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Buying The Wrong DogJackie Drakeford |
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I often wonder,
when I see a dog and its owner totally at odds, why on earth the owner bought
that breed in the first place. Those who keep working dogs tend to
understand the job they were bred to do and the way they do it. They
do not, generally speaking, purchase a pointer if what they need is a retriever.
Those among them who own unusual breeds of working dogs are normally
prepared to find them more work for less result than they would get from
the traditional types. It therefore perplexes me when people choose
on of the more driven working breeds for a pet. When they are totally
unprepared to exercise and train a dog, why do they get an animal with a
ferocious need for such a regime? Of course, most breeders would not
sell a working dog to such a family, but unfortunately some will, and from
experience I know that potential purchasers are very good at saying what
the breeder wants to hear when they have no intention of investing the necessary
time in the dog.
Thus, after many months at odds with its owners, and when the best time for training is past, a dog ends up unwanted because it is behaving as its genes dictate. This is because it is without the benefit of guidance that would help it fit into human society.
The sad truth is that many people put more research into their new car than they do into the dog that is destined to be their loyal companian for the next 12 years. Whereas a car can be sold on without suffering if it proves unsuitable, this is not the case for the dog that ends up at the breaker's yard.
Thus, after many months at odds with its owners, and when the best time for training is past, a dog ends up unwanted because it is behaving as its genes dictate. This is because it is without the benefit of guidance that would help it fit into human society.
The sad truth is that many people put more research into their new car than they do into the dog that is destined to be their loyal companian for the next 12 years. Whereas a car can be sold on without suffering if it proves unsuitable, this is not the case for the dog that ends up at the breaker's yard.
reprinted with kind permission from Alastair Balmain
Deputy Editor:Shooting Times & Country Magazine
Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street SE1 0SU
Tel: 020 3148 4750
Deputy Editor:Shooting Times & Country Magazine
Blue Fin Building, 110 Southwark Street SE1 0SU
Tel: 020 3148 4750