Dilemma: Dog Not the Best Fit...

Hello all,

I'm hoping to get a fresh perspective on my parents situation with our puppy. He's seven months, and quite frankly, he's not a good fit for our family. He's a Border Collie/Texas Blue Heeler mix, AKA, two working breeds, and my parents got him based on an unusually calm trait in a normally hyperactive breed they saw in a friend's dog. He's a working breed. He has nothing but energy. My parents want a mellow lap dog. My mom had plainly said, "I don't walk him because I'm lazy and I don't feel like it."

My mom is the trainer of the family, my dad is the one who takes him for walks, and I am the babysitter who walks and plays with him and feed him when my parents go out for the day (which is often).

My parents don't see the reality: He'll never be a mellow dog, and he's not bred to be a couch potato. My parents are couch potatoes, and they are constantly yelling and shouting at the dog every thirty seconds for being the hyperactive working breed he is.

They have absolutely no intention of giving him away. End of subject. Not a question. And that's not to say they aren't loving dog owners or bad dog owners. They absolutely love the dog, would do anything and I mean anything and everything for him but they get frustrated with the work that goes into training him and caring for him.

I get mad, too, because I feel I pick up so much slack. There's been times that I'm swamped with homework and without warning, my parents say, "Here you go, here's the dog, take him out for potty breaks and if you can, take him for a walk and feed him at a certain time, we need to get out" and it completely disrupts schoolwork. They're not doing that as much, but I feel overwhelmed with how often I am asked to care for the dog without a prior agreement.

And there's moments like today, I realize Doc needs me to step up to the plate, if I wasn't tied down with school. I also don't have the money to care for a dog, but I feel we have a very special connection, like he was meant for me. I have been worried about this since before we got the dog, that Mom and Dad gets frustrated and I take over caring for him.

But what should I do? I care a lot about Doc, and I know my parents won't give him up because they truly do care a lot about this dog. I'm more angry at my parents for choosing a highly active breed with the hope he'll be a mellow couch potato. But he's not, and I feel the need to do something and step up to the plate even though he is not my responsibility.

What should I do?