I'm getting a Dog!

Y I Oughta · December 2010

I have finally convinced FI that we should get a dog. This comes after two years of bugging and begging. Now I have to convince him to get a shelter dog over a 7 week old English Bulldog Puppy. I need a list of pros and cons for each. I would rather rescue but he really wants a bulldog puppy. So I'm excited but reserved about the puppy thing. Anyone have dogs that they either rescued for got as a puppy? Maybe you guys can come up with something I didn't to put on the list aside from already being fixed and all shots when they are rescue.

kimheartsscott · December 2010

Why not just rescue a puppy if he wants a puppy so bad? It will probably take more searching and more time to find a specific breed puppy, but it isn't impossible.

FWIW, we rescued a dog this summer, but she is an adult. She's the sweetest damn dog ever, though.

Blueyed228 · December 2010

The bonus of a lot of rescue dogs is that a good percentage of them are already house trained and have been through other training classes.

Plus, most are spayed/neutered, and have all of their shots.

NatesGirl16 · December 2010

What's on your list? I have a shelter dog and love him, but if you have a kid (I think you do?), rehabilitation/introducing him to the house could be an issue. It took Baxter a long time to trust us and feel comfortable in the house. Ordinarily, I would automatically say go for adoption, but it's something to keep in mind when selecting a shelter dog.

NatesGirl16 · December 2010

Ditto everyone about house training. It was so nice to have a dog that could easily adapt to a schedule of walks rather than starting fresh with a puppy.

Also, Kim's absolutely right about looking for a puppy. Petfinder can search your local (and not so local) shelters to see where one is available. It will take time and effort, but my aunt found a chihuahua puppy using Petfinder and her local shelter. Even "designer" dogs like teacup Yorkies get abandoned, so shelters often have a selection of dogs to choose from. I knew I had to have a small dog (apartment) and was leaning towards a Dachshund and found Bax (doxie/beagle mix) fairly quickly.

Y I Oughta · December 2010

Nates we have that on the list as well as already being somewhat trained, shots, and fixed. I do worry about introducing a dog to the kid but she is 13 so she wouldn't be rough like a little kid. The cons of a puppy are the amount of attention. the training, the money on shots and getting it fixed. He has found a breeder of the puppy he wants, but I have found a lot of puppy closer to around a year in age, which would mean some training but not as much as a little puppy. I would rescue a puppy but he really wants the English Bulldog. Sorry if I'm talking in circles, I'm just really excited. I'm like a little kid right now.

Blueyed228 · December 2010

You can get a puppy from a shelter, you will just probably have to pay the "puppy fee".

I would strongly recommend getting an older dog if you can. It breaks my heart knowing that because if their age they probably will never get a home, especially since everybody wants puppies......

Steph0871 · December 2010

Just my two cents as a (semi) recent new dog owner. If you've never had a dog before, go for the year old or so. We adopted an 8-week old puppy back in May. Although he's the cutest damn thing ever, and it was amazing to watch him grow up... he was an expensive little thing. We were at the vet every 3 weeks for one shot or another until he was 6 months old.

We did get lucky, though, because he was actually dropped off at 3 weeks with the mom (and the litter.) So they were at a host family for about a month, and he was completely house broken when we got him, which is really unusual for 8 weeks old.

Next dog we're getting will be at least 6 months old. I don't think I can handle another round of teething.

Y I Oughta · December 2010

Blue that is one reason I am looking into an older dog. I would take a dog up to four. Most of the dogs in our local shelters are Pitt mixes, which doesn't bother me (I actually prefer them) but his mom is afraid of the Pitts because she knows someone who knows someone type of story. This makes it hard to find something specific in our area. I guess I'll just have to see how this plays out, give him my list of pros and cons, and take the kid with me when I go to meet some of the dogs.

Blueyed228 · December 2010

Well, not all pit mixes look like pits, lol. Tell her its something else :P

kimheartsscott · December 2010

Would he be willing to get an older bulldog? Even if it's only a year or two, it might be easier to find than a puppy.

Honestly, if it took a long time to convince him to get a dog in the first place, is he going to want to spend the time caring for a puppy anyway? They are a lot of work (bathroom breaks at least once an hour!) and we steered clear of them partially because this is Scott's first dog.

kimheartsscott · December 2010

UGH I didn't even think of teething! Add that to your con list.

Blueyed228 · December 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_im-getting-dog?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding BoardsForum:17Discussion:761ec46b-7edd-49a3-9b8d-f067bc30d348Post:8ad27921-0e0a-4da9-bd44-0f7d1666454c">Re: I'm getting a Dog!</a>:
[QUOTE]UGH I didn't even think of teething! Add that to your con list. :)
Posted by kimheartsscott[/QUOTE]

I lost a few pairs of designer shoes and 3 bags to this phase......

kimheartsscott · December 2010

My mom lost her dining table, chairs, and a couch.

merivale87 · December 2010

Our puppy is 14 weeks old today, and while I absolutely love her to death, I would recommend going for an older dog.

