Am I going to have to get a puppy?

[Ellabella222]

Missing out on rescues left, right and centre. My daughters are 10, 12 and 14 And any rescue I find who is child friendly is snapped up. It’s very disheartening and I feel I will never find a dog. Been looking for months.

Thinking that in order to get a suitable one we will need to accept we need to buy ourselves to a puppy. Is this really the only way?Never thought rescue dogs would be in short supply!

[Ellabella222]

Oh thank you I will have a look.

[Sarahlou63]

@Ellabella222

Thanks I will have a look.

How does it work? You obviously have to pay for their travel to UK I guess. Are they neutered? What about injections?

Just spoke to Jackie Ginn who is coordinating the service; transport costs around €250-€350 depending on the size of the dog. Rabies jab and microchip are included in the adoption, other vaccinations are at the cost of the adopter and are around €50 (included a full check up). Some dogs are neutered, some aren't but can be prior to travel. From memory boys are about €90, girls €160. Happy to help with any other questions. The dogs are really well looked after but each and every one deserves a loving home.

[MintJuleps]

And think twice about getting one from abroad where they'll tell you anything you want to hear about the dog. You don't get to meet it properly beforehand and behavioural issues are rife. Again, not for first time dog owners who just want something relatively straightforward as a family dog

Do the sensible thing and either wait for a rescue to come up or look for a breeder

[Windyatthebeach]

Not sure where you are op but Manchester just opened a rehoming centre I have read...

[LochJessMonster]

I would also caution against getting a rescue greyhound or dog from abroad, as a first dog.

As a first time dog, with children in the house, you want an easy dog whose background is known, so an ‘owner hand in’ rescue rather than a stray, or one from abroad.

Keep contacting rescues and ask for your name to be put down for any puppies coming in. Plenty of litter born in rescue.

Do you have a specific breed in mind, so you can contact a breed rescue?
What area are you in?

[LochJessMonster]

I will also add, there is nothing wrong with getting a puppy who you can raise with a clean slate to fit in to your family.

[katiehall1]

Hi OP, I work for a rescue centre and have two dogs from there (1 puppy, 1 middle aged). DM me if you'd like some details!

[katiehall1]

Also dogs from a good charity abroad have nothing wrong with them in comparison to the UK. It's not fair to say charities attempt to just give the dog a home - that's wrong. The truth is abroad charities have more puppies because dogs are not considered as well in those countries and they're more willing to give a dog to a family with kids, or people who live in a flat provided they will care for the dog.

[MintJuleps]

@katiehall1 well it's not wrong ... maybe search some posts on here and you'll see for yourself. However it's maybe more accurate to say that it sometimes fraught with problems and it's completely accurate to say that you don't get to have several visits to the dog etc etc unless it's being fostered here already

[Sarahlou63]

@MintJuleps

And think twice about getting one from abroad where they'll tell you anything you want to hear about the dog. You don't get to meet it properly beforehand and behavioural issues are rife. Again, not for first time dog owners who just want something relatively straightforward as a family dog

Do the sensible thing and either wait for a rescue to come up or look for a breeder

Oi! What's this "they'll tell you anything you want to hear"? Do you have an inherent distrust of "abroad"?

[bunnygeek]

Phone the rescues, don't rely on the websites or emails - they're often out of date pretty quick sharpish and, as you've found, the "easy" dogs are snapped up first.

Fill in rehoming forms so you have those ready, phone in the mornings, see when is best to phone again. In time rescues will be allowing walk-in visitors again and life will be easy.

I personally am not a fan of overseas rescues, especially with kids, its not always a guaranteed match. Sure some do it well, but in some countries some "rescues" have been used as a front for puppy farming or a place for puppy farms to dump dogs when they're not "of use" any more.

If you go the breeder route - any puppies born now will have been bred during lockdown. Most reputable breeders have tried to avoid this, the ones with litters now are most likely in it for the cash and not the welfare of the dogs. People are getting scammed left, right and centre, either with puppies that never existed, puppy farmed dogs or just really unwell and poorly bred puppies.

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

Puppies that are ready to go now and in the next month approx will be from pre-lockdown matings (gestation of two months plus eight weeks before the puppies can be sold). However, all those puppies seem to have been found homes.

Check out any rescue organisation you look at. I'd be very reluctant to take in a dog I'd never met and I wouldn't do it if I had DC under about 12/13 (and I'm an experienced dog owner). Many rescues are reputable but some are not - no ongoing support, guilt-tripping people into taking ill-socialised dogs, lack of clarity about a dog's issues. I'm not having a go at rescues, because some do an amazing job, but I have seen some less-than-great outcomes.

[MintJuleps]

@SarahLou63 please don't 'oi' me. How rude and weird of you. I'm also unsure what you mean when you ask if I have an inherent trust of 'abroad.' God there's some strange people roaming about on here

Don't project your weirdness onto me please. I have an inherent distrust of first time dog owners looking to international rescues, yes. For all the reasons stated by both myself and other posters.

