Pros and Cons of Owning a Puppy/Dog

[CarlottosWay]

We are giving some serious thought to getting a family dog and are considering a West Highland Terrier, Cocker Spaniel, Miniature Poodle or a Beagle.
DS is 6 and has autism/learning disabilities and loves being with dogs of family and friends.
DH predominantly works from home (occasional travel), and I work 10 hours a week split over two days.
I want to make sure that I am doing the right thing for us and the dog, so I am writing a list of pros and cons. I have the standard insurance costs, food costs, kennel costs, dog sitting for days out etc listed. At the moment the cons are mainly financial, but affordable.
As experienced dog owners, what would be on your list?

Given yours and your husband's choices, how about a cockapoo? There are rescues and I think that sadly they are very popular and cute and people get them without going through the process you are sensibly considering then find them too demanding. So they are up for rehoming after a few months ☹️

Someone we know did suggest a cockapoo. Again it is something worth considering, though my understanding is that they tend to come from questionable breeders.

It can be very difficult to find breeders of crosses who are doing all the appropriate health testing (especially if they're not keeping up with new tests that being developed, though this is also often an issue with breeders of pedigrees as well), not breeding at large volumes and paying appropriate attention to conformation. It can also be challenging to find a decent breeder of pedigrees but out of the two it tends to be easier to find one the latter who keeps up to date with breed health and breeds in a responsible manner.

Also, if you DH wouldn't be happy with a poodle, would he be happy with a cocker x poodle that was pretty much indistinguishable from one? Or does the addition of cocker, regardless of what the resulting cross looks like, make the dog not "poncey"? Poodles don't have to have the daft haircuts you see in the show ring, they can be clipped right down and kept short or left a bit scruffy. Poodles of all sizes are really fabulous dogs and it's such a shame they get written off because people see the show clips and presume they're useless for anything other than parading around the show ring.

Cornflake he just can't seem to see past the ridiculous haircuts of show dogs and hates the shaved nose look.

I think it doesn't help that a woman close by has poodles, all with show clips, ribbons and bows etc. I keep telling him, we would have a teddy bear cut, but it is like he can't see past it.

I have done some research into responsible breeders, what to look for etc, but agree they are probably few and far between.

Having just acquired a cockapoo after extensive research into breeders, I think they are few and far between, I agree - but there's an argument that taking on an older dog looking for a home isn't helping the dodgy breeders directly. There are also lots of good hobby breeders but you have to look carefully, be patient and prepared to walk away.

Poodles are lovely dogs I agree - it's a shame about the stupid cuts! SIL has a beautiful standard poodle, gorgeous in every way (and no fancy hairdo!)

I've got a show cocker who is wonderful. Cons though : absolutely a mud monster. Wallows in puddles and mud. Weather like this is the pits. I have to wash him after every walk, I am done with mud.
Also when your kids decide they don't want to walk the dog that day and cry all the way round in the wind and rain it's miserable.
I realise I may be projecting here!

I have a working cocker and having spoken to people who have both working and show lines he doesn't seem any more bouncy than the show ones. He also doesn't like to get his feet wet and will tiptoe round mud so it just shows that they don't always follow their stereotypes

We have a 9 month old beagle. He is hard work (as are all pups) and training is tricky but he is such an affectionate and happy dog. He gets on well with my 3 children (ages 3-8) and is never snappy.

Cons
House training accidents
Cost
Something else to consider when planning outings and holidays- can be limiting.

Pros
He brightens our days
Teaches children about caring for animals
Gets us all out the house
Strong bond with the children, especially my son who struggles with communication sometimes
Cuddles on the sofa

Please do your research into breeds - many sadly have health issues e,g king charles spaniels, westies, pugs/frenchies and other flat faced breeds. Beagles and spaniels are high energy dogs needing long walks every day no matter the weather....

That did me giggle Bitey

That is a good point about children and walking theotherside. I would only take DS if he wanted to go or it was necessary for him to go.

Has chewing been a big issue with your beagle Snurf?

I wouldn't recommend a beagle as your first dog, they really need a lot of stimulation as they can be a handful when they get bored (especially as puppies). They are adorable though. Have you considered a slightly older dog that may be more chilled out?

Pros of my dog:
Cute
Funny
Cuddles
Kisses
Little fluffy friend
I never feel lonely
I feel safe as the dog will bark at anything out of the ordinary
Removes crumbs from the floor in seconds
Adorable snoring foot warmer
Spider eater

Cons of my dog:
Expensive
Smelly
Begs for food

Tries to lick inside everyone's nostrils

Thanks Nancy, we would consider an older dog. I have been looking at rescues.

