Help Me Make the Case

CJ, Soz--

Thanks for the kind words.

Soz--

Don't forget, dogs are very useful for complaining to and crying on.

'nother great thing about dogs is they very rarely laugh at you if they happen to see you getting out of the shower.

I nearly forgot.

Children have both kinds of pride--an appreciation of their own worth and the false pride that fears personal failure or imperfection.

I went through a rather nasty divorce with two sons and a scatty Irish Setter (the one who used to sit on straight kitchen chairs if the party was in the kitchen). The boys couldn't talk about how they felt, but they had no qualms about analysing Sasha's feelings and behavior.

Every beloved household pet is a therapy dog.

By the by, Soz, having a puppy who required an hours walking every day would be wonderful for your exercise program.

Noddy has made an excellent case for dog ownership.

Boomer--

Thanks for the kind words.

She so has.

If I can get some nice stats and studies to fill things out a bit (that last article I linked to is a beaut), there's hope.

Today E.G. is hanging out at home and choruses of "I'm bored" from sozlet are making him batty -- I had to bite my tongue to keep from saying some variation of, "well if she had a dog, she could be playing with him/ her", but I'm trying to get this all together at once rather than a death by a thousand cuts sort of thing. Though maybe that could work, too.

Anyway, noting to get it in when this IS completed. (I don't think he'll be surprised -- I threatened "a binder's worth" of evidence for why dog = good when we had the "This kid needs a pet" conversation, and I think he'll just go "uh-oh" when he sees I've actually produced it...)

Not to rain on your parade but we have two dogs and one cat and innumerable I'm boreds.

Shhh!

'Tis but one arrow in my quiver.

Or try to get in with you. The Dobie mix used to do that. Only dog I ever knew that liked baths.

I had an e-mail from Temper--remember Temper?--who reported her Jack Russell Terrier had taken to joining her in the shower.

So soz,
how is the doggie search going?

In regards to the price of purebreds....I think that 1900 is a little much for a labradoodle but that's just based on what I've seen here. I think that the going rate here is about 600-1000 per pup. We paid 550 for Zoe but boxers tend to be a little less expensive as they aren't in as high demand as some other breeds. Don't forget that getting a dog from a breeder usually means that you will have to continue (or start depending on when you get the pup) shots, spaying/neutering and any other vet visits plus the start up stuff, like food, toys, bed, bowls, leash, crate, etc...so the actual cost of getting a dog goes up. By the time we have Zoe completely vaccinated and spayed (after having paid for her start up stuff) we will have paid close to $1500. And that isn't actually the number since we bought her some un-necessary stuff too on top of all that.

We did a lot of research on breeders when we were looking at getting a dog.

(This is all based on having a reputable and responsible breeder)
The upside to a purebred, is that you are able to better predict the temperament of the dog. A breeder who cares about the animal will not breed excessively (no more than every other season), which causes the temperament and health problems. You can request to meet the parents and often times the grandparents of the pups and see what the pups will look and act like once they are older. Getting a shelter dog means you know nothing about it. The people who sell you the dog know nothing about it. You have no way of knowing if there are hereditary diseases in the bloodline because you don't know who the parents even are. On the flip side, mutts do tend to be less apt to temperament and health problems.

Another thing.....
I always thought that being part of the AKC was a good thing and meant something. AKC and CKC and all those other fancy pedigree registered dog labels mean NOTHING in most cases. It just means that someone, somewhere down the line, registered the parents and had a litter. Then the litter was registered. There is no health check or verification that the dogs are actually purebred. It's sort of an honor system. So a good breeder is so important. If you get a bad breeder, you might get a bad dog; one with temperament problems and health problems.

Not at the doggie search stage yet! Still making the case for why we should get any dog, at all. But thanks for the reminder, lots more research to do.

Looks like you got all the advice you need, so I'll just wish you the best of luck in your puppy search :-D

Wow, soz. You and EG's relationship certainly is different from mine and my hubby's. A pile of "evidence" wouldn't make a bit of difference to him. He'd simply laugh, then look at me and say, "So, the thing is...you want this, right?" And I'd say yes. Then he'd likely tell me that if it meant that much to me, go for it.

It is extremely rare that either of us say no to anything the other wants. I can't even remember the last time that happened.

It's extremely rare for us too, yes.

E.G. has never had a pet. Everytime he's gotten too close to a cat, he has a life-threatening asthma attack. He has never spent any particular time with a dog. He doesn't like pets, any of them. He doesn't like the idea of having one in his house. A clean (not hairy/ not dusty) house is not just a preference for him, it has a direct bearing on his health.

I knew all of this well before I married him -- it was something we talked about explicitly before we decided to get married. I love animals, had always had them, volunteered in a zoo, etc. It was a real blow to think that I might not ever have an animal. But I decided that on the balance, it was worth it.

He knows how important this is to me and has wanted to say "go ahead" many times, but it keeps coming back to his deep-seated dislike. He's realistic about how unpleasant it would be for everyone if he gave in, and then was deeply resentful of the dog because he just gave in rather than having his mind genuinely changed.

The thing is, he's open to having his mind genuinely changed -- he wants to be able to say, "I personally don't want a dog but I see how important it would be for my daughter and I think the plan for how to make this work is feasible, so let's go for it" and mean it.

But only if he means it.

I don't know if this was mentioned already, but there are lots of breeds that are hypo-allergenic and don't shed, like the West Highland White Terrier. A friend has a Westie and I just love the breed. Casper is sweet and very smart. Here's a little about the breed: http://www.akc.org/breeds/west_highland_white_terrier/index.cfm?SEARCH_BUTTON.X=13\&SEARCH_BUTTON.Y=7

Okay, soz, I see.

It wasn't my idea to get a dog last year, you know. I emphatically didn't want one. We have two cats, and that was just perfect as far as I was concerned. But my hubby and son wanted a dog, and I figured it was their house as much as mine. I was simply outvoted, and there was no reason to be unpleasant about it.

Knowing that I would be the one home with the dog every day, I insisted on choosing the breed. That made it so much easier for me to accept the dog we chose.

E.G. might react the same way. Try showing him information on hypoallergenic dogs and let him choose what kind he thinks would be best for the three of you.

That was one of the very earliest steps, it's not sufficient in and of itself.

The info about hypo-allergenic, non-shedding dogs is definitely useful, though, will probably be part of the whole package.

Thanks for the Westie info, Swimpy, I bet sozlet would LOVE one. (Talk about cute puppies!!) I used to help my friend walk a couple of super-spoiled annoying yappy ones that probably made me prejudiced against the breed in general. Will read up on 'em some more.

Another good study:



http://www.deltasociety.org/AnimalsHealthChildrenImpact.htm

Lots of good stuff in this one:

http://www.deltasociety.org/AnimalsHealthChildrenFostering.htm

Summary paragraph:



That's something I want to emphasize as it is what started this phase -- E.G. saying "This kid needs a pet" when he saw her being so nurturing to her stuffed animals.

Makes me remember something else, lemme see if I can find it...

If he said, "This kid needs a pet"...the battle is halfway over.

Just keep reminding him HE said that.