Adopting vs. Buying a Puppy - UPDATE 1/15/13

[mommyrosa2]

Thanks so far.... It's harder because I have my girls who now know that we are definitely getting a pet so they HOUND me everyday which actually stresses me out more. I had tried to keep it from them as long as I could but ended up having to tell them last week as I had found someone locally who placed an ad about giving up their Shih Tzu. He was just shy of 2 years old, purebred, up to date on everything and she was giving him up because they didn't have the time to spend with him anymore. They lived only 10 minutes away so I made an appt for all of us to see him last Wednesday night so I had to tell the girls. We were all excited and on the day of, the owner called me with an excuse that she needed to reschedule. I asked her if she was having second thoughts to which she replied she wasn't, and I even expressed if she had any doubts to be upfront with me as I didn't want to string my kids along and she was adamant about being serious about selling him so we rescheduled for Saturday afternoon. Wouldn't you know, she called me Saturday morning to say that her husband had sold the dog and claimed he didn't know we were coming. Needless to say, I wasn't so nice on that conversation and angry doesn't even begin to describe how I was feeling . Had to tell my daughters and let's just say the rest of our weekend was HORRIBLE! Luckily, they are older but even at 14 & 18, they were heartbroken which killed me.

 

[KBoopaloo]

I am sorry you are having such a frustrating experience. When I first started looking into adopting a dog, I applied for and lost out on at least 3 different dogs. I didn't hear back on at least 4 to 5 others. It was very frustrating. When I first saw the dog I have now online, I had almost given up on adopting a pet. I sent the application in anyway even though I wasn't even sure if she was the dog for me. She wasn't the breed I was looking for and I feared she might be too high energy for me. Then I found out that she was out of state (the rescue organization was local but get rescues from all over) and I nearly passed on her when I realized I wouldn't get to meet her first.

In the end, I took the chance, picked her up after her 3 day journey from Missouri and she has been my best pal ever since.

I just wanted to let you know that even though the process can be super frustrating and even heartbreaking, I believe that eventually you will find the dog your family is supposed to have!

 

[Handbag Lady]

I would keep looking for a local pound; I just can't buy a dog when there are so many animals needing good homes in shelters.

And I am in love with my rescue kitty, more than I can ever say.


My sister is also looking for a small, tiny dog. We found one from a rescue group and they wanted $450 for the dog. I thought that was insane so we'll just keep looking.

My dad just rescued a mini-poodle 10 week old puppy last week. Surprised ALL of us that he was paying attention to the needs of rescue. He bascially went to the shelter often and put his name on a dog he loved. When it came avail for adoption, he grabbed him right away. He paid $125 all in.

So, it can be done.

 

[nathalee81]

I have tried Petfinder and Adopt-a-Pet.com...

I would really suggest going to Petco/Petsmart. I think you will have more luck when you meet the rescue, in person.

You will have more luck if you wait until after the holidays...there will be, unfortunately, a huge influx of unwanted dogs that people got for the holidays, but didn't think about the care and expense involved.

Have you tried to google shih Tzu rescue and your zip code? You might find a breed specific rescue group that way...

 

[onelilspark]

When we decided to get a dog, we first looked at adopting. Unlike you, we knew we wanted a puppy - this was our first dog on our own (we both had dogs growing up) and were unsure about adopting an older dog that may have issues that we would have no idea how to handle. So we wanted to essentially start from scratch instead of getting in over our head.

We knew we wanted a dog that would be under 20 pounds - we lived in a townhome at the time and knew a large dog would not be happy. We didn't have a yard, but knew we'd have to take lots of walks.

We're nice and stable, but had such a hard time adopting a puppy. We would essentially open up our homes to the adoption agencies, go through the entire process, and then be told no because we didn't have a yard. I could have saved them a lot of time and me a lot of heartache if they had just indicated that at the beginning.

We finally gave up after 6 months of that and decided to go to a breeder. We wound up with a great dog and couldn't imagine our lives without him.

I know some people probably think we're the devil for going to a breeder, but I couldn't keep trying with adoption places only to have my heart broken every time. It also makes me angry to hear all the agencies say that there are so many dogs needing to be adopted when we were turned away every time.

 

[mommyrosa2]

I would really suggest going to Petco/Petsmart. I think you will have more luck when you meet the rescue, in person.

You will have more luck if you wait until after the holidays...there will be, unfortunately, a huge influx of unwanted dogs that people got for the holidays, but didn't think about the care and expense involved.

Have you tried to google shih Tzu rescue and your zip code? You might find a breed specific rescue group that way...

I'm going to call Petco and Petsmart tonight and the closest Shih Tzu rescue that I could find is in NJ so I just sent them an email.... I'll keep trying. I do believe in fate, and things happening for a reason - my luck is bound to change eventually.

