To not understand the appeal of dogs as pets?

[Gardentiger]

I just don't get it and would love to understand! As much as I like certain dogs I meet and think they are cute, the list of downsides is massive

• they smell and make your house and car and clothes smell bad

-they can't be left alone for a length of a working day -behavioural problems and agression -if you get a barky one it can ruin your relationship with neighbours -the amount of time you have to spend training them -some seem to need constant supervision -chewing things and generally wrecking the housr -having to pick up warm freshly baked turds

I walked a friend of mines dog the other day and it was awful! He pulled on the lead the entire way, and kept trying to pee on people's doorsteps / flowerpots.

So what is the appeal!? I say this as an animal lover who has had pet rabbits, cats and hamsters in the past.

I've always been a cat person. Scared of dogs since childhood and hated them bounding up to me when I was out trying to enjoy a nice walk with my family. Last year I bowed to pressure from my DS and DH and we got a dog. A working line spaniel at that. Talk about in at the deep end! I absolutely love him. He is like my third child, and I have the strongest bond with him out of everyone in the house.

I found training him so rewarding. He's incredibly clever and I felt so proud every time he learnt a new command. As an adult dog he now understands the subtlest of my movements on walks, and I can communicate with him from just a facial expression or a nod. We enjoy long walks in the countryside together and he gives me his fullest attention which is amazing when I feel like the rest of the household want something from me.
Often we get half way through the walk and I'll stop to watch a bird or sit to look at the view and he comes and sits next to me and looks at what I'm looking at. Quiet faithful companionship which doesn't require anything from me.

He knows when I'm having a low day. He's brilliant. He doesn't let me wallow or mope, he goes completely daft and either jumps all over me for a cuddle or runs about like a mad thing and grins at me until I can't help but laugh.

He barks when someone comes to the door which is handy as we have no doorbell and I often don't hear someone knocking if I'm upstairs. He gives the best cuddles which is amazing now that the DC aren't as snuggly.

The poo is much less disgusting than the disembowelled rabbits the cats leave dotted round the house. Plus we have goats sheep ducks and hens so poop is a constant feature in my life!

We have just adopted a second dog and she is wonderful too. She's a little snuggle bug and curls up with the DC. She knows when my eldest is having a bad day and just sits with her and listens to her. She's generally a lot lazier and cuddlier than our spanner but she's a great fit for our family and loves everyone which is lovely.

I can't imagine not having dogs now and thoroughly intend to end up with a whole pack of them. We already generally smell of goats or sheep most of the time anyway so dog smell isn't an issue. People accept that having livestock means we are likely to be muddy, hairy and unable to go out for the day.

And what someone said about MH is also true.

2 years ago I couldn’t walk from. My lounge to my kitchen without becoming breathless. Then I had heart surgery, but I never imagined I would be fit enough to have another guide dog. So when I was accepted back on to the waiting list I knew I had to make sure I was fit enough. So to maintain my heart health, and to be sure that I was fit enough, I walked 10000 steps a day around my house. And if I hadn’t done that I would never have been able to cover the distances I have during training.

2 Years ago I was told I would be sent home to die, and then after my surgery was told that the transplant list was my only chance of a future.

The transplant list is still a possibility at some point, but in the meantime I have a life to live, and now I have a dog who is helping me live it.

If you don’t like dogs then fine, don’t go on to dog threads to read about them, and don’t go out and buy a puppy. It ain’t that hard.

The problem is that people who don't like dogs now have to share so much space with dogs - parks, outdoors, even workplaces and restaurants- that it's hard to avoid them so what do you suggest the above people do when approached by something that terrifies them and is jumping all over them? Not buying a dog in that situation, or not going on a dog thread on MN is bugger all use.

they smell and make your house and car and clothes smell bad - not if you wash them and freshen up your house regularly.
they can't be left alone for a length of a working day - yes they can but you have to build up to it
behavioural problems and agression - responsible owners will train their dogs well
if you get a barky one it can ruin your relationship with neighbours - so train it not to bark and control the situation
the amount of time you have to spend training them - its reallly worthwhile though
some seem to need constant supervision - only badly trained ones
chewing things and generally wrecking the housr - you can sort this very early when the dog is a young puppy
having to pick up warm freshly baked turds - quick scoop into a poop bag and its not a problem

I just wouldn't be without a dog in my life tbh. I have a real deep connection with my pets. The loyalty and love I receive from them is worth any downsides.
Having pets has also taught my children compassion, kindness, and being responsible

@FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop except as @mumsnetHQ have said multiple times on numerous threads that this is not a parenting website despite the tag line yet despite that those who are hard of comprehension like yourself still persist on trotting out the snarky why are you on mumsnet then if someone doesn’t agree with you.

oh I don’t know why I’m on mumsnet. Couldn’t be to do with the hundreds of non child related topics and posts.

