Some people simply shouldn’t be allowed to have pets.

[raleighnut]

Not had a dog since my beloved GSD Sabor had to be 'put to sleep' (Prostate Cancer) but we have Cats ( 5 1/2 at present) We've had 2 that just moved in (and possibly a 3rd now hence the 1/2)

 

[Slick]

We had ours put down about 7 years ago. The life we are living now just wouldn't suit having a dog in it, though we'd all quite like it. It just wouldn't be fair.

On the plus side, there IS less hoovering!

I have discovered, there are other options. We moved house and the first thing I noticed during the flit was a yappy wee dog barking at me which was so annoying. I was always used to big hunting dogs and I knew that I would need to sort out this wee carpet slipper next door. The owner loved the dog but was disabled so couldn't walk it, so I volunteered. At first I was a bit embarrassed with this wee thing on the end of a ribbon especially when meeting guys with bigger animals but she won me round and I fell for her cute wee face and before long we were best pals.

 

[Lullabelle]

Lifestyle is the reason we don't have a dog but I would dearly love one, maybe when we retire and have the time.

 

[Saluki]

A dog as a secret santa present?! WTAF is that about?

I'd love a dog but SophRM isn't keen so that's a no, currently. If I was to get one it would have to match me: devastatingly handsome but scruffy.

Lurcher then

 

[Dave 123]

[QUOTE 5096845, member: 43827"]The beagles excuse certainly rings a bell. Our neighbours, both working, with young kids bought one a couple of years ago because they "looked so beautiful" as puppies.

So sad. The dog, which is really friendly, had to be kept from the kids at first because she was just so strong and lively that she kept knocking them over. They had to strengthen their garden fences/ hedges with wire fencing to stop her digging her way under them. They take her out for walks but cannot give her enough exercise so she is getting fat, and she only has to hear someone or some animal and she spends ages barking and howling.

I tried to suggest, before they got her, that perhaps a beagle was not the most suitable dog for their urban lifestyle but they didn't agree. Luckily they still love her, but admit she is a huge handful to manage.[/QUOTE]


I saw a beagle yesterday. It was a stunningly beautiful dog. It’s a real pity that such a good looking breed isn’t suited to the role of pet.

Mind you, it might be a good thing.

 

[Piemaster]

He ate meat and we are vegetarian

Theres a cafe we go to frequently where dogs are allowed in*. One of the regular dog owners is vegetarian. The dog always gets a nice cooked breakfast though - with sausages.

*Actually more dog welcoming than 'dogs allowed'. The cafe owner was quite concerned when our dog turned up without us and a stranger in tow. A neighbor was dog-sitting at the time while we went to a graduation.

 

[Profpointy]

I saw a beagle yesterday. It was a stunningly beautiful dog. It’s a real pity that such a good looking breed isn’t suited to the role of pet.

Mind you, it might be a good thing.

Is that really true? My Uncle and his family had a beagle and it seemed a perfectly happy and fine family pet to be honest.

 

[Julia9054]

There are presumably beagles and beagles. There must be ones that are more generations separated from a hunting pack than others.

I once unexpectedly found myself in the middle of a huge pack of them when I was out on my bike. They are a lot bigger than they look on paintings in pubs. I was a bit scared!

 

[Julia9054]

Deffo beagles? Foxhounds, which incidentally don't seem to be kept as pets at all, look similar but bigger, more leggy and a bit leaner.

Dunno - I'm no expert. I was out on my road bike and the road ahead was closed so had to take a detour down a track across farmland. Saw one dog and was admiring how beautiful it was and strange it didn't have a collar, went round the corner and found myself in the middle of the hunt. Looked just like a Victorian painting except the dogs seemed huge and one of the blokes on horseback was on his mobile!

 

[Lullabelle]

@potsy told me that given the amount of work @TVC does these days, he might as well be retired

 

[Inertia]

[QUOTE 5096845, member: 43827"]The beagles excuse certainly rings a bell. Our neighbours, both working, with young kids bought one a couple of years ago because they "looked so beautiful" as puppies.

So sad. The dog, which is really friendly, had to be kept from the kids at first because she was just so strong and lively that she kept knocking them over. They had to strengthen their garden fences/ hedges with wire fencing to stop her digging her way under them. They take her out for walks but cannot give her enough exercise so she is getting fat, and she only has to hear someone or some animal and she spends ages barking and howling.

I tried to suggest, before they got her, that perhaps a beagle was not the most suitable dog for their urban lifestyle but they didn't agree. Luckily they still love her, but admit she is a huge handful to manage.[/QUOTE]
We have a Beagle and she is a great pet, very calm, especially around kids.

With regards to weight, the diet is more important than exercise but not a lot of people seem to realise it.

 

[Julia9054]

Probably foxhounds then. As far as I know, beagles are usually followed on foot.

I've learned something. Never heard of a foxhound before.

 

[Profpointy]

I've learned something. Never heard of a foxhound before.

Foxhounds look like beagles but are rather larger aren't they. They are also said to be unsuitable as pets, but that may have been foxhunting propaganda - as in "let us hunt or we'll have to massacre all these cute dogs".

 

[Drago]

Knowing the excuses Jack’s previous owners gave for handing him into the dog rescue, my Mum drew my attention to this article in her local paper:

Dogs Trust Salisbury reveals the reasons people give up dogs

These included:

• He ate meat and we are vegetarian
• He didn’t like it when we tried to dress him up
• He doesn’t match our furniture
• She sleeps in her own dog bed all night – I thought she would want to sleep in my bed
• He is always staring at me – even when I am eating
• I won a free holiday and couldn't take my dogs with me
• I got him as a secret Santa present
• She was too friendly and wanted to greet every dog and human we met on a walk
• He was panting too much
• Now he has lost weight he is too energetic
• She grew bigger than we thought she would
• If I'd known anything about beagles, I wouldn't have got one
• I had to spend an hour a day hovering as he shed so much hair
• She wags her tail far too much

God help us if they have kids...

For once I am in wholsesale agreement with Reg.

Cats, Dogs, animals in general, and wonderful examples of God's creation. If you accept an animal into your family, like my beloved Lemmy, you should care for it properly. That means physically with proper food and exercise, but emotionally with love and dignity, and they will reward you with with an unshakable loyalty that few humans could ever give. They will become a more worthy part of your family than most humans.

That loyalty is a truly awesome commodity, and if you as a human are in any way undeserving of it then don't get a flamin' animal in the first place.

 

[Andrew_P]

Sorry for the Puppy eye picture it was off subject and it was late on Friday night. :-)

I talk to people all the time people who have bought a Puppy then realise they actually go to work and wonder why the Puppy chews everything up and then treats the new carpet as the toilet. So they then decide with the help of the internet on house training that a Dog Crate is a good idea, so hey lets put our Husky puppy in a car crate all day, that's bound not to end badly.

Pets in general take a huge commitment both the financial and the care aspect are overlooked and overwhelmed by the puppy dog eyes..