father had been attacked so fiercely by the Black Dog that he had committed suicide.” (pg. 7, The Black Dog)

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Did Christ Have a Little Black Dog

Credit: istockphoto & © Eric Isselée

Credit: istockphoto & © Eric Isselée

I wonder if Christ had a little black dog,
All shiny and smooth like mine,
With two sharp ears, and nose round and wet,
Two eyes brown and tender that shine?

I am sure if He had, that that little black dog,
Knew right from the first He was God,
That he needed no proof that Christ was divine,
But just worshipped the ground where He trod.
I’m afraid that He hadn’t because I have read,
How He prayed in the garden alone,
For all of His friends and disciples had fled,
Even Peter, the one called a “Stone.”

And oh, I am sure that that little black dog,
With a true heart so tender and warm
Would never have left Him to suffer alone
But creeping right under His arm;

Would have licked those dear fingers in agony clasped,
And counting all favors but loss,
When they took Him away, would have trotted behind,
And followed Him right to the Cross.