<p>We rescued a corgi/beagle/maybe doxie mix a little over a year ago. Everyone thinks he’s a puppy- he kind of has that golden lab puppy look. Our first pet ever. He is 5 years now, and I don’t know if we’ll ever had another dog because he is SO perfect! </p>
<p>From day one he has slept every night, never attempted to chew ANYTHING, never had an accident, loves walking (we take him a total of about an hour a day - over 3 or 4 walks - I’ve lost weight since having him!), is playful when you want him to play, otherwise just quietly follows you around. He DOES NOT BARK - God bless him! We actually almost wondered if he COULD bark - he can, but does it so rarely (like if he is watching a squirrel outside up a tree - and then only one or two barks).</p>
<p>Leaves our food alone - we can sit on the floor with a plate of food and he doesn’t even think of bothering it. His most adorable trait - when we leave during the day for an outing (as opposed to when we leave most of the day for work/school) - he parks himself up on the window seat and watches for when we come home. When we pull in the driveway, he lifts his head up, tail starts wagging, watches us park in the garage, then meets us by the back door with a toy in his mouth ready to play. :)</p>
<p>Ok, he does have one flaw - he sheds. Big deal, I run the vacuum/attachements on the floors once more a week and brush him regularly.</p>
<p>Getting a rescue dog is one of the best decisions we’ve ever made in our life.</p>
<p>Our Lhasa is small, but not purse-sized (23 lbs.) He does follow me everywhere. He even taps on the bathroom door until I let him in. Although he looks like he would shed a ton, he doesn’t. It is also one of the hypo-allergenic breed, which I require. His only issues are that he plucks the tiny bathroom paper cups out of the basket and chews them up. Oh, and he has a disgusting habit that involves our neighbor’s catpoop :(</p>
<p>family, that was definitely true in my family! </p>
<p>When we got our first pit, it was because of my dad’s accident. He was feeling very depressed one day (as his accident had sunk him in to a very deep depression) and when he was driving home, he noticed some people playing with some dogs down the street that looked very beaten up. He stopped because he knew the family and wanted to make sure everything was ok. Turns out, they had rescued the dogs from Detroit (they worked with a pit bull rescue- we had no idea!) and were looking for someone to take the younger dogs since they didn’t have room for them and the young dogs were fine. My dad instantly fell in love with one and brought her home. A few months later after our rott/shepherd mix, and the cat (who was 20) both died, those people showed up on our doorstep beginning us to take in another dog. They weren’t legally required to have as many dogs as they had and had to give up some or else face being shut down. Going to the shelter in our county is automatic death for pits. She was the most pathetic looking dog. She had hundreds of stitches literally keeping her fur together because she had been used as a bait dog. They didn’t think she was going to make it at first, but she pulled through just fine! Unfortunately, our first pit passed away a few months later at the age of 3 due to some condition that she was born with that was untreatable. I don’t remember what it was, but no one caught it until it was too late.</p>
<p>These pits really changed my family’s life. They gave my dad something to do (as he couldn’t work anymore) and he has devoted his life to helping this breed. Our current pit still has the physical scars from what happened to her, but not a mental scar anywhere. She has never shown any aggression toward anyone or anything, although she is terrified of cats and squirrels. I firmly believe that she rescued our family more than we rescued her. And until this time, the thought of bringing a pit bull into the family was terrifying because we had always heard the horror stories. Just the slightest bit of research though showed the dogs for what they really were- misunderstood, wonderful dogs. </p>
<p>I encourage every one who is thinking of getting a pet to adopt from shelters, rescues, etc. They truly are the best animals and just want a chance at a happy home. They have so much love to give! I could never imagine buying from a breeder, but that’s just me.</p>
<p>And with that, I’ll be done talking about my pits. It’s something I’m passionate about, as you can tell :). With that said, my sister has a pug. That little pug chases around my pit bull and constantly bites her. Whenever my pit hears my sister’s car, she goes and hides because she’s terrified of the pug. Personally, I’m always afraid that it’s having an asthma attack because of the way it “breaths”.</p>
