Thinking about surprising my wife with a cute little doggy. I really dont know crap about dogs. I know she likes yorkies (sp?), and I like basset hounds (those are the long, lazy, big eared dogs right?). Or something along those lines. Nothing ferocious. Something pretty small. So my question is, where exactly do you look for a dog? Is their like a dog shop where they have different breeds of dogs?
Dogs are like kids. If you train your puppy early, the dog will be for the most part trouble free. If your a lazy sob who doesn't play or care for it, yes it will be a handful and some. When I bought my puppy I took her out every time she tried to pee/poop in the house. I left home for a year and when I came back, she adopted the bad habit of pee/poop all over the house. In a month I whipped her back in shape and now she only does her business in the house when there's no one home to take her outside. If you want a small dog, go for a teacup (very expensive) or a toy (less expensive). For the best prices, go to the flea markets. Make sure the dog isn't a mixed breed or you'll get jipped.
I agree. Don't do it until you've put some more thought into it. Don't make it a last minute surprise gift. Lots of work goes into owning a dog. Would be sad to see it at the pound later.
I have a very ill trained dog. Its getting to the break point of me not liking it. But I'm never giving it away, since I've had it for 1.5 years since it was a puppy. Do those boot camp places work, where you can send the dog away for a month and then they train it? I think its in the River Oaks.
If you adopt a dog that was mistreated by its previous owner they are usually very well behaved. They are usually very timid and dont act out because they are afraid of a punishment. Thats what we did with our dog when it was under 1 year old and we never had a problem with it. He was a big dog and he was with us for 19 years. Unfortunately he passed away last Thanksgiving.
I did not know you were married. congrats. don't buy a dog. let her pick it. and if she really wants one, get one from a dog rescue. the dog rescues are pretty united. you can type in www.<dog breed>rescue.org and probably start there. like http://www.yorkierescue.org/ then just email or call the people for your state/area
Get a Miniature Schnauzer. They have tons of personality, are very smart, fairly hardy, and just a little bit stubborn. The best part? THEY DON'T SHED! No worries about dog hair in your house or on you. My recommendation? Houston Miniature Schnauzer Rescue They are much cuter in person than in the pictures. We didn't know what kind of dog we wanted at first, and then we met our friend's Mini Schnauzers. That settled it for us. Since then, we have had 3 people who were thinking about getting small dogs meet our Mini Schnauzers and they all decided to get the same breed. For training, I recommend a good mix of dominance and clicker training.
