Why a duck? Why not a puppy?
Puppies bleed all over you, ducks not so much.
No thanks - not interested in taking on a project that may or may not end up being a decent pet, and may or may not end up costing thousands in vet bills and die anyway.
That’s a description of every dog ever.
Wow. I suggest you either do a better job shopping, or just give up having dogs.
You have a method of obtaining dogs that guarantees they will be great pets and will never have expensive vet bills?
No, but there are ways to make it far more likely. Besides, Palo Verde said that every dog is a “project that may or may not end up being a decent pet, and may or may not end up costing thousands in vet bills and die anyway.”
If you have a problem with him you can always call the FBI.
Yes, every dog may or may not … etc. Kind of a no-duh.
Shelter mixed breed dogs may or may not, purebreds may or may not. Yes that is a description of every dog ever.
Now if you want to argue the pros and cons of a rescue animal vs a purebred from a quality breeder in terms of making a decent pet, risk of medical bills, early death, that’s a reasonable discussion. I’ve heard pretty good arguments that mixed breed rescues tend to be healthier over their lifetimes and good pets, and the value of saving a life is something that means more to some than others. But no, purebred does not assure one of having a decent or healthy pet … maybe a bit more predictability of the risks.
I think we can agree though that a large commercial pet store is not the best way to stack the deck in favor of a decent healthy pet dog.
It’s just a no - I haven’t owned a project dog since I can’t even remember, and my vet bills are almost non-existent.
Dogs in shelters are there for a reason, and overwhelmingly these days, that reason is because they grew up to be an untrained teen with a full bag of bad habits. And except for those pure breeds that are in the top 10 or 15 for popularity and so have completely overwhelmed their rescue organizations, you are mostly going to see mixes (no consideration of genetic health of their parents) or puppy mill “purebreds” (no consideration of genetic health of their parents), so poor health is also very likely.
The way to get a dog that is most likely to be a good pet and not a drain on the wallet is to get it from someone who knows that breed, does the health checks on the breeding stock, offers a guarantee and is available to provide guidance for the life of the dog. These are things that puppy mills, BYBs, designer dog breeders and shelters can’t or wont do.
Most arguments for mixes start with “hybrid vigor”, except that mixed breed dogs are not hybrids. Most genetic health problems in dogs are in all breeds, just as the same can be said for humans, so simply mixing two dogs of different breeds or mixes isn’t going to create a hybrid, much less vigor. This has been amply proven by all the health problems in the various “doodles”, but people spend less time researching a pet purchase than they do on an appliance.
Most places that people get dogs these days are not good places. Shelters have really become bad in the last few years due to so many bringing in dogs from other areas, with no clue about their backgrounds. We had one dog come thru training class that was obtained from one of the LA shelters - the owners had already paid to cure it of kennel cough and de-worm it, then it ended up with hepatitis. Finally healthy enough for class, at more or less nine months of age, it was of course totally out of control but luckily had a decent temperament and wasn’t causing too much trouble. And that was a good one - others have had rabies, chronic health problems, had untreated broken bones, etc. One guy paid $2000 for a “purebred” Thai street dog - huh?
All the dogs I’ve adopted in the last 40 years have come from shelters. None of them have been special projects. They’ve all been friendly, sociable, and obedient. They’ve all been housebroken, easy to train, and behaved well inside the house. Vet expenses have all been minimal, only a yearly checkup and required booster shots. None have had any chronic illnesses. They’ve all been mixed breeds. I’m not saying shelter dogs are better than dogs from other places, but you aren’t shooting craps if you adopt one from a shelter, either. Of course, everyone should choose a dog carefully, but shelter dogs can make great pets and shouldn’t be discounted out of hand.
I’ve not had rescue dog with problems either but know of many purebreds with hip problems and cancers that the breeds are infamous for. (Think hemophilia in royalty.)
Well, sometimes the odds on craps is better than in a shelter. No, they shouldn’t be discounted out of hand, but for the family who doesn’t want to take a big chance on the health and temperament of a pet, getting a shelter dog is not a good idea. These days there is this big push to have everyone adopt from there, with zero mention of the negatives involved in it. It’s all bunnies and butterflies, which is bad enough but then when problems happen there is no one there to help unless the family pays for it from a vet or trainer. Many times, the problem dog just goes back to the shelter.
I’ve worked in shelters, grooming the poodle mixes so they didn’t look like fully matted mops, I’ve had shelter dogs in classes, I’ve had shelter dogs in my home as part of rescue organizations. Things may be different off the west coast, but in my last 46 years of exposure to shelter/rescue dogs, the bad has far outweighed the good. This is especially true of the no-kill shelters and most rescues these days, since they try to save everything without thinking about whether or not the dog will ever be able to live in a normal setting.
Oh yeah, that’s why I mentioned BYBs and puppy mills. The sad thing is, most of the genetic problems in dogs have tests available so there really isn’t any reason to be producing those things. This is why I can’t understand why buyers don’t do at least the bare minimum of research - it helps to get a rarer breed (one not in the, say, top 20), and it definitely helps to get a pup/dog from a pedigree with depth for health and long life.
Another comment - pet people seem to be willing to put up with more than I would. I see them just accept allergies and other skin problems, weird temperaments, etc as just part of owing a pet. Meanwhile, in the last three years, the sum total of me going to the vet is to get a dog neutered and another to get the city mandated rabies shot.
Oh, curlcoat. Is there any subject you’re not embarrassingly wrong about?
I defy you to come up with any real evidence at all that shows that anything I have said is wrong. And since I know you can’t and so won’t “have time” to come back, just shut up.
I think it depends on the shelter and how the pets are housed. I’ve only done rescue work for groups that foster in houses. We’ve always vetted the pets first and while we do call ourselves a no-kill, we do have the sick ones put down. The dogs and cats we adopt out are healthy and fairly well socialized. The fosters are very up-front to the potential adoptors about problems or issues.
All of my cats have been rescued off the street. After the initial vetting, they have all been very healthy until they were getting old. That’s why I freaked out so much over Baker. My cats just don’t get sick.
Of course, cats are different than dogs. I don’t do much on the dog side of rescue, but I would have still heard of a dog that kept bouncing back due to behavior problems. Every area is different, though.
Yeah, cats seem to be a whole 'nother thing, tho my experience there is very limited. And having all of the pets in foster homes makes a huge difference, which is what most if not all of the breed specific rescues do. Dogs, and probably cats too?, are very different in a shelter situation than they are in a home.
My current, bestest cat in the world is from what was our city shelter. It’s been closed due to lack of need, so on that very dark day when I will need another cat, I’ll have to go up to the county shelter unless my friend in the north happens to have a litter of ferals.
I mistyped in the post you replied to. I was actually thinking about the rodents. There aren’t a whole lot of rodent rescues out there. I’m all about animal rescue, myself.
The bolded part is just wonderful to hear about. I’m assuming its because people there are having their pets fixed. Everyone has to buy into it for it to work. Such good news.
What a beautiful kitteh. I really loved the Jan 09 pics of her in her new bed. Her little kitty toes made me want to tickle them through the screen. I do wonder how you survived to post the pics of her stuffed into a Christmas sock, though.
Cat pictures in the fucking BBQ Pit?? Damn place has gone to the dogs, I tell ya!
Come on, put yourself in Miller’s shoes. You’ve proven yourself to be both fractally AND recursively wrong on many occasions. Providing exhaustive evidence about any wrong statement of yours leads one down a *very *deep rabbit hole.
I’m just saying, the least you could do is pay him for the service if he’s going to spend the better part of next month working at your behest. Even if you’re just going to ignore everything he’s saying and blather on anyway.