4 ms·

You make some great points, but don't forget that Tuna was already trained...if you are to get a dog, or shall I say puppy, the training process will take a lot

You make some great points, but don't forget that Tuna was already trained...if you are to get a dog, or shall I say puppy, the training process will take a lot of dedication--this means time AND effort. Remember, the puppy won't come with a routine...you have to get him/her into a routine--yes, it sounds nice but it's not easy. Having a startup and raising a puppy together seem like a pretty tough combination, especially if this will be your first puppy. Once the pup is trained, though, you'll reap all the benefits as you did with Tuna--you just have to be very very dedicated during that first month. I don't mean to discourage you at all. I've had 2 dogs, pretty much raised the one by myself, and don't regret it at all but I did want to give that insight so it doesn't go over your head! If you have any specific questions about what goes into raising a puppy, feel free to reply here or email me at aashayk@gmail.com.

minimize_me 14y ago
You don't have to go through the process of imprinting a routine from scratch with a rescue dog, do you?
- aashaykumar92 14y ago
  That really depends on the rescue dogs' condition.
  - ryan-allen 14y ago
    Generally their condition is decent. Good shelters tend to only re-home dogs that score well in sociability and training.
- tillk 14y ago
  A rescue dog — unless maybe really, really old — needs to be challenged constantly. And by challenged, I mean — these dogs are/were rescue dogs for a reason. :) Challenges include games and tasks, and all that. These dogs need "work" to feel alive.
  - brixon 14y ago
    Your talking about police/fire/ems dogs, but they are talking about saved dogs from bad situations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_dog http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_dog
    - tillk 14y ago
      My bad. Language barrier! :)
  - Jabbles 14y ago
    I believe you're talking about "search and rescue" dogs. The others were talking about dogs that had been rescued from abusive or neglectful owners. In any case, you are correct :)
mmariani 14y ago
Unless his co-founder helps him a bit by letting Tuna stay with him and his puppy for a while. Puppies learn much faster when they have an older dog around so that they can copy their behavior. I have an English Cocker Spaniel that once gave birth to three beautiful puppies. What had taken me 1.5 years to teach to their mother took me virtually no time to teach them. It was incredible. And also, a lot of fun! :)
- pajju 14y ago
  Excellent points, esp. "Puppies learn much faster when they have an older dog around so that they can copy their behavior."
- btrautsc 14y ago
  I am in the midst of this right now. I have a 4 y.o chocolate lab and my wife surprised me with a chocolate puppy for Christmas. The 4 year old is amazing, one of the most calm dogs I've ever had - and the puppy is picking it up fast. Sure, she definitely wants to be up early, rough house more often, and is still learning - but she is unbelievably more calm than other 5 month old puppies I've experienced.
spmurrayzzz 14y ago
I think you're correct in saying that the training experience will require a high transaction cost and level of dedication. But I think there is a correlation there with many of the points OP makes in his note. The dog won't train him/herself so you must dedicate yourself to some sort of schedule in order to reap any progress; if you won't, who will? This is well aligned with the first point OP makes. I found the early period of my dog's training to be, by far, the most rewarding both in intrinsic and extrinsic manifestations. I now have a very well behaved dog and I've seen numerous latent benefits in my health and well-being as well. Ill concede that the most important change I've seen in myself has been a decrease in selfishness and an overall increase in empathy. I am often doing things for my dog simply because I put myself in his shoes (e.g. making sure to take him out right before he goes to sleep, because I know how uncomfortable it is to try to sleep with a full bladder). This seems juvenile and seems like it should appeal to anyone with common sense, and it probably does, but for me it was an important lesson that translated universally across my current life experience. A lesson I likely wouldn't have learned without my dog to teach me.

minimize_me 14y ago

You don't have to go through the process of imprinting a routine from scratch with a rescue dog, do you?

aashaykumar92 14y ago
That really depends on the rescue dogs' condition.
- ryan-allen 14y ago
  Generally their condition is decent. Good shelters tend to only re-home dogs that score well in sociability and training.
tillk 14y ago
A rescue dog — unless maybe really, really old — needs to be challenged constantly. And by challenged, I mean — these dogs are/were rescue dogs for a reason. :) Challenges include games and tasks, and all that. These dogs need "work" to feel alive.
- brixon 14y ago
  Your talking about police/fire/ems dogs, but they are talking about saved dogs from bad situations. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_dog http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rescue_dog
  - tillk 14y ago
    My bad. Language barrier! :)
- Jabbles 14y ago
  I believe you're talking about "search and rescue" dogs. The others were talking about dogs that had been rescued from abusive or neglectful owners. In any case, you are correct :)

mmariani 14y ago

Unless his co-founder helps him a bit by letting Tuna stay with him and his puppy for a while. Puppies learn much faster when they have an older dog around so that they can copy their behavior. I have an English Cocker Spaniel that once gave birth to three beautiful puppies. What had taken me 1.5 years to teach to their mother took me virtually no time to teach them. It was incredible. And also, a lot of fun! :)

pajju 14y ago
Excellent points, esp. "Puppies learn much faster when they have an older dog around so that they can copy their behavior."
btrautsc 14y ago
I am in the midst of this right now. I have a 4 y.o chocolate lab and my wife surprised me with a chocolate puppy for Christmas. The 4 year old is amazing, one of the most calm dogs I've ever had - and the puppy is picking it up fast. Sure, she definitely wants to be up early, rough house more often, and is still learning - but she is unbelievably more calm than other 5 month old puppies I've experienced.

spmurrayzzz 14y ago

I think you're correct in saying that the training experience will require a high transaction cost and level of dedication. But I think there is a correlation there with many of the points OP makes in his note. The dog won't train him/herself so you must dedicate yourself to some sort of schedule in order to reap any progress; if you won't, who will? This is well aligned with the first point OP makes. I found the early period of my dog's training to be, by far, the most rewarding both in intrinsic and extrinsic manifestations. I now have a very well behaved dog and I've seen numerous latent benefits in my health and well-being as well. Ill concede that the most important change I've seen in myself has been a decrease in selfishness and an overall increase in empathy. I am often doing things for my dog simply because I put myself in his shoes (e.g. making sure to take him out right before he goes to sleep, because I know how uncomfortable it is to try to sleep with a full bladder). This seems juvenile and seems like it should appeal to anyone with common sense, and it probably does, but for me it was an important lesson that translated universally across my current life experience. A lesson I likely wouldn't have learned without my dog to teach me.