Pets
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@steelworker I prefer the Peruvians too. However they're sighthounds, some of which you can't let off leash, or they'll run off in pursuit of something!
In the meantime, I've got a new pet.
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??? Good Lord I hope that's a zoom lens.
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@Chap I'm sorry to hear about your loss.
I've been considering getting a dog, and it seems like a good time at the moment. I'm not working, and if or when I pick up another job, it's likely to be at home for the foreseeable future.
The first thing that I've found is that breeders seem to make life difficult! It's not always a case that you can just buy a dog, but rather there are things like co-ownership (I've heard of dogs being taken back), restrictions on what you can or cannot do (such as taking a pup overseas), and then the whole full and partial registration of a puppy.
Then I'm realising the limitations of my knowledge. I've not been holding a leash correctly, have no idea about socialisation of pups, and have never trained one before!
The breeds that I'm looking at are both rare: The Xoloitzcuintli (about 10,000 worldwide) and the Peruvian Inca Orchid Dog (about 1,000 worldwide). Surprisingly in Australia there are two Xolo litters that were born a month ago, and there was a Peruvian mating a couple of weeks back, which will hopefully lead to puppies.
However, both of these are primitive dogs, which means that they came about due to natural selection, rather than being the product of a breeding programme. These breeds are more independent, harder to train, and less sociable as a result.
One of the breeders said that it's important for these breeds to be heavily socialised during puppyhood, so they don't grow up to be fearful of, and possibly aggressive to, strangers. This got me worried, as I'm autistic, and being social can sometimes be difficult for me.
But I did a bit of digging, and the characteristics of primitive dogs sound more like someone who's on the spectrum. In fact, I found an article about an autistic girl who got a Basenji from a shelter, and the partnership really worked for them. (Basenjis are an ancient Congolese breed of sighthounds.) So maybe I've got this.
Thanks @Graeme
Good idea, I've been living my whole life with dogs. My recommandation if it is your first dog, take an "easy" breed. Easy to handle and train. Otherwise you might have the risk of living with a dog that doesn't give you the pleasure you are thinkng about. Sighthounds are some of the most difficult dogs, they need al lot of excercise, are nervous and some need even going to the races. That is why a reliable breeder usually don't give them to a novice or insist on co-ownership. They just want that their dogs have the life they deserve. I would not recommand a breeder especially with a "difficult" breed who let you just pick up the puppy and say goodbye. Reliable breeders always want to give their puppies in "good hands". A hairless dog in Australia? Hmmm not sure…
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The breeds that I'm looking at are both rare: The Xoloitzcuintli (about 10,000 worldwide) and the Peruvian Inca Orchid Dog (about 1,000 worldwide).
???
If you get one of those, I'll gonna kick you!
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@Chap I've looked at a few best and worst dogs for beginners lists. One recommend avoiding the Border Collie, which I wouldn't have a problem with. Sure, I'd have to walk it ten times a day, but…
I think that it's important to get it right, otherwise pup and owner will be unhappy.
The problem that I had with a prescriptive breeder was that there's a lot of "do this", but not much explanation of why it should be the case. I think that she's coming from a position of wanting what's best for her dogs, so maybe I was misunderstanding her.
@trail and arrow I was good with Krielow because you'd trained him well!
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@trail and arrow what breed is Krielow again? I can't remember…
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@Graeme
Kielow is a "Deutschdrahthaar" : german wirehaired pointer, who tuned out to look more then a "Deutschkurzhaar".But don't get one, except you turned into a Waldschrat like me. Krielow is terminally ill for month now. He is 15 years old, so I guess that's OK.
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@Chap I'm not a big Labrador fan. I don't have any particular reason, as the ones I've met have been nice dogs. My father likes them.
My brother's on his second Collie. I don't think that it gets enough exercise or training.
The original one, Jake, was a rescue of unknown provenance. He was very clever, for example he knew that shutting a laptop meant that you'd finished with it, and you could take him for a walk.
I looked after him quite often, and whenever my brother came to collect him, he'd run upstairs to hide!
@trail and arrow I'm sorry to hear about Krielow.
I wasn't planning on getting one, just curious what his breed is.
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I would never fucking co-own or co-register a dog. That's a non-starter for me. You have to read the contract in great detail. If you have a lawyer, have them go through it. There is a zero percent chance that I will ever co-own or co-register a dog.
