Real-life MMD: Pet dog or doghouse?

I have only read the first page of replies, so please forgive me if I'm repeating what others have said. Dog question aside, if my husband had stashed away enough money for a swish foreign holiday without me knowing, unless it had come from an unexpected one-off bonus, I would be more than a little p****d off! It has undertones of secrecy and dishonesty, which are never healthy in a relationship. Any money coming in should be known to both parties, even if they maintain separate finances and accounts. It would seem that the wife is trying to involve him in the decision of getting a dog, whereas he is making the decision of booking a holiday on his own. If he was a wealthy man that could just book a holiday as a surprise without saving up for it, then it may be a different matter, but as it has to be saved for then she should surely have some say in how the money is spent. The fact that he is aware that it makes him look stingy is also really worrying. I'm inclined to say you may need the savings for a good lawyer once your wife finds out. I mentioned this to a couple of friends and they were of the same opinion (so its not just me )

Getting a dog is a huge decision. You have to commit for a minimum of 15 years and often more. They are a regular financial and time commitment (and do not get one without getting it insured, as even the most basic treatment is an arm and a leg, unless you are unemployed and qualify for certain benefits). That said, they are fantastic companions and become part of the family if you don't just get one on a whim. It is all very well saying get one from a rescue centre, but despite owning our own house, having a large garden, being a stone's throw from excellent dog walking fields, someone being at home 24/7, we still don't qualify at a lot of rescues, because we have a child under 10/11/12/14. We also want a dog under a year old as we also have chickens and rabbits and it is obviously important to us that we can train the dog not to torment/hunt them. Have had a mistreated dog before and couldn't get her over her dislike of babies and young children - which got worse when she was an old dog. Just be really careful who you get a dog from as you only have to have a brief look through the 'Many Tears' rescue website to see how poorly dogs on puppy farms are treated.