dog question

[Doglover]

I have a question. I am not saying we are getting another dog, but IF we ever did was sex would be the best? We have a male Chihuahua/Rat Terrier mix, who is a kinda mean little fart, he is about 12 lbs. And we have a femal hound mix who is lke 30 lbs. I was thinking if we got a big dog it should be a male.....but what do you all think?

[TangoWedding]

I've always had way better luck with male dogs personally. My female is great, but BOY she's hardheaded. And she was tougher to potty train.

However, my brother just got a female ratchi (chihuahua/rat terrier mix) and said she's already potty trained at 3 months. So....maybe it's just my big biotch. :bblol:

[shawnsgirl]

You should be fine if you got a mild tempered male dog to introduce into the home. You just have to make sure he isn't territorial. Two territorial male dogs can easily bump heads!!

[bichonlvr]

I grew up with only male dogs, then my parents got a girl and she was SOOOOs sweet and just different. So I got a female and she is the best, BUT she is hard headed and she LOVES MEN!!! Which I have heard a lot of female dogs are like!!! She gets mad at me and pisses on my stuff, but 99% of the time, she is a LOVE!!!!!

[PGDesigns]

A lot of it depends on the dogs. Are your current dogs spayed and neutered? That can make a HUGE difference and can help diffuse any hormonal/territorial problems.

In general, opposite sexes do better together. Males tend to fight and get it over with. Usually once the alpha dog is established, that's it. However, females sometimes will challenge each other for top dog repetitively. That being said, I have two females and one male, and everything is great.

I would go with getting an adult dog, though, so that you will know what the dog's personality will be. A lot of people think that getting a puppy to raise and train how they want will guarantee a good personality and acceptance, and that isn't always the case. Puppies' personalities can change once they hit adulthood.

Perhaps try a shelter or rescue organization who uses foster homes to care for their dogs. That way, they can match you up with a dog that fits into your existing family. Try www.petfinder.com to find local animals who are in need of homes. (Plus, rescue organizations already have their animals vetted, including spay/neuter, deworming, vaccinations, etc, which can easily cost hundreds of dollars if you had to pay it all out of pocket.)

Good luck!

[Doglover]

Neither of our dogs are fixed, but we are getting them done ASAP. I like females better, my little boy is a handful!! I was thinking a female would be easier cause our male is the more aggressive one.....but then i was thinking we should get a male bc our female is the big one so maybe it'd be easier if she was witha different gender. But at our local shelter they post which animals are going to be killed soon. And theres dogs that only have until Monday....i have posted about this before,when i wanted to save a bunch of kittens. But there is this one dog that looks exactly like my Harley, its a chihuahua.rat terrier mix and they said its SOOOO SCARED, heres the pic
http://www.arfnets.org/admin/shelter/Dog/2115.jpg

here is a pic of MY chi/rat terrier mix. They look exactly the same.
http://photos-434.ll.facebook.com/photos-ll-sf2p/v67/91/80/501552434/n501552434_23064_2614.jpg (http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?pid=23065&id=501552434)

[NicksBride]

awww look how scared that poor baby is. I would be careful about introducing that timid of a dog with your other dogs. They are usually wel suited with a one dog family as timidness can resort to aggressiveness. But we have ALL male dogs and we never had a problem with aggression or anything. Generally male dogs are much more tempremental and easier to introduce to other dogs. Just be careful with scared shelter animals!

[nic1124]

I've always preferred male dogs, I just think some female dogs can be wicked bitches. Not all, but some.

[PGDesigns]

I have three shelter dogs, one of which was terrified. If it hadn't been for the other dogs in the house, she would've had a much harder time adjusting to us. The other dogs showed her that she could relax around us and really gave her confidence.

You'd be surprised how quickly shelter animals can adapt to new homes. It's sad that more people aren't willing to give them a chance.

[Doglover]

I just don't want him to be killed!!! UHHH I can't stand to just sit here and let them do that!!!! Makes me so burning mad!!

[NicksBride]

Yea that is soooo sad! Vermont has the Save our Strays program that we got both our dogs at. They come from high kill shelters. its just sooo dang sad!!

[Doglover]

should i do it???? I mean there is never going to be a good time to get another dog. It would be much better if we were already moved and had our fence up but he will be dead by then. But then i know there will always be dogs that are about to be put down and theres nothing i can do. :(

[WendyNC]

I wouldn't recommend getting a dog based on an emotional reaction. You have to make sure the new dog will get along with the older ones, it is their territory after all.

