How do you pick out a dog?

Before I got my Rottie, I told myself that I was going to let the puppy pick me. That’s exactly what happened too. She came right up to me, crawled into my lap and stayed there until it was time for me to leave.
I went back a couple more times before she was ready to be separated from her mom. The same thing happened every time. I knew she was my dog.

I picked my cat at a rescue place. Most of the cats were free in a small area. Various ages and types. I was supposed to get a young russian grey. But was painting and moving so I had to delay and she was given away.

There after I went several times. I didn’t know what I was looking for and so many were demanding attention. All the same a kitten from a litter caught my attention.

She was gorgeous, colored like a blue creme torte. She would find the highest perch and keep an eye on her brothers and sisters. When I held and petted her she melted. Even though she looked so prissy. And every time I talked to her she talked back.

She was already spoken for but had to reach 2 lbs and be spayed first. It took her so long that her family to be thought she was too old. Wanted the whole experience… I jumped on it.. and named her Gabby for her talkative nature.

We are very suited for each other.

I don’t do puppies. My dogs are rescues, and I got them as young adults. I decide what “type” (breed or breed mix) I want, and then I research.

Right off the street. Just like my women.

oh dear gUrSh i’M jOkInG

Like @syz, I don’t do puppies, either. When we picked out a family dog six years ago, we just drove to the local SPCA, said we wanted a small female, and they showed us what was available. We chose a schnoodle named Sierra.

More recently, I wanted another dog after having to put Sierra to sleep and my husband picked out a huge shepherd mix, pretty much just based on his good looks. Unfortunately he didn’t work out (some of you read my posts on that) so the rescue group found him another home and we ended up adopting a medium sized cockapoo, who they baby-tested for us, since I’m babysitting my nephew daily. Unfortunately, dammit, he didn’t work out either because of major issues with my female cat, so we had to find a cat-free home for him, and just dropped him off this evening. I’m on my patio now, drinking away my depression. FML

Anyhow, before I had other weird life complications, I could save any rescue/shelter dog I wanted. I now have to be super picky with size, baby-testing and cat-testing. But it will be a while before I attempt to save another dog. I just went through two heartbreaking adoptions and surrenders in five months, and I can’t take anymore just yet.

When we do start looking again, way down the road, it will be another shelter or rescue dog.

A question for those of you that have rescued a dog.

How hard is it to see all those precious animals that need homes and only be able to leave with one? How is it even possible to decide?
My fiancé and I have been talking about getting a dog and have decided that a rescue is the way to go. I’m just really afraid of the trauma it’s going to cause me.

I lost a cat once and went to the local shelter looking for him, thinking that maybe somebody found him and brought him there. I was depressed for days afterwards thinking about all those sweet faces looking at me with these expressions that said “please take me with you”.

I prefer to get dogs from rescues, especially certain breeds that are being over bred. There are a few breeds that I would make an exception to that rule like Skye Terriers for example, mainly because they don’t pop up in rescue centres much. I certainly do not agree with deliberately producing a litter of mongrels (sometimes known as “designer breeds”) and it concerns me how many people are “breeding” and buying mongrels when so many are being put to sleep. I feel the same about people that breed very common breeds (Staffies for example – over here in the UK, our kennels are over run with Staffies and bull breed crosses). I bought my Jack Russell from a breeder years ago and while I love her dearly, if I could go back, I would have done much more research into where I got my puppy from.

As for choosing a dog, I tend to love the uglier ones the most. When I first saw my Staffie, I was not intending to get another dog, I was looking around Battersea Dogs Home in London simply because it is such a famous place and I had time to kill. When I saw her though, my first thought was that she looked like a gremlin!!! She was so ugly that I had to have her (now I think she is beautiful).

@Katniss I look at it another way, we can’t help them all but at least we can help one!

I admire those who go to shelters. I went looking for a kitty once. I could not find one single “Free kitten” ad, so I went to a shelter. They wanted X amount of dollars to go toward spaying, etc. I didn’t have the money.
I left and I looked and looked and looked everywhere I could think of. Finally stood in the middle of a QT and hollered “DOES ANYONE KNOW WHERE I CAN GET SOME FREE KITTENS??!!” Everyone looked at me strangely, except one guy who had seen a “free kitten” sign in this lady’s yard in a run down part of town. When I knocked on the door two huge Rotties slammed against the door, screaming and yelling. This old, old lady, seemed a bit tetched in the head, brought a box full of terrified kittens AND their mother out of the filthy house. She asked me to take them all. I guess I should have…surely I could have found homes for them. I only took Smokey, though. Had her for 12 years. So she was a rescue kitty, just not in an official shelter.

I think ALL animals are rescue animals, no matter how you come across them.

@Dutchess_III I think it’s a good thing that rescues charge a little bit to take an animal home because any animal that is “free” is slightly more at risk of being taken on by someone with bad intentions (fighting dogs etc). For every person like you who just wants to give an animal a loving home, sadly there a plenty that are looking for bait etc and these people are not going to want to pay. Also, over here, if you can’t afford to pay the rescue fees, you probably can’t afford to look after the animal (should it need vet treatment etc) as they are pretty cheap. I imagine it’s there way of making sure that the animal is going to a home that can provide more than just love.

@Leanne1986 I had my cat for many years. I had her spayed as soon as I got the money, she got her shots. She was well taken care of. I just didn’t have the $45 at that moment.

I know your reasoning, but what kinds of things are in place at the shelters to ensure that a rescue dog isn’t going to the same awful kind of place that an animal off the street is?

I’m not judging you, I’m just saying that there are reasons that shelters charge and I think they are good reasons. They can’t guarantee anything but they can at least try to prevent the animal going to a shitty home and charging is one of the ways they do this. People that are looking for a dog to use as bait in the bull breed fighting rings are less likely to pay for it! Also, while you did eventually have the money to pay for your animal many people don’t and their free puppy that was really cute while it wasn’t costing them anything will end up in a shelter as soon as they realise that vets bills aren’t cheap, I have seen this happen too many times.

Also, the shelters need to pay for these animals while they are in their care and sadly donations are not enough.

I think they’re good reasons too @Leanne1986. I didn’t feel like you were judging me…your logic was sound. I just wanted to reassure you that, although I was pretty damn poor I took care of my pets. :)

But back to my last argument…are there any checks in place at shelters to make sure that the animals don’t go to violent abusive owners for dog fighting and such?

I can’t speak for the shelters in the US but when we rehomed my Zara, we had an interview, they had to meet our other dogs (mainly to make sure they got on with the one we were trying to rehome but they could probably get the general gist of what kind of owners we were by the way our current dog acted/looked) and they had a character reference from our landlady at the time. We also had to sign something to say we would get her spayed, they gave us a money off voucher to help with the cost and then we had to send them something from the vet to prove that we had done it.

Yeah…but it would be pretty easy to overcome all the obstacles…they could get the dog, then turn around and sell it. It’s sad.
I still think every animal is a rescue, no matter where they come from.

I agree with you that all animals are rescues which is why I believe that by buying from any old person that calls themselves a “breeder”, thus encouraging them to continue breeding, we are contributing to the amount of rescues. If people were a little more choosy when taking on an animal the back yard type breeders wouldn’t have a market and so animals wouldn’t be being bred left, right and centre because there would be no profit in it for these people.

Agreed @Leanne1986.