5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

My DH has his heart set on a puppy. That's not, DS, my DH! He wants a puppy so we are looking at a 5-month-old pup. He is crate trained but I know it will be a ton of work. Both my kids love dogs and I believe with good training it would be great - but, I'd personally rather adopt a rescue 2, 3 or 4yo dog who is out of the puppy phase. DH disagrees and feels with a rescue you never know what you are getting and why they were "rescued". The puppy we would get is from an excellent breeder (not a puppy mill). Has anyone ever done this and would say they would do it again the same way?

Re: 5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

Def. XPOST this on the pets board!

I feel you never know what you are getting no matter from a rescue or breeder--to me, it is the same thing--just bc a dog is from a breeder doesn't mean that it will be perfect, kwim? There are so many reasons why dogs are in rescue-not necessarily due to behavior-tell your DH to look into this further-

You can always foster to adopt from a rescue--this way you can see if the pup is the right fit for your family---rescues also have many young puppies needing homes--in fact, pups of all ages can be found from rescues

I have done both-rescued and from a legit breeder--I am fortunate that I have had great dogs from both!

Puppies are like infants! Some are harder to train than others. It will take a lot of time, dedication, consistancy, and it is for sure a big responsibility--but extremely rewarding!

So, I would say def. don't rule out a rescue all together--you can def. find a pup or a young dog out of the puppy stage. You can also look into breed specific rescues. If you do go with a breeder, make sure -double and triple check-that they are legit. Find out how many litters the mother had, etc. Talk to their vet to see how they take care of their dogs, etc.

Even with a young pup, you will, as you probably know, have to train--you won't have that puppiness but, will still have to make a commitment to train (especially with 2 young kids) and you will have to train your kids ;) as well!!LOL!

my pups were young when my 1st LO was born, so they were out of the puppy stage and they are great w/my kids--but I am constantly reinforcing the behavior/interaction of both kids/and dogs!!
good luck and if you need any help w/rescues or anything --let me know!

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

We just adopted a dog from a rescue. He is 1.5 yrs old (approx) and we have a 1.5 yo DS. Our dog is full y grown at 10 inches and 10 pounds. He is extremely well behaved - all he wants to do is sleep on my lap. Fully crate trained and housebroken. We only crate him at night when we are sleeping. And it is more because I am afraid of accidents, but those are few and far between. He gets along great with DS and they are bonding everyday.

The rescue that we got him from was able to tell us about his temperment and disposition. I did not want a young puppy because I did not want to deal with the chewing phase. But he is young enough that he tolerates DS.

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

We recently adopted a 9mth old rescue, and have a 3 yr old, 4 yr old and a baby due in June. When we met this dog, we all fell in love. He's a wonderful addition to our family. I expected it to be a ton of more work, and honestly it hasn't seemed like much at all.

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

We adopted a rescue pit bull. She was about 5 years old when we got her. She is great with kids, we just had a baby and she LOVES my DD. protective her her, not in an aggressive way but always wanting to be near her. If you can find a rescue who has a dog that has been around children you can ask if you can do a foster to adopt and if it doesnt work out you can always bring the dog back.

I agree with the PP that sometimes puppies are more work, and sometimes they will nip and play hard because they're puppies. If you and your DH are willing to put the time and effort you can go for it.

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

We adopted a 6 month puppy when my son was around 2.5 and a great decision. Rough at times like with anything but my son loves him, and he is very protective of him. Im due with baby number 2 any day have no reservations about how the dog will act what so ever.

The dog we adopted was never around children before so was a little nervous but he adjuste very well.

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

I personally think it depends on the breed, the size, and if you know the reason for it being in foster care. In about 2-3 years we will get a rescue puppy because I want a puppy so we can train it and I only rescue. My brother did a German Shepherd rescue 5 years ago and got his beautiful dog. She is now almost 10 and while I love her to pieces she does scare me. My kids are 3 and 1. We know nothing about her first 5 years and she is a HUGE shepherd. I like smaller dogs. I'm sure she would be great with my kids, but she was so protective of me I was worried. It was to the point that when my Grandmother died last year when people would come over she would bark and try to bite anyone that got to close to me or my son. It was pretty bad and so unlike her. My uncle is a K-9 officer and explained Shepherds, especially females, are fiercely protective of nursing mom's and breastfed babies. He said it's their instinct to protect the food source lol. He was the only person, besides me, that could be around her when I was in the room.

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

We rescued our dog in December. They said he was about 7 months.
DD is 2 next month.
It's a lot of work.
I wanted to rescue an older dog, DH wanted a puppy.
I thought we were kind of meeting in the middle but no.....he's a puppy.
A 60pound puppy!
House broken yes, but a chewer.
DD LOVES him an he loves her.

It's so much work and can be frustrating but when they play and lay on the floor together it melts my heart.

Post on the pet board.
They are really helpful!

5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

What breed of dog is it that you are you considering? That will play a huge part in whether you should get a puppy or an older dog.

As for the rescue angle goes... I say this all the time to people, find a dog that is being fostered with young children. The fosterer will know a lot more about what the temperament of the dog is, probably even better than a breeder who does not have young children in their home.

Reputable rescues will also stand behind their dogs and take them back if there is a conflict. I work with an amazing rescue group if you want to check out the dogs they have available. They have 10 week old hound mix puppies available right now if you are interested. It is an interesting story, they are two mothers who were living under an abandoned house. They have been co-raising their puppies, even nursing each others puppies so no one knows which dog actually belongs to which puppies. They have been in rescue since the puppies are little. They are being fostered in Nassau County in one of the rescuers house with her young children.

Statistically, the dog most likely to bit is a male dog between the age of 1-3 years old. Unneutered males are more likely to bite than neutered. So I usually push for getting a female dog when there are young children in the house.

All that money you save on buying a puppy from a breeder, you can apply to having a trainer come in and put you on the right path from the start.

Message edited 3/14/2013 11:11:11 AM.

Re: 5yo, 1.5yo...and a puppy

do u mind me asking what rescue you adopted from? one of the things we are learning is not all rescue groups are equal. thanks for your input!