Please or to access all these features

Add post

Watch this thread

Save thread

Start a new thread

Flip thread

Hide thread

My feed

Active Unanswered threads

Getting started FAQ's

Unanswered threads Acronyms Talk guidelines

Hide shortcut buttons

Talk

Pets

Join our community on the Pet forum to discuss anything related to pets.

Flip

1 2

Original poster

Thinking of getting a dog - ds is 3.5 - should we try the rescue centres or classifieds?

48 replies

OracleInaCoracle · 29/07/2008 23:00

thats it really. we would like to get a small(ish) dog. we had a border collie until ds was 1 but she sadly died. we said at the time that we wouldn't get another dog, but now feel that ds would enjoy having one arond (and so would we). bess was inherited, but we have been looking at rescue centres etc, but dont know whether we ould be better off scouring classifieds, any advice?

OP posts:

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 08:52

i know. ds wants to go NOW but we have to wait for dh...

OP posts:

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 08:53

thank you wags. didnt even onsider that

OP posts:

Wags · 30/07/2008 09:06

Phone them and see if Craig is still there, go on phone them!

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 09:12

lol, should i?

OP posts:

hatwoman · 30/07/2008 09:19

I'm not sure I get the garden thing with dogs. as long as they get adequate exercise - which for virtualy everyone is not going to be in the garden but in the park/fields - why does it matter how big your garden is?

GooseyLoosey · 30/07/2008 09:22

Is this for ds or the dog. I think you could get into trouble leaving ds at a rescue centre, but the classifieds should be OK.

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 09:23

lol goosey

OP posts:

Wags · 30/07/2008 09:36

I would phone them, see if he's still available and have a chat about him, find out a bit more, then you can arrange to go and see him. Otherwise you could be gutted if you turn up and he's gone or promised to someone else.

PortAndLemon · 30/07/2008 09:51

hatwoman, some breeds of dog like to run around a lot, so or those breeds you really need a decent-sized garden. Other breeds will be quite happy with a couple of nice long walks a day, so you don't.

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 09:58

right, filled in the application form so will ring now!

OP posts:

PortBlacksandResident · 30/07/2008 10:08

shropshire.retiredgreyhounds.org/

Maybe here too.

PortBlacksandResident · 30/07/2008 10:08

Doh!

hercules1 · 30/07/2008 12:11

Just to go against everything said but I would go for a puppy from a reputable breeder rather than a rescue with a child this age.

SqueakyPop · 30/07/2008 12:18

same here, Hercules.

hercules1 · 30/07/2008 12:24

THe trouble is with a rescue dog you can never be sure of what has happened to it in the past. You have no idea of how well or not it has been socialised and its past experiences. With your own puppy you are completely in charge of its experiences and its socialising. You know it inside out.
You are also in charge of which breeder you get it from.

THe next time we get a dog it will be a rescue as our children will be much older than.

LittleB · 30/07/2008 13:44

I'd second hercules, I've had rescue dogs in the past but when my last dog died we decided to get a puppy as I felt I couldn't trust a rescue dog around a young child,(dd was almost 2) and I wanted to make sure we got the right dog for our family. We will get rescues in the future though when dd is older. Although I know peole will bite my head off as there are lovely dogs out there through no fault of there own, but there are also people who will lie and say the dog is fine, when its bites just to get it into the centre. And dogs can behave very differently in a centre to a home environment. One of my rescue collies was very quiet in the centre, calm and quiet, we think he was probably depressed as after a few months of living with us he became a much livlier happier dog, but was also very hard work! He was worth it but he would have been too much of a live wire to have around a toddler once he'd come out of himself.

ksld · 30/07/2008 14:02

I second getting a puppy from a breeder - make sure you can see both parents and go for one where there are children who have been handling puppies from birth. We looked into getting a rescue dog last year and the Centre near us would not home a rescue dog in a family with children under 10.

SubRosa · 30/07/2008 15:32

While I'd recommend a rescue dog (we've got a terrier from the Dogs Trust) you can never fully trust them. Our dog is brilliant, loves kids, but a couple of times she has reacted aggressively at home, when she felt cornered. She wasn't trapped/cornered in any way, but she'd remembered something from her past and couldn't help herself.

Having said that, most rescue places are very thorough and wouldn't give you a dog they thought would be unsuitable. Good luck with whatever you decide.

Original poster

OracleInaCoracle · 30/07/2008 16:23

we are going to look at a collie lab bitch tomorrow at hilbra. she is small and 8m, family has given her to the rescue because of family illness, so fingers crossed!

OP posts:

WelliesAndPyjamas · 30/07/2008 16:30

sounds like fun lissie
enjoy!

another greyhound fan here. We ended up with the softest gentlest deerhound when a neighbour couldn't look after him any more. Excellent with DS, put up with all sorts from him when he was a baby! And was a real treat to watch him running freely in the fields. When we moved abroad, he retired to a life of luxury with BIL and SIL, where he is spoilt rotten treated like a prince . Would a whippet be a consideration for you? smaller than greyhound but still gentle.

We had a cross collie from a shelter when we were kids. Completely bonkers. She is now elderly and still bonkers!

tengreenbottles · 01/08/2008 12:01

i got my huge rescue dog when my dd was 2 and half ,and apart from the occasional time when he sat on her we have had no problems

WallOfSilence · 02/08/2008 22:12

How'd it go Lissie? Have you been to see the dog?

I would have to add that I went round the rehoming centres near me looking for a dog for our family. (dd 6 ds 3)None of the rehoming centres were that helpful & said that they had to trust the owners when they said the dogs hadn't bitten before.

We sort of chose a dog then when we went back she was gone.

Anyway we looked about for over a year & finally decided we would go to a reputable breeder. We went to one and saw the dog's mum & dad, the mum was feeding the pups and she moved away & pushed them over to us with her nose for ua to see

We'll get out pup in a few weeks & we can't wait!! Especially now we know the temperament of her parents too!!!

hollyandnoah · 03/08/2008 16:46

hey,

i rescued a dog, she was suitable for kids and all that, they came and vetted my home, we had big chats and didnt take her home for 2 weeks so we could visit and walk her at dogs trust...
She was crazy when we got her home, didnt like anyone but me, snapped at my oh when he trier to put her lead on for a walk, wouldnt go iutside with anyone but me. she bit my sisters 2 year old while she sat on the floor playing with her peppa house.

now i have a king charles cava and a german spitz x pom and the were both from classafieds, both love eachother, are great with kids and other dogs and small pets. Very friendly with people.

Missy the cavalier, her owners got her as a present and couldnt handle a puppy.
Blaze the german spitz, his owner was 8 month preg and her other half worked full time so she couldnt handle a young dog on her own.

Soo i wouldn't rule out classafied totally, for me it went better than the dogstrust dog.

Flip

1 2

Swipe left for the next trending thread