She is full of energy of course, she costs a lot of money, and I didn't sleep for the first 3 weeks we had her because she was up every 2 hours crying to go outside (and would always mess inside no matter how quickly I got to her to take her out). She had way more accidents in the house than I ever would have imagined, and you need a lot of patience for a puppy, so keep that in mind. We finally have her house broken and she knows the basic commands, but she bites our hands and arms constantly and it hurts like hell (I read this was common when teething), and she rips apart everything in sight (again, teething!) if we don't watch her every single move.

Puppies are adorable, but I spent a lot of time being really angry with our puppy in the first 3-4 weeks we had her, because I don't have enough patience to be constantly following her around every second to make sure she wasn't peeing, pooping or destroying something.

Something to think about :-)

dmiller9274 · December 2010

I would look at the dogs that are available in your area for adoption. A lot of times people pick a breed because it's cute, or whatever reason. Go interact with the dog (everyone that is going to be sharing a home with the dog) and talk to a vet about the characteristics of the breed/breeds if it's a mixed breed.

Dogs/Puppies should never be an impulse buy. It's hard not to do it because they are so cute and you fall in love and want to take them home right then. Your family and the dog are going to have to adapt some, but make sure it's a breed that will fit well into your life.

Maybe not a lot of help, but a couple of things to consider

Good Luck, getting new pets is so exciting!

undyingmizery · December 2010

I know alot about this kind of stuff. My friend fosters and I have rescued many animals. Usually depending on the organization they pay the spay/ neutered and shot costs when getting a puppy. They wait until they are of age and do it for you they did with all the animals that I have gotten. Younger animals take alot of time, attention and patience but are alot of fun, but older dogs have a hard time finding homes because of the fact everyone wants puppies. Rescue dogs can be the best dog you will ever own because to them .. you are giving them a second chance. There are sites if you go that route that shows you the phases of adult rescue. Be sure to find the back ground of any animal before you make your decision.. It will tell you so much about how they act and how they will take to your home. Alot of organizations will offer profiles for these animals.

sarah0725 · December 2010

I'm kind of morally opposed to bulldogs (sorry to those who love them). They are all created by artificial insemination, because male bulldogs are too short to get their junk high enough in the air to have sex with female bulldogs, and they're all born via C-section, because their heads are too big to fit out of mom's birth canal.

They tend to get infections in the folds of skin around their faces, and they have terrible breathing problems. I once knew a girl who had a bulldog who nearly died because it was all excited about a new tog, and it snorted too hard. I forget all of the other health problems, but basically the breed is bred to the point that they are barely functional anymore, and they only exist because of human intervention, since they're pretty much unable to spawn anymore due to problems outlined above. And because of the health problems, their life expectancy is a lot shorter than the hardier breeds - I think it's less than 10 years.

So rather than spending a lot of money on a purebred puppy that pretty much came about due to human meddling, you're better off with a shelter dog.

Y I Oughta · December 2010

DMiller, your Siggy has me cracking up

Thanks everyone for the input. I hadn't even thought of the teething either. I guess FI has found one that is 10 months, so we will be meeting him, but I don't know if he is trained or anything yet. I might show FI this thread so he can see all of the things people have to say. I have a few at the shelter I want to meet before we make our decision. I have had dogs before, and FI has pet sit for a few weeks, So nobody has experience with them except for me. I grew up with dogs, so I know what I'm getting into but he doesn't. His mom comes from a country where they eat dogs so she can't understand why someone would want one as a pet.

Nebb · December 2010

We have a purebred pug who we bought at 8wks old and I would NEVER ever ever pass up what we experienced with him. It WAS trying at times, but the house training didnt take that long (a few months), and he didnt ruin a lot of our stuff (some, but not all). Its just incredible seeing him grow up, be a cute fuzzy puppy and then a grown adult dog. I dont recall it being THAT much for shots, we were obligated to neuter or we wouldnt get the registration (part of our terms) but i dont recall it being an insane amount of money. He is like my baby, since I have had him SINCE he was a small baby. I know its not all that relevant to most, but I have a few pics of him from when he was first first born (from 1-7wks) and I just love seeing them!

You also cant beat baby puppy breath! *love*

kimheartsscott · December 2010

I didn't really want to get into all the moral issues of bulldog breeding (everything Sarahnumbers said is true, btw) but I forgot to mention the breathing issues! But, I'm also assuming your fiance isn't stupid and looked into the breed before zeroing in on it.

avsfan33 · December 2010

I got lucky with our puppy. The owner managed to get him house trained before giving the puppies away. He's had 5 accidents since we got him and they were all our fault (not paying attention). He's pretty smart and easy to train. He slept through the night and doesn't chew things he's not supposed to. However, my mom's dog was the complete opposite. Giant pain in the ass, ate the wall and the door, ate my shoes, didn't sleep, etc,.

