How do you go from never having been a dog owner to being a dog owner?

[maybedog]

I know I can just go and buy a dog, but what do I need to think about, learn and do before we get a family dog?

I've always been a cat person, never understood dogs or their appeal. But then I've met a couple of dogs (Cavapoos) who have completely charmed the socks off us and it's starting to look attractive. We have two cats and dc are 7, 12 and 14.

I've read some of the puppy threads and heard from friends that it's like having a baby in the house 😬

What else should we consider?

I don't know if anyone saw it but Sainsbury's pet insurance just released some research that shows 21% of dog owner regret their breed choice.

But then 51% did no research whatsoever, so I'm surprise it's not higher!

It's definately worth doing thorough research as, luck be with you, this dog will be part of the family for 10 years plus.

Absolutely all the points above are spot on BUT imo it's so worth it as the right dog brings more joy than you can imagine (gazes at snoozing mutt adoringly)

@peoplepleaser - my mother had a greyhound for 11 years from the age of 10 months. She lived with a cat and never chased him, never even thought about chasing small furries out on a walk either. I think you are making sweeping generalisations as I've known several other greyhounds who show no interest too although of course it CAN be a breed trait.

First time dog owner here with a nearly 2yr old cavapoo. He’s turned our lives upside down and we sometimes wonder if we’ll ever train him!, but we love him and wouldn't be without him. He is costing far more than we anticipated though, we can mange it thankfully, but it is something to really consider especially if you need to be out the house a lot, holiday abroad, plan on saving for more children/ bigger house/ car etc.

Apologies to @cowboy and others who feel I've been unfair with my comments about greyhounds and lurchers chasing cats and small furries.

I have walked several who live harmoniously with cats, and many who don't. It does tend to be a breed trait and although there are exceptions I just wanted to point that out as OP has 3 cats. For me it just wouldn't be worth the risk as if things go wrong it can cause a very unfortunate situation.

We think about 30 minutes walk per day would be realistic.
Nope. Like PP, nope and nope - for a puppy or young dog. That's not enough time for exercise and training, though it might suit an older dog, especially if you have a garden that the dog can access and which is a decent size in relation to the dog's exercise needs, and the dog is from a fairly low-energy breed (we have an old gent of a dog and he still gets a minimum of 50-60 mins a day, and a maximum of a ten mile run).

Dogs are absolute time sinks.]

To be honest I've found the KC quiz 100% useless. It asks one limited question about exercise (up to 30 mins, up to an hour, over 2 hours, not sure - with no '1-2 hours' option), nothing about how much time and energy you'd be willing to invest in training, or what your actual access is to off-lead walking (you can live in a big town and be 2 mins from a country park), and no guidance on the what their size bands actually mean. It never suggests a breed anything like the one we've had, loved and enjoyed for over a decade.

I agree re exercise. Also few dogs actually exercise in their garden especially solo. Once they've got used to their own garden they might mooch about a bit but don't really exercise. You can encourage them using enrichment but again this takes time and effort....

Honestly I wouldn't get a dog until you've spent more time with them. Meeting a few you like is no where near the same as owning one.
We love our dog to bits and he has brought us so much joy but it's a lot of hardwork and changes your life completely.
There is no spontaneity when you have a dog. Everything outing has to be carefully considered. Costs can be huge, you have to walk in all weather, regardless if you feel like it or not and your home can become a hairy/muddy place. For us all the downsides are worth it 100 times over but if your not used to dogs/not that keen on them it's a massive undertaking especially as this could be your life for 15 years.

Concider the mess your garden can get in.

Not just the poo but they kill the grass, trample your plants and mine dig. I love my garden but you wouldn't think so if you saw it.

You can not leave them for any length of time. Your days are dictated by them.

I love mine but would never replace them. I will be sticking to cats in the future.

The garden is excellent point. I foster dogs as well as having 2 of my own. My last foster dog, a sprocker, ruined the lawn in a week. Just churned it up. Despite having several hours of walking a day. He wasnt trained at all when we got him and had lived outside in a small enclosed concrete space.

He was adorable. But bonkers.

I would be wary of getting a rescue as a first time owner, tbh. Recuse dogs often act different once they settle in. Its not always easy to predict what issues there will be. Unless you have a lot of time and money to dedicate to resolving issues that come up, then in can be a disaster.

My foster sprocker went to an experience spaniel owner who already had 2. We did lots of training and worked with a behaviourist. He was obsessed with cars and couldnt be walked near cars. This improved, but did disappear when he was with us. The people in his forever home, are still working on it 6 months later. Luckily they live rurally so it's not an issue.

But can you imagine 9 months of not being able to walk a dog anywhere near roads?

Similar situation here. I got as far as being approved by Battersea and a few trips to look at dogs needing homes. Then something happened (I cant remember what) which really brought home how my life would change (think I needed to travel somewhere at no notice to deal with family emergency). I thought I’d thought it all through before.
I fear I’ll never own a dog and that saddens me because I absolutely love them.
Good luck op ! Loads of good advice here.

We adopted Bella through dogsblog She is a Lhasa Apso that had been used for breeding but she was considered suitable to be rehomed with children (she is the most gentle dog) unsuitable to live with other dogs (only wanted one dog anyway and she is fine with visiting dogs) ok with savvy cats (no cats here).
She was house trained and non destructive and although she was used to being left we went right back to the beginning and slowly built up to her being left for three or four hours occasionally as we thought being rehomed might have knocked her confidence.
She isn't a perfect dog, she barks at anything that she sees move from the window and she growls at people out and about postmen, dustbin men, people with trolleys, men carrying carrier bags, men in hoodies, men in general which must be down to her past but she is perfect for us.

