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Thinking of getting a dog (or cat)...
ege02
__BANNED USERS regular
__BANNED USERS regular
Lately I have been thinking of getting a canine or feline pet.
Here is my situation: I am a college student living with 3 other people. However, next year I'll most likely move out to a studio by myself, so I won't have to ask anyone's permission but the landlord's.
Cat vs. Dog... I have owned cats before, and while they can be awesome, they aren't near as friendly or social as dogs. And that is what I am looking for in a pet primarily: a good friend.
At the same time, I hear that houses with gardens are almost a requirement for successful dog ownership. And I definitely don't have the money to afford studios with gardens...
Anyway.
For a specific breed, I am looking at Jack Russell Terriers. I read the wiki article about them, and they seem to be very awesome animals in general. The only thing the wiki mentions about owning them as pets is that they require continuous attention, exercise, and training, which I can provide.
Another concern besides housing is that, as a college student, I don't consider myself "settled" yet. Like, I am graduating next year, and I'll most likely do grad school, but I don't know if I'll do it here in Washington or in another state, so moving around is likely. If I get a dog I feel like it is going to discourage me from moving because I have to worry about stuff like transportation, dog getting used to the new place, etc. etc. So how do I figure out whether I am at that point in my life when I can own a dog and not worry about that kind of stuff?
Thanks in advance.
Here is my situation: I am a college student living with 3 other people. However, next year I'll most likely move out to a studio by myself, so I won't have to ask anyone's permission but the landlord's.
Cat vs. Dog... I have owned cats before, and while they can be awesome, they aren't near as friendly or social as dogs. And that is what I am looking for in a pet primarily: a good friend.
At the same time, I hear that houses with gardens are almost a requirement for successful dog ownership. And I definitely don't have the money to afford studios with gardens...
Anyway.
For a specific breed, I am looking at Jack Russell Terriers. I read the wiki article about them, and they seem to be very awesome animals in general. The only thing the wiki mentions about owning them as pets is that they require continuous attention, exercise, and training, which I can provide.
Another concern besides housing is that, as a college student, I don't consider myself "settled" yet. Like, I am graduating next year, and I'll most likely do grad school, but I don't know if I'll do it here in Washington or in another state, so moving around is likely. If I get a dog I feel like it is going to discourage me from moving because I have to worry about stuff like transportation, dog getting used to the new place, etc. etc. So how do I figure out whether I am at that point in my life when I can own a dog and not worry about that kind of stuff?
Thanks in advance.
ege02 on
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However, from the sound of it, I don't think you're really ready for a pet that requires so many special considerations as a dog.
A dog that stays in an apartment must be well-trained, because you don't want to lose your security deposit or piss off your roomates because your dog pisses everywhere. For the first few months it's going to be kind of trial and error, so you need to be patient.
If you want the dog, make it clear to your roomates that it is YOUR dog. Sharing the responsibilities, I promise you now, will not work, so you're going to need to be willing to pick up after it, take it outside, train it, pay attention to it, take it to the vet when it gets sick, make sure that it's up to date on all its shots, get it spayed/neutered, keep it in your room when it's bothering others, tend to it if it's hyper or attention-starved, clip its nails, give it occasional baths so that it doesn't smell bad, buy food and water for it, clean up if it manages to sneak into the garbage or if it learns how to hop onto chairs so that it can hop onto tables to collect scraps and lick dirty dishes... there are a lot of things you need to take into account as far as care goes. In addition to that, small dogs are especially energetic and they need more attention than most larger breeds.
If you're moving and you have a dog, you're going to have to find a studio that will let you have that sort of pet, period. The dog will be able to handle being a new place. I've had two dogs and neither of them had trouble adjusting to a new setting.
If you live in an urban area, you're going to have to find some sort of park where your dog can use its legs a bit and run around.
Now, I don't know much about cats, but I do know that they require quite a bit less attention than a dog. I'm not sure an apartment is a great place for a dog, but if you can handle everything listed then you should be fine. Hopefully you consider this carefully, because buying a dog then getting rid of it to some dog pound isn't really that great for the animal's livelihood.
In summary: Your living situation will make this tougher to manage, but it can be done if you are serious about it. It won't be terrible, but a dog can feel overbearing if you're not a responsible person. You've had a pet before, that cat, so expect a dog to be much more needy in comparison to the cat you had, but also much more affectionate. You probably already know why pets are rewarding, so I won't get into that.
Provided you are willing to spend at least 2 hours every day (more if possible) keeping the dog exercised, stimulated and entertained. A Jack Russel has a huge amount of energy, and if you give it the stimulation and training it needs can be very well behaved. If you don't, then unlike other dogs who may simply become lethargic and bored, a Jack Russell will become unmanageably badly behaved and destroy everything it can get its teeth into (not people, but all your stuff) They need lots of exercise, lots of physical interaction, and lots of time with people. The more of all these they get, the happier and better behaved they will be.
Cats make good apartment pets because they don't require a lot of space. They appreciate space but they don't need it. They also get trained easily (most you simply just put in a litter box and they "get it") and are usually fine moving around. You don't take them outside and they are more "independent" than dogs. You can't "play" with cats in the same way -- you usually just get toys and watch them play with it. You also can't be as rough with cats, and they will generally only associate you with food and petting.
Dogs need to go outside regularly, and they also need exercise. They're also pretty much naturally "chewy" animals and will chew on things without proper training. They will learn what you teach them, but if you DON'T train them, they won't do anything you want them to. And proper training requires patience and a real love for your animal. Of course, the more training and work you put into a dog, the more you bond with the animal as you see your work reflected in the pet, and you can play and roll around with the thing and it won't get upset.
Both will offer companionship, but of a different type. Cats do recognize people, both via sight and smell, and will be friendly if they're treated well, but do not need to be entertained by people in order to go about their lives. They're good pets if you like to have a companion that likes you but doesn't rely on you. Dogs will rely on you, for pretty much everything, meaning that they require more time, but if your lifestyle is compatible with a dog, you could end up more satisfied with a dog.
However, neither work well in a living situation where you have to share it with 3 other people who are not your immediate family is not a good situation for either pet. Both pets can be overstimulated, and you can't depend on your roommates to offer a good living situation. They may play with the pet too much, or undo your training, or feed it bad food, or be mean to it. All of those things are stressful on pets, especially new pets. Pets generally come into roommate situations with the owner, not introduced to a non-pet roommate situation.
I would wait until you're in a studio, and I would suggest matching the pet with your lifestyle. If you generally stay home and enjoy going outside a lot, a dog is perfect. If you like to go out on the weekends and evenings and generally stay inside when you're home, you want a cat. There's a reason that urbanites generally own cats -- it's because they're relatively maintenance free, which is ideal when you're out of the house frequently. That's also why dogs are so common among families with younger kids -- the kids can play with the dog to give it exercise, and there's almost always someone at home so the dog doesn't feel lonely.
There's nothing worse than a dog that just sits around all day with no one home.