Choosing a breed was difficult for me, because there are so many dogs that I would love to have. And before I started my research I had a predisposition towards the dalmatian breed. However, the more research I did about the dogs, and testimonials from different owners I've gathered, I've come to the conclusion that they're absolutely perfect for me. The Pet Centric Dog Breed Selector is what ultimately began my whirlwind of research. I'm a professional at this, as I work at my school archives and have for the past year done research on different requests that we receive from all different sources.
From the Dog Breed Selector, I went to different websites and breeder sites to learn more about the dog - This included history of the breed, temperament, health issues, diet, and ideal training techniques. It's great to start off understanding the history of the dog breed. Dalmatians at the earliest time in history were used as war and guard dogs. They were also known to be hunting dogs, and later were used as carriage dogs - they ran alongside, in front of or under horse drawn carriages to encourage the horses to run faster and to clear the path of traffic. From there, I went to understand their temperament. Their history shows that they are high stamina dogs - they need a lot of exercise and can't just sit around for hours on end. However, at the same time, they love being with the family and being adorable snuggle-muffins. Being able to balance both of those traits out is ideal. Next were the health issues: Dalmatians, like any other dogs are prone to health problems and it is important to research more about these problems and alter the lifestyle as well as diet to best benefit the dog.
The most exciting bit is being able to teach your dog tricks. Now, I am a firm believer in the potential of dogs. I think that a lot of people are predisposed to different dog breed stereotypes, and don't give certain dogs a time of day because of that - They're quick to judge how difficult a certain dog is going to be to train or to have. The most infamous dog breed are Pitbulls. Some people refuse to give them a chance because they're known to be aggressive, but some of the sweetest dogs I've ever met were Pitbulls. I don't ever blame a dog for their behavior - you can't generalize a dog the same way you can't generalize people. Every dog is different and with the right mindset, and training techniques, I feel that any dog has the potential to be well behaved, intelligent companions. All dogs need to continue their training after the basics of sit, down, and stay. They become brain games and are fun for the dog and useful for the owners. Ideally, I want my dog to be perfectly trained and just all around fun to play with. Kind of like this beautiful Dalmatian, Dino.
Or Moose (yes, it's perfect because he has the same name as my cat) Link because the video won't embed So in order to succeed that, I went ahead and began researching training techniques. I bought a fantastic book called Brain Games For Dogs at Barnes and Noble to learn the different games dogs may want to play.
Now, I know I'm getting extremely ahead of myself here and am projecting an idealized concept of getting my puppy and having her trained at a drop of a hat. Though, underneath that, I do know that there's a lot of responsibilities involved and hard work. There will be a lot of ups and downs, like anything else in life. I'd like to think that I'm being a responsible owner in doing research and not getting a dog on a whim. And of course the research doesn't end here - There's so much more to do: puppy classes, pet insurance, and most importantly finding my puppy. But I'd like to think I'm getting a good start here considering we're waiting another year for her to come into our life. Because out of all of this, more than anything I want to be a great owner to my dog and not just her be a great dog for me.
That's it for now! Much love,
Lily.
2 comments:
Wow, you're putting a lot of thought into all this. We have two dogs and they are both mutts. Not once have we put time into teaching them any tricks and yet they are perfectly fine. They're like kids, you can't be too overbearing otherwise they will resent you forever. You just gotta let them be! :)
Oh, most definitely! I've asked current dalmatian owners and they've told me that Dalmatians definitely love playing. Just gotta tire them out and redirect their energy so they're not being extremely destructive, since they have that tendency. :)
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