Since I've had Mikey I've really been thinking about getting another dog. At 1st I thought I wanted another chihuahua but as time goes by w/ Mikey he has become such a lap dog, I absolutely love that he loves to cuddle and snuggle but my 2 boys ages 5 1/2 and 7 want a dog that will play w/ them more. They love to run in the back yard w/ Mikey(when he's in the mood) but he is so tiny I constantly have to tell them to be careful. I've thought about rescues but I am so unsure about getting a dog that I don't know what's been done to it in the past. My children come 1st before anything, I wouldn't want to bring a pet into the home that would hurt them. What are some of your experiences (if any) w/ rescues and children? My kids are very good w/ animals and if I was to get another dog I think I would want a medium size breed.
Question about rescues
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i have a rescue called munchy, im not sure if shes a cross or a complete mix, we got her from a dog shelter we were originaly after a puppy, but when we were told there were none avaliable we had a look at the older dogs, munchy just would not be ignored, she grab out and hit the box i was carrying for the puppy with her paw, she seemed so despereate for us to take her, we couldnt resist, she was approximately a year old, they didnt really know much about her previous honour, but you could see she was a very friendly happy dog.
i really wouldnt worry aboutthe problem with the children as you can tell quickly which dogs like children and are generaly very friendly. usualy a resucue will let you walk the dog or play with it to see how it interacts with the family. You should also be able to bring mikey along to see how they get on
mia
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i really wouldnt worry aboutthe problem with the children as you can tell quickly which dogs like children and are generaly very friendly. usualy a resucue will let you walk the dog or play with it to see how it interacts with the family. You should also be able to bring mikey along to see how they get on
mia
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All my dogs in the past have been rescues. I got them at a local shelter where I fostered kittens. Two of them were puppies and one was an adult dog (8 year old Chow/Retriever mix). The older dog was the best with children and the other two were fine as long as food wasn't around. Sometimes owners would drop their pet off because they were moving so we knew a lot about the dogs prior home (ie. children, other pets, etc). Other times, we knew nothing and the dogs were evaluated as to what type of home they would be best suited in.
The best advice I can give you is first consult with someone at the shelter. Chances are they know the dog's personality pretty good if he/she has been there awhile. Once the dog is home with you go very slow. Let the dog have his own space, then gradually introduce him/her to the children and the other pets. Always remind the children never to put their face in his/her face, never touch them while they are eating, and never tease them. Hopefully over time, all will work out.
I think it's great you're considering a rescue. One of my other dogs just passed away Monday. I had him for 8 wonderful years. He was a rescue dog that was abandoned in a dumpster at a young age. He was brought into the clinic I worked at and I immediately adopted him. He gave me a lot of happiness and I would never hesitate to adopt again.
Keep us posted
The best advice I can give you is first consult with someone at the shelter. Chances are they know the dog's personality pretty good if he/she has been there awhile. Once the dog is home with you go very slow. Let the dog have his own space, then gradually introduce him/her to the children and the other pets. Always remind the children never to put their face in his/her face, never touch them while they are eating, and never tease them. Hopefully over time, all will work out.
I think it's great you're considering a rescue. One of my other dogs just passed away Monday. I had him for 8 wonderful years. He was a rescue dog that was abandoned in a dumpster at a young age. He was brought into the clinic I worked at and I immediately adopted him. He gave me a lot of happiness and I would never hesitate to adopt again.
Keep us posted
The sad thing is the shelter around my house is horrible. I can tell these people do NOT care about the animals. To them it's just a job. SO I don't think they would know too much about the animals. Now I have gotten both my cats from there but they were tiny when I got them. No previous owners.
Besides the paws, what are other ways to kind of judge the size the dog may grow to?
Besides the paws, what are other ways to kind of judge the size the dog may grow to?
I would be very careful about choosing a rescue with young children. I will not adopt out any rescue to people with young children unless I had the dog since a new pup.
Yes some rescues do temperment testing but do you really know what that is???? It consists of any where from a minute to maybe an hour of a workers time and they make a guess what their opinion is. Not to mention if you go someplce like a humane shelter or something like that they have the little cards attached to the cages telling you about the dog. well most of the information is given to them by the owners surrendering the dogs. I can't tell you how many I have seen that say sweet and housetrained and a slew of other things that simply was not the case.
I AM NOT saying do not rescue. What I am saying is CHOOSE carefully if you have YOUNG children and be aware of possibilities.
