Hi everyone. I've seen a couple of these laying around here and am wondering if I could get some input into what my next dog could be. The earliest this would happen is in at least a year or so, but I know that some wait lists can be long so I want to go through the research process now and get an idea of what I should look for.
So a little bit about my living situation. I'm 20 and am currently living with my mom (38) and brother (17) while I go to school, which I hopefully graduate from by the end of next April, and may continue to live at home for the next little while. I currently have an 8yo mini dachshund and a 2yo cat, while my mom owns a 3yo frenchie and my brother owns a 7yo cat. We live in a nice, quiet neighbourhood in a two story house with a small fenced in backyard and pool, with parks being a short walk/drive. I live in southwestern Ontario Canada, so it can be winter here 5-6 months out of the year, and so there may be some days where I won't be able to take the dog out for a walk due to bad weather. It can also get very hot and humid here as well. I've kind of wondered if using a treadmill for these days would help with getting dogs exercise during this time of year or to just stay away from it?
Now, what I'm looking for in my next dog. It can be small to large sized, though I don't really want a dog 100lbs or more. No big grooming requirements. I would like to be able to take the dog for hikes as well as frequent walks and maybe runs, depending. Easy to train. Companion dog. Friendly or reserved with strangers. My dachshund hates people and other animals and I don't really want that in my next dog, especially because it's hard to take her out for walks and she almost can never leave the house. She's reactive and we've worked on it with her since she was a puppy, and we can work with it, but I'd just like a dog I can take with me everywhere in the future. Good with other dogs and cats. I'd also be interested in getting into obedience, agility, or nosework as there's a club nearby that do these kind of things. It would probably only be recreational though and isn't a requirement, but I thought it could potentially benefit the dog.
Any thoughts or ideas? I like the idea of adopting a dog, but while it's fortunate that shelters around here rarely get any, it also seems like the adoption process tends to do more harm than good from what friends and family have described. Some expect people to stay home all day with the pets and work from home, or they never get back to the people who are interested in adopting, among other things.
So a little bit about my living situation. I'm 20 and am currently living with my mom (38) and brother (17) while I go to school, which I hopefully graduate from by the end of next April, and may continue to live at home for the next little while. I currently have an 8yo mini dachshund and a 2yo cat, while my mom owns a 3yo frenchie and my brother owns a 7yo cat. We live in a nice, quiet neighbourhood in a two story house with a small fenced in backyard and pool, with parks being a short walk/drive. I live in southwestern Ontario Canada, so it can be winter here 5-6 months out of the year, and so there may be some days where I won't be able to take the dog out for a walk due to bad weather. It can also get very hot and humid here as well. I've kind of wondered if using a treadmill for these days would help with getting dogs exercise during this time of year or to just stay away from it?
Now, what I'm looking for in my next dog. It can be small to large sized, though I don't really want a dog 100lbs or more. No big grooming requirements. I would like to be able to take the dog for hikes as well as frequent walks and maybe runs, depending. Easy to train. Companion dog. Friendly or reserved with strangers. My dachshund hates people and other animals and I don't really want that in my next dog, especially because it's hard to take her out for walks and she almost can never leave the house. She's reactive and we've worked on it with her since she was a puppy, and we can work with it, but I'd just like a dog I can take with me everywhere in the future. Good with other dogs and cats. I'd also be interested in getting into obedience, agility, or nosework as there's a club nearby that do these kind of things. It would probably only be recreational though and isn't a requirement, but I thought it could potentially benefit the dog.
Any thoughts or ideas? I like the idea of adopting a dog, but while it's fortunate that shelters around here rarely get any, it also seems like the adoption process tends to do more harm than good from what friends and family have described. Some expect people to stay home all day with the pets and work from home, or they never get back to the people who are interested in adopting, among other things.