Dad Wants a Dog...
This is not Corgi related but I was hoping to get some input anyhow since it is about dogs.
My Dad has always had dogs. His favorite was an Australian Shepherd who he adored and took everywhere until she died of cancer when she was 6 or 7 years old. His other dog, who was very old, passed away a few months ago while he was in the hospital and I was going to his house to care for her. Now he is without a pet and looking to get a Queensland Heeler. The issue is this; he now lives alone and is currently going through chemotherapy. He's very week and barely able to take care of himself. He is also a bit of a hoarder so his home is cluttered with "stuff" making it a miserable place to live but he refuses to part with most of the things. It’s not a good living situation for him as it is.
He’s been talking about wanting to get a dog because he’s alone at his house and needs the companionship. He’s been excited about it since he started talking about it a few weeks ago which is a nice change of pace because he’s been feeling very down and defeated. I think he’s right from that aspect; a dog would be good company and lift his spirits. Dogs are great and they do help people get through bad things. The part I worry about is how well will the dog be cared for? If he gets a puppy he has to go through all the training, shots, neutering etc. It’s far too much work for him and the puppy would pay the price. He agreed he would take a one or two year old (still worried about how it would be cared for but not as much as a puppy) but he hasn’t found any adults available so he’s looking at puppies.
He’s meeting up with a breeder today who is bringing him an 8 week old female to look at. This is an awful idea. He knows it is but he’s eager to have a dog and he’s being stubborn and a bit selfish. He asked me about how often Finn has to go out when he was little so I told him about all the work of raising Finn and he said “I don’t suppose there’s anyone I could leave it with for a while” hinting that he wants me to raise it and that’s not possible.
I don’t know what to do. I want what will help my Dad but I don’t want an animal to be put in an unfit home. If he goes into the hospital again or rehab, I can’t take his dog and neither can my brothers. If anything happened the dog would have to be rehomed or returned to the breeder if he’d take it. This whole thing is a mess and I’m so torn.
My Dad has always had dogs. His favorite was an Australian Shepherd who he adored and took everywhere until she died of cancer when she was 6 or 7 years old. His other dog, who was very old, passed away a few months ago while he was in the hospital and I was going to his house to care for her. Now he is without a pet and looking to get a Queensland Heeler. The issue is this; he now lives alone and is currently going through chemotherapy. He's very week and barely able to take care of himself. He is also a bit of a hoarder so his home is cluttered with "stuff" making it a miserable place to live but he refuses to part with most of the things. It’s not a good living situation for him as it is.
He’s been talking about wanting to get a dog because he’s alone at his house and needs the companionship. He’s been excited about it since he started talking about it a few weeks ago which is a nice change of pace because he’s been feeling very down and defeated. I think he’s right from that aspect; a dog would be good company and lift his spirits. Dogs are great and they do help people get through bad things. The part I worry about is how well will the dog be cared for? If he gets a puppy he has to go through all the training, shots, neutering etc. It’s far too much work for him and the puppy would pay the price. He agreed he would take a one or two year old (still worried about how it would be cared for but not as much as a puppy) but he hasn’t found any adults available so he’s looking at puppies.
He’s meeting up with a breeder today who is bringing him an 8 week old female to look at. This is an awful idea. He knows it is but he’s eager to have a dog and he’s being stubborn and a bit selfish. He asked me about how often Finn has to go out when he was little so I told him about all the work of raising Finn and he said “I don’t suppose there’s anyone I could leave it with for a while” hinting that he wants me to raise it and that’s not possible.
I don’t know what to do. I want what will help my Dad but I don’t want an animal to be put in an unfit home. If he goes into the hospital again or rehab, I can’t take his dog and neither can my brothers. If anything happened the dog would have to be rehomed or returned to the breeder if he’d take it. This whole thing is a mess and I’m so torn.
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Jane Christensen on
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I do see why your dad would want a dog and how that could help in his recovery...could you have a heart to heart and say...."dad you can't get a puppy ...for the following reasons" BUT offer to help him find a dog or better yet is their any companion/therapy dogs that people could come and visit with him a couple times a week??? I know this is very hard and I hear your concerns. Is there anyone that could "share" their dog a few hours a week or let him dog sit for them a few hours a week?
