Clueless about dogs -- what type to get as our first pet?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I would only adopt a puppy from a shelter. You just don't know how the dog was treated in its prior life or whether it is fearful of people.

That is why they have adoption events. You can get to meet the dog and see what it is like. With ours, she was clearly shy and a bit leery of newcomers (us) but I could see how loving she was with the shelter manager, so I knew she could warm up. She had clearly been mistreated before she came to the shelter. She was the best dog. I swear, dogs that have been abandoned know they have been abandoned and know they are lucky to find a home. To say you shouldn't adopt a dog because it may have been mistreated is not only cruel but ignorant.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, I am in your situation now (never had dog before), except that our kids are few years older. It took us more than a year of active research on the dog breed. I mean, not just actively reading a lot of information on the internet and books, but also meeting with dog's owners and actively talking to them. We settled on the French Bulldog and we are gettign a puppy. I am taking 3 weeks off to train him once he is at home, and then my husband will be able to take few days here and there in the morning, and kids will be responsible for the afternoons. I think it is better to train a young puppy (of you are willing to invest some time) rather than leave for next 10-15 years with the dog with the bad habbits. I also want to cook for the dog, so I want to make sure that he is not fed by processed commercial food. Just check what you family really wants and how much time and money you are willing to invest in it. Good luck!

HAHAHAHAHA good luck training a French Bulldog puppy in three weeks. Snort.

You beat me to this comment, Frenchies are notoriously hard to train. My neighbor has 5 all rescues from frustrated owners that dropped $3-4000 on a puppy they couldn't train.

I hope it is not our case. We have him only for a week now, and he already can walk on the leash (without pulling), following seat/down commands, drops when ordered things that he picks from the ground. We starting the classes next week, so hopefully he will be fully trained in 3 weeks.