[fun ticket]

many moons ago, my brother in law gave my wife and i puppy for xmas (never discussed it with us; thats a whole different story). as rude as it seems, we did not accept it. not a decision to be taken lightly. it seems all fun and cute in concept and discussion, until you start picking up terds and cleaning puke. i would not do it. i have had friends say dealing with kids is easier than dogs.

[leJUNd]

As many others have said already. Make sure you and your gf are ready to take on the responsibility of owning a dog. If you decide to give up on it, even if you find someone to take over, some dogs do not adjust very well and move from house to house like orphans. Dogs are not goldfish. From feeding it to cleaning after its shit, it's a lot of work. No matter which breed of dog you decide to get, experience you will have with the dog will entirely depend on how well you train and how much attention you give it. Even within the same breed, every dog is unique and have different temperament.

Right now I own a french bulldog. My mom owns two bichon frize and a long haired chihuahua. we have owned poodle, miniature schnauzer, cockeer spaniel, and maltese before.

French bulldog. funny little guys. I don't know what your definition of small is but they are relatively small dog, heavy but small. It loves people, anyone. Very chill dogs. it will sleep all day if you let it. It rarely barks. It will never get angry or snap at you. You can literally pull on its tongue and he won't complain and love you. Not very smart though. They don't require lot of exercise. They are lazy. If you let it sleep all day it will.


Schnauzer. It does bark. Compared to other dogs we had, on the louder side. It doesn't shed. It does get irritated and will snap at you. Doesn't like everyone. Doesn't like strangers. They do require more exercise than its size suggest.

Cocker Spaniel. Very high energy, very playful. To be honest, it was a bit too much for apartment living. But that could be due to him being left alone at home a lot. But from what I hear from other owners, they are a handful. They do shed and bark. I wouldn't recommend it unless you can exercise him a lot.

Miniature Poodle. Don't shed, relatively chill, relatively smart, normal on loudness. Small. requires some grooming. lovable but to be honest, no real character, kinda boring.

Bichon Frize. Love love these dogs. They love everyone even strangers. Very friendly to everyone. They don't shed They don't bark a lot. They don't get irritated easily. None of the pictures online do justice for these dogs. They are like puff of cloud that is smiling at you constantly. They are awesome.

Maltese. Not much to say about them kinda like poodles. Usually friendly. Not very friendly to strangers but not as bitchy as chihuahua. Will easily warm up to strangers. Barks a lot.

Long haired chihuahua. There are lot of different types of chihuahua, short hair, long hair, apple head dear nosed. We have a long haired apple head chihuahua. cutest little thing ever but also angriest. Will only like handful of people. Terrible with strangers or other dogs. It doesn't like to be touched by people or dogs it does not know. It will bite and it hurts. My friend had to get stitches. They are so small so even though they can't bite hard, teeth are very sharp. If you decide to give up on it and someone adopts, it will not adjust very well to new owner and home. But to handful of people it likes, most loyal and loving dog. Great because they are so small. Need to be careful when you sit on the couch or step. You might step on, sit on your dog. They do shed though (long haired, short haired don't).

It's a great experience though. I learned a lot from owning dogs.

[ES_TRADER]

[QUOTE=accordingi2ime;8389605]

Maltese. Not much to say about them kinda like poodles. Usually friendly. Not very friendly to strangers but not as bitchy as chihuahua. Will easily warm up to strangers. Barks a lot.
QUOTE]

Lol u are sooo dead on about this....i have the maltese..barks like hell but is generally very friendly...And chihuahuas....ALL my neighbors have them and the bitchyness is 100% spot on! annoying as hell....dont get that dog, but some people swear by it..who knows

ur call

[PsychoSlug]

Originally Posted by Comet

lots of dog owners on here.. You're basically saying that all the people with dogs here are incompetent at giving such basic advice as to what to expect from dog ownership?

That isn't exactly what I am saying, but it is close. Owning a dog does not mean you're competent and qualified to give sound advice. If that were the case, shelters across the country wouldn't be beyond capacity.

Originally Posted by Comet

red flag? why?

It isn't a a piece of jewelry, it is a living animal. If she wants a dog, she should perform the due diligence and make the decision herself.

Originally Posted by Comet

as for training, my friend owns a dog training school (whatever you call it) and he will be doing the training for me

Another red flag. Dog training is geared toward the owner, not the dog. The owner is responsible for continuing the training when not in class. Again, it is a committment.

Originally Posted by Comet

My fellow OTers are more than qualified to give me insight into their experience and I don't need a dog forum for that..

I'm sure some are; however based on some of the responses I've seen on this thread, as well as many others, I would argue that there are plenty that are not. You seem to be discrediting my advice, I assume because you don't agree with it, so you are contradicting the above quote.

[leJUNd]

To be honest, if you can't dedicate the time and effort to join a dedicated dog forum (where there are more qualified people to give you better advice) to learn what owning a dog entails... then it's probably not for you.

You took the trouble to join BMW forum for your BMW... There are lot more to owning a dog then owning a BMW.

[pittsy]

My mom just got a morkie, a maltese yorkie mix. It is very small, only like 2.5lbs and doesn't shed as well. She trained her to use the pads. This one is full of energy and very playful.

[Comet]

Originally Posted by accordingi2ime

To be honest, if you can't dedicate the time and effort to join a dedicated dog forum (where there are more qualified people to give you better advice) to learn what owning a dog entails... then it's probably not for you.

You took the trouble to join BMW forum for your BMW... There are lot more to owning a dog then owning a BMW.

I can mod a dog? sweet

either way, most of the posts here have really discouraged me on the idea..
I don't think I'd have the patience for it, and my gf might have more than me, but it'll eventually run out... better for her to keep it as a pipe dream

Thx for the replies

[JohnSprm69]

Originally Posted by Johnsprm69

4- don't get her a dog, don't get her a dog.

x 1000

EDIT: oh shit i just quoted myself!!!! hahaha, don't get her a dog, get her something else like a purse.

[KingOfJericho]

Originally Posted by Johnsprm69

x 1000

EDIT: oh shit i just quoted myself!!!! hahaha, don't get her a dog, get her something else like a purse.

This thread is done - he's not getting a dog.

[texasmojo]

My wife just bought a shih tzu. I was against it. I let her know before the purchase that SHE would be responsible for cleaning up after him and that SHE was his owner. That was 3 months ago, now the puppy is my little buddy. He chose me as his mentor and he follows me everywhere and only wants to be with me. I do about 70% of the clean up and feeding. Get training pads and hopefully your pup will catch on. My has learned to only poop on the pad. He will pee anywhere however. Make sure you have time for them.