Saying hello to a new dog
 

To complement the other thread to remember our dogs that passed away
Saying goodbye to a beloved dog - Front Office Football Central

Wife and I decided we are going to get another dog this summer to replace our dalmation who passed away over a year and half ago. Thought to start this thread so others can share their experiences and pictures of new family members.

She is leaning towards a golden retriever and I wanted a lab (less hair). Found out there are designer dogs called "goldadar" but not alot of breeders.

We played around with the questionnaire on this webpage to find compatible breeds. Kinda fun.
http://dogtime.com/matchup/start

Anyone else looking for or found new puppies/dogs?

I think this thread is an awesome idea to counter the other depressing thread.

We decided to get a new cat since we lost our cat and dog in a 4 month stretch. With the new baby we figured a dog would be to much work. We adopted a 2 year old rescue cat and named her Guiness. Here she is attacking one of my wifes slippers. The cat has a habit of stealing our shoes and dragging them under the bed.



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Stupid kitty. Socks is where the gold is.

We are in discussion to get another dog to replace Boyd. It's not because we are ready, but because Echo, our other dog, has become depressed, and really misses him. The vet says another dog will solve the problem, that or a lot of behavior training. And for an almost 13 year old dog, that could take a while.

That dog matching thing seems pretty cool if it's accurate...

Just came back from vacation and we are now actively looking for a new Lab (although a Golden Retriever or another Dalmation has not been ruled out).

Checking out the ajc.com classifieds and googling GA breeders. It seems to break down this way ...

High quality breeders w/papers and all the hip, eye etc checkups - $1,200+
Breeders w/basic akc - $350-$600
Backyard breeders - $100-$250

The $1,200 is too rich for us so we may default to the $350-$500 range.

My old black lab, we got from the animal shelter.

No, we were never sure if he was a purebred or not, but he was the best dog a guy could've asked for. I know once I'm in a position to have a dog again, I want a black lab, and I do intend to check with the local animal shelter first.

Why not go to a humane society?

I've never understood people who paid all this money for purebreds.

Because some people know what they want and the humane society may not have it. For example, we know we want a shiba inu for our next dog. We have researched them and they are great with kids, etc... so when we are ready to buy we will go to a reputable breeder and pay top dollar.

While I understand that, I don't see how anyone looking for a dog doesn't at least canvass the local shelters at first to see if there's a fit there. It just makes economical sense to do it.

If I am going to get a purebread I want to know about the parents of the dog. As far as economical for me anyway if I am making the investment for a dog that we are going to have for 10+ years I am willing to make an investment.

But why is it being a purebreed important? If it's a good dog, why does it matter if its parents are the same breed and that you have paperwork for it and everything? Who cares? A good dog is a good dog, don't matter what its parents were.

And I understand that something of that value for 10+ years is worth the investment, yes, but not if you can get the same inherent value at much less than that. Getting a good dog for free is better than getting a good dog for $1000.

Because different dogs are better for different peoples situations. For example, certain dogs aren't good around kids, etc...If we get a purebread and know the parents were also good around kids, etc...it is better than going to a shelter and saying, hey, this dog looks cute, we will take him, without any knowledge of the dogs past or tendencies.

I can dig that, although to me it does depend some on the breed (assuming we're talking about puppies or close to).

I'd be more leery of getting, say, a German Shepherd from a shelter.

A lab or a retriever, though, I'd be equally confident in a shelter versus a breeder. And, as CR says, significant cost difference.

And a paper tells you about the past relationships with kids? Or the owners who are trying to get you to pony up $1000?

My understanding is that certain breeds work best in certain situations. Some are better guard dogs. Some have a tendency to be vicious. Some have a tendency to be friendly. Some have a tendency to be good with kids.

And wile you can't look at a dog and say, "That's a pure breed", you have a pretty good chance of looking at a dog and saying, "Okay, that's mostly a Lab, or mostly a Dalmatian, or mostly a retriever, etc.". You may not know where every bit of DNA came from, but it's pretty likely that the dog that looks like its mostly a Lab is also going to act like a Lab. So if you're looking for a Lab, chances are high you're going to get a Lab if you pick the dog that looks like a Lab at the shelter.

And the people at a shelter don't have a financial incentive to mislead you, and would in fact have a disincentive to lie about an animal, because those places don't have a lot of cash and can't afford to be sued because their employees lied about a dog's history. All of them will know how long the dog's been there or how it has acted while there and may even have on file what the circumstances were for how the dog came to the shelter, and whether it was a stray or from a litter of puppies at a normal home or from an abusive previous owner.

