Before You Even Choose The Dog
Many people own dogs. Some people have dogs until the dog is old and gray. Others have dogs for a much shorter time. When asked why they are giving the dog up, reasons may vary. The dog wasn’t good with children. The dog didn’t like to be alone. The dog barked/dug/chewed.
Sometimes people say that the dog was perfect. They just didn’t have time for the dog. Circumstances had changed. They were working longer hours, going back to school, splitting up.
Did these people want a dog at the time that they got it? Most of the time, yes. Or did they?
I wonder if people fall in love with the idea of a dog rather than the reality. That could explain why people want puppies. Puppies are cute. They are warm and fuzzy and follow their owner everywhere. Puppies have their dark side, too, which is also part of their reality. Puppies come unhousebroken. They do not know how to walk on a leash. They are like walking mouths for the first year or two of their lives. Puppies have very sharp tooth and like to bite human flesh. Puppies often eat everything that they come across. Puppies have accidents in the house and throw up in the car. Puppies need to get up in the middle of the night and go potty; sometimes they need to go out more than once. That’s the real reality of puppies.
Adult dogs come with some baggage also. They may or may be housebroken. They may or may not walk nicely on a leash. They may or may not get along with other dogs. Adult dogs fart, dig, scratch, and bark. That is the real reality of adult dogs.
Adolescent dogs really take the cake. They are not as cute as puppies, but they still like to chew. Because they are developing their jaw strength, they like to chew on a variety of different textures looking for what feels the best. Adolescent dogs do not know that shoes and sofas are not good chew toys. Adolescent dogs do not automatically follow their owner anywhere. If given there freedom, they may just run away. Adolescent dogs may jump up on people. If they are big and strong, they can knock people down.
Very few dogs in the world find that pleasing their owner is intrinsically rewarding. They are more likely to ask that age old question, “What’s in it for me?”