Talk me down or not ..

[rockingbird]

Good morning, I need a second opinion (well many to be fair)! We sadly said goodbye to our beloved family dog back in September, we've been lost ever since. I've stumbled across a local pup 8 months old needing to be re-homed. He's a working cocker which is the same breed we had so not completely out of our depth. He's with a young family, 3 kids under 5, 2 dogs, 2 cats, many rabbits.. we met him last night and he was completely over the threshold at first greeting. He did eventually calm down but it was obvious he'd need some sort of training in this area. We then went for a walk on the green, bizarrely outside on and off the lead he's amazing. Whistle trained and amazing recall. There reason for rehoming him are valid. They've bitten off more than they'd bargained for, 3 kids and 2 dogs is not working by well. We could be the perfect fit, my boys are teens, I work from home and my time is flexible. We also have two homes (one rural / farm based, one town house 10 minutes from where he currently resides). I've been awake for hours.. am I doing the right thing 😩

Do it. We did. She’s been perfect, my older dog adores her.

Go for it! You already know how cockers work, seems like you’re more than willing to put the training in. 8 months is peak teenage behaviour so they’re all a bit of dick around then anyway. Fab that he’s good on a lead, mine never were 😂

One thing I would ask is socialisation - what has the dog experienced when it was a puppy so you don’t get a big surprise when he freaks out at the sight of a bicycle or sound of fireworks.

Do it, as long as you are ready to put the training hours in! You sound experienced and it sounds like a good set up for the dog.

You sound like a good match and I'm sure the puppy will do amazingly well with you guys

They've done the hard work with the recall and outside behaviour. Cockers are intelligent so should be easy enough to train. He's probably so over stimulated in his current environment with everything going on

Do it. You sound ideal. His current family will be relieved he’s going somewhere nice. 8 months is still young, you can easily train him to your standards.

Is it a private rehome?
Im always slightly wary of these for two reasons 1) usually very badly bred dogs as a good breeder would take the dog back, so you could be looking at health issues down the line.

2. literally no support if it goes wrong.

Agree with this.

Please do not go with a private re-home. I'm sure this Spaniel is lovely, but I would never risk a private re-home with your children around. I also think that a young dog (or 8 week old puppy) with young children is always a risk - it will have been more than slightly harassed.

If you are after a cocker spaniel (or any sort of spaniel/cross) and not a very young puppy then try Spaniel Aid. I know someone who has two dogs from there are the support/advice Spaniel Aid give is excellent! They take the dogs back if there's ever any issues. They match people well etc.

Please do this properly and not through a private re-home. Rescuing is always a risk (charities can lie, people relinquishing their dogs lie) but at least the rescue has spent time with them. Private rescue? They lie. And then they lie some more.

TBH the whole set up sounds dodgy as hell to me. Who has 3 children under five, an old dog and thinks 'I'll get a puppy.' No one with half a brain cell. That's who. That dog is going to have issues and you really should avoid it and do it properly.

I'm also really sorry about the loss of your cocker.

I would, yes, if you can give this dog a happy life, why wouldn't you?

@Devilshands op’s children are teenage boys, I think they can handle a cocker!

And working cockers are intelligent, even if previous life hasn’t been ideal they pick up training very quickly.

I’ve owned and rescued working cockers all my adult life, and even my first girl when I had absolutely no idea what I was doing with training and socialising was a brilliant little dog. All my rescues have come from similar set ups to what op is considering - young families that had no idea what they were getting themselves into. I’ve never in 25 years of having cockers ever been bitten. They are one of the best dogs to rescue because they are inherently people pleasers and do soooo well with positive training.

I think you sound like a great family for this pup. And the pup is young enough that it's unlikely that any really terrible habits will have been engrained. If you think you've got the time and energy to have a pup again ... Go for it! You know what you are doing

The dog’s breeder should be taking it back or personally arranging its move to a more suitable home. Dogs aren’t second hand goods to pass on.

You sound like you're in a perfect position to rescue this dog. I would in your shoes.

Definitely. I've done private re home, it was successful for a border collie,no monet changed hands. The young guy had been diagnosed with MS, my gut told me he was genuine,the RSPCA one wasn't . We lost doggo,a Phalene in January 2023, he was almost 18. Spent 6 months debating a puppy (I did try about 50 rescues) shes on the bed now

Yes, you do sound ideal for each other. Good luck whatever you decide.

do it of course they are wired to the actual moon but you have experience and he will add to your life you are getting him in the teen years though so deep breaths.