About good dog choices for kids....... Well I have to say that one of my favorite breeds for being sturdy and yet still smaller and loving are the Shih Tzu's . The larger sized Shih tzus are sturdy , playful , friendly and eager to please. They have a bad rap from far back and yes they can be snippy and yappy but I find this to be all in if they were brought up in adult homes or children homes, from pups. The smaller ones are 6-9 lbs and the larger ones from 10-20 lbs. I think the larger ones make FABULOUS kid dogs when gotton as pups by the new family homes. they love to play OR be lap dogs, they have very litle shedding , they are pretty stury when the larger sized and most of all they LOVE to be love bugs. I find the males especially good with families.
Yes some rescues do temperment testing but do you really know what that is???? It consists of any where from a minute to maybe an hour of a workers time and they make a guess what their opinion is. Not to mention if you go someplce like a humane shelter or something like that they have the little cards attached to the cages telling you about the dog. well most of the information is given to them by the owners surrendering the dogs. I can't tell you how many I have seen that say sweet and housetrained and a slew of other things that simply was not the case.
I AM NOT saying do not rescue. What I am saying is CHOOSE carefully if you have YOUNG children and be aware of possibilities.
About good dog choices for kids....... Well I have to say that one of my favorite breeds for being sturdy and yet still smaller and loving are the Shih Tzu's . The larger sized Shih tzus are sturdy , playful , friendly and eager to please. They have a bad rap from far back and yes they can be snippy and yappy but I find this to be all in if they were brought up in adult homes or children homes, from pups. The smaller ones are 6-9 lbs and the larger ones from 10-20 lbs. I think the larger ones make FABULOUS kid dogs when gotton as pups by the new family homes. they love to play OR be lap dogs, they have very litle shedding , they are pretty stury when the larger sized and most of all they LOVE to be love bugs. I find the males especially good with families.
Thanks for the info cuddles. My husband and I are going to have to talk about it. I was thinking about it earlier and I may just do another puppy. As much as I would love to rescue a dog in need, I just can't put my human kids at risk or Mikey and my 2 kitties for that matter. Who knows maybe some years down the line I can look into it.
I really want a sturdy medium size dog. My husbands co worker has a chihuahua and she's pregnant, they said we can have 1st pick of the littler. It will be interesting to see which 1 of us gets our way :roll: lol. I would love to say we'd get the chihuahua and still get a medium size dog but I would worry finacially that w/ 5 pets it would be a little much to take care of. I have to say I have become obsessed w/ chihuahuas so it would be awesome to have 2. Ok, I could ramble on and on about this subject so I will shush up .
I really want a sturdy medium size dog. My husbands co worker has a chihuahua and she's pregnant, they said we can have 1st pick of the littler. It will be interesting to see which 1 of us gets our way :roll: lol. I would love to say we'd get the chihuahua and still get a medium size dog but I would worry finacially that w/ 5 pets it would be a little much to take care of. I have to say I have become obsessed w/ chihuahuas so it would be awesome to have 2. Ok, I could ramble on and on about this subject so I will shush up
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Lol, ramble away! We don't mind! But, I believe you'll make the right decision for you family. And, considering you know the situation better than we do, I'm sure you'll do the right thing. Keep us posted, though! I love new additions!!
Just remember if you get a puppy you will have to go through the biting and teething issue all over again.
You have small children don't you?
Do you want to put your children through that?
What about getting a rescue that is in the 6 month to 18 month range?
If you get a puppy you are definatly going to have a biting issue because they don't know they are not suppose to bite.
Please think about this carefully.
You have small children don't you?
Do you want to put your children through that?
What about getting a rescue that is in the 6 month to 18 month range?
If you get a puppy you are definatly going to have a biting issue because they don't know they are not suppose to bite.
Please think about this carefully.
Ms.P I have a puppy right now, he's 3 mths old. I just went through getting him out of the biting stage. My boys both knew that if they were going to play w/ Mikey they had to have a toy that way when he went to bite and chew they would give him a toy. Beleive it or not I rather animals when they are older. I would much prefer getting a doggie that's past all of that. We will decide and if I choose to get a rescue I wll be careful in my choice and if we decide to get a puppy my kids and I are capable of handling it. :wink:
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Most rescue groups allow a trial period where you can bring the pup home for a week or so and see how they fit in with your family. Also, a lot of rescue groups have puppies as young as 6 weeks old, so you don't necessarily have to adopt an older dog when you look into rescues.
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