I had two dogs growing up. A bichon who lived at my dad's named Toby and a terrier cross who lived at my mom's named Max. Toby was purchased when he was about 4 months old from Petland. Max was adopted from the Humane Society when he was about 1.5 years old. There's pros and cons to going either way.
Toby, because we got him quite young, was very easy to train. He grew up to be an exceptionally well behaved and very even tempered dog. He was seemingly fearless.
Max was fairly difficult to train. We were his third owners after he'd already been turned in to the Humane Society twice. The previous owners found him to be too much of a handful for them. We were told if he came back again he wouldn't have any more chances and would be put down. The first thing he did the moment he came home was run in the livingroom, squat down, and walk while peeing across about 15ft of the carpet. My mom was about ready to take him back right then.
It took quite a bit of effort and patience to get Max at least somewhat trained and he never quite got to be as well behaved as Toby was. I think had we been his first owners he would have done much better. I get the feeling the first two sets of owners didn't really understand dogs and what they need and by the time we got him it was hard to break the behavior he'd learned while with them. He was always a little skittish too which made us wonder if something traumatic had happened to him when he was young.
Cost is of course a big consideration, it's a whole lot cheaper to adopt. I think Toby was $650 in '92. Max was about $130 in '97.
Having a puppy is obviously a big plus to buying. I loved seeing Toby grow up from the tiny little fluff ball who would bark at his own reflection in the mirror at Petland and rode home inside my step-mom's jacket. It's the same reason when I got cats I found kittens who were 6-8 weeks old. I just love nurturing animals from babies to adults, I find it very rewarding.
I should finish by saying, both of my dogs were adored and loved by my family(s). In that way it really didn't matter where they came from, having them in our lives was all that really mattered. They were endlessly happy to see us and are both the source of many many fond memories.
Thanks for the input! From what I remember of Max, it seems like your mom had him trained pretty well! Hard to believe he was that close to being put to sleep! Thanks to your family, that doggy had an awesome life though.
Both my dogs growing up were from breeders so that's all I really have experience with. I have no problems with training a dog and working through any problems. Bottom line is the safety of the cats, if we can get that done, the rest will come with time.
I get the whole raising and nurturing thing too. Henry I found as a 6-9 week old kitten, so I've watched him grow (he used to be a scrawny little kitten!) Chase on the other hand I got at 15 months - I never got to see her as a tiny baby kitten. I bet she was super cute! Sometimes I wish I knew her at that awkward stage where they try to climb up on the couch but can't coordinate it - then I look over and see her jump and miss the couch and know I probably didn't miss much lol.
Toby, because we got him quite young, was very easy to train. He grew up to be an exceptionally well behaved and very even tempered dog. He was seemingly fearless.
Max was fairly difficult to train. We were his third owners after he'd already been turned in to the Humane Society twice. The previous owners found him to be too much of a handful for them. We were told if he came back again he wouldn't have any more chances and would be put down. The first thing he did the moment he came home was run in the livingroom, squat down, and walk while peeing across about 15ft of the carpet. My mom was about ready to take him back right then.
It took quite a bit of effort and patience to get Max at least somewhat trained and he never quite got to be as well behaved as Toby was. I think had we been his first owners he would have done much better. I get the feeling the first two sets of owners didn't really understand dogs and what they need and by the time we got him it was hard to break the behavior he'd learned while with them. He was always a little skittish too which made us wonder if something traumatic had happened to him when he was young.
Cost is of course a big consideration, it's a whole lot cheaper to adopt. I think Toby was $650 in '92. Max was about $130 in '97.
Having a puppy is obviously a big plus to buying. I loved seeing Toby grow up from the tiny little fluff ball who would bark at his own reflection in the mirror at Petland and rode home inside my step-mom's jacket. It's the same reason when I got cats I found kittens who were 6-8 weeks old. I just love nurturing animals from babies to adults, I find it very rewarding.
I should finish by saying, both of my dogs were adored and loved by my family(s). In that way it really didn't matter where they came from, having them in our lives was all that really mattered. They were endlessly happy to see us and are both the source of many many fond memories.
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Both my dogs growing up were from breeders so that's all I really have experience with. I have no problems with training a dog and working through any problems. Bottom line is the safety of the cats, if we can get that done, the rest will come with time.
I get the whole raising and nurturing thing too. Henry I found as a 6-9 week old kitten, so I've watched him grow (he used to be a scrawny little kitten!) Chase on the other hand I got at 15 months - I never got to see her as a tiny baby kitten. I bet she was super cute! Sometimes I wish I knew her at that awkward stage where they try to climb up on the couch but can't coordinate it - then I look over and see her jump and miss the couch and know I probably didn't miss much lol.
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