 

[Family Fun Mom]

I think it might be easier to adopt a child than a dog. It's INSANE! We tried to adopt but ran into so many roadblocks we just gave up. No one would even consider us because we have children under the age of 12 and we have cats. Plus, I don't think I should have to allow strangers into my home to inspect it just to own a pet. We went with a breeder and have never regretted it. We brought our golden retriever home on Christmas Eve 4 years ago and he has been the best gift to this family since the kids were born. I'd go with a breeder again in a heartbeat.

 

[mommyrosa2]

When we decided to get a dog, we first looked at adopting. Unlike you, we knew we wanted a puppy - this was our first dog on our own (we both had dogs growing up) and were unsure about adopting an older dog that may have issues that we would have no idea how to handle. So we wanted to essentially start from scratch instead of getting in over our head.

We knew we wanted a dog that would be under 20 pounds - we lived in a townhome at the time and knew a large dog would not be happy. We didn't have a yard, but knew we'd have to take lots of walks.

We're nice and stable, but had such a hard time adopting a puppy. We would essentially open up our homes to the adoption agencies, go through the entire process, and then be told no because we didn't have a yard. I could have saved them a lot of time and me a lot of heartache if they had just indicated that at the beginning.

We finally gave up after 6 months of that and decided to go to a breeder. We wound up with a great dog and couldn't imagine our lives without him.

I know some people probably think we're the devil for going to a breeder, but I couldn't keep trying with adoption places only to have my heart broken every time. It also makes me angry to hear all the agencies say that there are so many dogs needing to be adopted when we were turned away every time.

First off, you're not a devil but I do know where you're coming from. I have friends on both sides of the fence, so to speak, and in the end, I will do what is right for our family because I do not want to keep watching my girls get broken-hearted and honestly, I'd be lieing if I didn't say it's hard on me too. And I too am getting "ticked" with the agencies who have a dog we're interested in but won't consider us because we are out of state. I'm like really? One of them told us that they wouldn't consider us because they do home visits and that they couldn't visit our home if we were out of state. So, I gave them the name of my friend who volunteers at one of our local rescue groups since she told me her rescue would be more than happy to act as a liaison & do that for them and they still said no. As for our local shelters, I just reached out to two of them about putting us on a list and both said they don't keep lists.

 

[kwelch10377]

I'm going to call Petco and Petsmart tonight and the closest Shih Tzu rescue that I could find is in NJ so I just sent them an email.... I'll keep trying. I do believe in fate, and things happening for a reason - my luck is bound to change eventually.

I see you are in MA. There is a Shih Tzu Resuce of New England

http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/MA304.html

 

[mommyrosa2]

I think it might be easier to adopt a child than a dog. It's INSANE! We tried to adopt but ran into so many roadblocks we just gave up. No one would even consider us because we have children under the age of 12 and we have cats. Plus, I don't think I should have to allow strangers into my home to inspect it just to own a pet. We went with a breeder and have never regretted it. We brought our golden retriever home on Christmas Eve 4 years ago and he has been the best gift to this family since the kids were born. I'd go with a breeder again in a heartbeat.

I, honestly, just said that earlier today. My friends at work have been great supporters and most of them (including my rescue volunteer friend) are starting to tell me to "bite the bullet" and reconsider a puppy from a breeder

 

[mommyrosa2]

I see you are in MA. There is a Shih Tzu Resuce of New England

http://www.petfinder.com/shelters/MA304.html

I tried that but it says there are no pets that match my criteria....all i put in was a male shih tzu...didn't even specify an age

 

[kwelch10377]

I tried that but it says there are no pets that match my criteria....all i put in was a male shih tzu...didn't even specify an age

Did you fill out an application and email it? They may have a waiting list.

 

[sunshinehighway]

I was recently in the same position as you. I wanted to adopt an adult dog because I wasn't sure I wanted to deal with training a puppy. I found the process of adopting wasn't for me. I didn't like dealing with rescue groups. The scrutiny some of them put you through made me uncomfortable. It was like they were doing me a favor by considering whether or not I could adopt one of their dogs. Some of the adoption fees seemed ridiculous to me.

Local rescues were filled with breeds I didn't want. It wasn't that I was looking for a certain breed but I wasn't about to adopt a pit bull with an unknown history.

In the end, I contacted local breeders and bought a puppy. I know its more work to deal with a puppy but it was the right choice for me.

 

[caribear]

My DD had wanted a puppy for a while, but I am highly allergic. I did a lot of research and knew what we were looking for.....hypo-allergenic, dander-free, small breed....I looked online for about 5 months....checking out tons of rescues and adoption agencies...and could not find any small dogs that met my criteria. I found several that had been abused....and that were looking for child-free homes. At that point I decided to go with a local breeder who I found online. I waited 3 weeks for the puppies to be able to go home...and picked out our Lily at 10 weeks old. She is a morkie (mom was a Maltese, Dad was a Yorkie)....and is almost full grown at 6lbs. She has made a delightful addition to our family!

