Would I be a fool?
 

I had a dream about adopting two shelter dogs while I was taking my nap today. Just out of curiosity, I did a search of available dogs within 2 hours away. I must've looked at pictures and read descriptions for 1 1/2 hours. Now, I'm the bitchy, cynical type. I don't cry at movies, I've even assisted in euthanizing well over 100 pets without a tear in my eye (when I worked at the vet).
Yet, when I saw this little guy I had tears rolling down my face.
I feel like going to adopt him first thing tomorrow morning. Arsen will tell me I'm crazy, that I had too much time on my hands this week, that the dog might not even be around another year. But- look at him!
And I have a 9 1/2 year old chihuahua. They'd probably be perfect for each other.
Should I get him? Or will you try to talk me out of it then?


"Jake is a 12/13 year old Min Pin who is an absolute love. He's housebroken, well behaved, crate trained, and a cuddler. He just wants to be with you, in your lap, preferably. Jake gets along with other dogs, cats and strangers. He's not much of a barker but will make a wooing kind of sound when he sees people outside. He loves to perch on the back of a couch, by your head, and gaze outside. Jake's previous owners moved and could not take him with them. Oh, by the way, he doesn't have any teeth anymore - they were rotting out of his mouth, but he does eat normally. This sweet guy definitely deserves a home that will love him shamelessly."

He deserves a home that will love him, but also one that can take care of him. Are you financially able to feed another mouth? Will he have someone home with him during the day, or will he be alone for hours at a time, and only get attention for a little while each day?

Also, don't make a decision to buy a pet without your husband's input. That's disrespectful and selfish, and will make him more likely to resent the dog and you. Decide together what to do. And don't punish him if he disagrees -- he's got a right to help make decisions that affect the home he shares with you.

Just last month, a friend of mine had this come up. His wife went out to buy milk, and instead bought a puppy out of the back of someone's pickup, with only the seller's assurances that it had shots, etc. Keep in mind that they have just had a special needs child, he is scheduled for layoff in the next 6 months, and they have a 6 year old who has just started school. Oh, and a cat.

They're living paycheck to paycheck, and all on his income (she occasionally cleans an office and intermittently has a waitressing gig). So he vetoed the puppy and while she bawled and pouted, he took it back. She didn't speak a word to him for a week, and was so depressed that she sat on the couch for hours at a time without caring for the baby or doing ANYthing around the house, despite being unemployed. He got to do that when he got home from his 12-hour shift.

She didn't care about the impact on the bank account, the family, or anything. All she knew was the thing made puppy eyes at her and she WANTED it.

Keep Arsen in the loop, and be cool about stuff, regardless of whether you adopt this (cute) puppy or not. [/twocents]

I know you know this already Stace, but this dog could become a very large veterinary bill in the next year or two.

I know Arsen. If I said I wanted this dog, he wouldn't give me too much trouble over it. He might try to talk some sense into me, but he always gives me what I want (within reason!) if it makes me happy.

The question about being able to financially afford feeding him made me laugh:)
This dog weighs all of 7 pounds. I buy my chihuahua the most expensive food on the market- none of the crap from the grocery store!
I also save money every month just in case he needs to go to the vet. (I had no problem dishing out $240 for an ultrasound)
We really don't have a lot of money at all, but when it comes to the important stuff, you find it or you use the "emergencies only" credit card.

He'd have my chihuahua for company. I only work 3 or 4 shifts a week for about 6 or 7 hours. Many of those shifts are at night and Arsen is home then. I also have a 10 day "vacation" every month.

I used to do pet adoption counseling at the animal shelter. I'd approve myself in a heartbeat. I just wish I never even saw this little old guy, because I don't want to set myself up for heartache- that's my only real issue. Then again, I feel like I never do anything positive for society. All I do is waitress and bitch.
I'd like to do something unselfish and good, you know?

Get him!

A toothless dog that goes "woo"... That scores pretty high on the cutometer.

Fair warning, a dog with no teeth will look totally pathetic in a year. The lower jaw erodes until it's barely there at all and the tongue hangs out and tends to be very dry.

