a little confession..:(

[primabella]

i was sort of keeping this from everyone because i knew you'd al look at me badly if you heard this. sorry...
well, when i first got on the board, i said i never had a dog...that isn't entirely true. last summer (the one that just passed) we were looking for a dog and noticed an ad for an 80$ dog. my dad thought it was a great deal, so we drove down to the farm where the breeder stayed and went to see him. he was a 10 week old, sable colored collie mix puppy and i fell in love with him as soon as i saw him. my dad paid the woman the money and we drove home. i knew it was too good to be true to actually have a dog. actually, it wasn't a great car ride because i was carrying him and he got sick twice and barfed on me. anyways, we took him home and named him PRIMO which means first in italian, and he was our first dog. we kept him in the backyard but there was a problem with him. he was really big. way too big for us to keep. we had rushed into the whole thing too fast without thinking it through first and be the end of the day, my dad told us it would be best for us and the dog to bring him to the SPCA and let a family that can give him all he deserves have him. after lots of cries, i finally gave into the descision and the next morning, they brought primo back. i missed him so much but i think i am ready for another dog, one i am sure will be the right dog for us. that's why we are getting a purebred, because we don't need to guess the size. besides, the breeder wasn't very trusting. primo even had a big scar on his side that he had gotten "because a bigger dog had bitten him" and he was only 80$! that's kind of weird. plus, he didn't go to the bathroom until we got him the next morning, so my dad thinks he may have had an owner before. now i am more careful when looking into getting a dog and how to choose the breeder. thanks for listening. i feel better getting that off my chest. i hope nobody sees me as a bad person for what i did to primo. i regretted it for the whole summer but realized how what i did was best for him...and us.
sorry for making you read this.

[primabella]

i know nobody cares, but i just needed to get that off my chest. sorry for taking up room on the board..

[ramanth]

I'm sorry it didn't work out and it's obvious you learned a valuable lesson. That's what's important.

Perhaps someday you will find the right kind of dog for you.

[Logan]

I know that was a very hard decision for you and your dad to make. I hope Primo found just the right home. Now you have a little better idea of what sort of dog you need to get, at least as far as size is concerned.

Cheer up! One day, you will find just the right dog, and probably put a great deal of thought into it before you make that decision.

Have a good weekend, Primabella.

Logan

[primabella]

thanks you guys made me feel a lot better. especially when i saw no replies to my message, i thought it was like nobody cared. have a nice weekend as well, logan(and everybody else)

[ParNone]

Hi prima,

The key is to learn from the experience. When I was a kid
I had a poodle mix, named Muffin that I loved to ends of the
earth. I told her all my secrets and taught her all kinds of
tricks. One day I was out playing with her and she went
bounding up excitedly to the mailman. He panicked and
sprayed her with mace. She was never quite the same after
that as far as her attitude to strangers. My parents were
afraid she was going to bite somebody, so one day while
I was at school, they took her to the pound. I came home
from school and she was gone. I never got to say goodbye.

I couldn't quite get over the experience and finally guilted
my mom into another dog. Unfortunately this time she
went and got a Lhasa Apos from a pet store. He was just
a nitemare dog. Between the grooming requirements and
his aggressive temperament, not to mention peeing on
my mom's side of the bed, he was too much for us to handle.
When my dad got cancer, my mom was under so much
stress, she couldn't deal with the bad behavior. She had
my grandfather take him to the pound.

I loved dogs so much, I knew when I moved out on my own
I was going to try again, but learn from my and my family's
mistakes. I read book after book on breeds and training. And
most importantly I was very honest with myself about my
personality and my lifestyle. I think this is crucial. If you know
you aren't going to enjoy grooming a dog for hours everyday,
then don't get an Old English Sheepdog. If you're a sedentary
person, who loves just sitting around reading and watching TV,
don't get a Border Collie. If you're inexperienced with dogs
and have kind of a passive personality, don't get a breed
with a tendency towards aggressiveness, that needs firm
and consistent handling. Don't make your choice solely based
on looks. Try and get a breed that closest fits your profile
and search out a good breeder to get them from. They can
help you pick out the right pup for you. And finally training
and socialization for whichever breed you get will help ensure
a well behaved family member. It worked for me. Both my
Cairn terriers have bought me immeasurable happiness for
the last 12 years.

