If you were reluctant to get a dog, did you get one and never look back...?

[Londonladybird]

Been thinking of getting a dog for ages now.

DH and kids really want one, I think I like the idea but it just seems like a huge responsibility. On paper I think it could work, someone is always at home, we have a good size garden near plenty of great dog walking space , I like going running and like the idea of dogs walks to motivate me in the rain, but what about the rest...if a dog is used to someone pretty much always at home is it very hard to leave on the odd occasion you do all go out for day - even if a dog walker does come round? Although I'm not particularly fussed about a bit of mess round the house, do you have to accept that if you get a puppy everything gets chewed? And going abroad? Talk to me about that! The kids are older now so we can afford /manage going abroad for a week or two but we don't have anyone we could leave the hypothetical dog with , and I've heard so many people say kennels are really grim. How do other people manage ?!

It's a case of my head saying but in my heart says it would be great... In real life all my dog owing friends say go for it, you'll never look back - but it can't be that simple, can it?

We all wanted a dog, and I'd have never agreed to one if dh and I weren't 100% sure.

But, it has still been hard getting used to the restrictions - no long days out without organising for someone to come (and we only have one person to ask without paying for day boarding), a quick night away means getting them into boarding (which is hard for our preferred option). Even going to town for lunch and a film means no impromptu dinner out on the way home as its too long to leave the dog.

Its those sort of things, rather than long holidays, that have been hardest to adjust to I think

Yes CMOTD days out would have to be so much more considered, my DH thinks I'm daft when I say it's a massive responsibility as he thinks that kids are more so, but kids grow up don't they!

And you can pretty much take kids with you anywhere, which is very much not the case with dogs

I love my dog :)

She is happy to chill in her crate, I obviously do not leave her in there all day but there have been one of two bad days where we've been held up. I think the longest she's been caged is 7 hours, not that I would ever recommend that. It was unavoidable in that instance.
We do occasionally go out for the day and the in laws feed and walk her but not often.

She was not destructive as a puppy, nor is she a destructive adult.
As a pup, if I saw her about to chew something bad I would interrupt with a 'ah ah', fairly soft but stern enough to make her pause and shove a chew toy in her gob and repeat. She learnt very quick what you chew and what you don't.

I do use kennels, however, I would rather use a dog sitter in the future where the dog has a holiday with a host family because my dog does get stressed.
The kennels told me she's a 'typical border collie, constantly running round doing something', well, I know my dog
and the only time she runs round constantly as they describe is when she is anxious and stressed....

I could be wrong, but I believe you can sit outside a cafe or restaurant or pub with a dog so you can still have impromptu coffees and things.
Depending on the area your in, lots of shops allow dogs in too.
The florist in my last area kept a jar of dog biscuits on the counter!

We were in a similar situation but dh was the hesitant one. He really does love the dog, but does have reasonably frequent 'Argh! Why did we get a dog?!' moments! But our dog is only 7 months old and those moments are getting less frequent.

Adopt an oldie from a rescue. I did for my first dog. She was only with us for a year but it was a fabulous year. It was far far easier than pups (which I have now). And if you find it cramps your style too much then it won't necessarily be for so long.

Ask on one of you local FB selling sites for recommendations for a dog sitter - I found a wonderful one that way. Make sure it's recommendations from unrelated people obviously :)

I would say I was the least enthusiastic/most realistic about having a dog but we wouldn't have had one at all if I wasn't prepared to put in the effort. I found the early days difficult. I had no experience of dogs and had no idea how full on a puppy was. It did feel suffocating initially not least because Eric decided I was his new mummy and attached himself to me constantly.
Eric is now 16 months old and I love him and he is a huge part of our family. We've got used to factoring him into our plans. Having adult children means that he has never had to be put in kennels and whilst there is usually someone home we can leave him for four hours and he's happy and content and has free run of the house with no mess on our return.
I would definitely recommend having a dog in the family, it's good to have an excuse to get out and about every day and no matter what he is always thrilled to see us and there's something nice about having a dog snuggled up close to you.

This thread is doing little to dissuade me!
I am concerned about the amount of work a puppy would be, I've not had a dog before, but most rescue centres seem to only consider rehoming dogs with teenagers at least, so don't think we could go down that route.

I didn't find my puppy that much work, honest!

If you attach a lead to yourself then the puppy has no opportunity for secret pissing behind the sofa or trashing stuff when your back is turned as it'll be attached to you.

It will need to be taken outside on waking, after every meal, every hour, after heavy play and before bed. Then once or twice in the night though I'm a lazy cow and a heavy sleeper, just used to clean up any mess in the crate in the morning Don't bother with puppy pads.

Feed it three times a day.

Walk it 5 minutes per month of age, especially important for anything bigger than a cocker spaniel.

I don't think holidays are the trickiest bit imho.

Whingy kids and poorly hound needing vet.
Puking kids and dog needs walk
Big day trip out to zoo/ theme park, can't take hound.
Everything hairy all of the time.

Shifts change at work or having to return to work.

I have two. I love them but they are an extra thing to think about.

oh yes and mystery illness on a Weekend, insurance or deep pockets needed.

We were reluctant to get a dog only because we lived in a high rise apartment abroad. However, friends had a lovely pooch and I'd grown up with dogs and missed the company enormously. I rescued our girlie, brought her home and never looked back. Loved her til her dying day. Still do. It's been 5 months since she passed on. I had a cry earlier this evening. Miss her so badly. They change your life completely. They do tie you down a bit, financially and you need to enjoy the responsibility. When they are gone, you can't function without them. I am desperate for another one, but maybe going a broad again, so waiting for the final decision from DH's boss. If we are not moving I will get a dog the following day. Have attached a pic of her. The love they give is unconditional. Cannot recommend it enough.
Good luck!

