Hi all,
I usually go straight to the feline section as I have 4 cats, so this is my first time here and I need some good sound advice.
One of my neighbors has an 11 months Pug who is not housebroken nor fixed. It's a long story, but the bottom line is they don't want to keep OLIVER. I have always wanted a Pug but my plan was to wait until I retire because I always thought that a dog requires more attention than cats and my husband and I both work full time. I love OLIVER but there are a lot of issues to deal with. I checked the yellow pages for professional dog trainers and also to look into doggie day care.
My family thinks I am biting off too much and frankly I think so too, but I'm an animal lover and can't bear to see an animal in danger, etc. These people want $1,500 for Oliver (they claim they paid $2,000). I think this is a awful lot of $$ for dog who isn't housebroken and not fixed, although he has a tracking chip implanted in him and he has his shots.
Any advice/suggestions would be most welcome. Thanks for listening to my tale.
Paulette
aka PuddyPaws
Need Advice
Re: Need Advice
just an opinion but if you are not around a good part of the day i sure would hesitate to bring in an allmost adult dog to be left with 4 cats...I think your family is right...
Re: Need Advice
Yes, you would have to make sure he likes cats. Or keep them in seperate rooms, or him in the garden or something.
Otherwise, I think it's an excellent idea. If you can afford it, and the possible fee for a day care too, great.
Maybe you can figure something out with them, split the cost for fixing him for example?
Otherwise, I think it's an excellent idea. If you can afford it, and the possible fee for a day care too, great.
Maybe you can figure something out with them, split the cost for fixing him for example?
Re: Need Advice
He likes cats very much, as he has been to my home 2x and wanted to play with them. However, the feeling wasn't mutual. I got different reactions ranging from aggessive to fearful from the cats. As far as the costs, I doubt they will pay for anything.
Re: Need Advice
It wouldn't be that unusual to have paid that much money for a well-bred purebred dog.
Might you have a vacation coming up when you could work on the housetraining and crate training? I don't think a Pug takes to the heat very well, so he shouldn't be kept outside.
Might you have a vacation coming up when you could work on the housetraining and crate training? I don't think a Pug takes to the heat very well, so he shouldn't be kept outside.
Re: Need Advice
It's normal for cats to react like that. They might or they might nor get used to him, hard to say. He's young, and if he likes the cats now there probably won't be a problem from his side in future. But you have to think of your cats too. If they would be under constant stress it's not fair on them, nor healthy. Can you have him round more often (before committing yourself) to see how their feelings towards him progress?
Re: Need Advice
As you all have quickly grasped, there are a number of serious issues to be considered. I agree that it would be stressful for my kitties. They had a hard enough time adjusting to each other. Unfortunately I have used up all my vacation, worst luck. Plus from the research I have done on the breed, they are lap dogs and require a lot of attention. Also, as any pure bred they have their own set of problems.
I haven't had any callbacks from the professionals I called so I don't have all the info I need as yet to make a decision. In addition, I have placed a call to a woman in my area who is part of a pug rescue organization. I am going to talk to her about the possibility of getting Oliver adopted to a loving family who would be willing to deal with these issues. However, I know that my neighbor will want to be paid so I'm not sure if he will even be eligible for rescue. A part of me is saying to just give them the $$ and get him a good home, crazy as that sounds.
I thank you all for your concern. I knew I came to the right place for support.
I haven't had any callbacks from the professionals I called so I don't have all the info I need as yet to make a decision. In addition, I have placed a call to a woman in my area who is part of a pug rescue organization. I am going to talk to her about the possibility of getting Oliver adopted to a loving family who would be willing to deal with these issues. However, I know that my neighbor will want to be paid so I'm not sure if he will even be eligible for rescue. A part of me is saying to just give them the $$ and get him a good home, crazy as that sounds.
I thank you all for your concern. I knew I came to the right place for support.
Re: Need Advice
I find it interesting the owners did not train or even neuter this dog but have the adacity to request $1500 for him, and why exactly do they not want him? (sounds like a large deal of irresponsibility on their part). If they bought the dog from a reputable breeder, most breeders will take the dog back under certain conditions, have they bothered to check into that?