Maybe you could foster the dog while you try to get him into a no-kill facility.

[WebLady]

I agree it is sad to think about what happens to animals in shelters, but we can't save them all. One thing we all can do to help is to spay/neuter our pets.

But I wouldn't add another pet to your family just to save one from the pound, if that makes any sense. I mean, you need to choose a dog that is right for your family and will fit well into your pack.

You don't want to bring a scared/timid dog into your home if you have an overly aggressive/dominant male; they will fight and/or your boy will bully the new dog and it will be miserable. These situations can be stressful for everyone involved and can take a long time to overcome.

In a situation like this I would say you need to find a dog that is happy to give in the pack dynamics that are already in place in your home. But you also need to make sure your dogs will welcome the new dog. It isn't always about what you want with dogs.

If you want another dog, I would try a local all breed rescue and they will help you find a dog that will fit into your family.

[Doglover]

:( i don't want nor do i need a new dog i just want to save one,i sorta feel like i have an obligation to, but i know i don't. i can't help but to look at the website where they show the dogs. Just really really depresses me and makes me cry. I just want to help one if i can. Theres kittens too...baby newborn kitten that are going to be killed. :(

[Doglover]

http://www.arfnets.org/admin/shelter/Cat/2053.jpg

[Doglover]

theres an adult female beagle and it says shes good with other dogs and very sweet.

[PGDesigns]

Would fostering be an option for you?

Many people would like to help but can't take on the financial burden or lifetime committment of a pet. Rescue groups are always looking for foster homes.

When you foster, the rescue group will usually pay the bills for the animal while you give the pet a temporary home. Fostering can be hard work (in terms of getting attached to each pet) but it is very rewarding, especially when you look at it in simple terms: By fostering a pet, you are opening up room in the shelter system and allowing another one to be spared.

I know I posted the link for Petfinder.com a couple times today in different posts, but it is a great resource. They have a list of local shelters and rescue organizations, along with their contact info.

Just a thought. :D

[WebLady]

It is sad indeed, but if you are in a place to add to your family you probably shouldn't look. In this case maybe you can email all the pet people you know, maybe one of them are in a better place to help.

Like I said before, it is sad, but you cannot save them all. The best thing you, or any of us, can do is to take the best care of our own pets (spay/neuter, etc) and not contribute to the problem. You can get pamphlets and pass the word around to others if you want as well.

The cycle will continue as long as there are people out there that dump animals when they are not wanted anymore and those that don't have their pets altered to prevent unwanted litters.

This is a topic that I have strong feelings about, so I hope I have not upset anyone with my opinions. I am not going to say anymore; all the best to you in whatever you decide to do :)

[Doglover]

oh no im not offended by anything you've said, I agree about getting animals fixed. Very important. I have major anxiety about dog issues. I would consider fostering,but maybe i should wait til we actually get the yard fenced. And i know I would get so attached. We want to add more dogs to our family for sure, we are obsessed with dogs(as you can tell by my screenname).But this still isn't helping the dogs that are going to die on monday. I seriously can't hold my tears in when i think about how they aren't going to be here on monday. I even called a no kill shelter and asked if i BOUGHT the cats or dogs from a kill shelter could i brought them to their shelter and they said you can't do that.

[Soon to be Mrs. Wodnick]

I have two female pups, (one maltese/yorkie mix and a chihuahua) and they are both so, so sweet. I have noticed that chihuahuas sometimes aren't as friendly. So I wonder if it is more of a breed thing rather than a gender thing.

I know people have said that girl dogs are harder to potty train. I don't think that's true. My maltese/yorkie was fully potty trained within a week of us getting her (so that would be between 12 and 13 weeks old). But my chi, it took her over a month...but that was because we got her at almost 5 months old...she already had some habits that were hard to break.

Good luck...and if you have having a hard time picking a type...I would highly suggest a maltese/yorkie...she is the smartest, cutest dog ever! :puppy:

[Doglover]

yeah i read online that females are easier to potty train, and our female was better at it then our male. Our chihuahua is just LOUD and playful and is on the aggressive side when it comes to his bones.

[miranda]

Personally, I think it sounds like your male would cause problems with any other male who isn't fully submissive. So I think chihuahuas are out of the picture for you! Especially if you're looking for a bigger dog, I'd suggest female.

It's funny, but for us, our male was so much easier to potty train than our female!!! Our male took about two days to potty train, whereas Laika took about six months to get fully trained!!! That was even doing the crate training! Even now she has problems with the excited/submissive pee!