Discouragement for the dachshunds

Emails received in the last week (paraphrased):

My dachshund barks too much, I want to surrender him to rescue.
My dachshund has epilepsy, I want to surrender him to rescue.
A dachshund was turned into our shelter by his owner, he's very scared. Can rescue get him?
My dachshund won't stay in the yard, I want to surrender him to rescue.
My dachshund isn't housetrained, I want to surrender him to rescue.
We had a baby, and we don't want this dachshund any more.
We're moving, and we can't take the dog.

Our mantra is 'It's all about the dogs, and it's not the dog's fault." What a challenge it is sometimes to work with people who seem to show no interest in taking responsibility for their dogs' well being. They don't consider their own actions in contributing to the dogs' behavior, or that they should have planned for a 14-year commitment when they got that puppy. They don't think, "Maybe I could do something to help my dog behave the way he needs to." They just want the dog to magically BE that. Such unrealistic expectations for our little friends!

At DREAM we try to mentor and educate people so that they can keep their dogs, but we also want dogs to be in homes that WANT them. And we must balance all these emails with the many we get about dogs in animal control and shelters who are in real danger of death. There are so many. There are so many. My sincerest wish in the world is to see 1 thing in my lifetime: a time when every dog born already has a home waiting for it eagerly and with open, loving arms.

We are a long way from that time.