To doggy, or not to doggy

[appollo1]

When i was a kid my family had cats. I always wanted a dog and when i got married my wife who had grown up with dogs (Staffies) was keen to get one.

We lived in Germany at the time and looked into what dogs we wanted. I always wanted a Doberman (dont know why but i always liked them) but they were way outside of our budget. We found a german Shepherd for sale in our village and went to look at him. The owner hardly spoke English and my German was only good for ordering 3 beers at any one time!!

The pup for sale (6 months old) was gorgeous and the house was filled with trophies and medals as his dad was one of the top show dogs in Germany.

We went away and thought about having a dog that was going to grow very big then went back a few days later with an interpreter to ask questions that we had thought about, was he good with children?, house trained? travel well in car etc etc etc

We took Appollo home that day and had him for a very long and happy 10 years before we made the very difficult decision to have to get him put to sleep. We spent a fortune on him in his life with food, toys, beds (orthapedic specially made ones) insurance and vet bills. During his last few years we spent over £7500 on his medical care (thankfully most of it was through insurance) but it was worth every penny.

Our children, wife and i grew up to love Appollo as a member of our family not just a dog and it was heartbreaking having to make the difficult but correct decision to put him to sleep to stop his suffering.

I told my wife that we would not have any more dogs as i didn't want to put the family through the upset again, however, 6 Weeks later i was aked to assess a dog (see my signature about German Shepherd Rescue) and when i got home and told my wife about the dog we made the decision to foster him. Within a week we decised he was a keeper and we have had Alfie for over 18 months now and he is settled in and part of our family.

It is a big commitment and i think you are doing the right thing to have pros and cons of having a dog. It sounds like you have a lot of doubt about owning a dog, but IMO they are the best thing a family can have (other than kids) as they are obedient, don't talk back and very loving.

Too many people get a dog on impulse and realise that it is the wrong decision then dogs are neglected and have to be rehomed.

Please consider a rescue dog as there are hundreds of then that have done nothing wrong and need a forever nome with people to love them and they will give you so much love back.

Thanks

[gruntygiggles]

Yeah...it is amazing to raise a dog from a pup so I know where you are coming from.

I would also say, if you are expecting to have difficulties in having children, having a dog about the place will be a god send for you. You can have the absolute worst, most devastating day from hell, but when you have a dog, that looks at you and gives you a cuddle for no reason other than it melts in your arms when it sees you, your troubles suddenly become a little lighter. They don't answer back or offer advice that you may not want to hear. They just want to be with you and make you better.

Another thing...they force you not to be self indulgent in grief, sadness, anger, frustration etc. If you're in a bad mood, they pick up on it and give you the worst guilt trip, so you snap out of it and feel better. If you're sad, they force you to get off your backside because they need walking, so the fresh air and walk stop you feeling sorry for yourself.

I just cannot imagine a world in which I didn't have dogs. I don't think we'll ever have four together again, but certainly, we will always have at least two.

[tigersaw]

I share a little terrier. We are just back from our morning 90 minute walk, she's fed and watered and will snooze till early afternoon. She walks about 5 - 10 miles a day over 3 walks and keeps us both fit and entertained. Holidays? Well I've not had one for about 6 years, but this year getting a cottage in Wales and she's coming too.
Had a lab amongst others as a kid, bit too big and dopey for my liking.

[Littlepeahead]

I agree about rescue animals - a rescue centre will always let you give them back if it really doesn't work out. And you could foster one first.

I don't have time or space for a dog although I do like them, but I love my cats. I adopted Cromarty when he had spent the first 4 years of his life in a cat shelter and had apprently been stuck there all that time as he never 'sold himself' to visitors. He jumped into my arms as I was being shown round and the staff said they'd never seen him do that with anyone so it felt like I'd been chosen. I had him ten years and he was the most cuddly animal you could ever want. Losing him last year to cancer at 15 broke my heart.

Two days afterwards I adopted Iggle and Piggle, and like so many rescue animals thay had been well treated but the owner had to put them up for adoption after moving into rented accommodation which is sadly all too common in the current economic climate. This morning at 5am they'd found a cardboard box to jump in and out of from the ironing board - so they do drive me round the bend sometimes, but they are so loving you'd never know I haven't had them from kittens. Also I know they were the biggest cats in he world - if I'd had them from kittens I would not have been prepared for this - they really are huge and they sleep in bed with me. I even take them on holiday now - though that's a cottage in the New Forest, not the biking round Thailand!