So no I don't think you're a bad person. We're all human and
we all make mistakes. Just research really good the next time
and make sure you're really ready to make a lifetime commitment
to a dog.

Par...

[primabella]

thanks a lot Par. that helped me a lot. its nice to know i'm not alone in this situation. sorry about your dad and his cancer.
i have researched a lot and know that a shetland sheepdog is the right dog for us.

[lovemymaltese]

it's good to get things off your chest, that's what we are here for. I know that was a difficult decision.

[ParNone]

hola prima!

Ah a sheltie is an excellent choice. I just recently added
a 3rd dog to my family and I was about *this* close to
getting a sheltie, but finally decided on a smooth coated
collie.

Par...

[primabella]

yes, i saw the pictures. the reason why i love your dog so much is because he reminds me soo much of primo! they look identical, but primo was all sable with just his chest white.

[aly]

Prima -

I am sorry for the experience you went through and glad that you and your family learned to research before jumping into a lifelong decision. Are you sure you're already ready for a dog since this just happened over the summer? Also, did you know that dogs are very social and love to be with their "pack" (you!)? Are you planning on letting the new dog come inside at all? Its really important for their mental health to be able to sleep with their family.

Have you considered getting a purebred from a shelter or rescue group? There are a lot of very reliable organizations where you can get a rescued purebred instead of going to a breeder. I could help you research some in your area if you wanted.

Good luck with whatever you decide and feel free to contact me if you ever need any help!

[Dixieland Dancer]

I agree with everyone else... this needs to be a valuable learning experience. We all need to learn and they say experience is the best teacher!

We understand your heartbreak and do not look down on you. You need to be honest in your posts though so that people will not lose respect and have to question wether you are telling us the truth or not. Honesty is the best policy.

Aly was thinking along the same lines as me when she asked are you sure you are really ready for another dog? Don't rush into it. You need to consider why your first dog was an outside dog and not trained to be a part of the family? Shelties are very adorable pups but they are high energy (they are a herding breed) and they do shed quite a bit and require regular brushing.

I believe you need to sit down with your dad and figure out why the dog was outside and determine that if you do get a dog it will be an inside dog. It is a very lonely life for most outside dogs!

Take Aly's offer to let her help you figure out what breed is best for you. She is very experienced in helping people adopt the right pet for them. You can email or PM her and I'm sure she will give you the best advice available anywhere! Use your resources wisely and you should be able to find the perfect pet that will by with you for many many happy years to come!

[primabella]

oh, did i make it sound like we were planning on keeping him outside all day? no, no, no. it's because when we brought him in, we decided to take him to the back in case he had to go to the bathroom. (which he did) and then we ended up playing with him all day outside.

i appreciate your suggestions, but i know i am ready for a dog. i agree, we did rush into the dog too early, but now i have done my research and have planned things out, and have discussed things with both my parents. i am planning on keeping the dog inside and out (for excercise and play) and my mom doesn't work, so she would stay home with the dog during the weekdays when i have school. i know all the requirements for a sheltie, and i really don't care how much shedding a dog does becaue i can devote as much time needed to care for my dog, whether it be for walks, grooming, training and just playing with him.

before we got primo, we visited all the shelters in our area, but all the dogs were big (GSD and huskies...) and we can't have those and the small ones were all already 3 years old, and i wanted my first dog to be with me from day 1 so i can go through all the steps.

if i do have any questions, at least now i know not to hesitate to ask you guys. thanks for your concern.

[RockyRoad]

its nice to know i'm not alone in this situation.

Not alone?? I probably told the biggest lie Pet Talk has ever seen (not in a good way). Anyway, you did the right thing to give him to the SPCA. I think if you had enough responsibility to give him to them so they could find a nice home for him instead of cramping him in a place that he might not be comfortable in(no offense), then you DEFINETLY have enough responsibility to have a dog. I have a pretty small house myself, but it is still big enough for Lady. We also have a huge yard, and she loves to go outside, so about 51% of the time she is outside, and the other part she is running around the house. My grandparents live upstairs from us, so she also likes to run around their house when they are gone (shhh...). Anyway, good luck on finding a dog. If you want me to, I can look up some breeders on the internet that qualify the requirements. Let me know if you need help, I'm always here, and that goes for everyone!!