If you would like a dog again I would go for it. We did in similar circumstances with a family who had taken on too much. We hadn't intended on having another dog after our own much loved dog died at a ripe old age but it has been the best thing we ever did. She is the most loving of dogs. If she had stayed where she was she would have been neglected and unhappy as realistically there just wasn't time for her. You misses having a dog in your home, you know the breed and you would be providing a good home to a dog who needs one. We got ours at 10 months old. House trained but other than that not much training. She needed lots of patience but was so willing to please. I increasingly feel that there are so many dogs needing a home that if you can it's better to re-home a dog in need of you can.

I was referring to the family it came from. Cocker spaniels and young children do not mix. It will have been tugged and pulled and harassed from the day they got it. It'll likely be highly strung and nervous as a result.

You can say all you like that they are friendly. And they used to be great family pets. BUT there is a huge number of cockers in rescues with bite history. Spaniel aid literally have nothing but aggressive cockers at the moment. Let's not pretend they're not a breed without issues. I love cockers, I have one. But they are not what they once were. There's an increasing number of really flawed ones out there.

Rehoming a dog OP does not know from a private home that were stupid enough to get a puppy when they had a dog, three young children under five, is a disaster waiting to happen. Let's not pretend it isn't.

There's plenty of rescues out there with cockers that need homes...OP should go for one of them and not take a risk here.

Request its vet records and get the dog vet-checked if it's not been seen since puppy check.

I'm always alive to the possibility of non-declared health issues being a reason to rehome before signs and symptoms become obvious.

Otherwise, yes it could be a good fit for you, as long as you can cope with the behaviour you have actually seen. And have you engineering circumstances to see about things like resource guarding? As well as ask about all sorts of other circumstances and, as noted above, previous experiences.

How did you "stumble across" the family? Do you have anyone who can vouch for them (and possibly even the dog too)?

If you do go ahead, remember to get the details of the microchip, and a contract of sale

We've had two fosters from spaniel aid since September. One was dumped and had been in kennels for 3 months, older boy needing a sofa and a cuddle. Lovely boy but serious separation anxiety and would howl the house down if I left him to do the school run - he went on to be adopted by an amazing older couple on a farm with other dogs and is doing great. The other was a guarding dog who had clearly been bred until no longer needed 😢 she went to a friend who wanted a plod along and no children. I agree spaniel aid is great but many of the dogs need to go with other dogs or without children. The person who put me in touch with this couple is a good friend, she's known them a while and they seem like genuine people. Their other dog is only 1 (sorry I didn't make that clear) why they thought another puppy would be a good idea is kinda beyond me! In the walk it was clear the guy had trained both dogs very well, he'd also grown up with 3 spaniels and knew the breed. He was genuinely sad about having to re-home him but knew his wife just wasn't coping! To be fair to her I'm not sure I'd cope with 3 kids under 5 let alone 2 young dogs as well.! The vet check has occurred to me.. I'll ask that question - if possible speak to the vets they used. Far too many frigging breeders of spaniels, I'm adamant I'm not adding to that problem hence me trying to 'save' one that needs adopting just from a different angle. We need a young dog, i just couldn't face saying goodbye to another dog anytime soon. I'm a walker and lost without a dog one of my sons is also missing that interaction - the other we don't see unless he's hungry! 🥴 I'm still in two minds.. and appreciate all the comments here, thank you x

you really have this well thought out and I'm sure you are going to do what's best, I have a WCS my first and he's a little firecracker, they are a lot just an awful lot😂

Well, it is what it is.

Oh I so hope you will take him OP, and give him the perfect home and training, loving, he deserves. Please keep us updated

My only hesitation would be the expectations potentially put on the new dog if it's the same breed as your old one. It's really difficult not to compare them or not to look at the new pup expecting it to have the same attributes as your old one.

Going from having an amazing old dog you know really well to a younger one you still have to fall in love with can be hard.

Having said that, you sound realistic about the work involved. I think this pup would be lucky to be rehomed with you if the vet checks don't show any issues.

Well, we decided to go for it..! Two other families also meeting this dog over the next couple of days and then they will make their decision. I thought that was sensible and shows they really are trying to do the best for this dog. If we are chosen it's meant to be, if not so be it. 🐾

Oh I should also add we've thought long and hard. We know this pup won't ever replace our beloved previous spaniel and know her personality was all hers and a new dog would bring their very own quirkiness!