Direction
Mooest
Old Moos
Moo to Me
Go to Diaryland
Sign My Guestbook!
Read My Profile
Rivers Point Webpage
Favorite URLs
Light a candle
<
My Trading Card
Pictures
The Family
More Furfamily pictures
Quizzes
Prince or Princess
Star Wars Test
100 Acre Wood Test
What Element am I
What Mythical Creature am I
Political Affiliation
Peanuts Character
Atlantian Duke
My Words
One Nation. . .
My Best Day
MY Journey
2002 Retrospection
Let There Be Peace
War Pictures
Best Stolen Stuff
Frodo Has Failed
Archived Pages
Entry 501-Present
Entry 401-500
Entry 301-400
Entry 201-300
Entry 101-200
Entry 1-100
Last Five Entries
Veteran's Day and an Etiquette Question
2003-11-14 - 8:25 a.m.
"Rescues" or Purebred, the debate continues
I'm not sure if I've covered this subject before, but here it is.... Purebred dogs vs. "rescues".
Now, as an animal lover, and a dog fan, I happily have one of each. The purebred came first, and the rescue came later.
When I was 30, I had my beloved cat of 20 years (yes, that's right, she was 20 human years old) put down. I didn't put her to sleep, I had her put down. It broke my heart and I think I cried over that cat more than I did over my father who died just a few months prior to that incident. About 4 months later, I realized I was lonely. Not just sorta lonely, or the lonely that comes with not seeing friends for a while, but honestly and truly lonely. I was in a horrible situation, and there wasn't any love coming my way from any direction. I decided I wanted a dog. Not just any dog, but MY dog. I was renting a room in a fairly large house and the owner had two dachshunds. One had back problems and just loved to be held. He'd crawl into my arms and look at me with such a pitiful, loving look that he practically stole my heart.
After a great deal of thought on my part, I had made my decision. You see, I knew that my living situation at the time was temporary, and I also knew that I'd never had a dog before, so I wanted to make sure I had one that was manageable. I was travelling a lot, and I wanted one that would fit in a car without too much trouble, and one that would be a lap dog. Not too much energy and the like. I figured that eventually I'd be moving out of this room and into an apartment, and that most apartments have size restrictions on pets. I knew I would be able to afford a hefty pet deposit, at least not at first... but it was important to me to have one.... I'd been the rounds of the SPCAs and I knew that they weren't above "embellishing" when they found a decent prospect to adopt one of their lovelies. I could bear the thought of getting a puppy and watching it grow and loving it and then having to find another home for it because it was too big for me to handle and I couldn't afford to keep it. That would have broken my heart. So I did what I thought was the most sensible thing to do. I found a dog that I was absolutely certain wouldn't grow to be too big, and would have the qualities I wanted. I bought her from a breeder. I believe it was the responsible thing to do at the time, and I don't regret my decision, however I do find myself defending my decision to those people who believe that "rescuing" is the only way to go.
I do have a rescue (actually, he's a rescue of a rescue of a rescue). He's had more homes than Leona Helmsley. He's sweet and loveable and funny and beautiful... and he weighs something in the neighborhood of 55 pounds. When I first got him, I was told that he probably wouldn't weigh more than about 45 pounds. He's an "older" dog (about two years old now); so I got him when he was "fully growed", but it still didn't prepare me for all of the unique "large dog" things(okay.. so he's large to ME). Had he been my first dog, as much as I love dogs... at that point in my life, I wasn't really ready for an animal like him. Too much energy, abuse in his past and all that comes with that, as well as his need for exercise... When I got him, he was living in a VERY nice mobile home, he had energy to spare. He rain circuits around the living room... he had so much energy he just didn't know what to do with it.
We put in a fence and now he spends his days running his puppy legs off. He's happy, healthy and loved.
I'm not sure that would have been the case had I brought him to a two bedroom apartment that was actually smaller than the place I got him from.
I'm not against shelter adoptions in the slightest bit. I believe that a lot of the shelter volunteers think they're doing the dogs a favor by downplaying size and needs.
Case in point... when I adopted Clawed, our cat... we had a friend with us who decided she wanted a dog. She had puppysat for us while we were at Pennsic one year and fell in love with Honey. She found a dog at the shelter while we were cat hunting. The tag on the cage said "dachshund mix" and the shelter worker said that there was "no way" the dog would ever be over 30 pounds. My friend, who'd never had a dog before, asked me what I thought. This dog was a puppy, looked more like a beagle than a dachshund and had the hugeest paws I've ever seen! The more I thought about it, the more I just knew that puppy wasn't a dachshund mix. If so.. one of the parents would have needed a stepladder! Anyway... she adopted the dog and took it home to her townhouse in Northern Virginia for her three daughters. Well, that little puppy grew and grew and grew. When she finally found a new home for him with someone with a house and large backyard (well, large for NoVa) the dog weighed close to 80 pounds. Her vet believed the dog had at least some Rhodesian Ridgeback in his bloodlines. I also know that not all shelters are that way.
When my ex adopted a dog, he was told pretty much the same thing "small dog, won't weigh more than 30 pounds". The last time I saw that dog, he was something like 4 feet tall (a VERy tall dog) and weighed 60 pounds. He ended up finding his dog a home with his sister who lived in the country.
Like I said, I'm not saying that rescues are bad, nor am I saying that buying from a breeder is evil. It's an individual choice that's best left up to the individual. If you want a rescue, consider your living conditions and what you can reasonably take care of. Think about your lifestyle and your needs. Think about how active you are. Think about what you have to offer a dog of any shape and size. Think about the needs of dogs in general. Do your homework. I wasn't confident that I could handle a larger dog at first. I sometimes refer to Honey as my "starter dog". I made mistakes with her early on, but she's little and those mistakes are compounded tenfold when the dog is 55 pounds.
Think about all of these, but PLEASE, don't tell me I'm a horrible or that I'm an "unenlightened" person because I paid for one of my dogs. Anything worth having is worth paying for. Even rescues come with a cost; regardless if it's paid with the checkbook or the heart.
I love them both and would do all I can for either of them. They're part of my family and while they can be a pain in the butt (singly and together); they're MINE and I dare anyone to try to take them away.
I don't have a "purebred" and a "rescue". I have Honey and Sphygo (or Moose, or whatever name he wants to be called this week).
Please don't forget to answer my survey... it's research for a small business idea... all comments appreciated, no reasonable offer refused!!! It won't take five minutes, I PROMISE!
