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!

We had to buy a puppy. Rescue wouldn't approve us as we both work. We are also planning to have children and nearly all rescues we say said no children even visiting. So we gave up!

My dpuppy never mouthed people.. Just wallpaper.

Beware of rescues from abroad advertising ddogs as dc friendly. They can't possibly know that. I know 3 families who had to return their dogs. One was apparently going to be a medium ddog. They mixed up ddog with pony...
1 had a dc bitten and 1 was food aggressive to a dangerous degree her vet said.

@Wolfiefan

Puppies bite. It’s called mouthing. They teethe and they use their mouth to explore the world around them. You can’t stop that. All you can do is keep substituting what you don’t mind being chewed for the forbidden stuff!

no you cant stop that but they can bite other things other than skin

Like I said @Yobringbackthe90s. Keep substituting. But few puppies manage to never hurt their owners with their needle teeth. Just because they can bite other things it doesn’t mean that they know they should.

yes they get to know they should bite other things the more they do it and set boundaries, If a rodent can work it out then a puppy can, some owners just purposely let their fur babies nibble them though ive seen it and they dont deter them

I get these nearly every day.

www.dogsblog.com/
Hope you find your own ddog soon.

Puppies mouth, they use their teeth on you, when tired they can get nippy. We trained ours out of it pretty quickly, but I bet the majority of puppy owners have had a painful nibble from a puppy in the early days.

Still considering options.

How do you find a legit breeder? If I was buying a puppy I think I might go for a Scottie or a Westie.

The best thing is to contact the breed club. Expect to wait.
Never shop online.
KC reg means pedigree. Not a good breeder. It’s a minefield.

I agree, speak to breeders and people who own them!
You can also look online, but you need to be very vigilant. Know what you are looking for in a breeder. Ensure that all health tests are done, mum is with the puppies, visit more than once... puppies from around 5-6 weeks can be in the garden, so social distancing can be observed! Be prepared to walk away if needed- don't take DC on first visit if you are unsure.
I once met a lady in our local park, who was window shopping for a dog.. she thought my dogs look lovely and did ask about their breed / traits. I was happy to tell her all about them! I think all dog owners LOVE talking about their dogs!!

Ask around. I'd say you need a dog that has been trained already and with a temperament that you know - the ideal one would be youngish, belonging to someone who is moving and can't take the dog with them e.g. retired owner downsizing or going into sheltered accommodation.

Will your DD still be interested in Ddog in a couple of years' time?

Do your research on breeds. Some breeds are prone to ill-health or ailments/conditions. Some dogs may be deaf or blind.

Consider how long they will live. Some will live to late teens, other only to about 8.

Pets aren't cheap. Think about kenneling etc. Vets bills. Dog sitters. Dog walking. Food.

The other one to think about is when DDog passes away. Sorry, but it can be heartbreaking.

Yes I have had a dog before when I was a teen. I’ve given slot of thought to it. Years really. Avoided getting one until the kids could be sensible, we were better off, had a secure garden etc. So we’re ready. We just can’t find a dog!

In my search online I saw a site Pets 4 homes. It has licensed dog breeders on it. Numbers etc. Would this be legitimate?

Pets for homes isn’t great. No. Contact the breed club. Decent breeders generally don’t advertise online.
Licensed doesn’t mean good.

Ok thanks.

@Ellabella222, Licensing just means that they have more than 3 litters a year. They are council inspected, who give out licenses. The place has to be clean and there is a limit to adult dog numbers. It's not a way of finding out about dogs welfare or health testing or how puppies are raised.

Pets4homes is ok, it's a platform to sell, you need to see it as such. Everyone can advise on it, so be vigilant.

(... and yes even legit breeders advertise on pets4homes and not all breeders operate on waiting lists - these are just MN myths of good dog breeding.)

Many good breeders don’t have waiting lists. And no. Really good breeders don’t advertise to strangers online.

Someone upthread suggested a greyhound. They are big, but very gentle. They don't need a lot of walking. We agreed to foster one during lockdown because the rescue wanted to move some out to make room for more after the dog tracks stopped racing. It was supposed to be a short term thing, but I don't think we will want to give him back.

Another reason to adopt a greyhound is that many are put to sleep at then end of their racing careers, so the more homes they find the better.

Thanks.

A few people have mentioned a greyhound. I don’t know. They seem so big! Not sure they are what we want. Looking more small or medium sized.

Finding a good litter can be tricky. You can find good ones on Pets4Homes but you have to do your due diligence extra-carefully and know what you're looking for and what you don't want to see. There are a lot of online resources telling you how to spot a puppy farm or a puppy-farmed litter. It used to be that bulk breeders had to be council licensed so it was quite say to weed them out but the law has changed and some small-scale breeders (3 or fewer litters a year) are now also licensed.

ChampDogs is a better website, where I've seen some really excellent puppies advertised. Most litters there will have had at least one parent health tested. How important you think health tests are will depend on the breed you're looking at and things like how common inherited disorders are within it, how severe they are, and what the average hip score is like (again, you can check out breed health online quite easily). You are highly unlikely to find cross-bred puppies on ChampDogs.

In your position I'd approach the owners of stud dogs listed on ChampDogs and ask them if there any litters due from them. That would get you in at the start, and allow you to check out likely breeders before you even contact them. The good ones will check you out too.

And as Ylvamoon says, quiz people who are walking dogs you like the look of about the breed and its traits. You may have problems getting away...

Really good breeders don’t advertise to strangers online.

What about this litter then?

The sire is an outstanding dog, and the dam's breeding looks bloody good too. Those puppies won't go to just anyone. It's odd-on that the breeder had a list of interested people before the mating even took place. I know someone who knows the breeder, and he is entirely legit (or the breeder of the sire wouldn't have lifted the endorsement).

I've known several perfectly reasonable breeders advertise on ChampDogs, and then proceed to keep in touch with the new owners for years.

It doesn't matter where breeders advertise. What matters is how they treat their dogs, whether or not they health test, how they bring up the puppies and how they screen potential owners. If you are a breeder and you don't advertise, arguably you are limiting your pool of potential purchasers and not doing your best for you puppies.

Start with deciding if you want a particular breed. Consider grooming and exercise and training needs as well as size.
If you want a pedigree then contact the breed club.
You may also find breed rescues.

Yes I feel I have done all of my thinking and planning. Just now need to find an actual dog!

Going to hope I find a rescue I think. I appreciate they don’t come without baggage but better option that a pup. At the moment. Might consider a puppy though if I remain dog less in 3 months. We’ve been trying for a rescue since before lockdown,

TBH if you haven’t considered exactly what size, grooming and exercise etc you could take on then you haven’t done the planning. Lockdown has been weeks.
You need to look at what you can offer a dog. Consider what you can cope with and what you can’t.

What makes you think I haven’t thought about those things? Rescue was always my first option so not fussy about breed because of that.

Lockdown had been weeks and has held up our plans.

I absolutely know what we can offer a dog. We’ve been thinking about it for ages!

My frustration has been the lack of availability of suitable rescues. I said we would consider a puppy if that doesn’t come to fruition.

Not sure what you mean by ‘lockdown has been going on for weeks’ .,,,,.and???