Andrew and I adopted a puppy on Tuesday. We named him Talisman (Tal/Tally). The following is my dog story -- a long, wordy rant about dog adoption, addressing why we re-homed Fox and got this puppy a few months later; feel free to skip (it will be in tiny text) if you don't care. I just needed to write it out because I have had to justify myself to several people, and it's frustrating.
I have been struggling with the idea of having a cat or dog again since last summer. I am not as fond of cats as dogs, so I looked into getting a dog. We adopted Fox, the golden retriever I posted previously about, in July from a woman out by Stockton who had to find a new home for the young dog because she had two kids and an older, sick golden retriever. Fox needed way more attention than she thought he was getting there, so he came home with us.
It was fine. I woke up early to take him out in the mornings, I came straight home from work to take him out for a long walk in the evenings, and we adjusted our schedules. When we initially adopted him, I figured it would be fine for him to come to work with me. My company has a very dog-friendly office, and there are at least 2-3 other dogs in the office on any given day. However, Fox himself was not okay with coming to work. He did not understand that the other dogs did not want to play with him, that I was sitting at my computer to work, not to pet him, and that sometimes he needed to occupy himself. When he had to stay home, he had to be confined to the kitchen and bathroom so he wouldn't chew apart (more) electronics and books. He chewed holes in the walls.
Toward the end of last year, I was starting to feel a little desperate. The sweet, affectionate, relatively calm golden retriever we'd picked up was actually an extremely clingy, very neurotic dog with a very high prey drive. He lunged at other dogs and small children. The sight or sound of a bird would drive him crazy. He was quiet, and very well house-trained, but he needed to be in someone's lap at ALL TIMES, whether it was otherwise occupied or not, and hearing another dog barking would drive him crazy. With a very heavy heart, I realized that Fox was the kind of dog who absolutely needed a yard, and other kids, and another dog to grow up with. We brought him to the attention of the local breed rescue and, in January, we rehomed him. He now lives with a vet tech, her two (older) kids and their other two puppies, in a home with a yard.
That was very hard for me, to say the least. I've grown up with dogs, and despite his personality quirks Fox was a really amazing young retriever. His size was never a problem except when it came to correcting his dangerous behavior (like lunging at kids and other animals). Had we lived somewhere with a yard or had another dog, he would have been a fantastic fit. But... it didn't happen that way. I'd far rather he did well and grew up in a place where his personality would fit well than maintain my dignity and hold on to him just because I said I would.
So, the new puppy. How could I possibly justify getting another dog after that? Well, two things: 1) Fox's prey drive was huge; 2) Fox was only about 1-1.5 years old, but he'd already learned some difficult bad habits. Age was a surprisingly large factor. Talisman is very much a puppy, perhaps 3 months old, and gets a chance to start out learning what it's like to live in close quarters around a lot of other dogs and noises. We've registered him in puppy classes, and he will absolutely be attending obedience and probably rally or agility training as well. We'll see how his personality shapes up, but I'd like to train him to go volunteer at hospitals and old folks' homes as a therapy dog when he gets older.
I really think this is a matter of energy and dog personality, not a matter of the living situation. Fox simply was a country dog. He needed space and he needed it now. This puppy... well... it may turn out that he needs space, too, but he doesn't need it now and the substitutes we can provide should be good enough in the mean time. Starting his training early, getting him used to other dogs without being crazy about them, and the same with people and other animals, will probably make a huge difference there as well. I feel okay with this decision.
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I am indeed frustrated about feeling like I have to justify this to anyone in the first place, and yet there are questions. "You rehomed Fox. Why did you get another dog?" Because. It's not the same. I did not dump Fox at the pound and pick up the first cute puppy I saw. I did not neglect Fox. I very pointedly made sure he got a home with someone who knew what they were getting in to even better than I did -- he didn't go to just any rescue, he went to a Golden Retriever rescue, and he didn't go to just any home, he went to a home with a person who attends to dogs and cats as part of their job. With Fox, it wasn't a matter of not wanting to do the work or not giving him a chance. It was just a very deep, very true feeling that the kind of dog he was (both because of his natural behavior and because of his upbringing) did not fit with the lifestyle Andrew and I maintain or intend to pursue.
