I WANT A DOG (Part II)

[Corry]

Alright, so it's ok'd with the landlord now, so sometime after I get back from my trip CORRY WILL BECOME A DOG OWNER!!!!

The purpose of this new thread is this:

I've been a dog owner before, but it's been a while, and I lived at home still, so even though it was MY dog, I wasn't the only one taking care of it. Plus, I've never adopted from a shelter, or started from scratch where I didn't have any supplies ahead of time that my brother used for his dog. So...I wanna make sure I am prepared completely and have all the bases covered.

I already know I won't have to worry about shots right away, or about spaying/neutering, cuz I'm adopting from a shelter.

Ok...here is my list of things I will need:

Leash
Collar
brush

food and water bowls (I plan to get a continuous feeder for the water bowl, but a regular bowl for the food)

small fold out table or something similar...might already have that covered though (I have cats....I'm gonna need a place for the cat's food that the dog can't get to, as we just leave a continuous feeder out for them)

Crate...this isn't really something I can get until I know what dog I'm getting, so I can get the proper size...if I end up with a very small dog, I'm already covered

food (obviously)
Treats
chew bones and toys
animal urine cleaner til he/she is trained
Doggie bed, or something that can be used as one
tags

Things I need to do:
Dog proof the house
Set it up to take the dog directly from the shelter to the vet to be checked over before coming in contact with my cats
Microchipping
Have flea medication for both the dog and my cats ready, just in case (the cats have never had fleas, but just in case the dog comes home with them)


....am I forgetting anything?

Also, advice and tips on getting cats and dogs used to each other would be wonderful.

 

[midget patrol]

We used to have a cat and a large golden retriever. Now we have two large goldens. The point is, they'll get along once they get used to each other. There's not really much you can do except keep one eye on them to make sure they don't fight. The cat(s) might be territorial at first, but they should warm up eventually.

A folded up old blanket works wonderfully as a dog bed. Or you can spend a couple of bucks and get some great ones from any pet store.

Chances are, if you're getting it from a shelter, it's already house-trained but it might need a refresher.

You might have to do some experimenting with bones and toys. Some dogs are picky about what they like and what they don't. I'd start off with a rope/pull toy, at least one ball, and a rawhide and go from there.

You'll want flea/tick medication and heartworm medication.

When you take it to the vet after picking it up from the shelter, I would recommend getting any vaccines/shots that the vet suggests.

For treats, I highly recommend Milkbones. They're delicious.

Best of luck to you!

 

[mentos_007]

YES! you are forgetting about ... LOVE! I am sure the dog can wait a couple of minutes whne you run to the shop to buy something you forgot if he/she knows you LOVE him/she

aaaaaand... remember about a doggie towel and washing powder... ehhmm.. doggie shampoo

and... I think doggie bed is a simple waste of money.. my diggie doesn't want to sleep in his bed... he sleeps on my dad's armchair...

 

[terri]

When I first brought Odin home, Jinx had long reigned as Supreme Queen in our home.....then this crazy pug comes trotting in the door, promptly sniffed, licked, and then completely chewed up a couple of her old soft catnip toys while she watched in disgusted amazement. She's hated him ever since :mrgreen: but - she has definitely come to tolerate him. Her hissing and paw-smacks are almost playful these days, she never hurts him and he is cheerfully oblivious.

I'd make sure your kitty's toys were out of the new dog's reach, and her food bowls, etc. till you establish a new routine. And if you could make sure you bring the dog home when you can be there for a few days to monitor everything and give extra love to the kitty - who is sure to be upset and confused by the home invasion - that might be a good thing, too!

Good luck with it - it's fun to have critters around.

 

[PNA]

You might want to consider have him/her microchiped in case he/she gets loose. Your vet should be able to do this for you.

http://mail.avidid.com/web/index.htm


SORRY, I JUST NOTICED IT IN YOUR LIST. :blushing:

 

[Corry]

Oh yeah...one more question....

I've never done obedience training with my dogs other than what I've done at home on my own. Well, I plan to do my best to train on my own, and I have a pretty decent grasp on how to do it, but if I feel I'm having trouble, I'm thinknig about looking into obedience school. However, I have NO CLUE how much that even costs...like...not even a price range. There is only one obedience school in my phone book, and there was no answer when I called.

...so does anyone know about what kind of a price range I'd be looking at?

 

[Corry]

When I first brought Odin home, Jinx had long reigned as Supreme Queen in our home.....then this crazy pug comes trotting in the door, promptly sniffed, licked, and then completely chewed up a couple of her old soft catnip toys while she watched in disgusted amazement. She's hated him ever since :mrgreen: but - she has definitely come to tolerate him. Her hissing and paw-smacks are almost playful these days, she never hurts him and he is cheerfully oblivious.

