the comment about being bossed about is in relation to being told my existing pet would need to be neutered, one rescue even saying what dog I should have before meeting...that the dog MUST go to group classes (regardless of WHICH dog it is and their needs) that I MUST have x-height of fencing (again regardless of the pup/dog) that I cannot leave my own home for more than 3 hours a day....and so on.

what you looking for ?

The adoption/rescue parallel - it's really breathtakingly somewhere... well between naive and offensive.

To even compare the two - belittles it completely in quite an offensive way.

.

LOL dont temp me i saw a lovely saluki x boy the other day Until we move though 3 dogs is enough for our house (according to the OH anyway)

Yes and no.

So many good points in this thread, and I think it depends on what your wants and more importantly needs are. I don't think it's an easy decision either way as I'm pretty sure all of us here feel the plight of all those dogs in rescues.

On the one hand, absolutely we should help dogs
On the other - why should we make it easy for the B******s who abandon their pets and then take on any problems they created? They get to have what could be considered one of the most pleasant stages of the dogs life (puppyhood) and then discard the dog when it gets older and sometimes leaving others to pick up the pieces. They make my blood boil!

It's difficult because the dogs are stuck in the middle through no fault of their own.

One thing I do know, we need to do more to make sure we're not in this situation to begin with. It shouldn't be easy for people to discard their pets - the commitment should be lifelong - as it is with children. And if they let their pets get pregnant the commitment should follow through to the pups, it's their dog, their responsibility.

I wasn't referring to your post, so I apologise if I in any way offended you. Best wishes

Originally Posted by dizzi
The adoption/rescue parallel - it's really breathtakingly somewhere... well between naive and offensive.

To even compare the two - belittles it completely in quite an offensive way

Oh Dizzi please don't let it get to you and upset you. Dogs are definitely not on the same parallel as babies and I totally agree with you - a baby is very different (whether that baby is adopted or not - it is not the same as having a dog or puppy).

One problem I have with this is that you cannot say its not comparable when some people like/love/care for their dogs more than kids, some have no interest in kids but truly love their dogs and no-one else can possibly be in a position to say what others FEEL. You cannot know how someone else FEELS about whether their love for their child is equal to that of their dog etc. There is no universal 'scale of love'

and the world is made up of all sorts

We only know how we feel as an individual etc