Rescue dog

[V8landy]

Hi

 

Looks like it is that time of year for dumped dogs. http://forums.pigeonwatch.co.uk/forums/ind...showtopic=74887

 

In considering a dog my self (and this has and still is a long well thought out process), would a rescue pup be a worthy option?

 

The dog I am after is a Labrador, and although (luckyly for me) the cost of a pedigree dog is not an issue (look to be about £300-500), the thought of saving a rescue dog would be good.

 

But with it being my first dog, would I be letting myself into problems? or the fact that it might be very young would that help in that any problems it might have had could be trainned out / loved out?

 

Thanks

[POW!]

Hi , I saw your reply to my other post , If only everyone was as thoughtfull and caring as you ,

 

Iwas realy angry , to hear those pups crying was hurtfull , these people should be banned from owning pets , What morrals do they have?? They will Lie to the kids in the morning , what parents are they !!? ,

 

I dont have a Dog , my shoot would be a Dogs Heaven , But my wife has an allergy so as we cant give them what they deserve we choose to not have one , , Its now -2 deg outside , if not found they would be dead by morning ,

 

I admire all you dog lovers on here , I know just how much time is needed to look after one , It is so sad that they get kids excited for just one day then tell lies to them the next , I feel angry again , POW!

[Sprinter]

A rescue pup would certainly be a better idea than a rescue dog. However if it is going to be your first dog then you would be far better off with a normal straight forward purchase of a puppy from a reputable source. Although i know they do tug at your heart strings.

 

I took on a rescued dog a few years ago, 2-3 years old. The state of it made me cry when i saw it. It had been starved to within an inch of it's life and was badly beaten on a regular basis. It took me many months to get any meat on it's bones. It took over a year to get any real sign of trust from it, it always cowered away when you went near it. The only way to get it anywhere near you was to talk very softly, any hint of a raised voice and it was off. It also took over a year to stop it viewing cats as a food source (yes there were a couple of missing cat posters in the area). I never did manage to cure it of viewing squirrels as a food source. A big problem was getting it used to you carrying a gun. First time out, and without thought it stayed 20 yards away from me the whole time, why? The gun looked like a stick to it of course and it thought i was going to beat the hell outtah it. Lots of little things too, first time it heard the microwave timer it tried to exit the house through the bottom of the kitchen door (closed). As for the hoover, well you can imagine. Bath time was a complete nightmare, i swear there were paw prints on the ceiling. However when all is said and done the little things give the greatest rewards :-

 

The first sit, the first stay, the first lie down, the first retrieve of anything, the time you can take her food away mid chow and see that she knows it's coming back, The first send away (without her running away!!), walking by your side at heel while you have a gun. walking by your side when you have a stick (this one took a while), the first time they choose to lie next to you on the carpet, not chasing a cat, first retrieve of game (without it looking very second-hand), first retrieve of a stick (normally you would throw a stick and she would head opposite direction 150mph) finally being able to hold her feet while she lays beside you in front of the fire.

 

All of the above the average Labrador seems pre-programmed to do from birth, mine was a long and hard struggle all the way but ultimately very rewarding, tempered with a few tears along the way. She sadly died a few years ago due to liver failure which was attributed to her initial starvation.

 

I would think very carefully now about whether i would take on another rescue dog, however as soon as my position allows i will have a dog of some sort by my side.

[V8landy]

A rescue pup would certainly be a better idea than a rescue dog. However if it is going to be your first dog then you would be far better off with a normal straight forward purchase of a puppy from a reputable source. Although i know they do tug at your heart strings.

 

I actually did mean a rescue pup, rather than e.g. a 1 + year old dog.

 

Thanks for your replies

[lurcherboy]

Well done Sprinter for sticking at it

 

 

 

 

 

LB

[pair away]

a few years ago i did some voluntary for a local geyhound/lurcher rescue and some of the things that people had done to the dogs reduced me to tears , it makes you wish you could have ten mins with them in a room with a stick with some rusty nails through it , any way im pretty sure battersea dogs home have a section for working dogs ( labs etc ) they must have a web page . good luck

[Imperfection]

Go for it!

 

My current dog (Bullmastiff) is a rescue and im technically his fourth owner! They do often come with a bit of baggage as mine was a boisterous hooligan and is quite sad when you think i got him at 13 months old with that many previous owners,but he's a fantastic companion now and none of them saw his potential.Im even gonna take him shooting next year cos he's great at flushing!

 

Rescue centres are full at moment because of the credit crunch and so soon after christmas so there are plenty of dogs out there just crying out for a good home.