Also, special foods will be required since he cannot chew anymore. Check with your vet before committing to this little guy.

The more pathetic he looked, the more I'd love him...
I figured that since he doesn't have any teeth, he'd need canned food.

I need to stop looking at pictures of homeless animals. Isn't that the way of the world now? Turn your head and ignore it and pretend nothing needs to be done.

Stacey--my kitty Carly doesn't have any teeth and she eats dry food (has for years without problem) and her jaw is fine. I say adopt the little guy. He's adorable!
:apaw: Of course, I have trouble running my own life, so don't really listen to me!

This dog will not live more than a year or two at the most. That makes it 1 cheap of food and expensive on vets bills and 2 a heartbreaker.

But putting aside inconveniences towards myself, wouldn't it be nice for HIM if he had a loving home for those last two years?

I don't know diddly squat about animals. (This despite the fact that my wife and her best friend are both convinced I need a cockatiel.) But I can tell when somebody is trying to get somebody else to convince her it's OK to do something she's just dying to do but doesn't think is a good idea.

YES IT WOULD

if Arsen is cool about this i say you identify if you can make this baby happy, and if you can make his last 12 months happier, and give him comfort and the love he so obviously deserves, then stace go for it! Also your 1st dog may need a pal!

Is your apartment big enough?

Will you walk him enough?

Just be aware that your current dog may get depressed if he dies.. it will effect him too

Damn. Steve is 100% right. I AM dying to help this dog, I think he's cute as hell. But if I go get him,
#1 we'll end up charging vet bills on the credit card
#2 he'll die and break my heart
#3 he'll die and break my chihuahua's heart

I went through this same thing about 6 years ago, with a fat, old chihuahua named "chico" that I took home from the shelter for one night to do a behavior evaluation on him. I wanted to keep him, but I decided to wait a few weeks and see if he got adopted by someone else. He did. And when I've looked back on it, I always felt I did the right thing...

Maybe I can call and tell them to notify me if he's going to be put to sleep, otherwise, let someone with money and no other pets take him....

Well, I was going to pipe up and urge you to take serious stock of things before making a noble commitment, but it appears you already have. That's using your head, while still paying attention to your heart, girl.

I decided to go with a younger age group. I am planning on picking up these two little girls on Wednesday. I'm waiting for my landlord to come home from vacation so he can give landlord approval to the shelter. (Pets are allowed where I live, I don't think it'll be a problem.)

These two lived in a huge pack of chihuahuas in a puppy mill. They haven't had much socialization or housebreaking. It'll be a challenge! But I'm up for it. I know a lot about animal behavior and training. I'm also planning on buying a crate and an exercise pen to contain them until they figure out where the potty is...
Aren't they adorable!?



"They are the fabulous Jeanie and Alice! Jeanie is 6 and Alice is 8 and both are spayed females looking for a new home. Could yours be the one? They have a few requests that I will translate for you here: We would like to be loved and adored truly and deeply and we will return the attention tenfold. We would like to stay together because we love each other. Jeanie would like to be put on a strict diet because her weight makes it difficult for her to breath. We would like our new home to be on the quiet side because we are easily scared and intimidated. We would like a warm and comfy lap to curl up on at any time we wish. If you think your home can fulfill Jeanie and Alice's simple requests, please reply at the shelter."

By the way, I used Petfinder to find them. If you're looking for a pet, you can type in any breed, size, age, etc. and the city you live in, and it'll give you a list of available pets.
I wish people would stop breeding animals when there are still so many homeless ones- and you can get the breed of your choice at the shelter for a lot less money and a good cause.

What has gotten into me lately? Sorry for being all mushy and full of good intentions. I've already vented all of my eveilness into my blog. Maybe the whole journal-keeping therapy is working...

You've a good heart, stacey. Congrats!

You're so lucky stacey. I've wanted a dog since I was a little little kid. Hopefully I'll be moving somewhere this fall where I can get one...

What is a puppy mill? It sounds awful!