 

[Albort]

my dog cost $1000... wasnt even trained... this was 16 years ago though.

 

[JESW]

Good luck!

We are also in MA and when we were thinking about getting a dog it seemed that all the ones I asked about on Petfinder were dogs from the South that they pull from kill shelters when there is someone who wants to adopt and they transport up North. The place I spoke with couldn't even deliver to MA and you had to pick your dog up in CT. We were also skeptical about adopting a dog we never met so we have put getting a dog on hold for now.

 

[ChitownFamily]

Hiya! I volunteer with a breed specific rescue group. If we don't have the right dog for you- we will gladly provide info on reputable breeders or the contact info of another rescue group. It's not a breeder vs rescue ( to me) its a good source vs puppy mill/ back yard breeder. I would support any of my friends in working with a good reputable breeder - one who is breeding to preserve genetic lines. Reputable breeders will be as stringent with placing a dog as a rescue. In fact, we lost our dog this summer - he was an ambassador for the rescue & volunteered 6 hours each month at pet store meet & greets. When we lost him the rescue didn't have the "right" dog for us. Our friends in rescue supported us in adopting a 16 month old from a reputable breeder. Working with a breeder is not evil- not doing proper research to avoid bad breeders or puppy mills is not cool . You mentioned dd has allergies, not sure of the severity, would fostering a dog be a good trial run for the allergies (or maybe the allergies are minimal)

 

[mommyrosa2]

Hiya! I volunteer with a breed specific rescue group. If we don't have the right dog for you- we will gladly provide info on reputable breeders or the contact info of another rescue group. It's not a breeder vs rescue ( to me) its a good source vs puppy mill/ back yard breeder. I would support any of my friends in working with a good reputable breeder - one who is breeding to preserve genetic lines. Reputable breeders will be as stringent with placing a dog as a rescue. In fact, we lost our dog this summer - he was an ambassador for the rescue & volunteered 6 hours each month at pet store meet & greets. When we lost him the rescue didn't have the "right" dog for us. Our friends in rescue supported us in adopting a 16 month old from a reputable breeder. Working with a breeder is not evil- not doing proper research to avoid bad breeders or puppy mills is not cool . You mentioned dd has allergies, not sure of the severity, would fostering a dog be a good trial run for the allergies (or maybe the allergies are minimal)

My youngest has allergy induced asthma but other things have triggered her asthma as well such as smoke, the smell of pine (no more real Xmas trees for us), cats (their fur anyways) and a few other things. While she has been around other dogs without suffering, her upper respiratory doc had advised us long ago to not chance having an animal that could be a trigger. So while I say her allergies are minimal, I most certainly wouldn't consider any pet that wasn't considered hypo-allergenic. Again, we're not stuck on it being a Shih Tzu and would consider other breeds that would fit the criteria.

 

[Tinkermommy]

I just posted today about adopting our new dog "Mickey."

We tried going through rescue groups and had zero luck. They didn't respond to calls/emails nor to the very long questionnaires I had to fill out. I have to say, I was not impressed.

We just got our boy from the Atlanta Humane Society. He's a year old so his adoption fee was $100. He is microchipped, neutered and update to date on all shots except his rabies and I am taking him on Friday to one of their affiliated vets and they will give him a check-up and rabies vaccine. That is also included in the adoption fee.

We were so impressed with the people working at the humane society. They were wonderful in finding us the right dog.

OP, I wish you luck in your search. I agree with others to go in person and talk to the people. They may really be able to help you find "the one."

 

[ChitownFamily]

My youngest has allergy induced asthma but other things have triggered her asthma as well such as smoke, the smell of pine (no more real Xmas trees for us), cats (their fur anyways) and a few other things. While she has been around other dogs without suffering, her upper respiratory doc had advised us long ago to not chance having an animal that could be a trigger. So while I say her allergies are minimal, I most certainly wouldn't consider any pet that wasn't considered hypo-allergenic. Again, we're not stuck on it being a Shih Tzu and would consider other breeds that would fit the criteria.

I don't know much about hypo allergenic dogs, please bear that in mind. If you need a guaranteed purebred hypo allergenic dog for the above health reasons. I would look at a reputable breeder. That way you have the best chance of DD not having issues. As much as I love rescue, rescued dogs are usually pet store /puppy mill bred & backyard breeder- there's a slim chance that the dog could also have a non hypo allergenic dog mixed in.
Without causing drama, I also stumbled across this link last week (I think it was on yahoo news) http://healthland.time.com/2011/07/08/the-myth-of-the-hypoallergenic-dog/

It's awesome that you are trying so hard to make this work.