January 03, 2006

By: Mike Mathews
Website: http://www.pet-supplies-for-dogs.com

Adopting and Rescuing an Adult Dog

Part I Research

When you and your family adopt an adult dog you will be embarking on a rewarding experience that not only saves a dog’s life but also results in gaining a loving new family member.

A.Advantages and Disadvantages of Adoption

There are advantages and disadvantages to adopting an adult dog compared to buying a new puppy. On the plus side, you know what your dog is going to look like when it grows older. Your rescued adult dog has probably been housetrained and may even have had some obedience training. Most adult dogs will bond fairly quickly with their new family and will require less patience and energy to train than socializing and training a new puppy. On the negative side, you may be getting someone else’s problems by rescuing a dog that has been poorly socialized and trained. This might mean that you have to do a significant amount of socialization and re-training to re-house break and overcome problems like separation anxiety, dislike of children or fear of strangers.

B. Why Dogs Are Put Up For Adoption

People abandon, take their dogs to shelters or put up their dogs for adoption for a number of reasons. Sometimes circumstances change and owners die, lose their houses, move out of country or get a divorce. More often owners acquired the wrong dog for their lifestyle and find they can’t cope with their dog’s requirements. Many owners didn’t train and socialize their puppies properly and then find they can’t cope with the resulting unruly behavior. The good news is that it is never too late to retrain and correct an adult dog’s behavior and problems. The old adage “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” was not at all correct. However you can’t change a dog’s inherited characteristics and turn a very active dog into a ‘couch potato’.

C. Research Requirements

You must decide on what type of adult dog you and your family want and make sure that that breed’s temperament suits your lifestyle. Some do’s and don’ts are:

• Don’t do the same thing that resulted in the most dogs being put up for adoption, and rescue a dog that doesn’t fit your lifestyle.
• Don’t go to a shelter or breed rescue organization and acquire the best looking or cutest dog.
• Don’t pick a dog breed because it was the one your family owned when you were a child.
• Do the research necessary to find a dog that will be suited to your lifestyle. You never want to force the dog to change its inherited behavior characteristics to adapt to your lifestyle. Remember this is why many dogs end up in shelters and breed rescue organizations.
• Do as much research as possible in the beginning so you end up with the dog breed best suited to you and your family. The internet provides you with a wealth of different resources to make you research that much easier. There are many sites specifically geared towards the different dog breeds available to you. Who knows, you may even find one you’ve never heard of before that is the perfect fit.

D. Physical Characteristics

You and your family must decide on what type of dog you want to enjoy for the next 10 plus years of your lives. You will need to decide on what physical attributes you want in your adopted dog.

• The size of your dog is important because the size of your home and yard may be a limiting factor. A very small apartment may not be suitable for a large dog. However more important than size is a dog’s energy and activity level. If you are not an active person and you do not have an active family that enjoys long daily walks or jogging with your dog, then don’t acquire an energetic dog.
• The sexual characteristics are a consideration because there are more male dogs available for adoption. Male dogs can be more aggressive and active during their adolescence. Owners who didn’t take the time to socialize and train them properly when they were puppies now find that they can’t cope with the resulting behavior. Many of the larger animal shelters will spay and neuter their dogs to stop uncontrolled reproduction. Unless you are going to breed your dog it should be neutered. This is usually a good thing because neutered animals will be easier to manage.
• Coat type can be a consideration for your climate conditions and also for the time and/or money you want to spend maintaining the dog’s coat. Some dogs like the Alaskan Malamute, the Boxer, and the French Bulldog do not like hot and humid conditions. Some dogs are heavy shedders which can really bother fastidious housekeepers. Some breeds need a lot of grooming and this will require either a lot of effort on your part. Another alternative is to pay someone else to do your dog grooming for you.
• The age of the dog you want is important because most dogs that end up in shelters are usually younger dogs between one and two years old. Owners will abandon or take their young dogs to shelters after they have outgrown their cute puppy stage and the owners can’t cope with their poorly trained dogs. However you may want an older dog that will be less active and can probably adjust better to being left alone while his owners are out the house. Don’t worry about retraining an older dog; it may just take a little more time and patience.

E. Breed Characteristics

You will also need to decide on what breed or dominant crossbreed characteristics are important to you and your family. If you decide that you want a mixed breed dog then you can jump ahead to Part II Choosing a Dog. However if you want to know the likely physical and behavioral characteristics of your dog, then you should try and find a purebred dog or at least a crossbreed with predictable breed characteristics. Remember, the internet is probably the easiest and most efficient resource available to you when it comes to learning about a dog’s breed-related characteristics and can help answer the following questions.

