Questions about getting a dog

[notanotherfucker]

I am thinking of getting a dog but have no idea, hence asking very basic questions.

Do you need to pick up the poo if you are in a field? Countryside? I know you do on pavements etc but if somewhere else?

How often do they need taking out?

What breed would be good with kids and not need huge amounts of exercise?

Everything @rubyroot said I literally wanted to say.

Unless you’re a psychopath you will get a dog and fall in love with the bloody thing wether you want to or not, but are you ready for it? No, you don’t sound like it. And you can’t be serious posting a question like this on Mumsnet AIBU. There’s perfectly good forums and websites for this on the worldwide internet.

Please do responsible research. I say this as lifelong dog owner and rescuer.

Have you tried Google? You might find some information there......

We are three months into our adorable dog, he is lovely sweet natured little boy, came from rescue adores people, incredibly playful hasn’t cost us anything at the vets yet and is pretty easy BUT we are still wondering if we made the right decision, I’m a sahm to school aged children and I’m still struggling with the time and commitment needed in having a dog.

I would do as pp advise and try borrow my doggy or help out a neighbour/family member Before making the commitment.

Yes you pick up everywhere it is safe to do so.

Yes to insurance - Pet Plan are best in that they almost never refuse a claim and they pay directly to the vets (most offer this, however many vets won't accept direct payments from other insurers. This can be a BIG deal if you need a specialist, who will charge you £400 to walk through the door!).

As for owning dog...

Do not think 'what dog can I cause to fit my lifestyle..'

Instead, first of all think 'what areas of my lifestyle will I compromise or sacrifice, to own a dog.

Once you have that sorted, THEN think about which breed or type will fit what you can then offer.

Forget about the appearance of the dog - first think about breed traits, exercise requirements, behaviour etc.

If a dog who hangs off your every word and wants constant instruction will annoy, then no matter how beautiful a Border Collie is, it's not for you.

If a dog who ignores you and asks 'whats in it for me then?' whenever you ask it to do anything, would piss you off, then no matter how gorgeous an Afghan hound is, it's not for you.

To a certain extent how you raise a dog will influence how it behaves, however I earn a LOT of my income from people who have chosen dogs that absolutely do not fit their lifestyle family or home, and then call me in to fix the behaviour problems that arise as a result of this!

Finally, if you wish to avoid lining the pockets of behaviourists and trainers, and then sending a dog back to the breeder or rescue...

Get some decent books on dogs and read them FIRST.

Look for titles by:

Steve Mann
Tony Cruse
Carolyn Menteith
Jane Killion
John Bradshaw

That will set you up with sufficient knowledge to do it right or not do it at all.

Some dogs (mine) are rain phobic but you still face the problem of them getting their energy run off, last week was a right pain trying to time legging it round the walk Before the rain started also he will wee indoors when it is wet so needs a lot of supervision with going to the toilet outside

When we had dogs:-

3 x 1 hour 15/30 minute walks in sun, wind, hail, rain, snow and storms
Let out as often as needed
Insurance is a must not an option, unless you are loaded!! (our last dogs last op was 4.5k)
Depending on size and breed- a lot of food!
Fresh water always available
Lots of attention
Lots of cuddles
Toys
Cuddles and reassurance when fireworks etc are going off so can’t leave them alone
Cuddles and reassurance when they aren’t well
Ideally walks and meet ups with other dogs, especially if they are a pup to socialise them
Training if they are a pup
Possible behaviour training it they have mad habits or haven’t been trained properly

Big ole plops are not the problem. Though you will pick up thousands of pounds of poo in your expensive biodegradable bags. Dogs are the best friend in the Universe but the ole plopping is the least of your worries. Training classes is a biggie, and following through and doing your homework is a must, dogs are lovely, but not so much when they attack other dogs (terriers I am looking at you), or bikes, or horses. Due diligence on the breed and fucking train, train and train.

Oh and holidays. We never went abroad when we had dogs. We went around the UK and took them with us. So our dc were teens before they went on a plane. But that was our choice as we did not want to use kennels. We did find that we could have gone abroad all inclusive for cheaper than our doggy holidays, but 🤷🏻‍♀️We wanted to take them with us. Now we no longer have dogs, we go abroad. They are a tie. You do have to change your whole lifestyle to fit a dog in. They aren’t an accessory.

