Cute pup or problematic adult? you decide.

i read this tonight and i can't help but think that not one of these pups will have any difficulty in being adopted. (i pray to a kind and loving family)

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/arti...Christmas.html

but what about the old guys. the dogs that don't have that 'cuteness' factor. the dogs that have been waiting patiently for months for someone to see that they are worth taking a chance on. the dogs that are passed by because they are too difficult or because they require some training.

i think it is these dogs the media should be shouting about, not a bunch of adorable pups that will be rehomed in a matter of days.

it just makes me think of my old lurcher (it will be 2 years in feb that i lost him) and he was just the most incredible dog ever. but, his papers said: not good with cats. cannot be left. hates travelling. 2 of these things were complete lies and the other, well we worked through his insecurities and the hundreds of pounds of damage he did while he chewed his way to happiness.

it makes me very sad to think that someone with such power, as in a newspaper, chooses the 'easy' option rather than investigating and potentially helping many more dogs.

i know what you mean. i feel so bad for the older dogs.

when im a bit older, i will get an older dog... losing sam though, broke my heart and the thought of losing jake terrifies me... i think i need to mature a bit to cope better with that kind of thing. i think i would struggle if i got an older dog and, maybe not long after getting attached, losing them.

as for dogs with problems, i would love to get one in the future but just now, i think i need to get more experience in how to deal with those problems. jake hasnt been the easiest dog, so im definitely getting that just now lol. whereas sam was the best dog ive ever met, so we had no problems at all with him. so they are definitely my future, i would love to help a dog over come problems.

i got jake as a pup, but he was from the sspca and i would much rather go down that route than go to a breeder. and when i get my own place, i am planning on getting another addition (or more eventually ) and they will all be rescues. i just hope at least some people will think of those dogs in rescues, and just give them a chance.

i agree, it should be those dogs in the papers. not the pups. and i really wish the media did a lot more to show people the dogs that are in rescues, in desperate need of a home. i just think of all those dogs in rescues just now... while jake is getting all his presents and having fun, excited... and they dont even have a home...

thats why i wish people would go down the rescue route more often, and that people would stop overbreeding. and for people to stop supporting those irresponsible breeders who do the overbreeding... it makes me so sad. its always a rescue for me, and im just glad i feel that way, whether i get a pup or an older dog.

I totally see where you both are coming from but, having worked in a large rescue centre (Battersea!) articles like this actually get a lot more people thinking about rescuing a dog.
The PR dept work very hard to highlight the issues surrounding rescue dogs but pups like these, with the 'aww' factor are more readily picked up by the press.
I'm sure lots of people will come forward to adopt one of these pups and in some cases these people could offer a home more suited to an older dog, which the rehoming staff will then direct them to!

You're so right. Articles like that get people thinking about rescue. Getting people to look into rescuing a dog is the single most important factor, whether it be dog or puppy. Once they're looking, there's a good chance people will fall in love with an older dog instead.

Personally, I perfer dogs to puppies... I've adopted dogs aged: 5 months, 6 months, 1.5 years and 4 years.... the most problematic dog I have is the one adopted at 6 months. And the 5 month old one (now 1 year) is a BIG PIA. The best one by far is the dog I adopted at 4 years.

I think that I would prefer a adult, with a pup you have different things to deal with, when its growing up, and in a rescue most of the time you can't really gaurentee how big a dog is going to grow, I would alos prefer more of a challange too

Papers will go for cute factor if they have a space to fill, especially this time of year. They like something to be "feelgood" and if those pups get adopted, they'll say how wonderful they were to play a part. That's just papers.
I think Battersea are right to make use of that, and I bow to Pinklizzy's greater knowledge that some potential adopters will be steered towards a more suitable adult dog.

My own girl was an older one from Battersea, though we were not steered, we requested an older dog. As I remember saying to the rehomer - anyone will take a 1-2 year old, give me something which people might overlook.
Missy was 7ish.

I would also like to point out, not all rescue dogs are problematic. When we went to adopt, there were approx 500 dogs across Battersea's 3 sites, and only 35 or so in the Rehab Unit.
Some dogs get given up for all sorts of reasons, owner has died, marriage has ended, someone is suddenly allergic or pregnant, or the dog doesn't match the sofa or someone else can give it the attention it deserves
Sometimes its the previous owners were the ones with problems!

I take my hat off to the Pinklizzy's of the dog world. I'd want to crack some heads if I was working in a rescue centre - though I know they never do that. Admirable .

lol you said exactly what I was going to post, if we can get more people throught the door, or aware of the rescue situation its all the better IMO.

Mo

i agree that getting people interested in rescues is the first step. thats why i highlighted in my post that i got jake from the sspca as a pup, but whether i got a pup or older dog, it was going to be a rescue. so people getting a rescue, any rescue, is the most important thing. i just think the oldies deserve a chance to get attention from the papers, they deserve it just as much as the pups. and the sspca steered me towards a pup, rather than the dog we were looking at (she was only 18 months but thats not the point).

i think the papers etc. should be focused on showing people the variety of dogs in rescues that people can be matched too.

A lot of people who go to rescue places expect a free dog, when they have got the dog home they then expect a grateful dog. Both scenarios cause trouble!

Everyone has different ideas of 'problems' The dogs in a rehab unit have bad issues. Many dogs will avoid a rehab unit (assuming the rescue has one), simply because their issues won't show up in a kennel. Many people have unrealistic views of older dogs----older dog equals no problems.

Old dog equals vets bills---which is why some are dumped in the first place, it also equals upset when it is pts. I had one dog for only 6mths.

Lots of rescues provide insurance, but not for existing conditions. So if a dog has had a good vet check coming in to rescue it can work against it for rehoming.

Add to this the fact that people do the stupidist things when they get a dog home. One chap gave the dog its first meal and them took it away---to see if it was possesive around food----if it wasn't before it was more or less guaranteed to be next time a food bowl went down. Result, dog returned.

I did a quick survey of the dogs who were returned and why they were returned when I worked as a volunteer behaviourist/trainer for a local rescue. Most were brought back for aggression or perceived aggression. None of which had shown up in kennels with experienced staff handling them.

It is never going to be an exact science but i can see why pups are popular.

rune

thank you for all you replies and pinklizzy your point is not one i had thought of! i was envisaging people turning up at the center purely because they wanted a 'cute' puppy. but you are so right. actually, any method that gets people through the doors has to be thought of and i know myself that your mind can be changed for many reasons once you get inside!

i do think that some people just assume that an older dog will bring a suitcase full of problems with him, rather than a pup who apparently has no issues. i don't believe this for one minute as my old lurcher at 18 months, was like an 8 week old puppy in that he was a chewer, he needed to be taught that being left was ok and i would return and that not everything on the floor belonged to him! all these things i have also gone through with lily and it does amaze me that anyone would think a puppy is an easier option.

but i also know people who have taken on older dogs and you would think they had been together all their lives. no problems, no issues just happy dogs and owners.

but i guess as i have a rescue dog that is still riddled with insecurities despite the huge amounts of progress we have made together, i can also see why some people should never even consider owning a dog. all dylans problems could have been avoided if he'd found the right home as a young pup.

the sad thing is that too that some of those 'cute' puppies will undoubtedly end up in rescue, possibly with man made issues and become an adult dog in need of a good home.

MissE i'm with you on the owners being more of a problem sometimes. both my rescues are a direct result of their owners incompetency. i know this because of the lies the first one told and i know dylan's last owner and saw for myself the neglect and abuse he suffered.

i know my next dog will be a rescue and although i would love to have another lurcher or a rescue greyhound, i will wait and see who chooses me!