Violent urges towards puppy. Help.

Posted , 5 users are following.

(Oh boy. I'm probably going to get bashed for this.)

I'm 21 and have always been struggling with anxiety and anger issues. I've acted violently towards objects and myself, but never hurt others. I don't even kill mosquitoes, because I get overwhelmed with guilt.

Recently (and after literally years of preparation and research), my boyfriend and I have adopted a puppy. I've always had animals without having any problem with them : rabbits, cats, older dogs, and even a parrot (I still have her, she has a temper and can be a huge pain in the ass but I love her no matter what and can't imagine my life without her). Now, this is not your typical puppy. I mean, he is the most well-behaved, calm and perfect dog I know. He learns really fast, is house-trained, sleeps through the night, doesn't pull the leash.. He ate ONE sock one day and never did it again (we just told him it was wrong, and when he feels that we are not happy with him, he gets very stressed. We don't even yell. Just have to talk calmly and firmly).

I use positive reinforcement with him, like all my animals. I've always LOVED to work with dogs, event problematic ones. Teaching them things through games and treats is a blast for me.

That's where things go really wrong. 

I love him, and can spend days teaching him something. He is scared of water ? We'll fix it with ham and praises ! He pees on the couch or marks inside ? We'll find something to help him understand that this is not a thing to do ! He snuggles next to me ? He'll get hours of belly rubs ! 

Then, suddenly, I hate him. 

Like, HATE him. I want him to be scared, feel pain, go through hell. I don't want him gone or far from me, I want to see him suffer. I feel immense satisfaction when I think about him being in pain or in distress. 

Then I go back to normal and cry for hours, realizing how horrible I am. 

Let this be clear : I don't beat my dog. I bite my hand to the blood to avoid doing anything bad towards him. I punch a wall, scream in a pillow.. I find something. 

But it makes me act unfair towards him sometimes. I will yell at him because he doesn't eat all of his food, or ground him for not sitting quickly enough when I ask. I hit him on the nose once because he wanted to play with another dog in the street and stopped listening to me. I push him, annoy him. I even hit him once because he was not walking fast enough. It was a gentle hit and he was more surprised than anything, but I'm so afraid to go too far one day. 

I know how good he is. He's a dog, you can't get more innocent than a dog. I know I'm a monster, and should not be around him. I know these urges towards him are NOT a normal thing.

I see a therapist and my boyfriend knows about most of it. I don't want to give him away. My boyfriend loves him so much, and it would bring so much pain to us. I want to see him grow, teach him lots of things, protect him from every danger of this world. 

But right now, I am the danger. I'm so scared of myself, and don't understand a bit what happens to me. I've had a violent father, but I don't feel like it influenced me in any way. 

I don't know if there is any hope to fix this. If my therapist comes to the conclusion that I can't be around dogs anymore, I'll find him the best home I can. Because his well-being is my priority. 

I feel lost. I've never had any diagnostic, and every therapist I saw before the actual one told me I was perfectly fine. 

I'll take any advice, any remark, any word that can help.

I hurt my dog, I hurt my boyfriend, and I'm breaking down even thinking about this. 

1 like, 5 replies

5 Replies

  • Posted

     please please don't hurt your puppy .  

    Dogs are the most loyal creatures on earth and he would die for you if he had to. 

     i'm sure you will do what's best and find him another home if needed. 

     you said he was really sweet and I'm sure there is a family that would gladly take him. 

    ??🐶

  • Posted

    Hi you obviously suffering with anxiety and intrusive irrational thoughts and they causing you great deal of anxiety. Remember they only thoughts not actions. I can see you really love your dog and you are scared that something bad might happen to him. Thats why you are getting them thoughts even tho you dont want to hurt your doggie. I was getting similar thoughts that I will stop thinking rationally and hurt somebody I love even tho I didnt want to. But Ive realised that they only thoughts caused by anxiety. Anxiety make us think strange things. But if you really feeling like you are going to hurt your dog and you cant control it maybe the best idea is to find him new home amd save you and him pain. Cause of you do hurt him you will never forgive yourself..
    • Posted

      I will find him another home if this is my last option.

      Before this, I count on getting all the help I can and make everything to avoid this terrible situation for us and him both.

      Thoughts not actions This is a really bright way of saying it. I will keep this in mind.

      Thank you so much

  • Posted

    Hi l can tell by your post that you are a very sensitive person and to be honest with you l don't believe you are a monster if you were these thoughts wouldn't concern you You are having a thought which petrifies you which is common in ànxiety disorders.Try to remember it is only a thought and don't fixate on it.When you get these thoughts distract your mind and don't give them any power.Your therapist should be teaching you techniques on how to deal with intrusive thoughts.Also don't hurt yourself just walk away and use breathing techniques until you calm down.Remember we get millions of thoughts every day and you have focused in on the thoughts that scare you.

    • Posted

      Thank you for there bright suggestions.

      This is a very helpful way of seeing things. It helped me a lot today.

      I will keep this in mind and make sure I get help where I can.

  • Posted

    So glad you are asking for help. Believe you don't want to harm your dog, you wouldn't be confiding this awful urge if you didn't want help. These mood swings from loving to hating him need addressing though, ask gp about counciling  . I thought I'd had every awful feeling imaginable but I love my dogs , they are my life . I often say to my hubby if it was him or the dogs , I couldn't choose, 😳Poor hubby. But seriously the thought of harming my dogs is so distressing, I feel for you, be brutally honest with partner and gp and get help. There is help, don't hurt your dog or yourself.🐶??

    • Posted

      Thank you so much for this answer.

      I am so scared of having to find him another home, but today was more peaceful with the advices of everyone here. I still had those "moments" but they were a lot less distressing, and I was able to calmly go to another room, leaving the pup with a treat to keep him occupied.

      I will do my best to get all the help I can and make sure I never, ever hurt him or anyone else.

      Thank you.

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