I personally favour stick and flick away from walkways but do pick up after mine. Had our rescue oodle of sorts for 3 years. She’s very easy, gets walked twice a day, rain or shine plus a bedtime round the block walk. Very cheap to feed and so far no vet bills(she’s 5) but she is a tie particularly for holidays. I wouldn’t put her in a kennel because of her past in a horrible Romanian dog pound. So we either take her or my mil has her. It does mean we can’t be very spontaneous with travel. Having said all that I love her and she has improved my life and I love the walking.

Hello, there's a lot that goes into getting a dog firstly yes you pick up the poo wherever you go. Secondly yes Definitely recommend insurance, mine costs £34 a month she is covered for up to £2 millions definitely worth it as can be very expensive if they have an accident etc, but she is a large breed (dalmatian) she needs roughly 3 hours walk a day I have 2 children 1 is 4 and the other is coming up 2 and our dog is just under a year old, if your looking for something low maintenance is suggest a small breed dog as they don't need as much exercise, its best you do research into a breed before you commit to buying as they may not suit your lifestyle etc, be prepared for nipping, chewing too through teething (if you were to decide to get a puppy) I hope this helps, quite happy for you to message me if you'd like anymore advice I've had dogs all my life

Oh and I don’t know if anyone else has found this, but our dogs could tell time.

They would have their 3 walks at roughly the same time every day. If dp was finishing watching something on tv, had gone to the toilet or on the phone, and it was 5/10 minutes past normal walking time, the dogs would start pacing, going to the door and looking at dp, as if to say ‘come on mate, you’re late, we need to go!!’.

Dogs are a big commitment.

Let’s start with poo. It becomes a main talking point in the house. “Do you have poo bags?” Every. Time. You. Leave. The. House. Even if get out of the car at the services. Even if you’re visiting a friend’s house. Poo bags are everywhere. In pretty much coat pocket. You’ll have rolls with 1 poo left that you can’t finish. You’ll go to pet shops because they have the cheapest poo bags. You’ll have a favourite brand of poo bag. We’ve just done a cross-country car journey today. I waited outside with the dog, while DH used the toilets and I handed the dog to him and said “she’s had a wee and a poo”. We got back into the car and he said “she’s had another poo, so that’s her morning two done”. You should always pick the poo up, even in the countryside. However, if you aren’t prepared to carry the poo for potentially miles, grab a stick and shove it off the path rather than bagging the poo and then hanging it from a tree like some gross Christmas tree decorations in a few miles.

Yes to insurance. Vet fees can get really expensive. Sometimes there’s a point where you have to weigh up if it’s worth going through insurance or sucking up the extra bill that month. Our dog cost us £300 in a week in vet bills the other month. With another £100 two weeks later. It wasn’t worth going through insurance for that because it would have pushed her premiums up but that’s money you’ve got to find. She had a grass seed in her ear, those costs were for an hour out of hours vet appointment, two lots of antibiotics, some ear cleaning solution and a follow up appointment.

Walking - we pay for a dog walker because we both work FT. That’s an expensive commitment but personally I really rate our dog walker. Our dog is really sociable and with the dog walker she gets the chance to interact with a number of different dogs and I think it’s really helped her behaviour. Ideally we would also walk her in the morning and evening. Sometimes we don’t but we make sure we do other stimulation with her, so getting her to chase her ball, playing with her, getting her to do obedience or scentwork. We probably do at least 20-30 minutes of stimulation, if we haven’t walked her but she has still been out with our dog walker. Ours can manage a day without a walk. Usually a Sunday. But that’s if she’s been busy on Saturday and been out for at least 30 minutes each day during the week. Sometimes if it’s nice, she’ll sit outside all day and not want to go on a walk and leave her garden but if it’s raining she’s got this weird habitat that she won’t go outside in the garden but will still want to go for a walk. It’s like she thinks the rain at the front of the house and around the village is different to the rain at the back of the house.

