Puppies are great - or are they?

[Richard Crowe]

     We love puppies!  One of the greatest fringe benefits of our rescue work is that we get to interface with a litter or two of puppies a year.

     However, puppies are definitely not for everyone.  As an example, we recently received a darling rambunctious Maltese-Poodle puppy, Ellie, who is definitely high energy.  She would see one of us sitting on the couch and make a full speed run to jump into our lap.  She would also do the puppy biting routine. However, she is definitely a darling girl...

     We received this puppy from a lady who had her for only one day.  She had taken the puppy from her original owner for the purpose of turning Ellie over to American Maltese Rescue but, she couldn't tell us the reason that the original owner no longer wanted the dog.

     Ellie came with a whole load of toys, beds, dishes and other accessories.  However, there were two items which told us why she had been let go from her original home.  There were a pair of homeopathic "calming sprays" for dogs..  Apparently the original owners had not expected such a hig-energy pet and were not prepared for Ellie. 

There is nothing hyper about this girl she is just a puppy and she responds to simple training like the "No Bite!" command, very well.

     We were very happy fostering Ellie but, we wanted to ensure that she would not be bounced from her new home like she was from the previous home. Luckily, Ellie's picture on www.petfinder.com attracted adoption applications like flies to honey!  We found a family with a ten year old girl and an eleven year old boy, plus a one-year old Maltese-Poodle.  Ellie and the other pup got along great from the start and the kids were very dog savvy and worked with Ellie just fine.  The parents said that their house was all tile floors and puppy proofed and that they had a walled back yard for the two dogs to play.  The parents had raised several puppies through to old age and were quite prepared for the energy that Ellie exhibited. The grandparents came along to meet Ellie and said that they live close to Ellies new home and that they dog sit the one puppy whenever the lids were at school and the parents were on work.  They were also dog people and ready for Ellies high energy behavior...

     Our Holly is a darling and wonderful goldendoodle.  However, she was a handful as a puppy.  If she had been our first dog, we'd have been pulling our hair out.  As it is, we were prepared for puppy hijinks and also prepared to begin the road towards training Holly to be a responsible family member.  Yes, Holly was a lot of work but, she is so worth our effort.  However, if Holly had been our first dog, we might not have seen the light at the end of the tunnel and might have thought that the puppy antics were the dog's true personality

     I just wish that people would be aware of the enormous amount of work connected with puppyhood.  I think that if more people were aware, there would be fewer dogs of all breeds needing to be rehomed...

     Yes puppies are cute but....... The rest depends on you!

 

 

 

[F, Calla & Luca]

Truer words were never spoken.

[Karen, Jasper and Jackdoodle]

You took the words right out of my mouth, F. I'm glad I looked to see if there were other responses before posting that, lol.

Great job placing another foster, Richard!

[Camilla and Darwin]

Amen! Puppies are a huge commitment and more difficult than their cute innocent faces seem to imply. :-) 

[Ginny Nightingale]

How true and what a cute pup and happy story! I have seen some families leave my house with a wonderful puppy and then end up needing  intense training sessions when they let the pup get away with too much for several months--thankfully, all of the pups AND OWNERS  have gotten the training they needed and stayed in their homes--

[Christine & Shelby]

Well said.... And so true!!!!

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

Richard, If our Springer Gordie had been our first puppy, I don't think he or we would have had a happy ending.  High energy puppies are soooooo much work and soooooo rewarding as adults, but it does take dog saavy owners.  Your wonderful picture was amazing. She is the most beautiful pup, I can see why applications poured in.  You had lots to choose from to get the just right fit.

[Sue, Murphy and Bella ()*o*()]

Another post that should be referred to when people are looking for puppies or breeders. Thank you.

[BG and Gavin]

So true Richard.  Should be required reading.

[Suzanne & Jack]

So true.  When we first got Jack 6 years ago, he was our first pup in almost 10 years.  DH wanted to return him after a week.  Thank goodness we didn't because he turned out wonderful.

[Deanna & Desi & Cori]

So very true! Glad things seem to be working out for Ellie.

[Jarka, Monty & Auggie]

So true! Thanks for the reminder again. Puppies are so darn cute and you just think of a snuggly, sleepy puppy when you see pictures of them. They seem so still and calm in pictures, LOL. The opposite is true and some of us forget about all the hard work that is involved. I should do another update on our Auggie. Thank you for all the work you do, you are amazing.

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

Very well said!! Thank you!