• Does this breed get along well with children?
• Does this breed get along well with other dogs and/or pets?
• Does this breed need an owner with previous experience?
• How much exercise will be required for this breed?
• How difficult will it be and how much effort will have to be devoted to socialization and training?
• Do you want your dog to be a watchdog or friendly toward strangers?
• Is there a breed that is better for people that suffer from allergies?
• Can I leave this dog alone during the day while I work?
• Does this breed need a lot of living space or is it suitable for living in an apartment?

The various kennel clubs have assigned breeds to groups according to the purpose for which they were developed. Some breed characteristics are common across groups. Sighthounds have traits in common as do Terriers and Toys. The following 7 groups are used by the American Kennel Club.

1. Sporting Dog Group

This group includes pointers, setters, retrievers and many spaniels. This group of fairly active dogs is composed of a wide variety of breeds, which were developed to aid hunters by finding, flushing out and retrieving game. This group all needs a fair amount of exercise but you don’t have to be a hunter to own one of these dogs. Many breeds in this group are usually very good with children and include the: English Setter; Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, Welsh Springer Spaniel, English Cocker Spaniel, and Flat Coated Retriever. Dogs in this group are mostly medium to large with the setters (English, Irish and Gordon) being the largest and the American Cocker Spaniel being the smallest. The two most popular family dogs in the world are the Labrador Retriever and the Golden Retriever.

2. Working Dog Group

This group includes most of the guard dog breeds such as the Rottweiler and Doberman Pinscher as well as the northern sled dogs such as the Alaskan Malamute and the Siberian Husky. Most of these dogs need lots of exercise and a fair amount of living space. Many of these dogs have thick double coats and can be heavy shedders. These include the: Akita, Alaskan Malamute, Great Pyrenees, Newfoundland, Saint Bernard, Samoyed and Siberian Husky.

3. Toy Dog Group

Most of the lap dog and apartment-sized companion dogs are in this group which includes the popular Yorkshire Terriers, Toy Poodles, Shih Tzus, Pugs Pomeranians and Maltese. Toy Dogs are difficult to housebreak but usually adapt well to apartment life. Toddlers and small children are too rough for toy dogs that may bite in self-defense. Toy dogs can have beneficial effects on the wellness of the sick, the elderly and the housebound.

4. Terrier Group

This group includes those small but lively breeds that were developed (mainly in Great Britain) to hunt small animals. Of course these breeds have been domesticated and make good pets but they are still fairly active and require firm handling. A few breeds like the Airedale Terrier, Fox Terrier, Jack Russell (Parsons) Terrier and the Kerry Blue Terrier do best with experienced owners. Other popular terriers include the: Yorkshire Terrier, Boston Terrier, Scottish Terrier and Cairn Terrier.

5. Hound Group

These breeds were developed to follow game either by sight or by smell. Sight hounds include the fast and streamlined Afghans, Greyhounds and Salukis. Sight hounds need lots of exercise but some breeds like the Borzoi, the Greyhound, the Irish Wolfhound and the Saluki can adapt to being left alone during the day if they get lots of exercise before and after work. Scent hounds include the slower Bloodhounds, Bassets and Beagles. Basset Hounds, Irish Wolfhounds and Greyhounds are usually good with children unless they have been poorly socialized and trained. The dogs in this group have a great size variation and range from the tiny Miniature Dachshund to the extremely tall Irish Wolfhound.

6. Herding Dog Groups

The breeds in this group were developed to herd and control cattle and sheep and are therefore very energetic and intelligent. This group includes the Shetland Sheepdog, Border Collie, Collie, and German Shepherd. The Shetland Sheepdog and Border Collie need a lot of exercise and space to run while the Collie and German Shepherd can adapt to city living.

7. Non-sporting Dog Group

When a breed doesn’t seem to fit well in any other group, it becomes part of this group. The breeds in this diverse group range from the tiny Bichon Frise to the Chow Chow and even include the elegant Dalmatian and the popular Bulldog and Boston Terrier.

This article is continued in Part II Choosing a Dog where we will discuss how to find and select your dog and what should be done when you bring the dog home.

For part 2 visit: dog rescue shelters

About The Author:

Mike Mathews is a successful author and regular contributor to http://www.pet-supplies-for-dogs.com. 

Mike is a contributing writer and editor for the popular dog breed site: Dog-Breed-Facts.com. He provides informative, real-world advice and tips on dog breeds, dog health, dog grooming and more. As well be sure to check out his free report on Dog Training.