Comments on: The Trendiest Pet?

By: Gail F

Gail F — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 23:04:00 +0000

I personally love the predictability of purebred dogs. I also have met many loving and lovable ‘rescue dogs’ and think that saving a dog from shelter existence or euthanasia is a wonderful thing to do. These choices should always be available to prospective pet owners; though I would always encourage people to go to responsible breeders and rescue groups/shelters.

By: CCoile

CCoile — Thu, 09 Aug 2012 01:47:00 +0000

As a dog writer, it finally hit me one day: I spend pages informing reaedrs who to find a good pet–how to tell good breeders from bad, why you want a dog from health-tested parents and a well-socialized puppyhood. And then I always followed it with a sectio extolling rescue dogs, declaring they were every bit as good. I agree, they can be great. But — almost by definition, they are not from good breeders, probably don’t have health testing behind them, and very likely weren’t well socialized. I think it’s great to save a life, and many rescues are wonderful–I have one–but they’re not exempt from the laws of genetics and learning.

By: Howard Hail

Howard Hail — Thu, 02 Aug 2012 21:05:00 +0000

Finally some common sense. I am so tired of telling families that the dog they just “rescued” is going to cost them a fortune or the dog is going to be so much more bigger than they thought or require extensive training to change its behavior. I love my mixed breeds don’t get me wrong, but they are not for every family. A carefully considered choice taking into account the cost, the family dynamics and the breed temperament will make for a far more successful relationship than selecting just any dog. Since nearly 47% of all dogs adopted from shelters will be returned shelters need to fix this problem before starting a fad to push adoptions which will only increase this rate of return. This is a life long commitment for the animal and 10 to 20 years on the part of the owner. Carefully consider what you can live with and what you cannot, not for your sake, but for the sake of the dog.