Let's be honest, Dogs are a huge responsablity, they are just like having another child in the family.
If you feel you are up to your eyeballs already, then now is "Not The Time" to get a dog!
Things to consider:
If you have young children you need to get a more tolerant breed, like a labrador, and if its not a labrador, then you need to participate in all activities to ensure your children are safe. Of coursee there are other breeds that are trustworthy, but you need to research this not just rush off on a whim and buy the first cute thing you see! What ever breed you get, "You" will Need To Train Them, You are the adult, not the child, and the dog is an ANIMAL, it is NOT a HUMAN! Whether you pay someone else to do that for you or not, you will have to keep it up after their initial training sessions are done. Animals are creatures of habit and they will look to you as their Leader.
Dont just "Hope for the Best" People get too carried away with the Cuteness, Coolness, and Image of a dog instead of considering the effort involved in taking care of them, and whether or not they have the time to educate and interact with this four legged Animal.
Are you looking forward to having "Extra Work To Do?" Your dog will Defacate, it will Urinate, it will Eat and Eat and Eat, it may get Fleas, it could get Ticks, it may run off on you occasionally, and, it will need Regular Excerise, are you really up for all of this?
Are you able to Love another living being? Give it your time and always consider its Comfort, Health and General Wellbeing?
If you are one of those people who has a little free time, patience, money and are committed to being a parent again then you might want to look into adoption, but be aware that many of the dogs people promote as "desperately needing a new home" May have issues, that you are unable to resolve.
Sadly many of these poor animals have ended up in a sitution because of all of the above, and have consequently learnt many bad habits through either being uneducated, mistreated or neglected.
If you are willing to spend the time and money to help one of these beautiful mis understood animals then that is a wonderful thing, but please think about this deeply, sleep on it before you go rushing into a life changing desicion.