Hope these girls, and your current baby boy have fun together SV!! he will think its christmas!!

A puppy mill is a facility where purebred dogs are bred in bulk for money. Most of these dogs end up at petstores or sold through the internet. Never, ever buy a dog from a petstore!!! They breed without thought to the health, disposition or temperament of the dogs. They are crammed into small spaces and don't receive any human socialization.

These two cuties are going to take a lot of work just to have them get used to us. It might take a whole year before they're housebroken. Luckily, chihuahuas don't have too many breed-specific disorders, but it's very possible I'll be dealing with heart and/or knee problems in a few years. I don't mind. I need a project and I seem to have a lot of maternal instinct lately- but I don't want a kid! Chihuahuas are the perfect baby substitute!

My 10 year old only chi might be very, very jealous for awhile. I'll have to make sure to give him extra attention so he doesn't resent the newcomers. It should work out, though, because the girls are smaller than him and female...

Okay, okay, I'll shut up already! If everything goes as planned, I'll have to post some pictures next week!

Here's the dog I have now:

I sometimes feel sorry for pet lovers who live in a city. I can go to feed store and buy the 7 in one shots for a dog for about ten bucks. I have friends who sell hunting dogs for over 1k a piece and most treat thier own dogs. Vet bill, never. I worm my dog with the same thing you give to a horse, but be careful because this dose is for a 1200 lb horse. Yes I love my 10 year old rat terrier, I just paid 160 bucks for a collar to break her from getting in street and following me off. And by golly it works. When you hit the "nick" button her feet fly off the ground. About 2 times it's over. Is that a bad way to train a dog? Cain't address that, but I have around 400 bucks in this dog, so I'd just as soon as not see her hit by a car. IMHO

'

Why on earth would they have 6yo and 8yo SPAYED females at a puppy mill? :confused:

http://www.hhpetadopt.org/ No I don't get shit from this link and I wouldn't take my dog to this bitch if she was on her last leg. :rar:

They were probably used for breeding until they were too old. The shelter may have had them spayed. They do that a lot now.

Buster, I don't get your comment- are you joking?

COMMENDATION
 

ALL HAIL STACEYV !

Thank you so much , Stacey for taking the time to weigh the situation and make the decision that is right for you AND the animals. I salute you!
As a former volunteer at the local "humane" society, I have seen folks repeatedly follow compassionate whims and adopt animals only to realize soon enough that they'd made a major mistake.
I'm the kind of guy that wants to take them ALL home. The cold hard truth is that some animals really ARE better off euthanized (I say that with a teary eye).
I had had Frank, My JRT for about 3 yrs when I noticed he acted as if he were suffering from severe depression. After a Vet check and a lot of soul searching I realized that he WAS depressed as a result of spending 10-12 hrs a day alone, patiently awaiting my return. When I did get home I had lots to do and sometimes very little time for Frank. He was depressed to the extent of physical illness, and I was totally unaware.
I adopted a cute, spayed chihuaua (sp?) about the same age as Frank. It was unbelievable how quickly Frank recovered. Within a week, he appeared to be a different dog with a new lease on life. His overall health improved entirely (even the vet noticed). Now they are glad when I get home, naturally, but they haven't been sitting there all day in anxiety wondering where the hell capnhowdy is. The chihuaua's name is Trixie, by the way. In retrospect I guess i was abusing Frank in a way and never really had a clue. Trixie is the best thing ever happened to Frank and I love her too.
I hope you can find the perfect friend for your dog.
Thanks again for taking the time to weigh the total situation. May God bless you. :notworthy :thumb:

Buster, I don't get your comment- are you joking?
Which asinine comment were you asking about? If about the one with the link. The lady vet. runs that pet thing, I know of no one who takes their dog to her.

Queen females (bitches that are repeatedly bred by puppy mills) are spayed for a variety of reasons. The best one is that they get rescued and are no longer having two litters a year. Sometimes, though, the fact that they have been repeatedly mated with no time off for recovery leads to problems with their innards, and the spaying is done to save their lives. This is a rare occurance, because once they can no longer reproduce, the puppy mill breeder has no reason to keep feeding them.