<p>It’s true. We’re healthier by all getting out walking. He forces us to be in a good mood when we get home - how could we not with that adoring face waiting for us his tail in full wag! He appreciates whatever you’ve got to give whenever you can give it. A quick belly rub? A car ride? A snuggle under the blanket on the recliner? He’s game for it all. :)</p>
<p>abasket, dog warmers are the best- especially when they snuggle under the blankets with you! Who needs a space heater when you have something far better? haha</p>
<p>Edit: to whoever had the mastiff, I’m so jealous. I love those giants! My professor has one that loves to put its head on my lap whenever I go there for dinner. My legs are always asleep after about 5 minutes.</p>
<p>My fellow dog lovers: grab a kleenex and watch Wendy J Francisco sing about our beloved pets. Not sure I can post a link, so just look on you tube for her version of “God and Dog.” </p>
<p>Wonderful creatures; superior in so many ways to humans! </p>
<p>Our golden doodle has a very weird fetish. He loves to shred paper-if he finds a napkin, tissue, or paper towel, or gets into the trash, he shreds it up and leaves it there. He doesn’t eat it, just holds it down with one paw and uses his mouth to pull up shreds of the paper. </p>
<p>I’m sorry folks, but my rescue 1/2 cocker, 1/2 lhasa apso is the best dog in the world. There has been no dog before him nor will there ever be a better dog. This is a fact. You people are all wrong And, he sings.</p>
<p>NrdsB4, My dog does this too. He once got ahold of a box of tissues…Woah, that was such a mess. His favorite is a napkin with food on it (What fun!)</p>
<p>My Quote:
Thankfully, [doxies aren’t] tall enough to counter-surf.</p>
<hr>
<p>mom2collegekids, objection Doxies are not tall but they are long. When standing up, they can do just as much damage. My doxie jumps up to catch a bag hanging over the countertop.</p>
<hr>
<p>Awe…lol…you must have a full standard-size Doxie… Mine is a “tweenie”…so when he’s on his hind legs or jumps, he can’t reach the counter tops.</p>
<p>However, once there was an ice chest sitting next to a bar stool…he climbed onto the ice chest, then onto the bar stool, and consumed the pizza on the counter. lol</p>
<p>Edit: to whoever had the mastiff, I’m so jealous. I love those giants! My professor has one that loves to put its head on my lap whenever I go there for dinner. My legs are always asleep after about 5 minutes. </p>
<p>That would be me. I hope your professor’s pup isn’t a drooler! My girl lays underneath the table while we eat with her head on the closest feet.</p>
<p>A word about adopting pets: I also think it’s a fantastic idea, and have adopted from our local shelter. We did end up getting our mastiff from a breeder but I also consider her a little bit of a rescue because she was 5 months old when we got her and had been returned because the family decided she would be too big for them. (!) One really frustrating thing we encountered in our search for a mastiff was how very hard it was to adopt from a mastiff rescue. Their requirements were so stringent (I think our fence was too low) that we ended up being unable to adopt. Such a shame, because we really wanted to. :(</p>
<p>suzy, that is a shame, especially since I’ve never met a mastiff with the desire to jump over a fence (they seem like such lazy dogs). We had very strict requirements when we adopted our rescues (which was quite understandable given the breed). Sometimes though, it seems like rescues go too far and they make it quite difficult for the average person to adopt an animal from them. I know they mean well though.</p>
<p>I have rescue cats, but because of my B&B needed a dog whose temperament and personality would be predictable. We are on our second Norwegian Elkhound. He is the sweetest dog around, barks a little but not obnoxiously, and is everyone’s favorite at the dog park. He had me laughing on our morning walk when he was clinging to the few remaining snow piles as if his life depended on it.</p>
<p>We have Batman, a 3 yo Black Lab. He is the best dog in the world. </p>
<p>2350 SAT and a 35 ACT. 4.0 UW and 6 APs. His essay will be about overcoming elbow dysplasia at the too-young age of 2. ECs include marathon sprinkler hopping (he’s so good that the neighbors stop to watch), deer chasing, and helping his master unload the car. And, despite all those over-achievements he’s still the most gentle, lovable and adorable creature I’ve ever met. <3</p>
And, he sings.</p>
I hope your professor’s pup isn’t a drooler! My girl lays underneath the table while we eat with her head on the closest feet.</p>
ECs include marathon sprinkler hopping (he’s so good that the neighbors stop to watch), deer chasing, and helping his master unload the car. And, despite all those over-achievements he’s still the most gentle, lovable and adorable creature I’ve ever met. <3</p>