Tuesday: When we first took our present doggie from a shelter, she was an abuse case and we were the sixth family to take her in the course of a few months, people kept bringing her back over and over.....She had (and still does in some ways) major issues with a whole lot of things. She used to bark and growl at everyone and everything. A whole lotta love, attention, and giving her other outlets to occupy her mind (toys, rawhide, a blanket to snuggle with) has done wonders. She still growls for no apparent reason sometimes, but when we call her, hug her, etc. she's ok now... just takes time for them to know things are alright, she still doesn't trust us to protect her fully, but it'll come in time...it took her a full year to stop showing her teeth when scared too And if he loves to be outside, why not? I had a dog for twenty-odd years who practically had to be dragged in kicking and screaming every night, the only reason I didn't let him live outdoors in the yard was the cats, raccoons, etc...he was part-lab and loved to hunt