Thinking of getting a dog

Misty_Blue

There are plenty of good breeders. Puppy farmers and backyard breeders contribute to dogs ending up in rescue. A good breeder breeds seldom, choose owners carefully, and generally has it written into the contract that if the owner's circumstances change, the dog must be returned to them and not just given to someone/placed in rescue/advertised on Facebook or whatever.

Getting a dog from a rescue does not somehow make a person morally superior to those who carefully select a good, responsible breeder. And I speak as someone who has one show dog, and one rescue.

The important thing is to do plenty of research about the breed you want, (and whether it will fit in with your lifestyle, family and circumstances), and also about where you get the dog from. There are bad rescue centres just as there are bad breeders.

krlyr

Misty_Blue wrote: »

There are plenty of good breeders. Puppy farmers and backyard breeders contribute to dogs ending up in rescue. A good breeder breeds seldom, choose owners carefully, and generally has it written into the contract that if the owner's circumstances change, the dog must be returned to them and not just given to someone/placed in rescue/advertised on Facebook or whatever..

Exactly. And if everyone stopped supporting good breeders, where would dogs come from? In a perfect world with no puppyfarms, we'd 'run out' of in 10-15 years time. But it's not a perfect world - if the good breeders took heed and stopped breeding, the puppyfarms would be rubbing their hands in glee at all the extra trade they'd get. People won't stop wanting dogs, so they have to come from somewhere.

Good breeders will choose homes carefully and take puppies back into their care. And they'll shape the breed to have a good temperament and health for the future.

Educating people on why puppyfarms and backyard breeders are to be avoided is the key IMO, I think there's plenty of space in the world for good breeders to operate alongside responsible rescues.

catkins

If you have never had a dog before please please read up about dogs in general not just the breed you want.


I have had dogs all my married life and cannot imagine being without one BUT they can be hard work, are definitely a tie, take up a lot of your time and can be costly.


I am not saying you would do it, but lots of people sadly get dogs and then decide they can't cope with the weeing on the floor or the chewing of brand new slippers or the crying of the dog in the night because it needs to go in the garden to pee or poo.


A puppy WILL cry in the night. It is like a baby. It will need to go outside maybe once, maybe twice, maybe more and you have to be prepared for that. The first night or so it will probably cry because its misses mum and any brothers and sisters.


It will have to be house trained which may, if you are lucky, take a couple of days or a couple of weeks or months. Until it is housetrained it will pee and poo indoors - on carpet, wood flooring whatever - it doesn't know until trained that its not meant to.


It will chew, especially when teething and if you don't want it to chew things like slippers, books etc for a start move them out of the dog's reach and secondly, if you can't be watching it all the time I personally would use a crate for overnight and when you need to go out. If you get a dog used to a crate properly (lots of tips, videos etc online) it will see it as a nice safe place to be not a place of punishment.


Think about things such as where the dog will go when you go on holiday or even out for a day. A young dog cannot really be left any length of time (and shouldn't be) and me and OH don't like to leave ours for more than 3 or 4 hours so he either goes to a dogsitter for the morning/afternoon/whole day or someone comes and sits with him for a while and takes him for a walk.


You can't just suddenly decide Friday night to go away for the weekend without making arrangements for the dog and that can be costly.


I am not having a dig at you personally, but I know a few people involved in dog rescue and it saddens me how many people get a puppy and they say they can't cope because it has peed on the carpet or chewed something or got them up in the night and so they get rid of it.

celestius

We got a puppy 4 weeks ago and it really is like having a child.
I thought long and hard about having a dog for many years and just now my youngest is 4 and starting school so it seemed a good time - and I also work from home so plenty of time to spend with the dog.

She has cost more than expected, think dog toys, dog bed, dog food, collar, food and water bowl, puppy pads, a 'cage', a dog carrier, poop bags, treats, a pet passport if you want to travel - the list is endless and this does not include the £42 vet bill I had on day 3 when my son accidentally tripped over her and hurt her foot.

We pay the vet £8/month, this covers flea and worm treatment, micro-chip, and 25% off routine operations.

We have decided to self insure, so we are putting away £15 per month towards vet bills, hopefully we will build up a good cushion before we have to use it! However we are taking out 3rd party insurance for £25 per year in case for example she runs out in front of a car and causes an accident.

Oh and we have booked her into puppy school, £66 for a course.

So there are a few things to think about and add up!

If you decide to get a dog please make sure her parents have had lots of health checks, toy poodles can suffer from various ailments including eye problems, you would not want a blind dog!
http://www.pedigree.com/All-Things-Dog/Article-Library/The-Toy-Poodle-s-5-Biggest-Health-Risks.aspx

Can I just add that she did cry the first night but she has slept through since. Typically she wakes up at 6 a.m. and starts making such a racket that eventually one of us gets up. So wave goodbye to lie ins!

Katiehound

Just to say 3rd party insurance is given to you (and your dog!) if you become a supporter of Dogs Trust.

I have been reading this thread and all the points made are good ones. Owning a dog, whilst being a great pleasure, is hard work. Sadly people go into it without thinking through the 'what ifs' or perhaps without realising that it is a long term commitment and then the dog ends up in rescue. My old boy is now 15 and I have had him almost 14 years...so yes, think long term.

I am one of the few people on here who do not advocate pet insurance, but saying that I have enough money for an emergency vet bill.

Training your dog is vital and can be great fun.

Above all do your research, and then if you decide to get a dog have lots of fun too.