..........Traci
Re: Need Advice
Hello Traci,
The story I got from them is the older daughter had a friend who wanted to buy the dog but didn't have credit, so she put it on her credit card for him. Then he didn't pay her back, and supposedly wasn't caring for him, so she took the dog. (She thought she could breed him for $$.) She gave the dog to her younger sister to care for (against her father's wishes). The younger daughter loves him but she's not responsible. The whole family is dysfunctional.
The trainer is spoke to last night advised me not take him because he believes Oliver is a "marker." Because Oliver is almost an adult, a male, and a "toy" it's possible that even if he's housebroken he will continue to mark the home. This trainer also said that he does think "crate" training works, although he did say he could teach the cats & dog to get along. He thinks that when I'm ready to get a pug I should get a female and start her off very early on training to avoid problems. He made sense.
Of course, none of this helps Oliver. I will tell them to talk to the breeder, but I don't know where they got him. They might have gone to a petstore in which case I very much doubt they will be able to return him. I too doubt that anyone will pay them that much $$ for this dog
under these conditions. But my biggest fear is the father because in the past they had a Persian cat and the father did not want her and he abandoned her. I fear that he might dump the dog somewhere, but maybe not because of the expense. That's why I wasn't arguing about the price. But now it's not just the money, there are so many negatives to me adopting him. This is not good and it's stressing me out a lot.
Many thanks for listening. It helps.
The story I got from them is the older daughter had a friend who wanted to buy the dog but didn't have credit, so she put it on her credit card for him. Then he didn't pay her back, and supposedly wasn't caring for him, so she took the dog. (She thought she could breed him for $$.) She gave the dog to her younger sister to care for (against her father's wishes). The younger daughter loves him but she's not responsible. The whole family is dysfunctional.
The trainer is spoke to last night advised me not take him because he believes Oliver is a "marker." Because Oliver is almost an adult, a male, and a "toy" it's possible that even if he's housebroken he will continue to mark the home. This trainer also said that he does think "crate" training works, although he did say he could teach the cats & dog to get along. He thinks that when I'm ready to get a pug I should get a female and start her off very early on training to avoid problems. He made sense.
Of course, none of this helps Oliver. I will tell them to talk to the breeder, but I don't know where they got him. They might have gone to a petstore in which case I very much doubt they will be able to return him. I too doubt that anyone will pay them that much $$ for this dog
under these conditions. But my biggest fear is the father because in the past they had a Persian cat and the father did not want her and he abandoned her. I fear that he might dump the dog somewhere, but maybe not because of the expense. That's why I wasn't arguing about the price. But now it's not just the money, there are so many negatives to me adopting him. This is not good and it's stressing me out a lot.
Many thanks for listening. It helps.
Re: Need Advice
I think the first thing they must know, and accept, is that they're not going to get $1500 for the dog, unless they find an unsuspecting, innocent person willing to shell out that much money for him.
Due to his "issues", non-trained, intact status, and his environmental history, they are CRAZY for even asking for money at all. Sounds like they are only interested in money only and obviously don't care for the dog, his health or his happiness. In one small way, I hope the dog does find a good home, because if the current owner breeds him, and based on your posts, they only want the money from stud services
The owner needs to take responsibility and find the dog a new loving home, and not expect to get money out of this. If you're on reasonably good terms with this owner and are able to talk to him/her, try explaining that due to the circumstances, the dog deserves a loving home and they should take steps to accomplish that through rescue organizations, particularly breed-rescues...but they need to understand they can't expect money from this. The girl put herself into a situation where she lost money, but she can't expect to recover it simply because he may be a pure breed. (and since they never trained him, etc). What is most important is the dog's health and a secure environment, they need to consider that the utmost importance over money.
Due to his "issues", non-trained, intact status, and his environmental history, they are CRAZY for even asking for money at all. Sounds like they are only interested in money only and obviously don't care for the dog, his health or his happiness. In one small way, I hope the dog does find a good home, because if the current owner breeds him, and based on your posts, they only want the money from stud services
The owner needs to take responsibility and find the dog a new loving home, and not expect to get money out of this. If you're on reasonably good terms with this owner and are able to talk to him/her, try explaining that due to the circumstances, the dog deserves a loving home and they should take steps to accomplish that through rescue organizations, particularly breed-rescues...but they need to understand they can't expect money from this. The girl put herself into a situation where she lost money, but she can't expect to recover it simply because he may be a pure breed. (and since they never trained him, etc). What is most important is the dog's health and a secure environment, they need to consider that the utmost importance over money.
..........Traci