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Need advice with choosing next dog.


Miztiki
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The consensus (as stated by one nurse, though I paraphrase) was: "Yeah, puppies are cute and adorable and engaging; that's what keeps us from killing them.

 

Oh my Lord, AMEN! Isn't that the truth, LOL. I'll have to remember that the next time Lily is pulling the throw pillows off the couch (she's hellbent on destroying them and my furniture), doing her business on the carpet when she just came in from outside and wouldn't go out there, pulling all the toilet paper off the rolls and the millions of other things that make a puppy a puppy and a unique experience unto itself. I swear I'm gonna have grey hairs and need a nice long stay in a rubber padded room with a complimentary strait jacket by the time she's a year old but all she has to do is come up to me and put her little head on my knee and gaze adoringly at me with those big brown eyes and I forgot all about that stuff. She's a handful and one sassy little miss but I love her.

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The consensus (as stated by one nurse, though I paraphrase) was: "Yeah, puppies are cute and adorable and engaging; that's what keeps us from killing them.
Hahaha! Oh that is so true. My parents with little Tessa, who is now getting into shoes consistently, every day it's, "TESSA! What did you DO?!" but one look at those cute eyes and sat pouty look and they forgive her.

 

I think my problem is that I forget dogs stay "puppies" for longer than they look like puppies.

 

Occaisionally you'll get one that needs intensive care. Those don't get placed with people who aren't prepared to deal with it.
Yeah, I think we ended up with one of those... I'm not sure if Zeeke's lucky he ended up with us who, while we want to kill him daily, will keep on trying until he finally hits adulthood, instead of a family would would have just turned around and returned him to the shelter.

 

Sorry, I'm going off on tangents. I'm learning things from this thread, though.

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Originally posted by brookcove2:

[QB]

quote:
Have you ever rescued a dog? Can you compare the puppy to rescue from your own experience? Just asking.

 

^^NO! So?

Here's the problem - you made this claim:

 

I don't think raising a puppy is hell at all. And if one is NOT willing to accept it, then he/she surely couldn't be too tolerant of a rescue in many cases.
^^Hi Rebecca, I'm not out to beat a dead horse here, but I think somehow I've been misinterpreted, so I'd like to clear it up if I can. I stand by the above statement. I'm NOT a rescue hater. I initially objected to the statements made about the aquisition of a puppy. I've never before heard it referred to as the "dark side", or "hell". The reference in that same post to "wasting my time" when suitability of a bc was the question caught me off guard as well. I felt left with the feeling that getting a puppy bc was a "bad" idea for anyone, and that it should be discouraged. I'm entitled to disagree with that, I believe.

 

 

The specific point in contention being:

They often require MORE work than a pup, no?
I've raised pups, I've trained and rehabbed many a rescue. By far the rescues are consistently easier to deal with.

 

^^Is this not a generalization? I was simply pointing out, questioning, that do not rescues come with baggage too? They are OFTEN mishandled initially, which doesn't help matters. And AGAIN, my interest was NOT to downplay rescue dogs, but to uphold my opinion that puppies, TO ME, are NOT the "dark side and hellish".

 

 

As several people have said, Border Collies are puppyish for up to four years, with the first two being fraught with the most uncertainties and changes. I've been told by several old handlers that Border Collies are pups until they have a year under each foot.

 

^^Once again, I feel this is suggesting that there is something "bad" about puppydom. I ENJOY the growth, the solving of difficulties during the formative years. If I were looking for an "easy" dog, it wouldn't be a bc, would it? The fact that the dog IS the way he is, is WHY I wanted him to begin with.

 

 

 

We just like to keep the facts straight when it comes to rescue. We object when people make it sound like rescue dogs are intrinsically inferior in some way. We get like this because we work with the contrary evidence every day - we know how great these dogs are and hate to see one miss a home because someone believed misinformation spread in a forum like this one.

 

^^If I were to have been guilty of criticizing rescue then it would have been made clear. I had NO intention of spreading misinformation. If I have done so, I apologise. I have NEVER felt that rescue dogs are "intrinsically inferior", nor have I ever said so. I thought I was defending the pup who, it was CLEARLY suggested, was intrinsically inferior to a rescue. It wasn't me who called rescues "hellish and the dark side".

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bob

why are you continuing to hijack miztiki's thread, your persistent whinging on and on about the same old thing is getting really tiresome, just agree to disagree about the issue for heavens sake and let it go. If people don't agree with you by now it probably isn't going to happen (not to mention I'm not too sure what it is your looking for from the others....an apology? a full retraction? what???) You are just making a really useful and interesting thread go the way of a typical personal attack, no one is going to win in this situation. So lets just stop it now hmmmmmmmm?

Sara

Someone who would just like to read a discussion of the issue and not have to reread all the posts three and four times because every one keeps quoting themselves and others within the same thread.

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Sorry, Sara, you'll have to read one more.

 

Bob, I am sure Denise had tongue in cheek when she used the phrase "the dark side." Around here, "the dark side" properly means only one thing, and it isn't puppies. What she was trying to say, as I understood it, was that while Miztiki, as an experienced dog person, might prefer a puppy, an adult rescue might be a better choice in this particular case, given that Miztiki's husband is not an experienced dog person, is dubious about the whole idea of getting a dog, and might find the challenges of puppy rearing and training appalling rather than deeply satisfying.

 

I totally understand from your earlier posts why you would prefer a puppy, and I have no doubt that a puppy would be the right choice for you. But people who haven't gotten a dog through rescue often overestimate the problems that come with rescue dogs, and therefore it's good to hear opinions and accounts from those who have gotten adult dogs through rescue.

