Older dogs rule

Comments

“Yeah, older dogs really need to be highlighted because even though puppies are waaaay cuter they are really high maintenance and there definetly isn't a shortage of homeless dogs these days!” — Wags&Woofs, Apr 04 2009

“I so heartily agree with this advice. You don't necessarily have to get a geriatric dog. Not that there's a darned thing wrong with senior pets, especially if you gave up running marathons yourself a long time ago! Besides, they've pretty much been there/done that and not much phases them. Once they get over adapting to a new home, they're pretty "OK" with that. But even a young adult comes without a lot of that puppy baggage. They can hold their bladder and they don't have the attention span of a gnat, so they're easily trained. (Frankly, I don't know how anybody can raise a puppy if everyone in the household works or goes to school all day.) My only caveat would be that it's hard to judge a dog's personality in a shelter. Most dogs develop some shell shock in that environment. You might see a dog who seems calm and quiet, when he's just a sensitive sort that has temporarily shut down. Or the life of the party dog may be bouncing off the walls because he's bored and/or freaking out. As long as the dog doesn't seem aggressive, you can pretty much work out some of the personality issues. Adult dogs tend to "take the pulse" of their new home and behave accordingly. ” — pcarpenter, Mar 31 2009

“Great points about senior dogs. After getting my first two (mostly flyball) border collies as puppies, old (9 years) fat "Chester" (now named "Jonah") tugged at my heart from the shelter. He slid into the pack as smoothly as if he'd always been there, and is by far my most biddable dog. Thinks border collie OCD stuff is "stupid" -- just wants to curl up and be loved on. ” — saharrell, Jan 17 2009