I know someone who ended up with a 10 year old maltese queen and it took a very long time to get her used to the idea of being a pet rather than a producer ... a lot of her behaviors were unchangable at that point, most particularly her ALWAYS needing to urinate and defecate on concrete. She'd never been on grass ever, and the floor of her cage was concrete.

okay, another update-
I've been waiting all damn week for my landlord to get home from vacation because the shelter has to call him for landlord approval.
Of course, by the time I talked to him yesterday, little jeannie and alice were spoken for :(. They are on hold pending adoption AND someone has put in a backup application in case the first adoption doesn't go through...

I'm actually surprised. I thought they would be hard to adopt because they're 6 and 8 years old, unhousebroken and must go together. Oh well. As long as they get a good home.

So, I had to start looking again, since by now, I am dead set on getting another chihuahua to keep my dog company and make life more interesting at home. I think most women at this point in their life/ marriage start planning on having a baby. I have the same maternal feelings, but I want a chihuahua instead :) They're WAY cuter and easier than children.

We have an appointment tomorrow morning to go look at these two cuties. We'll be leaving with one of them. I'll update you on Saturday! (If you're really that interested)

I also need help choosing a name:

B.B.

Jimi (Hendrix)

Cholo- "gangster"

Rico (suave)

Vito

Bruno

brutus

Sancho

Schatzi- german “honey”

Mishkin- russian "little bear"

Cholo is pretty good, but you'll have to get him a spiked collar and a bandana in the Latin Kings colors.

What about "Poquito"?

Tito - the chihuahua with attitude voiced by Cheech Marin in Oliver and Company.

When we lived in Seattle, our neighbor had a little white fluffy dog whose name was Killer. :biggrin:

Uh, "cholo" does not mean "gangster," at least down here in Texas. It's a derogatory term for someone of mixed race (usually half Hispanic, half white.)

They have plenty of Portuguese in Rhode Island, but few Spaniards.

What about something overly cute to the point of being sickening? You know, like naming the new fella after one of the Care Bears ... or what was the name of Rainbow Bright's Horsie? That might be a good one.

okay, cholo's out. I like Tito! Or emeril...

Piso Mojado!

http://cellar.org/2005/pisomojado.jpg

I like Bruno or Mishkin--very sweet doggies. Good luck, stacey.

PS what about mojito? Minty fresh! :)

Thanks for all the suggestions!! Mishkin is one of my top picks, too.
It would've been so easy if the two females were available- they were going to be "Lucy and Ethel".
The wet floor suggestion was cute, but I don't want to create a self-fulfilling prophecy.
I like mojito, too. This keeps getting harder! I'll sleep on it.

When my sister got a Yorkie who was severely hair-challenged, I suggested that she name him Varlet. It would have been very appropriate. She didn't see it that way.

Later on, when he had trashed her bedroom and pooped all over her bed when left alone at night, she probably reconsidered :p

This entry actually led me to another idea ... "Low Rider".

He's short, and he'll probably bounce up and down to some extent ...

Arsen likes "Rico" as in "rico suave". I was stuck between "rico" and "mishkin".
If we get the female, she's "Lulu".
At least we've narrowed them down a little!

I had to drink wine to get to sleep and now I'm awake and it's not even 7 am. I'm so excited!!!
Now I know how those infertile parents on the Discovery channel feel when they finally travel to that third world country to pick up their adopted child!
(we have to drive 2 1/2 hours just to get there)

i like Mishkin (for a female) an i also think Rico is perky and suave (for a male) in a doggy sort of way! :)

One of our neighbors when I was growing up had a little black chihuahua named Widget. He had been a pilot in the war. I don't remember if the dog was male or female, the name fit any little black ball with a non-stop tail :)

Well, we got her!! She was turned in to a high kill shelter because she was "not good with kids"
She was the only dog not barking in her cage. When the guy took her out, she ran up to my dog, they touched noses, and we saw stars and flowers in the air. She behaved like a little angel princess while she was at the shelter.

