Q&A&J

We said yes and then this happened

Bea making her list to dicide whether to get humans.

Maddy is a human being that latches onto a task like a leech. No, that doesn’t sound flattering. Maddy is like this one detective you want on your case. She is a vigilante, a hound (quite fitting for this blog), she completes the triumvirate of Woodward, Bernstein and Killinger. She’s doing research like no other, is what I’m trying to say.

The day, no, the minute, we made the decision that we wanted to get a dog, it was go time for her. And if I’m being perfectly honest, I think she started figuring out the best breed long before we had actually agreed. Be that as it may, she combed through the internet, of course. She found books, videos and articles, but also online tests like the one from the AKC or a test put together by Forbes.com.

Maddy's questions

Maddy came up with a whole bunch of questions to ask ourselves. These questions naturally were quite individualized for our personal situation. But I’m going to give you some that will hopefully make it easier for you to decide what kind of dog to get. First of all let’s return to our two sections. In the last post we discussed the make or break section, now it’s time to take a closer look at the personal preferences section:  

1. Does it have to be a puppy, or do I want to rescue a dog?

2. How much time am I willing to spend with the dog?

3. How much space will my dog have?

4. How about my family? Does the dog need to be friendly?

5. Do I need a guardian or a friend or something in between?

6. Do I have easy access to nature or a dog park?

7. Am I physically fit to control the breed I want to get? 

8. Is a vet close by or will I need a car/public transportation? 

9. What about the coat of fur? Am I willing to clean a lot or a whole lot? 

10. Is grooming a fun activity? 

11. Do I love the sound of barking in the morning?

12. Can I handle some attitude especially when training the dog? 

Lucky number 13!

These are just the first questions that came to our minds. Of course you need to add questions pertaining to your individual situation. Maybe you don’t need all of them, maybe you need another twelve. Just make sure to answer all of them honestly. There’s nothing to win here if you lie to yourself and end up with a dog that is completely wrong for your life.

Our J.

Maddy and I sat down and did just that, we went over these questions, answered them and came up with a couple of possibilities. One more thing was that we both had a breed in mind from when we were kids. That was also a sort of influence. You see, all of this serves the purpose of coming to a decision that will affect a large portion of your life. The serious stuff is important, but make sure that it stays fun! You want the best for your new furry friend, that’s clear as day, and a very important factor is to enjoy your life with a dog. It won’t always be easy, especially in the beginning, but if you are genuinely able to find joy even during challenging times, it will be worth it all the more. So as a number thirteen make sure to add some J to your Q&A.

Did you find more or different questions before you got a dog? Tell us your questions, we'd love to read them!