Adopting an older dog - any tips?

catkins

Well I can't really add any more advice as you have been given plenty of it on here but if you do decide to get him then I hope you will all be very happy together. He looks absolutely gorgeous. I love having a dog. Yes they are a tie but a worthwhile one. Between getting the one I have now and the previous one dying there was 3 years and both myself and OH missed having a dog so much. I really enjoy walking him every morning (yes even when it is pouring with rain) and the exercise does me good too. I have met lots of new people with and without dogs that I would not have met without him (a dog is always a good talking point especially if they are unusual or very cuddly looking!). I am at home with my dog all day as I work evenings and the house would seem strange without him. Holidays can be a bit of a problem but there is always a solution. I have just come back from a couple of days away and the dog came with us. We had a great time (he loves the beach) and just had to make sure he did not get too hot and we had to find places to eat where we could sit outside. I don't like him going into kennels so if we want to go abroad in the future he is probably going to a dog sitter.

Hopefully you will have many happy enjoyable years with him.

bulchy

newmoney wrote:

Good luck with the Dog if you do decide to go ahead with it.

Just one point on Pet Insurance, I am not keen on taking out Pet Insurance, personally I prefer to shove a fixed sum per month into a bank account for all those smaller unknown bills that come up. This way I am not wasting the money if I never use it.

Obviously if a major problem appears then you don't have the insurance, but that is something you need to decide yourself.

We have our dogs and cats insured through M&S, we get a discount for having 4 pets insured with them, I took out new policies for them in january and by february, after only paying in about £30, unsure how much the total is, my biggest dog had an accident. Vets fees were over £300, we could never have covered this ourselves, so insurance did come in handy. Fair enough I'd already paid a years insurance to Morethan for him the previous year, but then all my pet savings would have gone, and I would then be worrying if anything went wrong with any of my other pets, I would have to find the money to pay for vet fees. I think its worth having the pet insurance, then if your pet gets an illness that needs long term treatment, your safe in the knowledge that your covered, vets fees are so expensive.
Sue

bulchy

ftbworried, hes is a gorgeous dog, I bet you cant wait to get him home, good luck with the home check.
Sue

Bagpuss741

bulchy wrote:

I have 2 cats and 2 dogs, (thats why I have to hoover everyday). My hamsters create more smell than the bigger furbabies.
They might be hard work, but they are very rewarding. I'm a lot fitter since I got my dogs, I love walking them, rain or shine,there great companions for me being a SAHM, and my cats are just so entertaining. I also think its great for kids to share responsibility for pets, my kids help with grooming, feeding and walking.
BTW Bagpuss, I've had my weimy over a year now and hes never been bathed, I just use babywipes to wipe away anything he might care to roll in, he smells lovely :rotfl: Cocker needs bathed now and again, but I much prefer the natural doggie smell, its not offensive at all, well not to me and my family, if any visitors find it offensive, well thats there problem, but no one has ever commented on it so far, and I have a few family members who are sooo houseproud, I know they would tell me if I had a problem.
Sue

Thanks, I will be getting some baby wipes as it's a big fight to get her in the bath:eek: yet she will quite happily jump in a muddy puddle or the local river :rofl: I agree with you about the hamsters, we had three of them at one point and every morning I would wake up to a floor of sawdust:rotfl:

Bagpuss741

ftbworried, He looks completely gorgeous, good luck with the home check. I'm sure you'll both bring each other years of joy and laughter. My dog hasn't got the hang of fetching yet, she's ok with chasing the ball etc but then turns round and looks as if to say come and get it then:rotfl:

davsidipp

georgina we have a four year old parson russell called benny who we rescued from an elderly lady at seven months old. her grandson said benny was to much of a handful for his elderly gran and wanted a new home for him.when we went to visit him it was summertime and the grandson offered us a drink out in the garden benny jumped on the table and knocked the glasses everywhere i nearly walked away but stayed a little longer to hear that he never whent for walks.knowing how bored and naughty this made him we decided to give him a try as he did look cute typical of the jack russell.on taking benny home he ran to my livingroom and jumped on the sofa and peed on it omg said o/h im not having that on day two i took benny walkies apart from his pulling he really enjoyed it and i knew that the problem with him is boredom.now he is 4years old he is the best dog i have ever owned who gets on with other dogs likes children and seems to know everything you sayto him i have had other breeds before but benny is the most brainy dog to yet he really is like the dog from the mask with jim carrey and we have decieded to take him to agillity training which i know he will love.imo jack russells are one breed once you have had one if trained properly you are hooked.