Puppies are expensive though, we spent about 400 dollars in the first few weeks on just shots. We have to get him fixed in February and we've had to bring him to the vet once because he fell on ice and acted like it was the end of the world. He was fine just embarassed that he fell.

maratea · December 2010

If you have the time and are willing to put in a lot of work, you might be ok with a puppy. But, as I said, they are tons of work and require a lot of attention. When I lived with my parents, we raised about 6 litters of puppies (not breeders, our dog was a whore and my parents weren't responsible enough to get her fixed, but all of the puppies went to good homes, and most of them are still alive and have great families), and it was so much work.

Also, I know some people really love purebred dogs, but don't be put off by a dog just because it's not purebred. There is such thing as hybrid vigor in dogs too.

If you want a puppy, what you need to look at is your schedule, how much time you're willing to work with the dog, how much training (pro or not) you want to do with the dog and whether it's worth it to you. Like PPs said, there are many older dogs at shelters who deserve just as much love and attention as puppies.

Y I Oughta · December 2010

Sarah I never knew that about Bulldogs. Is there a difference between the English Bulldog and the bulldog? He wants the ones that grow bigger, and don't have as many problems as the smaller ones. FI says he has researched them and they aren't too bad health wise, but I don't know.

Nebb- I would love nothing more than a puppy but I just don't think it's possible at this point. It would require so much more attention than an older dog. I do love puppy breath tho.

I really want a Great Dane puppy, but they are very expensive around here.

I do want to be able to name the puppy myself and don't want to inherit the name someone else gave it, so that is one drawback of a shelter dog.

kimheartsscott · December 2010

Avs, I've been meaning to tell you, your dog is hilarious. He looks like a cartoon in that picture, I love his expression.

kimheartsscott · December 2010

You can change shelter dogs names, fairly easily.

graceb15 · December 2010

If you're going to buy from a breeder, please make sure it is a reputable one! Do NOT buy from a backyard breeder that doesn't know what they're doing. Research, research, research! Here's some good links about reputable breeders if you don't know what they are.

http://www.boxermap.com/reputablebreeder.html

http://www.hkc.org/breederchoice.htm

http://www.hoasc.org/aboutsams/goodbreeder.html

sarah0725 · December 2010

In Response to <a href="http://forums.theknot.com/Sites/theknot/Pages/Main.aspx/wedding-boards_snarky-brides_im-getting-dog?plckFindPostKey=Cat:Wedding%20BoardsForum:17Discussion:761ec46b-7edd-49a3-9b8d-f067bc30d348Post:2be1ed11-479c-43a1-ad01-93b5dac382da">Re: I'm getting a Dog!</a>:
[QUOTE]Sarah I never knew that about Bulldogs. Is there a difference between the English Bulldog and the bulldog? He wants the ones that grow bigger, and don't have as many problems as the smaller ones. FI says he has researched them and they aren't too bad health wise, but I don't know. Nebb- I would love nothing more than a puppy but I just don't think it's possible at this point. It would require so much more attention than an older dog. I do love puppy breath tho. I really want a Great Dane puppy, but they are very expensive around here. I do want to be able to name the puppy myself and don't want to inherit the name someone else gave it, so that is one drawback of a shelter dog.
Posted by Y I Oughta[/QUOTE]

He might know more than I know - the two dogs I met when I learned all this stuff (one of whom ended up in the hospital over excessive toy excitement) were probably American bulldogs. But I'd still look into it pretty carefully. The dogs with smooshy faces tend to be in general more prone to breathing problems, and it will always be more likely with a purebred dog.

maratea · December 2010

You can always rename the dog you get. I got a cat from the shelter whose name was Anubus. We renamed him Dave. He never responded to us calling him either name, he just licked his balls and carried on like we didn't exist usually.

Nebb · December 2010

Honestly, Adam and I worked 8hrs a day and he stayed in the crate for the full 8 hours and was FINE. We did take him out once we got home and IF we could (when we first got him) we came home at lunch to take him outside, but it was really fine. He survived and didnt make a mess or anything.

avsfan33 · December 2010

Kim, he is hilarious. I get that look from him a lot when I do something to piss him off. We call that his "judgey" face. His noises are very cartoon like too. He makes more of a gremlin noise than a bark or growl, it's weird.

I'm getting a Dog!

Re: I'm getting a Dog!

Choose Another Board

Search Boards

I'm getting a Dog!

Re: I&#039;m getting a Dog!

Choose Another Board

Search Boards

Re: I'm getting a Dog!