So I'm thinking of adopting a dog for my parents as a gift. They already have a dog, but since my mom loves dogs she likes to have at least 2. I'm mainly looking for a male miniature dog, but a medium sized one is also okay.

Does anyone have any experience in adoption? Can anyone recommend an organization? Or does anyone know anyone that's personally selling a dog?

Also, in terms of lbs, is a 15 lb dog considered medium sized?

 

ASPCA?

Also I know up here like once a month the PetSmart or PetCo have dogs/cats that are brought in for adoption

 

AHH!!! That's what I was looking for. My mom mentioned something with an acronym and I totally forgot what it was. Thanks!

Damn just checked their website and there's not many choices... At least for male dogs

 

http://www.puppyfinder.com/

Found my dog on there...got it from a family in Santa Cruz that had some surprise puppies

 

ya you kinda have to keep checkin to find what your really looking for. But good luck man!

 

Thanks! Yeah, I'm not really looking to throw down $400+ ... Hopefully I'll find something from the shelters

 

dont foget to look at nissan dogs...

 

www.petfinder.com

Honestly though while it is definitely cool to adopt an animal, you need to make sure you match the correct animal to the owner. This requires gaining some basic knowledge about the breed itself and some general background info for the specific animal.

I have known people that have gotten dogs because they liked the way that specific breed looked. Case in point - My friends got an Australian Cattle Dog (like the one seen in the Mad Max movies). Very cool dog, unfortunately the breed itself is very high energy and requires a TON of exercise (which my friends were not able to provide as they both worked too many hours and were not able to be home as much as needed). The dog would chew through tons of stuff in their backyard. This resulted in them having to cage the dog when they were gone. That was not fair to the dog as it was locked inside of a cage for several hours everyday while they were away. They eventually had to get rid of the dog. They found a couple of different breeds of dogs that they now love and have the right temperament and energy levels to match my friends lifestyles.

One thing I would recommend is that if you are going to get your parents an additional dog (or introduce any animal into an environment that already has other animals) you really should try to introduce the animals in a neutral environment first and see how they react to each other. Some animals may just not get along with each other and while they may seem good with the owner, this can lead to a stressful living environment and should be avoided. Find out if the new animal is good with other animals, kids, people in general as well as finding out if there are any special needs that the owner should be aware of and are willing to take the responsibility for.

Good Luck with the search.

 

15 lbs is still considered small I think, 35-55 would be considered medium. The adoption agencies really frown upon getting someone a pet as a gift, so just look on CL or something and find a person looking to re-home their pup. When you go to adopt, they need the address of where the pup is going to, and if it isn't going home with you permanently, you might have some problems.

 

there are lots of breed specific rescue organizations also

 

my dog's adoption cost $300 (not including the food/crate/toys/treats/etc) through a breed specific rescue. i was introduced to 3 different dogs and i picked the dog that the shelter person said i was the best match for - a good shelter should do the same for you.

and what flukewrx said.

 

+1 for adoption!

I'd personally look at the shelters, but my gf and I lucked out - we got our Maxx (pug) from our friend who received it from one of her customers for free (they had too many dogs, I think).

 

We have adopted every single one of our dogs now, and that count is up to 5 now.

4 of them were from the pound, one was found cold, in the rain, and starving (puppy about 6 weeks old). We took her in and gave her care and loving, now she has a GREAT life with people who love her to death. She was very lucky that she didn't die, she was really close to death as it was the winter and she was STARVING. She was in some abandoned parking lot scared of everyone.

Anyway, about the pound... I mean, what better way to get a dog? rescuing one from death row! All of our dogs are phenomenal with zero health or behavioral problems (other then one dog who's getting old and has a hip problem). They are all GREAT dogs and I would NEVER buy a dog from a breeder. There's a saying that goes: "Why buy when millions of dogs die?". Did you know that around 5,000,000 (FIVE MILLION) dogs are put to sleep every year in shelters because no one would adopt them? People are f'ing idiots and decide to buy a dog from a breeder "because they want a pure breed".

Well, did you know that pure breeds have MANY more health issues then mixed breeds do? And even if you want a pure breed, two of our dogs are pure breeds that were both puppies that we got from the shelter. One of them is a Mini Pinscher that was 8 weeks old, he was SUPER tiny. Another was an American Bull dog, he was just a puppy too, and both are pure breeds. Shelters are overflowing with pure breed chihuahuas, they can be great dogs if you train them, but like any dog, if you don't train them they will have behavior issues. They get a bad rep because people buy them as lap dogs, they don't train them and when the have behavior issues they take them to the pound! (These are bought dogs!).

Any animal shelter is fine, those dogs are in line to be put to death, and only you (people in general) can save them! I was thinking of donating the money from the BAM raffle to a bay area high kill shelter to help the doggies out.

Cliff notes:
1. Get dog from shelter

2. Train the dog! Training is everything with a dog, just a bit of behavior training (read a book or see a professional) will be the best thing you can ever buy for your dog, you can ask anyone and they will agree. You want your dog to know that he is NOT the master, and that he can't do anything he wants... Training will ensure that he/she will listen when you tell them to do something (sit, stay, come, etc). This is VERY crucial!

3. Enjoy your new family member! The love they provide is priceless. Some studies even show that having a loving pet can extend your life by reducing stress, etc. Dogs are great! If you can't handle a dog, a cat is always a good option too. (I used to hate cats until we found our cat almost dead in a field. She was barely even a kitten, she was so young and starving... just like the story I mentioned in the beginning of my post, she helped her through her hardships, loved and fed her, now she's a great cat that acts like a dog since she was raised by them. Now I LOOOOVE her to death!


I'd like to thank you for considering a shelter! That says a lot about a person!

 

If I were to get another dog I would actually go through the SPCA this time around. My last 2 dogs were breed specific my parents got. Unfortunately last week we had to put my dog to sleep(she was only maybe 11). She recently started having seizures like crazy and we tried to help her but overall the vet couldn't do anything. This was the 2nd airdale we got from the specific breeder and with the first dog having to be put down since she had lung cancer I more than likely won't be going to a breeder of any kind really since most breeding is so close its damn near inbred sometimes. I just had really bad experiences with breed specifics so far so it could be just my bad luck or a bad breeder who knows?

basically take daniel's suggestion and save a dog!

 

Brucelee, you shouldn't make generalizations like that. I bought my German Shepherd from a breeder for a number of different reasons.

The first one is temperament. Proper socialization and positive early life experiences are crucial for certain breeds such as German Shepherds. Those that have not been raised properly will develop problematic behavior that often comes out at the absolute wrong time. This could end up in a child being bitten, a smaller dog being killed etc. So, since my dog spends a lot of time around my nephews and nieces, it was important for me to know exactly how the dog was raised and what his tendencies are. This is difficult to accomplish with a pound puppy.

Another reason is knowing the parents to avoid health problems. My dog comes from direct German lines with minimal hip dysplasia and other typical health issues found in this breed. So, the responsible breeding of my dog reduced the chances of health problems that you referenced.

Lastly, I wanted PURE BRED German Shepherd because of the activities that I wish to do with the dog, such as Shutzhund and agility training. Most dogs, including muts do not have drive to do these activites (nothing against other dogs, I love all dogs!). Also, getting a pure bred was my preference, thats all there is too it.

So, people that buy purebred dogs aren't as you called them, f*ing idiots. People that make statements such as yours are f*ing idiots, and those who irresponsibly breed dogs are f*ing idiots. That is all.