Help!....My son wants a dog!

[gg706]

My 9 year old son is BEGGING for a dog. We have 2.5 acres all fenced in, so we have plenty of room. We already have a year old Weimaraner...but she has pretty much chosen me. My son wants a dog of his own. We are not sure what to do. He has been asking on and off for a couple of years. Today he brought it up again, and is VERY adamant! He is a sensitive child, very soft hearted and sweet as can be. He does have a hard time sleeping at night and wakes up frequently... the house where we lived in NC had ALOT of "bumps in the night", strange feelings of sorts, and fleeting movments out of the corner of your eye. It all surronded his room, it has left a lasting effect. He wants our current dog to sleep with him but she won't stay in his room very long and she is off finding me and laying at my feet. He feels more safe having the dog in his room. I don't really " want " another dog to drag around the country when we travel, another dog to pay for food, vet care, flea pills every month, etc. However we can afford it, so it is more of a matter of preferring NOT too....Any advice out there?

 

[sourland]

Get him a dog! I understand that is easy for me to say, but I am lucky enough to have spent my lifetime shadowed by a dog/dogs.

For some of us life without dogs is an incomplete life.

 

[Just reebok]

Get him a dog. Take him to a good shelter and let him pick out a dog of his own. It will be really good for him!!!

 

[leadwolf1]

The problem with getting another dog is you can not make a dog pick his/her master. She/he could chose you or your husband and your son would still be without a dog.

I do everything for my one dog. I fed/bath/groom, etc. He, however, has chosen my husband and merely tolerates me.

 

[animallover505]

I have a WONDERFUL small dog. She is a cockapoo, a cocker spaniel/poodle mix that I love. She protects me, even though she is only 16 pounds! However, they are very loyal and attaced to me, and MUST live inside.

 

[cadeschicks]

I couldn't get my son to go to sleep in his room by himself until I started letting one of the dogs sleep in there to "protect him". Once he had a dog at the foot of the bed there was no more getting out of bed after bedtime and no more nightmares. Not to mention, there is nothing sweeter than watching a little boy read his puppy a bedtime story.

 

[HEChicken]

The problem with getting another dog is you can not make a dog pick his/her master. She/he could chose you or your husband and your son would still be without a dog.

This is exactly what I was going to say. This has been a recurring theme with my DD over the years, wanting a dog or a cat "of her own". The problem is that animals don't understand "ownership". I am the one who is home during the day when the kids are at school, the one who doles out the discipline/training/praise, the one who talks to them as I do my chores, and, in their eyes, is the "leader" of the pack because the animals can see that I am not only in charge of them but the kids as well. So, more often than not, the animals end up bonding to me. We've tried having the kids do all the feeding, so the pets see them taking an important role, but somehow those other things end up taking priority in the animal's mind, and time after time, DD has been disappointed that "her" pet is more interested in hanging with me.

 

[gg706]

That is my worst Nemesis. I am also home all day, so the dog would be with me while he is at school. We have a month left before school starts, if we are going to do it maybe we should do it soon so they can spend time together all day before school starts. I was thinking I would make a conscious effort NOT to socialize too much with his dog during the day. I also thought I may put his dog in its kennel that will be in my sons room a few hours before he comes home from school so my son can be the one who lets his dog out to play. I REALLY appreciate all the advice! I am on board, I also think the boy needs a dog. I will be checking in regular if there is any more advice and to keep yall updated on the progress....my DH is still wanting to say no, I however don't want to deny him a chance at having a childhood dog. I had a dog of my own since I was 10 years old and can't imagine not having those memories. Thanks all! God Bless!

 

[Nicole01]

It took me 10 years to convince hubby to get a dog. We now have 2! I wouldn't have it any other way.. Our first puppy is a golden retriever. A year later we rescued a young Australian shepherd. I love having dogs as a part of our family. They get along well with the chickens and they both protect our home. It's a security thing for me. No one will ever break into our house. They would not make it out alive.:/

 

[gg706]

We have also always had a dog. With the exception of when we were in the military and for a 4-5 month span after our dog of 12 years passed away. We needed time to heal the wounds. We also have NEVER had our home broken into...** knock on wood** I think most of the time the burglar's pick a different house when they hear dogs barking....My husband is under the assumption 1 family dog is enough. He doesn't see the point of a boy "needing" his "own" dog. my husband says it will add alot problems on a day to day basis and double the trouble when we travel. Which I see his points, HOWEVER I think if our son REALLY wants a dog of his own.....and LOTS of dogs NEED homes. We have the room, the time, some money to spend on more food etc, WHY deny him. If nothing else a lucky dog will get a great home with a loving family and 2 plus acres to run for the rest of it's life. I don't really see much of a negative other than inconvenience. Let's face it having a puppy or another mouth to feed isn't always fun....but we already have the chore of taking care of one so another doesn't really add that much inconvience other than the training, as that is a one on one experience. Which MY SON is going to do under my supervision. When I was a kid I trained my humane society mix breed dog in obedience and took him to the County Fair every year and cleaned house! They would all have their papered blah blah blah and see Boe walk in with me and go DANG they are here AGAIN this year! Some of my greatest memories! So if I can do it my son can too. I have talked to him repeatedly that getting a dog isn't a small thing, it takes alot of time and isn't something you can change your mind on and get tired of ...it IS a lifelong commitment to the dog until it's time comes. Which is another difficult thing to go thru and God willing my son will certainly outlive his dog and he will have to deal with the loss. From which he will never be the same....