For Anyone Thinking Of Getting A Dog...

[lankeela]

[paddywak]

We've always had dogs and I'd have another tomorrow but sadly both Trish and I know that while we could give a dog all the care and love it would want we both realise that theirs no way we could manage in other ways for instance there are days when we can hardly walk ourselves let alone a dog. Many people just dont realise what they're taking on, I remember talking to a couple with beautiful GSD pup about 12 weeks old and commenting on the fact that he was very similar to Max when he was about that age, an hour or so later I saw them again only this time I'd got Max with with me and from the look on their face when they saw how big he was it was obvious they'd not thought about how big a dog they were taking on.

[wolf63]

Very interesting clip.

Thanks for posting ~ the guy put his point over clearly and hopefully people will listen to him

[neodarwinian]

I volunteer at a city shelter where I adopted my dog. She does work my last nerve sometimes but when I go to volunteer at the shelter and a dog I was working with is no longer there and no one know what happened to him I know that to rehome my dog is not an option. Unless I die, of course.

[SpikeyBush]

I'm more of a cat person but before we met my wife had always had dogs. Our hectic lifestyle when we were both working meant it would not be fair to have a dog so when a change in circumstances a few years ago meant we could give a dog the time needed to give it a good life we got a 7 year old boxer from a rehoming centre. She soon got to work destroying the garden but all it took was half an hour to fence off the vegetables and delicate plants and give her a plot of her own to bury bones in and everyone was happy. My life is certainly enriched by having the company of a dog, especially on my long walks. And she is a good guard dog making sure nobody steals my heating oil, having a good deep woof and the ability to intimidate with just a glare, even though she's as soft as butter deep down.

However I still can't get over the amount of excrement that just one dog produces.

[FredPuli43]

Excellent advice.People should really find out what the dog's breed was bred for, because will tell them what its basic needs and character are; not every small dog is a lapdog, as anyone who has had a Dandie Dinmont terrier will testify! And it is surprising how little people think about grooming, even if the dog is a poodle. I'm sure some people think that its coat grows naturally into a lion clip, and all they have to do is give it a bit of shape, like in topiary!

By the way, I shout "Shut up!" at my mob when they bark, and it works a treat. But that's because I know how they think. To them, for that moment, I am being the big senior dog. I am doing one loud bark for them, and when I stop, they stop. That's what they, and their mother, did when their father was here; they'd look at him. If he wasn't barking they didn't bark, or they'd stop. If he did bark once and stop,, they'd stop because, evidently, the problem was solved. But as a method of 'training' by an owner who is angry, it is not recommended !