Kimberley

I've sent you a PM for a link to a forum/website i go on. The site is run by a Doglistener with over 30 years experience and experts who will answer all the questions you have

allIcouldwishfor

Ah, ftbworried, your doggie looks lovely. Reminds me of a kids push along toy, he just needs to stand on a red frame with wheels!!

How's it going? Is he all you thought he would be and more?

village_life

i know i am going to get slated by all those "why did you get a dog in the first place" types, but please bear with me as i have an issue thats causing a lot of problems and heartache.....

my new wife and i are just getting ready to enjoy our first xmas in our new home, aside from one issue - our little dog.... B* is a 9 year old dog we got from a rescue centre cause we fell in love with him - despite probably not being the most suitable type of dog or us having the perfect life style for him (as i said i can do without berating and being told how stupid we are)

anyway this has all come to a head after a visit to the family tonight, where he barked constantly, was snappy etc- its the same whenever he goes to someone else's house - and in the main, he does this kind of thing whenever he damned wants to....

6 months ago i was working away in london and came back to an MSN message from my wife with a picture of "our perfect dog" - so the next day we're at the rescue centre agreeing to take him on.... at the time it seemed so perfect as i was working at home every day, he was cute as pie in the centre etc etc - the type of dog (breed) we were after - it all just fit.

when we got him home we realised he had some health issues which we've invested quite heavily in to put right, and it was implied that it might help his behaviour - but it hasnt. Furthermore we've changed his diet numerous times and he's now on a v. expensive dry food, and while he is less nutty on E numbers etc- his behaviour is far from ideal.

in hindsight i made a massive mistake- the dog is not good for us for many reasons - i feel burdened by him, we cant go and see family without him being a pain, and my work requires a lot of flexibility that unfortunately a dog cant accomodate - i'm the first to hold my hands up and say that although i wanted to provide a good home to a dog in a rescue center - that i made a mistake and the situation is far from ideal for all of us.

my wife though is an animal lover to the extreme, and having lost 3 pets this calendar year through illnesses beyond our control - has really extended the bond with the dog - had the first animal (rabbit) not died we'd never have got the dog, and never been in this mess -c'est la vie!

she can see his faults, but isnt at the point i am with him yet - as much as i love him and have bonded with him - right now i'm at the end of my tether = he's making me upset, stressed and angry and thats not good -

as a brief overview, heres a few of the things he does which may sound trivial or "typical dog" but are driving me mad:
1. barks sponteneously and seemingly for no reason
2. barks like crazy when we want to go out - jumps up and grabs door handles when we've gone out (our door handles now lift upwards to open!!!)
3. goes crazy when guests come in (or when he's in family's houses) and when they leave
4. when he escapes out of the house, runs in front of cars and circles them so the driver cant move
5. wakes us up every night wanting a wee, drink, general walk outside
6. relentlessly licks us
7. barks whenever we drive him anywhere

writing these down they all seem petty, but believe me they soon add up and at the moment i feel that me and my wife are hostages to our own lives having got the dog - i feel always on edge, and i resent the constraints the dog puts on MY life (again slapped wrist for me for not considering the consequences of my actions)

so what do i do? - i've got to fight my own rational mind telling me we'd all be better rehoming him with my own conscience of not wanting to do that, knowing how devestated my wife would be, and all the "i told you so" of family who raised eyebrows at us taking on the commitment of a dog

fraid i need some advice folks...

Older_but_not_wiser_2

I'm a cat person myself, but have a look here if you're willing to persist a wee while to get his behaviour sorted