There are a lot of reeds that are great for families but at the end of the day it comes down to the dog’s individual temperament. There is a cocker spaniel at training and she is amazing with kids but my friend has a cocker spaniel and he doesn’t like kids at all, they’ve both had young kids in their lives through friends and family (but not lived with them), neither are rescue dogs and both are a similar age. I have a cockapoo and she adores kids. If a kid wants to pet her when we’re out, she will stop, sit and wait to be petted. Regardless of where she is, even if she’s in the middle of the road 🙄

Someone has to get home to let the dog out. Holidays are either with the dog or working out what to do with them. Weekend activities become focused on where you can take the dog. Like I said, they’re a big commitment. And some people don’t like having dogs. It doesn’t make them a psychopath but it wasn’t what they imagined having dogs to be like.5’

Make sure you have absolutely fail proof plans for dog care for your holidays. Then think of a solid backup arrangement. Then think of another backup.
We absolutely adore our dog, kennels are not an option, our friend, DP’s cousin, a former work colleague and a professional dog sitter who all promised to look after him when we are away have all changed their mind and/or their circumstances over the last few years and the consequence is DP and I now holiday separately.
They are fantastic creatures, but I cannot stress enough how much of a bind they are.

There are a number of quizzes online you can do to try to find the right breed for your lifestyle. No matter how much you may love a certain breed, their traits will just not suit.

Personally I prefer purebreds as, if bred to the breed standard, they should be pretty consistent. I've got a westie and it's amazing how many little quirks seem to actually be breed behaviours. Just as an example:

• barks / growls at animals on tv
• love sleeping on pillows
• the little nose bump for attention (that max has just done three times to get a pat ) - my boy will bump my leg as I'm walking to the front door so I don't forget to take him too
• the westie wuffle which is totally adorable
• he also loves to tunnel behind my legs when I'm sitting down - not sure if that's a behaviour commonality too

These are just little every day behaviours that seem to be common with this breed but my other dogs (cocker, staffy, corgi, mixed) have never done.

When I was doing succession planning for my staffy, I googled a broad description of what I wanted in a dog - size, appearance. Then read the breed standards around temperament and behaviour and once I'd decided what I wanted, went and met a few of the breed to see if I actually liked them in person.

Buying a dog should not be a spur of the moment, this one will do sort of purchase. You need to get the right dog for you. To do that, you need to be honest about your lifestyle, your free time and your temperament. I can't have timid animals. Mine need to have personality and confidence as I have quite a strong temperament. I love the terrier temperament - cheeky, boisterous, rascally. Others call them terrors, which they can be if not handled appropriately.

A warning about kids. Kids are sooks. I read time and again on a cocker Facebook page about kids sooking because the new puppy is jumping up or nipping them. Firstly pup is not being raised properly - I've never had a pup think it ok to chew on me. Secondly the kids squealing and running away is a game for the pup. Usually pup ends up being rehomed because it's too much work. Unfortunately it isn't rehomed before poor behaviour has become ingrained and requires someone to spend time retraining. Tend to be rehomed once they're no longer a cute puppy and the reality of dogs needing work and time put into them to be good family members sinks in. So you end up with a 12-18 month old with crap behaviour that someone expects someone else to take in and fix.

Yes, what everyone else had said. The bits I thought would be hard e.g. couple of walks a day plus some other toiletting opportunities aren't a problem but would be if I worked out of the home. Picking up every poo no problem.

Tricky things I hadn't considered:

• can barely leave him so do hardly anything I did before and can't even go to dentist / supermarket without thing "What about dog?"
• early up EVERY SINGLE DAY to let him out to the loo (I never get up to him in the night though, but loads of people do)
• the amount of training needed
• enormous cost of dog itself, monthly insurance, puppy plan at the vets, foods, daycare, holiday care etc

Good things I hadn't expected:

• I really wanted him, but I don't just love him, I adore him and can hardly take my eyes off him
• he's brought the family together
• we are happier
• I walk much more than before
• I've met so many lovely people walking him
• I've been exploring my area with him
• I'm less worried about trivial stuff as I have happy new focus

So I'd say the highs are enormous BUT no good if the lows won't work for you. Key thing is the restriction every single day, day trips, holidays

I'll add that, after all my research, I knew my westie was absolutely perfect from the moment he came through my door. I texted his breeder immediately as I could not have asked for a more perfect dog. He had big paws to fill as my staffy was irreplaceable.