It sounds like you've given this some thought, and whatever dog you get if you do get one it will reflect the love and care you give it. Having an animal put to sleep is incredibly tough, but the joy they bring when they aren't waking you up at 5am is worth the pain at the end.

Or you could always get a bearded dragon, they are quite cute and don't bark.

[gruntygiggles]

Rescuing a dog is a funny one. I am all for it as have done it, but I understand why people often want to just a get a puppy from a breeder.

What I will say about rescues is that, whilst their personalities can have been affected by what has happened in their lives, it is an amazing feeling to give a dog a forever home. It has been almost 6 years since I took on Hollie, our rescue collie. She is brain damaged and mental, but a world apart from the dog she was when I took her on. She had been used as bait for fighting dogs when she was a puppy and then in and out of Bath dogs home as adoptive homes kept sending her back due to her issues of wanting to kill other dogs and barking 24/7.

She now has 3 other doggy housemates and hand on heart, I can honestly say that whilst she is a "special" dog, it is a wonderful feeling to know that firstly me, and for the last 4 years, me and Dan have been able to give her that home and life that she deserves. We are coming toward the end of our time with Hollie, but my goodness, I am glad I took her on. It hasn't been easy, but she has far and away been the funniest member this family will ever have.

As a note...lots of dogs homes will be teaming with puppies soon as it is that time of year, so maybe you could look into a rescue puppy and get the best of both worlds?

[Fallout]

Thanks again for the thoughts guys. See, this is the positive bit, where everybody chimes in with their love of pooches. I'm being swayed quite heavily. I just went out for a fag break (naughty me), and would happily have a dog come out for a sniff about the garden and give me something to look at, other than a lawn in need of a mow and a pair of rutting pigeons.

@Dave - Making the move this year eh? That will be trail bike heaven up there. My new mission is to make you my best pal before you leave so I can get annual invites up for ride outs. I used to quad bike in snowdonia area when I was younger and visiting my grandparents and it's some of my best memories .... particularly the bit when my dad drove off a cliff. Story for another time.

@LPH - Not sure if the mrs would like a lizard. I don't think she's say no though. She seems to like ugly animals. She finds them cute. Whenever something has a hideously screwed up face she's all "Awwwwww .. hahaha". May explain why we're together!

[Fallout]

Giggles, I totally see the merits of getting a rescue dog. The mrs would go for one, undoubtedly. But I liken it to kids really; adopting is an amazing thing, but most people want to have their own. I know it's not the same thing, but I suppose it's similar. I imagine if we end up where we want to be in some years time, in the country with lots of space and a big enough house for it, we'd probably get rescue dogs too, for all the reasons you, Appollo and LPH have mentioned.

[Mr Speirs]

My wife and I rescued our dog Cookie just over a year ago today.
I went through the same thought processes. Looking back they all seemed ridiculous now as you end up adapting your life to include a dog rather than accomodate it.

I would urge you to rescue rather than go for a particular breed though and go to view them in kennels. You might suprise yourself in falling for a dog rather than a breed. And knowing the amount of labs I do they are dafter than a bag of spanners!! They also can be bigger than people think.

Cookie is a Lab/Staff/Collie cross and is an absolute dream of a dog. I swear she understands english. Loves to chase the tennis ball, great with kids, doesn't bark, doesn't mind being left alone for long periods, I don't have her on a lead at all.
We rescued her after initally going to see another dog. We came across her in her kennel. She was excitable (i liked that as I used to have springers) yet when asked to sit or lay down she did straight away.

Rescuing her is one of the best things I've ever done and not one part of my life has been negatively affected by getting a dog.
I take her to work with me and my bosses love having her around which is great.
When we go on holiday or need someone to look after her we get my parents or my wifes parents to watch her...but we always get numerous offers from people to look after her.

Heres a few pics of her:




Go for it, but take your time. Choose the right dog and train them well and you'll have nothing but joy from them.

[Fallout]

Very nice dog buddy. Cross breads tend to be intelligent and have the best of all traits, imo. Not surprised she's very clever. Looks like a goodun.

+1 vote for collie cross, miya is collie crossed with a springer.

Cute giddy pup:


Who grew into a loverly dog, brillaintly clever but cant read despite what this pic shows.


And now she's 4 and we've had a little boy, shes fantastic with him.