[Glitterb]

If you know what breed you want then I would be going through a regional rescue/re homing charity.

When we were looking for a labrador, rescue centres wouldn’t even give us the time of day as we worker. We ended up with two sisters from East Yorkshire labrador rescue, lady was absolutely brilliant and the dogs are not in shelters etc as she takes enquires from people looking to rehome and matches the dogs with a suitable home. They were lovely dogs and they had a lovely home for life with us.

Maybe worth a try?

[Sarahlou63]

The xenophobia on this thread from some posters is staggering.

I postered as the OP said she was having a problem finding a rescue dog, having looked for months. I happen to agree that a local rescue would be preferable for logistical reasons, but that there are other options and the municipal dog centre I volunteer at is one to consider, especially given they've just launched a program to rehome dogs into the UK.

[katiehall1]

[quote MintJuleps]@katiehall1 well it's not wrong ... maybe search some posts on here and you'll see for yourself. However it's maybe more accurate to say that it sometimes fraught with problems and it's completely accurate to say that you don't get to have several visits to the dog etc etc unless it's being fostered here already [/quote]
I think you are wrong. Using poorly rated charities maybe, but a well researched charity has no issues. I volunteer for one and have never had issues and don't with the dogs I have. They are also heavily in BBC news etc for their work.

No more fraught with issues than buying an inbred puppy!

Agree you can't visit the dog - that's a leap of faith.

[Ellabella222]

Thank you all for your help and ideas. Lots to think about, we’ve decided to stick with the main UK. rescues here for a bit longer. Then see where we are at.

I’m going to give it another 3-4 months but then will think about a puppy.

Thanks all

[ShadowsInTheDarkness]

Hi OP I follow Spaniel Aid and sprocker assist and rescue on fb and they have been advertising spaniels that need rehoming all through lockdown. Most of them are children aged 8 and over which is no issue for you. Have a search on fb for breed specific rescues. Often the dogs are advertised on there and posts updated faster than websites so that could be a good option.

[Ellabella222]

Thanks! Will check. I have spaniel experience!

[AWhistlingWoman]

We were in the same position in November, three children and DH and I had decided we wanted a dog. I had already switched to WFH even pre COVID. I started off looking at the big well known rescues, Dogs Trust, RSPCA, Battersea and I found very few dogs were suitable to be rehomed with children (mine are all school age so not toddlers) and we were always too slow for any that were on the website or Facebook pages. Maybe it was just bad timing!

We ended up going through some breed specific rescues, like glitterb We knew roughly the size of dog that would work and we had a choice of several in the end. We picked up our lovely girl three weeks before lock down and she is such a sweetheart, very good with the children.

Just wanted to post as I remember feeling as though we would never get a rescue dog despite, I hope, having a nice home to offer.

[Ylvamoon]

I would have a look at what type of dog you want tiny or giant? Lively, catching balls or couch potato? Hairless or long shaggy coat? But most importantly look at what the purpose of your potential dog is: retrieving, companion, guardian or other work... this will tell you a lot about the overall temperament and training requirements.
Then see if you find a breeder or rescue with the right type of dog or have a look for a lockdown puppy.
and after all the research you end up with something completely different

[Ellabella222]

Yivamoon....I bet we end up with a bloody giant dog or something!

Thanks for the tips about breed specific rescues too all.

[welshdaisy]

I had this issue. In the end we bought an 8 week old puppy as my daughters were constantly left disappointed. This went on for near on a year. I have no regrets, we love our pup

[Ellabella222]

Be honest...how hard was the puppy stage?

[GrumpyMiddleAgedWoman]

It's busy. They wake up early. We don't get up in the night to take our puppies out like some people do, we just shove them out into the garden as soon as they get us up in the morning and wipe up whatever they've left on the floor. In the daytime you're taking them out at frequent intervals. Ours have always got the idea pretty fast (3-4 weeks iirc) but apparently some breeds are better than others.

The have needle-sharp teeth and will chew anything: our last puppy had a good go at a photo album left within reach. I think she was the same one who destroyed a pair of flip-flops. They also need feeding at fairy frequent intervals.

You have a lot to do and a limited time-frame to do it in: you need to expose that puppy to as many novel experiences as you reasonably and safely can between the time the vaccination take effect and about 16 weeks. Once that stage has passed, you can pick up with the training. I get monotonous about this, but time invested in training a young dog will reward you a hundredfold down the line. Every walk is a chance to practice heelwork, recall, sit-stay and whatever else you fancy.

The hard work is offset by how much they make you laugh, them falling asleep on your lap and all the rest. I think I've had spells of puppy-regret with all of our dogs, but they never last long.