My cocker was free from work and I got her to be a friend for my westie. She was just under 3yo and I was her 4th home. Not my favourite dog, has behaviours that she wouldn't have if she'd been with me from a pup. That said, she's come a long way. She had no idea how to play when I got her and would roll over as soon as I stood up. She was excessively submissive, which is a struggle for me. However, 4 years on she's much better and way more confident. The first time she instigated play I was so excited.

Dog poo is a risk to livestock so you need to pick it up on fields.

I think all young dogs need quite a bit of exercise, so maybe think of an older dog?

If you work you would need to plan for how to manage this as dogs should not be left alone all day. My dp is able to take our dog to work with him, which is great as dogsitter/dog walker costs can be quite a bit.

I have 2 dogs which are huge. They do huge poos, eat huge, and need huge walks. We even have a dog scooter so they can get their exercise. Their vet bills are also always costly.

We have also had a chihuahua in the past. Mistake it not. It still needs walking and often had higher vet bills because of brittle bones, rotting teeth (common in all small dogs), therapy for anxiety (again common in small dogs, can lead to aggression if not addressed) and much much more.

Insurance is essential. First you could get a very nasty bill if for example your dog escaped and was hit by a car. Or if your dog causes injury to another person such as if they jumped up, causing the person to fall and break a bone. The public liability element would be of use.

Whippets are the easiest breed imo. They will run round like maniacs for 20 minutes, twice a day, and the rest of the time you'll have a job getting them out of bed. They're not very hairy, so no grooming, and a wipe with a damp flannel will get any mud off them. They moult a bit, but not so much that the hair will fill the hoover every day for a week.

They're very cuddly, and love to snuggle up.

The same applies to greyhounds, but they take up a lot more room. Rescue greyhounds make fab pets, I'd have one in a heartbeat if we had the space.

I have a lakeland terrier. I adore them, but I'd never recommend them (or any other terrier breed) as a first time dog, they're very ... challenging.

Picking up poo is essential in most circumstances though sometimes you can "stick and flick" this isn't ever appropriate on common dog walks even in fields remember, I'm talking off the beaten track. All dogs need taking out daily, ideally 2-3 times but distance does depend on breed. If you are already thinking of not wanting too much walking I don't think a dog is for you

I pay £30 a month for insurance and care plan (for vaccines) plus there's a £60 copay if sick

Cavapoo/cavoodle

Prepare yourself for the cost of having a dog it’s v v v expensive

Read up on dog breeds. Take the "Which dog is best for me" tests. Work out what kind of characteristiocs you could live with and which ones you absolutely can't.

Read EVERYTHING you can about dogs, even Pets4Homes as they have some great starter info. Read for a year. Then come back and ask more specific questions.

I did that and, after 10 months have days when I just want to give him back... away... disappeared! You have to be in the right frame of mind and lfestyle to live with the iritating puppy for about 2 years, I am told. Constantly on, watching, waiting, dreading. Don't let the cute puppy face fool you.

Whatever you get it will hurt you, hurt your kids, damage just about anything it can get its teeth into. Puppy teeth are like bloody needles, adult teeth take a lot of chewing in!

And they are bloody expensive! Far more than you might imagine! Far, far more!

Here's mine on an expensive course, doing something his breed ar really not supposed to be any good at! Which, to be fair, he isn't

Do you need to pick up the poo if you are in a field? Countryside?

Why would you leave it for someone else to walk into?

Insurance? Do.you have £1500 lying around if dog needed emergency care, stays, blood tests etc? What if it causes an accident or bites another dog? Insurance is vital. If you can't afford it you can't afford a dog.

Sorry but from your very naive questions you really need to do a lot of research on dog keeping in general and specific breeds before you even consider getting a dog.

You need to be absolutely sure of the cost and commitment before you buy.
Getting a dog isn't a quick decision.take your time , loafs of goid advice on here but you also need to research, resesrch, resesrch for your life style and not kid yourself. But good luck if you really are committed.