Meadvillemom
Boxer Booster
Waiting to adopt.....?about adult dog and kids
Hello, this is my first time posting at boxerworld so I hope that I picked the most appropriate forum. My husband and I recently purchased our first home about 4 months ago after being renters for 11 years. Our three children are ecstatic about the huge yard and all the room. My husband and I have been saying for years that when we finally had a home of our own we wanted to adopt a dog. We both had large breed dogs as pets during our childhood (he had a doberman and I had a german shephard)and miss having that companionship in our lives. We have three active children ages 10,7 and 5 so we have done a lot of reading about dogs that would be good with them and that would fit well into our lifestyle. We decided that we want to adopt a boxer because of many of the wonderful traits these dogs possess. We decided that we would look for an adult dog with some training since my husband and I don't have much experience with obedience or housetraining ect. It's not that we are not willing to learn, because we are, we just don't want to start completely from scratch with everything if possible. We also decided that we would like to find a shelter pet because there are so many that need homes, and many adult animals get passed over in favor of a puppy. In retrospect, it probably would have been a better idea to consider a rescue, but I didn't do enough research until after the fact. On the bright side, we did find the most beautiful old boy in the universe and fell in love at first sight!
We found him at a shelter that is about 2 hours from our home. We have submitted an application. I have spoken to one of the handlers on several occasions and we want to set up a visit to meet him. He is an older male probably 5 or 6 years old, neutered and housebroken.They say that he is pretty mellow but still playful. They say that when someone new comes to the shelter, he will bark until he sees that there is no threat but that he warms up to people quickly. They say that he does very well around the other dogs even the ones with young active puppies running around. They did tell me that he hasn't really been around small children but that they don't think he would have any problems. That makes me nervous. I have e-mailed them back to asked if they do any kind of temperment testing. Even though they are so far away, I absolutely must go for a visit with the kids to see how he acts with them. My question to everyone is, since I have not adopted an older dog before, I am not sure what to watch for as far as signs that the kids are too much for him other than the obvious barking and growling or laid back ears. I would like some advice because I want to make the best decision for our family and this beautiful old boy. I wish I had a picture, he is so beautiful!Any advice is appreciated.
Hello, this is my first time posting at boxerworld so I hope that I picked the most appropriate forum. My husband and I recently purchased our first home about 4 months ago after being renters for 11 years. Our three children are ecstatic about the huge yard and all the room. My husband and I have been saying for years that when we finally had a home of our own we wanted to adopt a dog. We both had large breed dogs as pets during our childhood (he had a doberman and I had a german shephard)and miss having that companionship in our lives. We have three active children ages 10,7 and 5 so we have done a lot of reading about dogs that would be good with them and that would fit well into our lifestyle. We decided that we want to adopt a boxer because of many of the wonderful traits these dogs possess. We decided that we would look for an adult dog with some training since my husband and I don't have much experience with obedience or housetraining ect. It's not that we are not willing to learn, because we are, we just don't want to start completely from scratch with everything if possible. We also decided that we would like to find a shelter pet because there are so many that need homes, and many adult animals get passed over in favor of a puppy. In retrospect, it probably would have been a better idea to consider a rescue, but I didn't do enough research until after the fact. On the bright side, we did find the most beautiful old boy in the universe and fell in love at first sight!
We found him at a shelter that is about 2 hours from our home. We have submitted an application. I have spoken to one of the handlers on several occasions and we want to set up a visit to meet him. He is an older male probably 5 or 6 years old, neutered and housebroken.They say that he is pretty mellow but still playful. They say that when someone new comes to the shelter, he will bark until he sees that there is no threat but that he warms up to people quickly. They say that he does very well around the other dogs even the ones with young active puppies running around. They did tell me that he hasn't really been around small children but that they don't think he would have any problems. That makes me nervous. I have e-mailed them back to asked if they do any kind of temperment testing. Even though they are so far away, I absolutely must go for a visit with the kids to see how he acts with them. My question to everyone is, since I have not adopted an older dog before, I am not sure what to watch for as far as signs that the kids are too much for him other than the obvious barking and growling or laid back ears. I would like some advice because I want to make the best decision for our family and this beautiful old boy. I wish I had a picture, he is so beautiful!Any advice is appreciated.
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