 

It doesn't surprise me that there are diverse opinions on this question, and I assume that's what Miztiki wanted to hear. I also didn't discern any disrespect toward anyone else's opinion, but then I'm well-known as a Pollyanna type.

 

Not.

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Originally posted by Eileen Stein:

 

It doesn't surprise me that there are diverse opinions on this question, and I assume that's what Miztiki wanted to hear. I also didn't discern any disrespect toward anyone else's opinion, but then I'm well-known as a Pollyanna type.

 

^^Well, "Polly" :rolleyes: , thanks for understanding.

 

**Dog and his Bob**

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Holy cow you guys! I'm off the boards for almost 12 hours and all hell breaks loose!

 

Eileen - you are right.

 

And while I was just about to go off on BCbob I thought the better of it because I know he'd just show off his ability to use the "quote" function of the boards and saturate this thread with one word replys and snotty retorts.

 

But no one wants to read any more of THAT now do we? :rolleyes:

 

Miztiki - I hope that you have read some useful information in between all the quoting and tossing of cheap insults. Keep us posted on how your search goes. Dogs (of ALL ages) have a way of picking US and I'm sure it will happen to you. Good luck.

 

Denise

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Originally posted by BigD:

[QB] Holy cow you guys! I'm off the boards for almost 12 hours and all hell breaks loose!

 

Eileen - you are right.

 

And while I was just about to go off on BCbob I thought the better of it because I know he'd just show off his ability to use the "quote" function of the boards and saturate this thread with one word replys and snotty retorts.

 

But no one wants to read any more of THAT now do we? :rolleyes:

 

^^ Wow. That's SO mean. I've already apologized. What else can I do? You thought better of it? Geez, sure hurt me good. Wouldn't want the full treatment, let me tell ya.

 

Will you guys just let it go? You've asked me to do so, and I complied, but it's being blasted down my throat now.

 

I said I'm sorry. What else do you want?

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A little late jumping in but I'd like to share my thoughts on the puppy/rescue thing.

 

I've raised many puppies and I've also taken in many rescues. I'd take a puppy over a rescue any day. Part of that might be that I'm crazy in love with puppy breath :rolleyes: but I also prefer to shape my own dog from the beginning. I don't mind getting up in the night to take the dog out, and most of my pups were housetrained in the winter - I find it's actually easier then. I don't mind being tied to my dog and never going out - but I'm an introvert. I don't mind 24/7 with my eyes glued to a rambunctious fluff ball - you can learn so much by just watching, it's better than television.

 

As for them being little hellions - nothing beats good leadership and early training.

 

I can't remember ever having lost a shoe to a puppy, however I've lost a few to rescues who weren't trained properly when they were puppies. I've only had one puppy grow up aggressive but I've had to deal with socializing rescues who've been anywhere from scrappy to downright nasty. The same goes for being fearful.

 

I disagree with the statement of having to retrain puppies as they grow. Re-enforce yes, but you have to do that with adults as well. Fear periods can be a bit frustrating but they aren't impossible and they certainly don't last forever.

 

Of course everyone is an idividual. If you prefer looking into rescue by all means go for it.

 

btw, I have introduced the world of dogs to two husbands. The first one likes adult dogs the second likes puppies. The only people who can guage how a spouse will deal with puppies or otherwise is the couple themselves.

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From Eileen,

 

I'm not sure why you took such offense from what seemed to me a good-natured post by Piper, but in any case, Piper was not quoting your words. Right?
Holy cow is right! Geez! Gone for a few days and look what I started. I was quoting BigD, from now on I'll check my p's & q's and make sure I give credit to who I am quoting. I didn't post that to take a shot at you BCbob, I was though teasing BigD ... and I'm sure she caught that.
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I'm partial to puppies too, hard work and all, but it's not just me this time. I want the best experience for my husband so that I can move on to the next level later on... horses!
Well now you have a handle on the whole puppy vs. rescue thing I just have a few words of advice for your poor, dear husband. Please make sure he likes to fence. My "poor" husband has had to deal with both puppies and rescues both of which don't compare to the fencing for the sheep, and the two horses I snuck in on him last year and the fact that he helped his uncle bale hay this summer to provide me with food for said creatures ...all for the dogs of course. It's all a vicious cycle, but well worth it. Just ask my hubby the "reluctant farmer"
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LOL i agree Kirstin, but you have to lull husbands into a false sense of security, first my dog, then his, then my horse .. then his horse .. then his other horse and his other horse that hated men.. then his replacement horse for the one who hated men LOL, then his rescue from the horse sales that we only went to for gear.. then the chicken, and the replacemnt chickens for the ones the next door neighbours dog killed and now the kitten!! and that is not to mention the goats and sheep which used to crawl under the house ans sleep under our bedroom LOL

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"Poor, dear husband" has a nice ring to it though doesn't it?! :D

 

My hubby is from London and they eat alot of lamb there. I'm already thinking of ways to convince him that getting sheep would be a great idea!!!

 

For him of course, not the dog. :rolleyes:

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Oh, definitely. There's nothing like growing your own meat. Consider all the junk that goes into grocery store meat! :D

 

After years of my acquiring animals, my husband's year seems to have come. First he bought a dog, now he's hankering for a kitten. We haven't even gotten the kitten yet and now he's wondering whether we could fit a burro in here. I'm sort of gently putting my foot down about the burro, though if he INSISTS, I have no ground to stand on! :rolleyes:

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Just a thought.....

 

Have you considered finding a local rescue and becoming a temporary foster home? This could help clarify temperment, type, suitability for you.

 

If the dog is not compatible with your lifestyle, then you still have a parent organization looking for a forever home until you find the right one for you.

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