Puppy or older dog?

Question

Is it better to get a puppy you can train yourself and will adapt better in a new home or an older dog that is past the destructive phase? We have no other pets or children...

We are not lazy to train a puppy but we have to think that we are at work all day, I understand that the chewing phase will pass and anything they destroy can be replaced I was just wondering what was the general opinion even though I've always thought that a rescue dog is the way to go...thanks for all you replies.

Answer 1

a rescue dog or taking on somebody Else's dog has its own problems my rescue dog was 1 year old and destructive and had to to be trained very carefully because she would get over excited with praise but if you tried to tell her off she would run for life she became a well trained and trusting dog with a lot of hard work you can see this by my web site http://members.lycos.co.uk/stuartbriscoe/

Answer 2

Either one. But if you go to a shelter I would look into some of the older ones. Puppies have a better chance at adoption or are adopted faster sometimes. So if there is any older dogs there give them a second chance at a good home. I did that twice in my life. The first time I ever had adopted a dog she was 8yrs old when I got her. There were puppies that time I went but I choose to take her home instead. Then when we had to have her put down, I got 2 rat terriers. One was from a breeder and was a puppy when we got him. The other one was a shelter dog and was around 2yrs old when we got him and I choose a older dog that time too. There are some wonderful dogs at a shelter sometimes. But if you want a puppy go ahead it's your choice sometimes puppies can be better like you said you can train them to the way you want them to be. The again older dogs are already housebroken sometimes and they have little or no training required in them. So whatever you choose hope you have fun with the new dog of your choice.

Answer 3

Well I think getting an older dog is way better!! not nearly as much work, stress or training required. I dont know if you have ever had a puppy before but they are a handful... some are easy to train others are harder and some are extremely difficult. It all depends on the individual dog. You can train an older dog just as easily and perhaps easier than a puppy... because they are more mature, calm focused and have a greater attention span. I have 3 dogs, 1 I raised from a pup and I was lucky because he was so good, never chewed a stick of my furniture was housetrained so easy, learned tricks like you wouldnt believe and basically was a breeze to raise into an adult. My 2nd dog was a 6-7 yo stray I found she was even easier to incorporate into the family, I have retrained her alot, renamed her everything and it was so much easier not to have to go through housetraining again or teething or all that stuff you have to do with puppies.. Now for some idiotic reason I got another dog and he is a pup and he is severely trying my patience, I love him to death and he is here for life but man he is BAD!! chews everything he can, including my couch, my blankets, my shoes, everything!! he is having a really hard time being housetrained hes in the "challenging authority" stage right now and talks back to me all the time, hyper, short attention span etc etc Now I am looking at my other dogs and appreciating how easy it was to train them, especially the older one who already had some life wisdom and some calm dignity. If ever I get another dog when these guys pass on I know it will be an adult, because I am so tired of the puppy phase right now I dont ever want another puppy... I do love having a puppy but at times I wish I could just fast forward to his adulthood and get around all the terrible twos and the destructiveness and the housetraining and all that crap because it is very stressful...

PS You can teach an older dog as many tricks as you want as long as that is part of their personality... you can form a bond just as easily with an adult dog too and perhaps even more so as they are grateful for being rescued. Puppies are great and all but an older dog is even better, dont think for a second that you cant teach them or bond with them or have a great time... I think its better because you skip all the hard parts of owning a dog which is the puppy phase, and go straight to the enjoyment part of the relationship where you can form a good companionship without all the puppy crap..lol

Answer 4

I think that an older dog is always better, especially for people who don't have the time or energy to train a puppy. Older dogs are already house trained, may know some basic commands, and get settled in the family "pack" relatively quickly compared to puppies. Rescuing older dogs gives an added benefit, because many spend the rest of their lives in shelters. I have had both a puppy and an older dog, and think having the older dog was one of the best times of my life.

Answer 5

It depends on the type of person you are. Do you have the patience to deal with a young puppy - full of energy, destructive at times, lots and lots of kisses, house breaking, the vet appointments and shots, patient, able to discipline such a cute little thing, etc? Or are you kind of a laid back person who already has a routine and doesn't really want to spend hours house breaking a dog, and doensn't have the patience to deal with destructiveness?

It's always nice to rescue a dog from the shelters. Many shelters after just a few days will put the dogs down, even if the only thing that's been wrong is their owners leaving them to fend for themselves. Rescue dogs are always loving, and will appreciate a new home because now they know what its like to be stuck in a crate for most of their time.

Puppies are great too - they can adapt to a new home very quickly. Their minds are still young and they'll learn very quickly. If you do things correctly, your puppys destructive phase won't be that bad. Buy her a toy such as Kong that will keep her/him entertained for hours, discipline her accordingly (By that I mean, yell at her while she's in the act of destroying something.. by doing it after she won't remember what you're yelling at her about).

In my opinion, I would rescue a dog over owning a puppy. Although I have done both. So the bottom line is, really, what kind of person are you?

