Today is not getting much better. My dad called this morning to see how I was doing. Not that great. Both he and Faith said I should think about taking the dog back. I just feel like I'm being completely irresponsible about the whole thing. People take dogs back to shelters all the time because they didn't do enough research. Taking care of Baxter and Bridgette was so easy. But they were older and both fixed. I have to keep The Professor under constant supervision, or he'll mark.
I'm just really frustrated with myself. All of the reading I've done stresses research. Make sure you have a breed appropriate for you. Make sure you have an age appropriate for you. Make sure you have an energy level appropriate for you. Don't get a dog on impulse. I had all of this figured out. A corgi would suit me just fine. They're pretty sedentary, but enjoy walks. But I was having problems finding one in Austin. So I went to this meet'n'greet and fell in love with this chihuahua mix. And, on an impulse, adopted him. He's against everything I had planned for. He's a puppy. He's not fixed. He has way too much energy. He's not housebroken.
I have to keep him crated pretty much at all times. When he's out, even if he just peed outside, he'll mark in here. The only time I can work is if he's in his crate. He's doing great in there. He's napping and not whining. I just feel bad because all of the crate training literature I've read says you can't crate a dog all day and all night. But I can't let him out when I work or he goes crazy. And I can't let him out when I sleep or he'll pee everywhere. I had planned on going on an hour walk this morning and an hour walk this afternoon to help alleviate the energy pent up from being confined. Unfortunately, it's raining pretty hard. So I can't take him out. We can play inside, but that gets exhausting for me after 30 minutes.
On Tuesday I have a consultation at Taurus. I have a ton of questions, and I just have to make it through the next few days. They won't take dogs from shelters until they've been in your house for 3 weeks. But as soon as I can, I'm going to drop him off there at least once/week so he can be socialized and have some of that energy drained.
Mainly, I'm really mad at myself on the impulse decision to get this pup. If I'd just put more time and effort into finding a corgi, things would be different. But I'm not gonna give up after just a few hours. If, at the end of the consultation, it turns out this is not a good match, I'll deal with the next step. But I'm really overwhelmed at the moment.
I'm just really frustrated with myself. All of the reading I've done stresses research. Make sure you have a breed appropriate for you. Make sure you have an age appropriate for you. Make sure you have an energy level appropriate for you. Don't get a dog on impulse. I had all of this figured out. A corgi would suit me just fine. They're pretty sedentary, but enjoy walks. But I was having problems finding one in Austin. So I went to this meet'n'greet and fell in love with this chihuahua mix. And, on an impulse, adopted him. He's against everything I had planned for. He's a puppy. He's not fixed. He has way too much energy. He's not housebroken.
I have to keep him crated pretty much at all times. When he's out, even if he just peed outside, he'll mark in here. The only time I can work is if he's in his crate. He's doing great in there. He's napping and not whining. I just feel bad because all of the crate training literature I've read says you can't crate a dog all day and all night. But I can't let him out when I work or he goes crazy. And I can't let him out when I sleep or he'll pee everywhere. I had planned on going on an hour walk this morning and an hour walk this afternoon to help alleviate the energy pent up from being confined. Unfortunately, it's raining pretty hard. So I can't take him out. We can play inside, but that gets exhausting for me after 30 minutes.
On Tuesday I have a consultation at Taurus. I have a ton of questions, and I just have to make it through the next few days. They won't take dogs from shelters until they've been in your house for 3 weeks. But as soon as I can, I'm going to drop him off there at least once/week so he can be socialized and have some of that energy drained.
Mainly, I'm really mad at myself on the impulse decision to get this pup. If I'd just put more time and effort into finding a corgi, things would be different. But I'm not gonna give up after just a few hours. If, at the end of the consultation, it turns out this is not a good match, I'll deal with the next step. But I'm really overwhelmed at the moment.
posted by a c at
8:36 AM
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