I just don't see that what you're paying for is worth $1000. It sounds like a bill of goods, really. Like I am trying to sell you water. Or air. "Sure, you can get this for free. But here have it from me for $1000!"

To each their own.

That is why you do your homework and go to a reputable breeder.

Like Sack said, certain dogs, labs, etc... I think are fine to get from a shelter. Others, like the one we want I think are better from a reputable breeder.

Like I said, to each their own. We'll just have to agree to disagree. I think it's nuts to spend that kinda money on buying a dog.

We've put a deposit down on a yellow female lab puppy. We'll pick her up around Aug 13. Now we have to figure out a name.

Clementine?

Picking up the lab this morning. Ended up with the name of Penny. Pretty cool seeing the kids excited about the new addition. Kids grew up with an already adult dalmation and they never really bonded. We're all mentally prepped for the accidents.

*bump*

Finally talked my parents into getting a new puppy. Same breed as the 10 year old that we have (Border Terrier), but whereas he is "grizzle + tan" this new one is a "blue". Sure I don't live there anymore, but a puppy will get me over there all the time, so I'm comfortable calling it mine too!!

Beautiful father - when she grows up into her adult coat, the dark part should basically look like a sweater and go down to mid-leg. Strangely enough, her grandmother actually was sired by the same dog who is our current dog's father (unknown to us until we went out there). So they're actually related. And her grandmother is the spitting image of our current dog.

She's still with the breeder for another week or two, but we drove out to see her this past weekend. Here's one of many pics we took. Will try to get some additional ones from my brother later and add them in so you can get a sense of size when standing.

I could totally see myself being a shower/breeder at some point in the future. Clearly I'd need some additional property first though.

Awww!

I know right? So cute!!

'Cute' and 'puppy' are kind of redundant terms, really.

Very true.

I picked this guy up from the shelter a few weeks ago. He's the first dog I've had independently, as a homeowner, and I've managed not to kill him yet. I hope to pair him with an older dog(s) down the road, as I have a weak spot for older shelter dogs.

Awww - cutie molson

He just needs a little victrola under his right ear there.

Er, record player, whatever.

Update - puppy day is Thursday!!!!!

My parents' house was absent a dog for a few weeks after Bubba passed away. So Mom and I spent the few weeks remaining until I went back to Wisconsin for winter break scouring petfinder.com and various other shelter type sites.

Originally we planned to wait until I got home, but she met and fell in love with a dog at a shelter. I saw his picture and asked her a bunch of questions about him, and pulled the trigger, so the day I came home was his second day with my parents.

He's only been here a week but Dozer (as we've called him because he either bulldozes through the house or snoozes, usually on my lap) has already adjusted beautifully to life here and has bonded with me and my parents. He's currently sleeping in my lap as I type. About a year old, give or take a couple months, and we think he's Boxer/Golden Lab, though we'll need to do a DNA test to be sure.

Definitely a puppy and a hilarious, wonderful dog even in the short time we've had him. Loves balls, ropes, and tug of war, and teeth so powerful we had to get him Kongs. :)


Dozer headtilting


Dozer and I hanging out on the couch

Puppy!

I needed this thread today.. :)

Nice looking dog. Glad you guys are giving him a good home.

Great bump! We need more of these. Things have gone great with my new dog (post #26), I can't imagine a world where I wasn't a dog owner, I'm glad I corrected that....planning an oregon coast/dog running crazy on the beach trip as we speak.

I like this thread much better than the other one.

Awwwwwwww cute kitty and puppy pics!

:lol::lol::lol:

Yay puppies!

Me and my brother just adopted a new dog from the local animal shelter. She's a reportedly 5 year old Chow-Shiba Inu mix with 3 legs. Will post pictures soon.

Awesome. Really good on you to adopt a dog that was probably overlooked by 99% of people.

She doesn't really look like a Chow Chow. She has the blackish purple tongue, but that's it.

Nice dog. Very cool of you to adopt her from a shelter.

Great stuff, Mike!

+1 it is great that you gave this Dog a chance, when many would not. Props to you Mike!

You're a good man, Charlie Brown.... err, Mike. :D

Gotta come up with a name. They were calling her Tripod at the animal shelter, but we don't particularly like that one.

That is really awesome. It's such a great act to give an older or disabled dog a great life. She'll make a great pet.