There’s always one 🙄🙄🙄🙄

I absolutely love dogs.

But wouldn't ones bum sat on my sofa and carpets

I don't see the appeal of a designer hand bag...all that faff keeping it immaculate, worrying about it on a night out....the extortionate cost for a label/name on a bag so guess what, I just don't buy one and live my life free of designer bag stress

@ForeverAintEnough3 I didn't say "why are you on Mumsnet then" so please don't make things up.

Watching the relationships between my dc and our ddogs is one of the most enjoyable bits of parenting. Seeing ds6 read aloud in bed with 2 or 3 of our ddogs sat 'listening' makes me well up every time. His devotion to all 4 of them is so commendable
.. He is going to be an amazing young man. Compassionate and loving imo.

Dogs are great, however the cat (not mine, belongs to dp's dd, we took it in his bloody annoying

Where are all these dogs which constantly jump up at and all over people? No seriously where?

I come across other dogs every day of my life. The fact I have one means that other dogs are potentially going to be drawn to us, and while some are a bit of a nuisance this hoard of dogs which everyone seems to encounter just isn’t out there.

Yes, badly behaved dogs are annoying. But most people who take their dogs to restaurants don’t let them run around and jump up indiscriminately at other people.

And if you’re so afraid of dogs that you can’t go into a space where they are even lying quietly, then surely it would be better to seek some help with that, because it is inevitable that you will have to go into places where dogs are. My guide dog is still a dog. So if you’re afraid of dogs you’re not going to be less afraid of him because he’s a guide dog, and he is still likely to be in the same place as you are at some point.

[quote FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop]@ForeverAintEnough3 I didn't say "why are you on Mumsnet then" so please don't make things up.[/quote]
I know what you said, I quoted it on my previous post. You said that a parenting website wasn’t the place for that poster as she said she didn’t want children. This is not a parenting website and you’ve no right to nastily police who goes on this site @FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

It was clearly tongue in cheek, an easy joke, hence my laughing faces, pardon me for adding something light hearted I miss MN of yore when people weren't so sensitive

@Gardentiger

I just don't get it and would love to understand! As much as I like certain dogs I meet and think they are cute, the list of downsides is massive

• they smell and make your house and car and clothes smell bad

-they can't be left alone for a length of a working day -behavioural problems and agression -if you get a barky one it can ruin your relationship with neighbours -the amount of time you have to spend training them -some seem to need constant supervision -chewing things and generally wrecking the housr -having to pick up warm freshly baked turds

I walked a friend of mines dog the other day and it was awful! He pulled on the lead the entire way, and kept trying to pee on people's doorsteps / flowerpots.

So what is the appeal!? I say this as an animal lover who has had pet rabbits, cats and hamsters in the past.

Well bred, well raised dogs are lovely but they aren’t robots and they do come with compromises. YANBU to feel like they are compromises you are unwilling or unable to make.

I have a dog. He is lovely and not all of your ‘cons’ apply to him, he isn’t a chewer or a barker and doesn’t have antisocial behavioural issues, he is good with other dogs and with people, young and old. He mostly just ignores them and keeps to himself. He does shed hair everywhere though and gets anxious if left alone for longer than a couple of hours. He can also be a bit lumbering and clumsy. He obviously does poo and training is an ongoing thing for all dogs, they don’t just learn everything and that’s it forever, it takes regular short sessions to reinforce what they know. His farts are evil. However, we (the family) are the centre of his universe, he adores us above all else. He’s sweet, patient, mostly gentle (aside from unintentional clumsiness mentioned above) and hilariously funny. He has added more to our lives than we lose by having him.

