Dog or Not?

[Brent]

You don't think cats are fun, J-P? There are several breeds that are extremely dog-like (or fun, in other words), I.e. Savannah, Bengal, Abyssinian, among others. The three mentioned above actually enjoy water & walks too.

I think that certain breeds can be very self reliant, I.e. Russian Blues, but don't count on a cat not sharing a general dog personality (or vice versa!).

Many cats require the same or more attention than the average dog, too, I.e. Siamese, so don't think a cat won't want to be at your side 24/7.

And I've yet to see a cat that wasn't at least a little playful, most being very playful.

...

_________

What dog breeds are you looking at anyway, Flutter?

[J-P]

I am sorry ... maybe I wrote incorrectly ... My cats are very independent. One is very dog like and trainable. Thus, I chose cats over dogs.

I know I can leave my cats alone for a few days and not worry (except for the fish) ... I can't say the same for dogs.

[CarmenH]

How about volunteering to foster for a local group or shelter? Foster homes are always needed and with most rescues, a successful foster home has first dibs if they decide they want to adopt... That way, too, if you decide it's not working for you, you don't have to return it to an uncertain situation. And vet bills are covered unless you choose to donate the funds

Carmen and the pack
Pawzie-tively Precious American Eskimo Rescue
http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/ON92.html
Ontario, Canada

[Brent]

I see, I see; no need to apologize.

That's not a bad idea Carmen... Only problem I have with fostering is wanting to keep them all.

[CarmenH]

That's not a bad idea Carmen... Only problem I have with fostering is wanting to keep them all. [/quote]

How do you think I ended up with 7 dogs? But at least they're in and you know it's working *before* you have to make the commitment

[Flutter]

I don't know of any rescues that need fostering in the area. That would be an excellent idea though. That's what we did with Kyle's rabbit.

We're not looking at any breed in particular. I really like mutts as we've had great success with them so far. While nothing's guaranteed I do believe that they have fewer health problems overall.

The one at the shelter was adopted today (darn) and we've decided that this other dog isn't suitable for us. No worries though, we aren't in a rush.

I would get a cat but my dad's allergic and he wants to be able to come over. I also already have a cat. She's keeping an elderly lady company as she lost her three cats within a year and can't get a new one. My mom and I asked her to take care of the cat over Christmas last year I can guarantee you she's got the best life a cat could have.

[Brent]

I'll agree with you on the subject of fewer health problems. Less / no inbreeding, I guess.

Get a Newfoundland dog!

Good luck with deciding on your perfect child.

[CarmenH]

I would check with your local shelters, and also have a look on petfinder.com
If you have an idea of the breeds you like, that might help narrow down your search. Some groups are all-breed as opposed to breed-specific, and even breed-specific rescues will occasionally get in cross-breeds... There are also hundreds of dogs, mostly mixed breed, brought up from pet-overpopulated areas in the stated every week via "dog-railroad". I know Take Me Home rescue gets a lot of these, I could try to get names of other groups if that tweaks your interest...
Because you are young and in an apartment, any rescue might (should) want vet and/or personal references and will likely screen you quite thoroughly...don't take offence, they just want to be sure it'll be a good situation...

[Flutter]

No luck yet. We've found 2 dogs that look really promising but their adoption fees are $400. I can't justify spending that much just to get the dog. I'm pretty cheap All our dogs have been free I think our limit is at a $300 adoption fee.

If you know of any places we can check out that would be great.

[J-P]

http://www.torontohumanesociety.com/adopt/default.asp

[Flutter]

So, we found two gorgeous 6month old puppies about 40 minutes away. They are adorable.

Also decided we were going to wait 3 weeks until school was done. That way we aren't stressed for time with a new puppy. I think we'll be looking at dogs that around 4-6 months old that way we can train them from the beginning not to bark at the neighbours, people in the stairwell, etc.

[purplecandle]

Please try this website...

http://www.petfinder.com

You can look in the classified section for people who are giving their dogs away..usually for free..

or you can look in the adoption section and find what you want in shelters or dog specific charities..

And check every day!!

I love this website...

it is really good for finding free kittens and puppies...

and you might get lucky and find a dog that is house trained!

[purplecandle]

from what i understand this site does work in Canada and does list some Canadian cities...but if your city is not listed i think you have to use your postal code...

[Flutter]

Yep, it works. We've been checking it out. So far nothing free on there though. Some of the local shelters list on there and some don't so we have to check their websites as well.