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!

 

 

 

[Sue & Lily Grace]

This is so true. Thank you for all the wonderful work you do. Lily Grace will be 5 months next week and I very well remember the long days when I thought she would never calm down. She is now a different dog.

[DJ & Chance]

Richard, thank you for this. Every breeder should post something similar--the truth about living with puppies--on their websites.

[Colleen, Jake & Baxter]

I LOVE my Baxter but boy is he giving me a run for my money and then some.....LOL, but I was not laughing last week after he ate something that was very bad for him : (  He is certainly adding more grey hairs to my head!

[3tcmu8wc5xgqz]

Thank you for posting this - I agree 100%. I have seen that scenario too many times! Family adopts a young puppy and cannot handle the "puppy" stage and basically dumps them. It's also those SAME people who I've seen go and get yet ANOTHER puppy less than a year after dumping the first one. The outcome was the same. They thought the puppy was the problem, however they fail to realize THEY are the ones with the problem. If you don't have the time or energy to work with and teach a puppy, then either consider an older dog or do not get a dog at all.

When we first started looking for a dog (back in 2008) I wanted an older dog because I personally did not feel prepared for the "puppy" stuff. That's how we ended up with our first Labradoodle, Ari. He was 10 months old when we adopted him from a family who was getting rid of him (probably for the same reasons mentioned above). He was still very much puppy, but not quite like having a brand new puppy. After having Ari for close to five years and then him passing so suddenly, I could not imagine not having another doodle. But THIS time we felt MUCH more prepared for a puppy. It has been a learning process, but we knew that when we adopted Noel, she would be ours for the remainder of her life, no matter what. She is our responsibility and it's up to us to teach her what's right and what's wrong.

[Shelley & Beans]

I agree with everyone that has posted here and thank you Richard for posting it. We are getting a puppy in just about 8 weeks, it has been a long time 11 years since I raised my last one (my shitzu/Bichon who just passed) and I am scared out of my mind (like an expectant mother of a human baby). But just like bringing a human baby home you are in it for the long haul (no guarantees). 

Excited but also anxious... let the JOURNEY begin!