If you do, you're basically the dogs butler. You give it a home, feed it, pay for it's vet bills, but you have no rights as far as it's medical decisions go. You have no choice what to feed it, where to train it, if you can get it fixed, and when the breeder wants to show it or breed it or take it for a week, you have to give it up. Not having a dog neutered is a giant pain in the ass in the US. There are lots of places you can't take your dog if it's not neutered. Other owners will avoid an intact male, as they can be more aggressive. God help you if you have an unspayed female, you will be chasing it around with a maxi pad.
Oh, and if your dog gets loose and gets another dog pregnant, or your have a female and it gets pregnant without the other owners approval, at least in the US, you should expect to be sued into poverty, especially with a breed as rare as those.
Every competent breeder will have a contract. Even the most liberal contract will say you must (in non specific ways) feed the dog high quality food, take it for training, and maybe get veterinary insurance. It will also say that if you use the dog in an unapproved breeding program or use it for fighting, you will be sued into poverty AND the dog will be repossessed.I cannot emphasize enough to get veterinary insurance. Before he passed, Hex had about $20k in knee surgery. Lia had a mysterious abscess on her shoulder the size of my fist that appeared out of nowhere and she had to have emergency surgery. Dogs get expensive. Veterinary insurance is a lifesaver.
If the breed speaks to you, then go for it. Everyone told us that Rottweilers were tough first dogs, but they're a breeze because they're "people pleasers". We were told to be cautious because they are so powerful. That actually wound up speaking to me, just because something has the capacity to cause harm does not mean that they will (I've had people even threaten me that they would kill my dog if it came too close, I've been threatened simliarly, so we're going through this together). You will be that much invested into a dog breed that speaks to you than one that doesn't (our French Bulldog is fun, but he doesn't connect with me on a fundamental level that our Rotts did/do).
With that being said, be aware that a dog that rare will have health issues most vets won't know or expect and hunting dogs are high energy and have a high prey drive. Expect the occasional "gift" in the form of a dead animal. Expect plenty of damaged furniture while the dog is "looking" for something. I know of one dog that wanted something under the bed so it ripped and dug a hole 2 feet wide through the mattress.I hope this helps.
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Another story about veterinary insurance: when Hex was diagnosed with a rare, extraordinarily aggressive form of cancer (it was growing close to 1cm a day, and was starting to encapsulate his brain)(it also digested the front of his skull because it needed resources to continue to grow), we were super aggressive about his treatment. We were looking at $10k in gamma knife radiation therapy then additional cost for chemotherapy.
We were super aggressive with X-rays, biopsies and surgical options because we love him so much, and never once gave pause due to the cost.
If we had, I'm not sure we would have been so aggressive, we were so focused on getting in front of the cancer. At the end (start to deciding to let him go) it was only about 8 days. We took a couple steps to make him comfortable for a week and used that week to say goodbye and make memories.
What I'm trying to say is veterinary insurance is incredibly powerful, and it was easier to pursue test after test than let our dog go because we were only paying 10% out of pocket. In the end, it took a wake up call from my best friend to remind me to do what's best for Hex. -
Thanks @DougNg.
I'm nervous about joint ownership agreements as there's a risk of falling out with the other party. I've been on the receiving end of those a few times in my career, so I'm cautious about what I sign these days.
Pet insurance sounds sensible. I'll definitely bear that in mind.
Incidentally, are you planning on training your Frenchie to do this?
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@Chap I'm not a big Labrador fan. I don't have any particular reason, as the ones I've met have been nice dogs. My father likes them.
My brother's on his second Collie. I don't think that it gets enough exercise or training.
The original one, Jake, was a rescue of unknown provenance. He was very clever, for example he knew that shutting a laptop meant that you'd finished with it, and you could take him for a walk.
I looked after him quite often, and whenever my brother came to collect him, he'd run upstairs to hide!
@trail and arrow I'm sorry to hear about Krielow.
I wasn't planning on getting one, just curious what his breed is.
Yes I konw, there are many breeds with more personality than Labbys. They always want to please their owner, can be a bit boring… our Beagle was the opposite :D. Beagle do have their own strong will. Some would call them baulky. I had an American Stafford Terrier and we had two Stafforshire Bullterrier in the past, phantastic dogs, loads of personality, super friendly with children and everyone else, very easy to handle... but then there started that weird fighting dog discussion ::). I always wanted an Akita Inu, in my eyes the most beautiful dog on earth. But they are not very easy. Unkind to other dogs and visitors and a strong hunting passion. We live in the countryside with deer as regular visitors to our garden, to the mischief of our Roses :(. I can sit with Chap our Lab easily in the garden and watch them or can walk into the woods without a lead. That's the huge advantage of a Labrador. Our miniature dachshund on the other hand is a killer