Start with the KC website and then rescues.

If you are getting a puppy get one from a breeder who is 'assured' with KC. Try to see both parents and if possible a dog from a previous litter.

If you have a puppy expect anything that is not on a high shelf to be

a) chewed
b) peed on
c) pooed on
d) covered in hair

Lots of dogs love the smell of unwashed underwear, make sure your laundry basket is puppy proof.

If you go down the rescue route go for an older dog with a known background, some people have to give dogs up for good reasons, these dogs are loved and deserve to be loved by another owner.

You might need to wait, for a good match for your family, to come along. You are committing to at least 5 years, maybe as many as 15 years so waiting a couple of months for the right one is worth it. And after a few weeks don't think the kids are going to walk the dog for you.

If you want a particular breed then there are a number of charities / rescues that are breed specific.

Remember to take into account your family and lifestyle and how that fits with a dog, eg boarder collies want to round things up, cats, children, chickens. They can get stressed when their 'pack' isn't together so if you have normal teenagers who spend a lot of time in their rooms they might not be the dog for you.

Consider fostering a dog before you commit to taking one on.

www.rspca.org.uk/findapet/foster

www.supportdogs.org.uk/foster-carer?gclid=EAIaIQobChMIw67oj_--5wIVSLTtCh15IgTmEAAYAiAAEgIb2vD_BwE

From what you've said in your posts I don't really think dog ownership is for you.

Having someone to share responsibility is great but what if your mum is unwell or decides she can't or doesn't want to do it anymore? You need to be able to commit to daily walks (at least 60-90 minutes) for the next 10-15 years. You can't decide you don't want to go because you're tired or the children are unwell or you're too busy. The dog needs a walk regardless.

They're also exceptionally restrictive. If you want to go on holiday, who will have the dog? Kennels for a week can be about 4-500 pounds, for example. You can't leave a dog all day if you want to go out to a theme park or a beach so who will have the dog? Can you afford sitters or daycare or walkers?

Do you work? What will your arrangements be while you're working? Daycare can be about £20 per day, walkers about £10 or so per hour, often more. The costs soon add up.

£400-£500 for kennels @adaline! Wow. I definitely live in the right part of the world. It’s £120 for a week at the slightly more expensive kennel here.

Lots of extremism on MN about dog ownership.

In the real world, dogs sometimes don’t get walked for hours everyday, people go to work and the dog is left for 6+ hours with no problems, and most people are just bumbling along with it.

My two have had a half hour blast in the woods this morning and that’s probably us done for the day. Yesterday we had a proper long hike across the downs but the day before I wasn’t feeling great so we didn’t go out at all. No one died. The dogs didn’t go mad.

I got a dog (and then another dog) never having owned one in my life. Didn't have a clue.

I absolutely adore my dogs now. I never understood the unconditional dog love thing, but it's amazing!

We just bought books so that we could learn how to do it, went to puppy training classes and went from there. I occasionally dip into these sections of MN, but not often because it does make me feel extremely inadequate about everything (I even got a cockapoo which are hated on here).

It's one of the best things I did for my children. They adore the dogs!

(my cats? They tolerate them).

In the real world, dogs sometimes don’t get walked for hours everyday, people go to work and the dog is left for 6+ hours with no problems, and most people are just bumbling along with it.

Just because loads of people do it, doesn't mean it's okay.

I think it's probably a bit simplistic to say 2 x 30mins is bad but 2 x 60mins is fine. Not least because 2 x 30mins running free in a wood is often much more satisfying for a dog than 2 x 60mins roadwalking.

There is no magic number, not even by breed or type - though that sometimes influences things.

There are just individual dogs whose "needs" and "wants" are probably not the same thing and which differ based on life stage, current health, what the dog is used to and what the dog feels like that day.
Some days my dog seems to want to do nothing but mooch about a bit. Others, he still has beans left after two good runs. So I don't aim for a strict number, I aim instead to have a dog that is otherwise calm and relaxed and not looking for mischief. I use his behaviour inside the house to determine whether or not he is getting everything he needs and some of what he wants. If he looks pacey in the house, we go back out that day - even if we've already done two walks that day.

The very best any of us can do is to observe our own dogs and ask ourselves if the dog is getting what it needs (the minimum) and think about what more than that we can offer. If it seems that the dog would do better with more then adjust to deliver that, within reason. To consider it our duty to enrich our dogs lives and not just expect it to be the other way around (though it often is).

Conversely, sometimes he just gets one walk and then helps me with the gardening for the afternoon. Or comes with me to the garden centre. Or we visit friends. It's all about the total amount of interaction and stimulation.

Putting a number to it just over simplifies it, imo. It also allows (bad) owners to cop out of their main duty - delivering the very best life they can and being honest about whether or not the dog has sufficient quality of life.

@maybedog we got a cavapoo as first time dog owners, he’s almost 1.5 now and the best thing we ever did!

Be prepared for it to be difficult, it’s very much like having a newborn apart from you can’t take it everywhere you go (shops etc), sleepless nights, mess when toilet training, very much feeling trapped as they don’t like being alone at all when puppies. We couldn’t leave him at all for months which was so hard at times.

I have found our cavapoo very easy to train, low energy (compared to cockapoos) has an hour off lead walk a day and then sleeps the rest! Great with my kids, super loving, funny, he’s perfect!

Coat is costly to maintain, grooming every 6 weeks and regular brushing to prevent mats.

All puppies are hard work but worth it in the end!! There are a lot of poodle cross re-homing pages in Facebook if you would consider an older dog xx