09/02/2026
MEET SIR ROB.
Sir Rob was an approximately 11-month-old pit mix brought to The Asher House and featured in a rescue video dated October 17, 2024.
The video shows an very excited, high-energy young dog. He can barely wait to get out of his transport crate and practically jumps out when the door opens.
According to a former employee, the high energy continued after his arrival. Sir Rob struggled around other dogs, was reactive and reportedly started scuffles when placed in group play yards.
Then came the first major incident.
According to the whistleblower, one play yard was already chaotic, with several employees managing the dogs, and concerns had been raised about adding Sir Rob to that group.
He was put into the yard anyway.
Almost immediately, Sir Rob reportedly latched onto another dog’s neck and would not release. Staff used multiple methods to separate them, and Sir Rob redirected onto employees attempting to intervene.
Afterward, Sir Rob was separated from the pack for approximately two weeks.
He was reportedly kept in a long kennel under the covered pavilion in the side yard, an area the whistleblower says was used for dog-reactive dogs.
During that time, the whistleblower says Sir Rob became severely kennel reactive and frustrated, repeatedly cage-fighting with dogs that came near his enclosure.
And this is where the environment matters.
The Asher House houses a large number of dogs together, including dogs Lee Asher himself frequently describes as behavior dogs, reactive dogs and dogs other people couldn’t handle.
He has repeatedly talked about taking difficult dogs in and getting them the training and help they need.
So what did that help look like for Sir Rob?
Decompression is an important part of bringing a dog into a completely new environment.
There’s a commonly referenced 3-3-3 guideline in rescue: roughly three days to begin settling, three weeks to start adjusting to a new routine, and three months to become more fully acclimated.
Sir Rob didn’t even make it past that three-week mark.
From the October 17 rescue video to his November 7 “Behavioral euthanasia”
21 days!!
And approximately two of those three weeks were reportedly spent separated from the pack in that kennel, where the whistleblower says his frustration and reactivity became significantly worse.
How much opportunity did this 11-month-old dog actually have to decompress and adjust?
Especially in an environment housing so many dogs, including numerous dogs with supposed behavioral and reactivity challenges.
Not every dog belongs in a pack. Some dogs need quiet. Space. One-on-one handling. Slow introductions. Professional training. Medication. Or a home without other animals.
A dog struggling in one environment doesn’t automatically tell us how that dog would behave in another.
Staff reportedly discussed behavioral training, medication and other interventions because they wanted Sir Rob to eventually be adopted.
According to the whistleblower, none were ultimately pursued.
Then came the second serious incident. Sir Rob reportedly broke out of his kennel while dogs were being released, latched onto another dog and redirected onto employees attempting to separate them. Two employees were bitten but reportedly, did not require stitches.
Later that day, Sir Rob was taken to be euthanized.
The whistleblower says training, board-and-train, fostering and medication were raised as alternatives, but the response was reportedly that the team needed to focus on other dogs and that Sir Rob was considered “dangerous”.
On November 7, 2024, Sir Rob’s record reads:
“Euthanasia — Behavior.”
The incidents were serious. Nobody should pretend otherwise.
But neither should we ignore the environment in which they happened.
Was Sir Rob simply a “dangerous dog” or was this an 11-month-old, extremely high-energy dog struggling in an environment that wasn’t right for him?
Maybe Sir Rob could have thrived as the only dog in a home. Maybe he couldn’t have.
We’ll never know.
When a rescue intentionally takes in large numbers of dogs with behavioral challenges, having acreage, facilities and financial resources isn’t enough.
The question is whether those resources are being used to provide each dog with the environment and professional help that individual dog needs.
Sir Rob had 21 days.
So did Sir Rob really get a fair chance?
Rescuing the behavior dog is the promise BUT what you DO when the behavior actually shows up is the commitment!!