OP I agree with you totally. Just having to take them for walks in wet and cold weather twice a day and pick up their poo would be enough to put me off, but there are plenty of other disadvantages, chief among them being the cost of keeping one. But there again the cost is almost a positive for some people, as it makes their dog a status symbol.

Guinea pigs are much more low maintenance and don't have to be taken everywhere, either.

@AlternativePerspective North Yorkshire. To answer your question.

But as I say my 5yo son seems to be a dog magnet and they are jumpy and when they the same size or bigger than him it's like a horse coming up to you to lick your face.

So like I say dog-proofing by not getting a dog is naff all use when they poor boy is forever being knocked off his feet.

However I do accept that the vast majority of dog owners are responsible and sensible, and I don't think it's as simple as jumpy dogs = bad owners. Some dogs are just jumpy! I'd like these dogs to be kept on a lead when other people are nearby though. I don't think that's a lot to ask!

I’m a first-time dog owner. DH grew up having dogs as pets and the children persuaded me to give it a try. He’s a lovely personality, so warm and affectionate. Yes, he requires work and attention, but six years in, I don’t regret having him. But I’ll admit that I don’t feel the intense love that some dog owners profess for their pets. I care about him and I’ll be sad when he goes, but it’ll be nothing compared to my SiL when she lost one of her dogs. We’re all different.

@FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

It was clearly tongue in cheek, an easy joke, hence my laughing faces, pardon me for adding something light hearted I miss MN of yore when people weren't so sensitive

Yes people are so sensitive. What is with people now when you can’t just tell someone their house is disgusting and stinks and their pet whom they love and who improves their life/mental health is disgusting and that they shouldn’t even be posting on this site as they’re not a parent so they don’t belong.

Gosh I mean it was just such a funny joke. What a comedian you are @FrangipaniDeLaSqueegeeMop

@Goldenfan

Most owners do know there hpuse smells etc its just on mumsnet that this is denied.

I have a 27kg golden retriever so yes my house smells and I have tumble weeds of fur everywhere. I don't care about that much. My house is clean and tidy enough and life is too short for me to worry about it.

I am the same, only with a 36kg lab who loves water and countryside walks. ENDLESS hoovering and washing of soft furnishings to minimise the dog smell. I’m winning the battle in the house but the boot of my car is a write-off

*Most owners do know there hpuse smells etc its just on mumsnet that this is denied.

I have a 27kg golden retriever so yes my house smells and I have tumble weeds of fur everywhere. I don't care about that much. My house is clean and tidy enough and life is too short for me to worry about it.*

This. Mine's a retriever too and I love him more than I ever thought possible. We nearly lost him earlier this year when he was suddenly diagnosed with diabetes after developing DKA - no warning signs or anything, just suddenly went off his legs. He wasn't supposed to have lived, but he did and he continues to grow stronger everyday. I love him all the more for his bravery and his sheer desire to be alive then, and now.
He is the most joyful creature on earth and he truely does smile every moment of the day. He's always happy to see me, to be in my company, to sit with me while I work.
People who think my house smells, who judge the wisps of his fur on the sofas, who don't like that he will say hello when they come to the door (before going off to his bed or wherever he fancies sitting) are people I don't need in my life anyway.
My dog isn't interested in people so doesn't jump on your children. In fact he's slightly scared of children ever since one lunged at him as a puppy.

He's not well behaved and he barks often. But that's fine, he's not encroaching on your space and my house is detached and isolated.

I don't like children. I do like dogs. So shoot me.

After a shitty shift at work, at least someone is happy to see you when you get home.

I am a rescuer in the middle east. My car is doggy and cat pissy and I have too many. I have also fostered baby monkeys (smelly and don't believe Money World, they don't give a shit) a cheetah (needy bugger) and currently have a savanna and kittens coming out of my ears. If people could only think of animals as living beings, I would have a pension and a small free home and 3 spare rooms I could use rather than being a holding place for the lucky animals we are ble to get to decent rescues.

@BarkingUpTheWrongRoseBush

i feel similarly about children...

Of course dogs make the house smell. But I like dogs and the way they smell! The smell of them is one of the best things about them.

Dogs and humans love each other. That’s why they are good pets.

I always assumed that pets like hamsters don’t actually want to be pets and are actually just wild animals in cages in someone’s house. Is this not the case? Do they actually like people?