I'd make sure your kitty's toys were out of the new dog's reach, and her food bowls, etc. till you establish a new routine. And if you could make sure you bring the dog home when you can be there for a few days to monitor everything and give extra love to the kitty - who is sure to be upset and confused by the home invasion - that might be a good thing, too!

Good luck with it - it's fun to have critters around.

Yeah...the cats don't have to become best friends with the dog (though that would be nice...my Yorkie and our cat that I had oh so long ago were best buds)...but they DO have to get along at least.

 

[Alison]

Corry, prices will range from $90-200 for a 6 week course (at least that's what there were here and in MN when I trained our dogs).

 

[Corry]

Corry, prices will range from $90-200 for a 6 week course (at least that's what there were here and in MN when I trained our dogs).

Sweet...thanks! I might not be able to afford it RIGHT away after all the expenses of initially getting a dog, but I think I can eventually swing that, if I need it.

 

[Peanuts]

Just be very careful when looking into obedience training. For puppy training, I 'enrolled' my dog into a puppy class at Petsmart and wasn't too happy with the set up of letting the puppies' play prior to the actual class, and then sporatically throughout. It was like watching a person giving a toddler caffeine and then expecting them to fall asleep 5 min later. Though the socialization was wonderful, training was mostly accomplished at home

 

[Corry]

Just be very careful when looking into obedience training. For puppy training, I 'enrolled' my dog into a puppy class at Petsmart and wasn't too happy with the set up of letting the puppies' play prior to the actual class, and then sporatically throughout. It was like watching a person giving a toddler caffeine and then expecting them to fall asleep 5 min later. Though the socialization was wonderful, training was mostly accomplished at home

Yeah...I'm reading right now about how you should be selective when choosing a class or instructor, and you should sit in on a class before enrolling with them. Hopefully I'll be able to do a satisfactory job with training on my own at home. I know I can do the basics just fine (sit, lie, walking properly on the leash)...however, I'd really like to have a very well behave dog, and I'm willing to put a lot of time and whatever money I can into achieving that. I want a dog that I can easily control in all situations, and that I can trust around other dogs, cats, horses (any animal, basically), any people: children, crowds, ect.

 

[Alison]

Corry, look into getting your dog it's "good citizenship" title/license. Then you can take him/her to nursing homes, hospitals, etc as a therapy dog. We did that with one of my dogs growing up and it was great! I agree about being selective on where you go for training, we did it through a program called Animal Inn and they were specialists vs. Petsmart/Petco. There's also things like agility that can be a lot of fun, too

 

[Corry]

Corry, look into getting your dog it's "good citizenship" title/license. Then you can take him/her to nursing homes, hospitals, etc as a therapy dog. We did that with one of my dogs growing up and it was great! I agree about being selective on where you go for training, we did it through a program called Animal Inn and they were specialists vs. Petsmart/Petco. There's also things like agility that can be a lot of fun, too

I just read something about the good citizenship title, and was planning to look more into it. I didn't know that it was part of the therapy dog thing...so now I'll DEFINITELY look into it...cuz that's exactly what I want to do eventually! I used to work at a nursing home not far from here, and I remember how much the residents LOVED when the dogs would come in! We also used to have a lady we knew that owned TONS of animals, and basically had a travelling petting zoo, come in to the shelter bi-monthly for kid's group...they LOVED IT. She always had at least 2 dogs, sometimes 3 (all rescues), some cats/kittens, birds, lizards, hamsters, guinea pigs, rabbits, chinchilla's, plus stuff I'm probably forgetting about. Oh! And my favorite..A SKUNK!!!! Her name was Daisy...I loved that skunk. Anyway...she went around to the hospitals and nursing homes, too, and I have always wanted to do that, only on a smaller scale.

....in fact...maybe I should contact her and see if she could give me some pointers.

 

[jake]

Oh yeah...one more question....

I've never done obedience training with my dogs other than what I've done at home on my own. Well, I plan to do my best to train on my own, and I have a pretty decent grasp on how to do it, but if I feel I'm having trouble, I'm thinknig about looking into obedience school. However, I have NO CLUE how much that even costs...like...not even a price range. There is only one obedience school in my phone book, and there was no answer when I called.

...so does anyone know about what kind of a price range I'd be looking at?

petsmart offers a good obedience course... it was 70 dollars for 12 weeks for my great dane. check it out online

 

[Corry]

Alison, I looked up info on the AKC K-9 Good Citizenship Program, and I'm totally into it! The website give lots of info, including what the test covers (and it's exactly the stuff I wanted to teach my dog), a list of test evaluators in my area, how to find classes that will teach the things on the test, AND it had a link to TDI (Therapy Dogs International), so I got a lot of info on that.

Boy I hope I can get a dog with a good temperment that will be a good match for the program!