Owning a dog ican be a pain in the butt, when it comes to illness or dog free events.... They change the way you do things much in the same way that having dcs did. Our freedom is restricted but we love the dog so we work around these things without feeling any resentment.

We won't be getting another dog though.

We got a puppy a month ago, the whole family wanted one. It has been more disruptive than I expected and I would say don't get one if you are feeling reluctant.

The toilet training and mess general mess in the house has been better than I expected. He has chewed and broken a few things but I don't really mind about that. The thing that I am really struggling with is not being able to leave him for more than an hour or so. My puppy doesn't really want to be left at all unless he's tired when we go out so I find myself trying to plan when I go out around his walks and naps which is very restrictive. Also he is very bitey so difficult for the dc to play with him as much as they would like to, though this is improving.

I take him on the school run but really miss not being able to pop into a shop on the way. I am missing being able to go out spontaneously as a family. Also if you get a puppy they can't be exercised for very long in the first year which means you can't go out for the day with them either.

I don't regret getting him but I think I'd be feeling resentful if I'd been persuaded into it. I think an older dog would have been easier. Greyhound and lurcher rescues will often rehome with children. Mine is a lurcher rescue, but a puppy from a pregnant bitch. I wasn't very keen on skinny dogs before but have totally come round to them now.

We got our dog from Battersea when he was about 15 weeks ( not house trained or trained at all ) ,I didn't find it hard work but I was really keen to have a dog . My dc are older so less long days out and I only work occasional night shifts . Ddog is nearly 5 now and happy to stay home alone for a few hours when we go out but it would have been difficult when the dc were smaller because we did a lot of weekends away / theme parks which are not dog friendly . My DH was not at all keen for a variety of reasons but he has gradually got on board and the dog sits with him / on him most evenings and he is happy to walk him when I am away or indisposed . Due to our family arrangements we have never had to use kennels / dog sitters as there is usually someone at home or who can come and stay with him .

So many interesting replies- atonof thats a lovely pic. It's that doggy smile and the happy eyes I love, I hope your circumstances work out for you to get another.

I think I have mostly thought about the 'big' obstacles like holidays, but things like stopping off at thr shops after school would need to be considered and although I'm happy to walk in the rain if kids are poorly that's another matter. I sort of wish the decision could be taken out of my hands and we just find a dog in need of a home sitting on the door step !

London, yes, the eyes have it. She had a wonderful smile but really awful dog breath!!

We used wonderful kennels. Pricey, but we totally trusted them. I didn't mind walking in the rain, but DD did!

We were lucky with vets bills, but the last 5 years of her life were the most expensive as she started failing. I found the end of life stage the most stressful. Deafness, blindness, terrible arthritis and not settling in the evening due to pain. Getting up thru the night left me jet lagged beyond belief. Sometimes they die a very slow death, and that's really tough for the family. It's certainly a learning curve. Making that PTS appointment was the worst.

However, we all had a fabulous 14 years together, and I would do it all again.
Xxxx

I didn't find the puppy stage hard ddog never chewed anything and was quick to toilet train and slept all night.
He hated the crate so that had to go straight away.
I can leave ddog at home alone for a about 2/3 hours any more and he gets stressed if I'm going to be out any longer I take him to my fathers there he can be left longer as he has my father's two dogs for company and my father has a nice secure garden with a enclosed area on the side of the house, so ddog is happy to spend the day there if I need to go out and can't take him along.
As for holidays I go on dog friendly ones in this country but I watch my father's dog when he goes abroad and if I wanted to go abroad he would watch mine.
So as long as your prepared to arrange alternative care if your out all day most dogs will adapt to being left in for a few hours.

My DH and DS would love a dog but I would find it incredibly hard - now my DS is older I like to be spontaneous and if I want to go out on my own for a day then I can ........ if you had a dog presumably you couldn't just do that without having proper care arranged. We go to quite a few sporting events where people take their dogs, thinking that it is acceptable as it is 'outside' and to be honest they are a real pain, my pet expression that I hate is 'you don't mind dogs do you?' when you are sitting on the ground with a picnic and some dog starts sniffing around.

Unless you are 100% keen on the commitment then I don't think it is fair to yourself or the dog to have one. I find having a child is enough of a commitment .

Our puppy is 7.5months old now. Have I found it hard? YES... would I change it? probably not. As I work from home I found that some days I just wasn't getting out of the house and now I have a reason to get out twice every day for usually an hour at a time. She is hard work probably because she is a cocker and quite a needy breed but she is loving and funny and has added a new dimension to our lives. We had holidays booked before we got her and she is booked into a dog hotel for one of them and a home boarder for the others. She loves both places as we have done trial nights and she bounds out of the car when we get there. We also have utilised doggy day care for those time we are out all day and she can be crated for 3 hours if needed so a meal for a special occasion is still doable. Yes she is expensive and yes sometimes when I am having a bad day I regret it but I am healthier and fitter and have something that loves me pretty much unconditionally.

She only has ever really chewed her toys (she goes through certain ones quickly) but that was helped at the start by saying ah and replacing whatever she was about to chew with a toy in those 1st few weeks. It took her about 2 months to stop having accidents in the house and one of those months was probably once or twice a week.

I would say if you aren't sure then don't do it because it does change your life in my view. Could you try an borrow a dog for a day/night to try?

The thing that has changed since the annoying puppy stage is that we actually want our dog to be with us, so the sacrafice isn't really such a sacrafice.