Answer 6

Hi, well really you would be better off getting a puppy. That way you can train it and it will adapt to you more easy. Getting an older dog would be hard work too as he won't be used to being in a different place, this will confuse and he might get an upset stomach and have diareah and be sick through getting passed about so much. i should know this as i got an older dog from rescue centre he still neede house training and it was very hard work. either way it's up to you, and either way t will hard work. i think you shoulod have a long think before you go getting a puppy or an older dog as each 1 of them can be very hard work. Hope this helps! Love kizza!!

Answer 7

There are good things and bad things to both sides.

A puppy has to have total attention from you when you are tring to train. The can shred something in the blink of an eye, plus your going to have some bathroom accidents. *****But the good things about a puppy are: They will only look to you for guidence because you will be the only owner the dog remembers. You can watch the dog grow into a beautiful dog, and plus, you can teach the dog easier because puppies pick up on things easier than an adult dog.

The good thing about getting an adult dog is, no messes, no training, and no hyperness. The bad thing is you don't know where this dog came from, how it's been treated, or what kind of medical problems its had. Adult dogs are great though, plus they are ready to just lay around most of the time.

Good luck with choosing!

Answer 8

Basic Training of the Puppy - Read here https://tr.im/q7CMV

The new puppy is certainly one of the most adorable and cuddly creatures that has ever been created. It is the most natural thing in the world to shower it with love and affection. However, at the same time it is important to realize that if you want to have a well trained adult dog, you need to begin the training process right away. The dog, like its related ancestor, the wolf, is a pack animal. One of the features of a pack is that it has a single dominant leader. Your new puppy is going to want that leader to be you, but if you do not assume that role from the very beginning, the puppy’s instincts will push him to become the leader.

The most important thing to remember about training the puppy during its first six months of life is that it must see you as the leader of the family pack. The essential thing is gaining the trust and the respect of the puppy from the beginning. You will not do this by allowing the puppy to do whatever it wants to do whenever it wants to do it. On the other hand, a certain amount of patience is required. Most people err in their early training by going to extremes one way or the other. Although you need to begin the basic training process at once, you can not expect your dog to do too much at first. Basic obedience training is fine and should include simple commands like sit, stay, and come. Remember that trying to teach the dog advanced obedience techniques when it is a puppy is much like trying to teach a five year old child algebra.

It is also important to restrain from cruel or abusive treatment of the puppy. You can not beat obedience into your dog, and it certainly is not going to engender feeling of respect and trust. House breaking is an area where this usually becomes a problem because of the anger that is triggered when the puppy fails and creates a mess inside the home. Although this issue must be addressed without anger, it most be addressed. If you allow the puppy to eliminate inside the house, it will continue to do so as an adult dog. The same thing is true of other destructive or dangerous behavior such as chewing and biting. Do not expect the puppy to grow out of it. You are going to need to train the puppy out of it, but you should do so firmly but with a sense of play and fun using positive reinforcement and lots of love and praise for good behavior.

Answer 9

Volunteering at the Humane Society we see MANY dogs and cats and always the kittens and puppies go first. So, of course my answer will be a older dog. They still have so much to give and are most likey trained and very well behaved. But even so might need a refresher . Check out these sites that we refer people to that question puppy or older dog... I'm sure what ever you choose you will provide a awesome home for it. THe fact you ask makes me think you will be a great pet-parent!

Answer 10

Our last dog, a Pomeranian, we found at the Humane Society. Her owners had to give her up because they moved to an apartment with no pets allowed. She was 2 years old at the time, and completely house trained. She was perfect in every way, and she was a faithful little companion for 13 years. Puppies are cute, but the house training can be a huge chore. There are so many older dogs at the shelters that need good homes - I would recommend an older dog.

Answer 11

it depends what your looking for. puppies are alot of work, get a smarter breed, like a german shepard or a poodle or a border collie (they need LOTS of excersize though)but it pays off in the end, youll need to house train them and let them sleep in a crate when you first get them so they dont pee all over, they will whine when they need to go potty. teach them basic commands like sit stay come and go potty when they are outside. youll also have a strong bond with them and they will be with you longer. Getting a rescue dog is also great because your saving a life! and who knows they could already be trained. think about it. go to a shelter and look around, then go to a puppy place and ask to see a puppy, dont make a choice until you have weighed all your options, how much time can you spend with it, do you want to work and care for a puppy, are you able to pay all the puppy medical bills (they need lots of vet visits the first six months or so. will you get them spayed? most dogs that owners give away or that you find at a shelter are cheaper and usually are house broken. that is a good start. make a list of pros and cons and then think about your role in the dogs life, do you go out alot are you there most of the time so they can get a schedule down? that is very important, and if your not can someone let your dog out or feed it for you? ps IF YOU GET A DOG OR A PUPPY AND YOU HAVE A NICE HOUSE OR YOU DONT WANT ANYTHING MESSED UP GET THESE GOLD GATES FROM PETSMART THEY ARE THE BEST THING IN THE WORLD!!! they come in different sizes and are detachable so you can block off your stairs or anywhere else, they also can be very big to act like a fence outside. i hope this helps! and remember dogs and especially puppys will chew tear and drag anything around so dont leave anything on the floor.