Should I Get a Puppy?

Should I get a puppy? Bringing a puppy into your life is one of the best decisions I ever made- but, it's not for everyone!

If you're considering bringing home a puppy, you'll want to avoid these mistakes! These 7 tips could make all the difference in deciding whether you should get a puppy.

In this post, you'll learn the 7 biggest mistakes- and what to do to decide if a puppy is right for you!

Bringing home a puppy is one of the most memorable days of your life! However, it's not just about adding a puppy to your life. It's about raising a dog who will be a lifelong member of the family.

So, when you're as your thinking about puppy shopping, consider these 7 biggest mistakes. And, if you feel like some of these might be hard to avoid, it might be a good idea to hold off on the puppy purchase.

As a dog trainer, I see these mistakes too often. These are the mistakes that people make that lead them to giving up their puppy, or their dog. Or, who say "never again" to bringing home a specific breed, or just more dogs in the future.

So, save yourself the headache, and make an informed decision about should I get a puppy?

Top 7 Mistakes When Puppy Shopping

1. Accidentally supporting backyard breeding or unethical breeders.

If you ever go to visit a puppy and feel like "you just have to take the dog to get them out of the situation." Run. Period.

Yes, it will be heartbreaking to do, but by taking the puppy or dog away from this situation, you are only supporting the breeder. Who will continue to breed more puppies.

This in turn, leads to more puppies and dogs in shelters, and more puppies and dogs being euthanized due to not having enough space to house them.

As Patricia McConnell says in her book, The Other End of the Leash, "let someone less educated make that mistake."

If you have to do something, contact your local SPCA, dog control officer, or, ask to take the mom or dad home with you instead of the puppy.

Cheapest Time of Year to Buy a Puppy

The price of puppies through private individuals usually fluctuates depending on demand.

In contrast, shelters, rescues and pet stores tend to keep prices relatively stable year round, but still can fluctuate depending on the cost of running the business.

2. Overpaying (or paying at all) for a "designer" breed

These days there are thousands of breeders out there that are marketing breeds like cockapoo, schoodle,puggles, goldador, yorkies, pomskys and more.

In case no one's told you yet: if someone is doing this they are marketing mutts with purebred prices.

There really is no such thing as an "ethical doodle breeder" as anyone who has enough education to be ethical, would know that breeding doodles is contributing to the dog overpopulation crisis the world is experiencing.

And, these breeders have absolutely no way to control a breed standard.

Doodles are cute, but they are high energy, require regular grooming, and can have unpredictable health conditions and behavior problems.

I guarantee you there is a purebred breed of dog who will fit into your household and lifestyle just as well, (and likely better), than a doodle. Plus, the an ethical breeder will be much more educated and offer life-long support.

Worst time to get a puppy

There's arguably no "right time" to get a puppy. Nothing really prepares you for the potty training, teething, and puppy zooms!

However, many people feel like the worst time to bring a puppy home is in the winter when you're having to take potty walks every 1-4 hours.

3. Bringing home the first puppy you meet

Don't get me wrong, your soul-mate dog could be the first one you meet! It also might not be.

ALL puppies are cute. Most are energetic, easy to get along with and happy to see you. What's not to love?

That being said, I know lots of people who made out well with their impulse-buy puppy. It happens!

However, there are tons of puppies in the world looking for homes- and lots of people looking to give a puppy a home. The perfect fit is out there!

This is especially true if you are working with a breeder. A good breeder will be able to help you pick out a good personality to fit into what you want in a dog.

Is 12 weeks too old to get a puppy?

Puppies can leave their mom and littermates around 8 weeks of age. If anyone offers for you to bring a puppy home sooner, that's a good sign to find a different puppy and breeder.

4. Assuming you can't adopt a purebred puppy.

Purebred rescues have become more popular over the years.

To be fair, there's probably less selection on puppies and more selection on older puppies or adult dogs at these purebred rescues.

However, there are lots of reasons that purebreds end up in shelters.

Health and behavior concerns, moving to a new home, or the caretaker passing away could result in someone having to surrender their dog to a shelter.

Best time of year to get a puppy

5. Getting two puppies at the same time.

Bringing home two puppies from the same litter is not for the faint of heart.

I have seen a couple people do this successfully. I have seen many more people not be so successful.

To help illustrate the importance of not doing this: Do you have a sibling?

If yes, do you still live with your sibling? Do you plan to spend the rest of your life living with your sibling? Do you think that if you did live with your sibling for your whole life there might come a point where you want to punch them in the throat for real?

Bringing home siblings seems like a fun, cute idea. However, it's not a natural thing for animals to stay within their litter or with relatives their whole lives.

Bringing home two puppies means making sure you make it a non-negotiable priority to keep them separate for at least 23 hours a day, if not completely separate until about 6-9 months of age.

Should I get a dog?

6. Adopting the wrong breed for your lifestyle

Of course husky puppies are so cute! But, did you know they are bred to run and pull ALL day long?

My most common client that I see for dog training are border collie owners and doodle owners.

The border collie owners almost always aren't exercising their dog enough. And doodles just come with a mystery box of behaviors each time.

My first task with border collie owners is to help them understand they'll need to work to match the intensity of working on a farm for 6-10 hours a day.

Adopting a dog that is not designed for your lifestyle has a huge potential to create tension in the future with you and your family.

All dogs have a purpose. Make sure you do your research and honest self-reflection on what kind of breeds best fit your lifestyle. Don't be afraid to talk to breeders and get their feedback on if they feel the breed is right for you.

When a dog cannot fulfill the job it was bred to do, the drive to do a job will express itself in other ways like herding kids, biting at ankles, chasing cats, pulling on their harness or becoming destructive within the house.

7. Giving into Puppy Fever

I repeat, Every. Single. Puppy. On. The. Earth. Is. Cute.

I believe that every person who wants to adopt a puppy should have the opportunity and go through that experience as many times as they want!

However, a puppy is only a puppy for less than year, and will spend 12-15 years as an adult dog.

Be prepared to take care of the dog the puppy will become and you are prepared to make the life-long commitment to that dog.

Should we get a puppy?

8. Not socializing the puppy enough after adoption

Usually, we don't know too much about adopted puppy's background, parents, siblings, or previous owner. It can be hard to tell what important social milestones the puppy has missed until much later in life when the issues are difficult to correct.

In order to do this, it means taking your puppy on walks, day care, introducing them to people, places, and other animals in a calm positive manner.

For this reason, do NOT take your puppy to the dog park until they are at least 8 months old and have learned proper socialization skills.

Dog parks have the ability to become a recipe for puppies to be bullied and eventually fearful of other dogs.

Ultimately, the best thing you can do is properly socialize your puppy to make sure that any confidence that was lost over their first few months is gained back.

The goal is for your puppy to become confident going into any situation. It makes life easy for you and for them!