We paid the $300 adoption fee and came home. She sat on my lap for the 2 1/2 hour ride because she wouldn't get in her crate- and I know better than to push her ass in because they told me she's fearful and that means she'll bite my ass. She humped her blanket at 15 minute intervals all the way home.

SO, we got home, she stole my dog's toys, his bed, tried to attack him, peed on the bed, the kitchen floor, the living room rug. She growled at my husband when he came near her bone, and she wouldn't let my dog near his food bowl.

My mother and her fiance, Rene came over. She was growling at Rene. I think she has issues with men. He said "oh, she's just talking". I told him to be careful. He reached for her and she tried to bite him. She went into the crate for the rest of the night.

Good news: Someone taught her "sit" and "down". She also seems to be housebroken, except for the territorial urine marking.

I really, truly saved a life. Anyone else would have toted her ass right back to the shelter. I have a nice little project now!

I have diagnosed her as dominant aggressive, territorial aggressive, insecure, afraid or simply hateful of men, and child aggressive.

Yay! 10 year birth control!! She's only a year old. She can NOT be around children. I have to warn all strangers not to approach her.

It's doggy boot camp time. Crate at night, crate when no one's home. "Earn" everything: food, treats, petting... No sleeping with us in the bed, no jumping up, no pushing our hands for petting. No rawhide unless Arsen gives it to her after she lays down. If she's growls to protect it, he will remove it with tongs. HE is the top dog. The bone is HIS.

Blah, blah, blah. This should be interesting and rewarding. I'm so glad she fell into my hands. I feel like I really saved her life.

By the way, she recognises me as the top bitch. She'll let only me: take a bone out of her mouth, approach her crate, walk near her, touch her food, etc. She also sits and lays down with no problem for me.
She is loving, sweet and hyperactive and psychotic. Someone really, really screwed up her head.
Those kids must have teased her until she attacked them, then her owners probably kicked her ass. If I say "no" too loudly, she gets on her side and trembles. Poor thing.

Oh well, she'll be fine. I'm glad I worked at the shelter and the vet and I used to have a rottweiler that I obedience trained. I can handle her little ass. Arsen has some stuff to learn- she sees him as an underling, but I think it'll all work out.

By the way, we're calling her "kitty". She's the dog on the right in the two pictures I posted earlier.
Wish us luck!

This puppy clearly found the right place to live. Well done Stace! Good luck with boot camp!

Way to go! and... good luck. Hope you don't need the dog whisperer.

Kitty is a cutie pie and she's so lucky to have been adopted by people willing to take the time (and make the effort!) to really, truly love her. Congrats!! Have a steak, french-fry and red wine dinner to celebrate!

Give us $300 or we'll kill this puppy. What a great racket. :mad:
You are a glutton for punishment! If you're the alpha bitch and he's an underling, that means when he chases you around the apartment, Kitty gets in between? Or just waits and bites him on the ass? :unsure:
Sounds to me like Kitty is a very, VERY lucky critter. Good luck.

:lol: Kitty is not allowed in the bedroom. She sleeps in her crate. Us alphas sleep in the bedroom. I guess Arsen will just have to restrict his chasing to the bedroom!

She was perfectly behaved at the shelter. I thought she was a highly adoptable dog until I got her home! They didn't talk me into it at all.

I'm not a glutton for punishment- she's already improving! She didn't pee in the house at all today, and she peed outside 4 times (and :turd: twice).
She actually jumped on my leg and ran to the back door. As soon as I took her out she squatted.

I also tested the "stay" command with her- someone taught her! And she seems to be heeling on the leash, even though I never asked her to.

She adores me. She follows me around everywhere and gives me kisses. She listens perfectly to me. And she is extremely intelligent.

The main problem to work on now is reducing her agression towards Arsen and my other dog. I also have to keep her away from strangers and warn people that she'll bite!
No trips to the pet store for her- I'd have a lawsuit on my hands if a child ran up to her!