That's great, and a lot of rescue dogs already have basic training like walking nicely on the lead and house training which would take a lot of pressure away from you. I hope you find your new pooch soon

Financially I would say work out your costs - then double them!!

Appledog is now 9 months old - we bought him 5 beds which he ate a hole in before getting the plastic base bed; toys he will destroy in minutes even the supposedly indestructible toys, and the antler chews I thought were supposed to last for weeks last only one week; food - we bought a Huge bag of Symply puppy kibble which he decided he didn't like once he'd tasted human food (he now has the wet trays with a small amount of kibble sprinkled on top) and that's before the cost of professionally cleaning our sofa and carpets from the muddy paw marks - oh and getting our kitchen walls tiled where he'd pulled the paper off and dug into the plaster ........

Then there's the special toys and treats I buy him just because I love him .....

As a parent to two children with autism I'd say having Eric (shih tzu/poodle cross) has been wonderful for ds and dd and he has always adapted to their differing needs.I would add that they absolutely hated his puppy days, he was too overwhelming, too physical, too disruptive, too unpredictable but since he became an adult dog he can do no wrong in their eyes and he is generally greeted long before they acknowledge my existence

Thank you everyone for all your help.
We have decided that a show Cocker Spaniel is the right fit for us.

We will now start contacting rescues and responsible breeders.

Early days sound similar to having a new baby

This is what I thought and in many ways they were, but what really took me by surprise, having desperately wanted a dog, was the extent to which in the first couple of weeks, I just wanted to send him back! I think what I hadn't considered was that you instantly love your baby and the lack of sleep and clearing up of grim messes isn't something you hold against them. For me, it wasn't the same with our lovely puppy and I was quite convinced that we had done the wrong thing! Fortunately, my husband did love him instantly and dragged me through! After a couple of weeks, I wouldn't have sent him back for the world.

You'll have a hard time finding a show Cocker in a rescue. If you're getting a rescue then why not go for what is most suitable for you rather than a specific breed? Greyhounds are generally incredibly laid back and would make a good first dog. I wouldn't recommend a Hound for a first one.

Good luck! They're bloody hard work, but worth it

Not a show cocker but young and up for adoption in a rescue.....

If we buy a puppy, then based on hours of research and the experience we have had, we would choose a show cocker spaniel. Primarily because most of what we have read said they are better as pets than working cockers, although I know each dog is different.

Oh I too would be surprised to find a rescue show cocker. So yes, there would be more flexibility on breed from a rescue. We do want a medium sized dog though.

Cowgirl that dog is gorgeous

hopeforperreradogs.org/available-dogs/

Might be worth a look, many puppies and much more flexible than traditional rescue ie children/other animals do not rule you out.

Thanks. I will take a look.

The Cocker Spaniel Club do run their own rescue scheme and the club covers both show and working types so might be worth getting in touch with them if you're interested in rehoming.

The breed club is also the best place to start looking for a puppy, they should be able to help put you in touch with decent breeders who are planning litters. They've also got quite a good little guide to buying a puppy/finding a breeder which is worth a read. The Champdogs site also has a good guide to buying a puppy as well as a great list of questions to ask your breeder.

Cockers do have a pretty extensive list of health tests that should be done prior to breeding. At an absolute minimum both parents of a litter should have current BVA eye tests (repeated annually) and a current BVA gonioscopy (repeated every three years) plus DNA tests (or proof they're clear by parentage) for prcd-PRA, macrothrombocytopenia, exercise induced collapse, acral mutilation syndrome (particularly if working type), familial nephropathy and adult onset neuropathy.

Ideally both parents should have been hip scored as well but it's not commonly done in the breed.

Preferably you also want a breeder who is specifically trying to breed litters with as low a coefficient of inbreeding as possible and certainly below the breed average, which for cockers I believe is 10%. This artciel explains why considering COI when breeding is so important.

Bless you Cornflake, I have been in touch with them already. Thanks for your post.

Have a look on spaniel assist and spaniel aid website and Facebook sites. Both brilliant rescues, dogs go into foster first, so a good understanding of their personality and ability to fit within a family environment and around children. There are often you get dogs coming up, where a family has taken on a spaniel with no understanding of their needs and can't cope, or simply due to changes of circumstances meaning they have to rehome.
Show cocker spaniel are really hairy, but generally quite chilled, we have a working cocker and she is bonkers but she makes us laugh every single day, and my bond with her is amazing. We've just started fly ball and I love to work her. She's amazing with the kids too.