THINK TWICE

We all know someone who has adopted a dog or puppy on impulse, only to regret it later.

Adopting any animal on impulse is a bad idea, and dogs and puppies are no exception. Animals adopted on impulse often end up homeless a few weeks or months later, roaming the streets, starving and causing accidents. People think dogs are old at five years, but with good care they can live to fifteen years or more. A dog is for life, not for Christmas, and life can go on a very long time.

Make no mistake about it. Dogs are wonderful animals. With the right care and attention they will make lifelong, loyal companions and wonderful guards for you and your family. But you have to treat them right.

Before anyone adopts a dog or a puppy, they should ask themselves a few questions. For a start, does everyone in the family want a dog? If not, this is going to cause problems right away. If everyone genuinely wants a dog, can you afford to keep one?  Throwing a few household scraps at the dog every so often is just not good enough. Dogs come at a price and that price includes: food; feeding dishes; collar; tag; leash, regular flea and tick treatments; preventative veterinary care, such a shots, and veterinary attention if the dog becomes sick or is injured.

Another question you should ask yourself is if you have a suitable place to keep a dog. Some very small breed dogs may be happy enough spending most of their time indoors, but all dogs need to be able to go outside every day for some fresh air and exercise and, of course, to go to the toilet. If the dog is going to live mainly outside, he will need a secure space to call his own, ideally a large, comfortable kennel which should be situated in a sheltered spot away from hot sun and rain. The kennel should always be a refuge for your dog and not a place where he is locked or chained for long periods of time. Your yard will also need to be secure, so that the dog is not able to run off and perhaps get lost or cause an accident.

Another question to ask yourself is what sort of dog you want? Do you want a small, fluffy Pompek or a big, breed dog? Or perhaps a good, strong, healthy Trini Pothound? If adopting a puppy, you should try to see it with its mother and, if  possible, its father too.

This will give you a good idea of what the puppy will be like when it grows up. All to often, people take the first pretty puppy they see, only to find that it grows too big or too boisterous and then it becomes a problem. Seeing a puppy with its parents will go a long way to preventing unpleasant surprises. What you see is probably what you will get.  If the mother and father are big and bouncy and confident, chances are the puppy will be like that too. If the parents are small, shy and very fluffy, then that’s probably what their puppies will grow into too. For most people, a Pothound makes the perfect pet, as they tend to be a good, manageable size, with smooth, low maintenance coats and confident, adaptable personalities. Some people may prefer to buy a particular breed of dog, but, although such dogs may look impressive and be bred for a specific purpose, such as guarding, they are always much more expensive and many may be affected with crippling hereditary diseases such as hip displaysia, which are largely absent in the common dogs.

Another question to ask yourself is whether you and your family have time for a dog. If it is going to be a house pet, will you be around enough when it is little to house train it? And who will care for it when you are on holiday?  If it is going to live in the yard, who is going to clean up after it every day?  Do you have lots of beautiful plants? Would you mind if the dog damaged them? Digging is natural behaviour for all dogs and dates from the time when dogs and their wolf ancestors lived in the wild and dug dens for safety and protection.  Just because the dog is now domesticated does not mean it has forgotten its instincts and a dog confined all day in a yard will become bored and restless and may well dig to use up some energy. If you cannot deal with some damage in the garden, you should not get a dog at all or you should get a very tiny dog indeed, who is a little less capable of doing extensive damage.

 If the dog you choose has a long, fluffy coat, will you have the time it takes to brush and comb it several times a week, in order to keep it clean and pretty? Will you be able to afford the services of a professional groomer if you need one?  Even if you choose a plain Trini Pothound, you will still need to spend time with it every day, feeding and watering it, playing with it and exercising and training it. The more time and effort you put into your dog, especially when it is a puppy, the more rewarding and responsive a pet it will become.

Another question often overlooked until it is too late is what sex of dog you want.  There is not a great deal to choose between the sexes in terms of behaviour, however,  male dogs are sometimes more inclined to fight and run away. Such behaviour is much reduced if the dog is neutered by a veterinarian at a few months of age. With females, one has the issue of puppies.  For those who adopt a female dog, there is the all important question of whether you would want her to have puppies and if not, whether you would be prepared to take steps to ensure she does not reproduce. The litters of unwanted puppies for whom there are no homes are an all too familiar sight for anyone involved in animal welfare and it is best to spay your female dog before she is old enough to breed. Spay surgery is  a simple procedure that is carried out in veterinarians’ offices across the country on a daily basis and it can be done from a few months of age. The belief that a dog needs to have at least one litter of puppies is an old wives’ tale. Spaying your dog will ensure she lives a longer, much healthier life and you won’t have the problem of having to get rid of lots of puppies for whom there are too few good homes. In the long run it will also save you money that would otherwise have been spent on lots of litters of puppies.

These are just a few of the issues you need to consider carefully if you are thinking of adopting a puppy or adult dog and most of what has been said applies to other pets too. For example, cats and kittens are generally more independent and self sufficient than dogs and puppies, but they need your time and care too and they can reproduce even more frequently than dogs once they are over 5 months old!

A little time spent in consideration can save a lot of heartache later. Animals are living creatures with far more intelligence and capacity for feelings than we usually give them credit for.  They share many emotions with mankind: pain and pleasure; hunger and thirst; fear, boredom and excitement and they all love sex!

Abuse them and neglect them and you will have only yourself to blame when things go wrong.

Respect them and treat them with understanding and kindness and they will repay you a thousand fold.