Our circumstances can change significantly over a dog’s lifetime, and we might have very different considerations from last time when planning to add another dog to the family. As Jackie Drakeford explains, there’s a lot to consider.
1 Puppy or adult?
Rescue or rehome? Puppies are full-on hard work, so we need to have the time and energy to give them and us the best start together. Many adult dogs dislike puppies, or simply need some peace and quiet from their relentless energy, so creating downtime for each by separating them needs to be planned. Dogs from rescue, no matter how well treated while in kennels, will have a certain amount of bewilderment or even trauma to work through, and those from abroad may never have seen humans as their friends.
Many dogs end up in rescue as adolescents, and the majority of dogs can be difficult going through this phase, just as our own human teenagers can demonstrate. If we take on an adult dog from another home, perhaps because owners are emigrating, have parted from each other or had to move into accommodation that does not allow pets, we can ask for a list of commands with which the dog is familiar, its likes and dislikes, and any behavioural particulars, for instance, if it is adept at opening the fridge door or reacts badly to certain types of another dog.
However, all homes have different standards, so we may need patience while establishing new house rules. Some dogs, puppy or adult, are very good at teaching families to be tidy, though there might be some whining initially!
2 Are we able to give as much exercise as the new dog needs, or has it been a hidden blessing that our old dog has wound down at a similar rate to our own health? Exercise can take many forms, and we may no longer be able to yomp for miles over the hills. Though some dog types can happily manage with less outside time, as long as they get adequate mental enrichment from training and games, others really do have to run.
3 Did our previous dog offer challenges that we managed well, but don’t want to have to deal with again?
This might be coat care, working instinct, hardwired behaviour, such as prey drive, or an affinity with getting wet and muddy at the slightest opportunity, health problems such as entropion or hip dysplasia, or physical matters such as extensive drooling. So when we make our shortlist of stuff-we-don’t-want, that is just as important as those traits we find appealing.
4 Noise! Some breeds and types are programmed to be noisy, while other