May sound strange but I can see where it's hard being all alone!
Good Luck!
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Permalink Reply by Alice on
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Yes, I understand his reason for wanting one as well. If I were thinking of it strictly in relation to him I would say yes, it's a great idea, but I have to think of the dog too.
I really don't know anyone who has a well behaved dog that could come visit him. Finn is too wild. I don't know that it would be enough for him anyway. I think it's mostly at night when he gets lonely. My brothers and I call and/or visit during the day so it's not as bad.
When he called me last night to tell me about meeting with the breeder today I told him a puppy is not right for him. I told him he is not up to raising a puppy yet and he'd be much better off adopting an older dog who is already house broken and more calm. He agreed but he didn't come across an older dog, he came across puppies. I searched Craig's List and the local Heeler rescue and found some possibilities but my brother talked me out of showing them to him. He doesn't think he should have a dog at all until he's better, but realistically, that isn't happening any time soon and maybe this could help him. My brother said if I help him find one and my dad does end up in the hospital, he's leaving it on me to take care of the dog. He's as stubborn as my dad!
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Oh yes...I have 3 brothers!!! I guess my thought is if you do help him find one...make sure it's one that you are capable of having visit occasionally! Being stubborn myself I understand.Does your dad have several chemo sessions left? What about a heeler mix that might be a little easier to handle? Just some thoughts.
Good luck! You're in a hard position!
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3 brothers? Good then you know what it's like. I'm the youngest so that makes it even worse.
We don't know how many more sessions he'll have. Right now he gets them weekly and eventually they may cut back to monthly just to maintain the cancer since they do not think they will be able to get rid of it. That's why waiting for him to be better is not very realistic. I don't know for sure though. We're kind of just waiting to see. He's supposed to have a scan done today to see if he's making any progress and after that is when he's going to see the puppy.
Some of the ones I saw were mixes. I had the same thought. Heelers have a lot of energy and muscle and it may be difficult for him to handle one. I don't know if he would care if it's a mix. He shouldn't but you never know.
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I'm the youngest too...but I learned to run very fast!!!!
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Permalink Reply by Beth on
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Heelers are tough dogs and I would think they would turn up regularly in rescue. I think you should show him the rescue list and maybe if you volunteer to do the legwork and talk to the rescue people and find a more suitable dog for him, he would accept that as a compromise?
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He's set on a Heeler because he loves herding dogs and he's known a couple people with Heelers and loved them. I haven't spent much time with the breed so I only know what I've read about them. Would you say they are more work than a Corgi or Aussie?
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I know someone that has a heeler and she has had to do intense training with this dog to get him to be a good dog...I believe the have higher energy and may be even more stubborn...I don't exactly remember what she said!
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Permalink Reply by Kyle, Megan and Loki on
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Herd dogs are used to getting their way. They are also bred to run all day. putting the two together means in order to make the dog pliable it needs high levels of exercise, and a lot of positive enforcement. If you got a work lined corgi (which I had the very interesting experience of acquiring) you see a lot of this similar behaviour. Not very odd, considering corgis are heelers also, in that the herd animals by nipping at their heels. Show lines, that do not have manditory, or do not often maintain their job/purpose, often lose a lot of their working instinct or characteristics.
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Permalink Reply by Renee on
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How about a companion dog? Ask at the local hospital cancer center. Sometimes they'll have trained dogs that they will sell you or give you depending on circumstanses
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That's a good idea. I thought about that and wasn't sure if cancer patients qualify for companion dogs. I wonder if I can find information online.
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Alice, we met someone with a young Heeler recently and he was talking about how much he needs to run each day to stay happy. I think that over the past few decades, most Corgis have been selected as companions/pets, whereas many more heelers have been bred as working dogs and therefore I think are more likely to be intense than a Corgi.
If you can go through a rescue, they can find a suitable dog with a slightly milder temperament, who is past the puppy crazies stage.
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