Pet Ownership
When you take home a puppy it is the beginning of a life long commitment to them. Everything is different in a wonderful way. When you’re purchasing a baby dog there is more to consider than just the purchase price. Vet visits for check ups and shots, food (commercial or homemade), beds, toys (safe ones for bulldogs), daycare (if both people work all day), medical supplies (cotton balls for ear cleaning, teeth wipes for keeping teeth clean, vitamins etc), insurance premiums (saving for issues or paying an insurance company for potential problems), there are so many things to consider.
I ask everyone who purchases a puppy from Tankrtots if they will be home during the daytime and this is critical for us. A bulldog shouldn’t be left alone more than a few hours a day even as adults. Puppies need a lot of supervision, training and if they pick up a tummy bug they need medical care throughout the daytime. It’s important to have TIME for a pet and not get one only for weekends. When an animal waits all day for you and you get home from work it’s a fair assumption that you’re not going to devote all your time to playing with them or snuggling for hours when you’ve been gone all day and have to get dinner for your family or fold a few loads of laundry. Trying to juggle work and a family is tough, I was a single mom when my kids were growing up so I know this believe me. Trying to fit time for a bulldog in there would have been very hard.
I got my first two bulldogs when my kids were teenagers and I could work from home as a new health insurance agent about 25 years ago. Taking breaks from work was my “bulldog time” with Tank and Harley. That’s when I could roll around on the floor with them and play for a few minutes. By the way it was great to get out of that chair and away from that computer for fifteen minutes or so!! The point is it takes real time and commitment to them. If they are left alone in a crate that is the worst kind of life for anyone. They are neglected and don’t even have space to properly develop or move. I don’t like crates as babysitters for dogs. Crates have their purpose as a “room” for them that they should want to hang out in with the door open and a little blanket over the top so it feels like a cave with a cozy entrance just for them. Not a prison where they are trapped while they wait for someone to get home from work. This is just my humble opinion but the breeders I work with all feel the same way I do. We don’t send home puppies with people who want to crate them all day while they work somewhere else. You would never lock a child in a room all day while you are gone and to us these puppies are family members and should be considered one of your kids.
Occasionally someone will contact me to rehome their bulldog because they have to move and can’t take them with them because the place where they are moving doesn’t allow pets. My first thought in those situations is what if they didn’t allow kids? Would you put your children up for adoption or would you find another place to live that would accommodate YOU and all your family members? I know there are situations that are unavoidable and this is rare but for the most part taking these types of things into consideration is paramount for a happy future for you and your bulldog. There is nothing more heartbreaking than the tears people cry because they are forced to give up their beloved bulldog for any reason. Bonding with them is an incredible experience and it goes both ways. As much as you love them they love you more. You are the sun the moon and the stars to them and that carries with it a responsibility to be there for them their whole life. Even when they get sick and old. Senior bulldogs might need corrective surgery, medications and vet visits. They might need ramps or slings to help them walk and these types of things we just do for them out of love the same way we would care for an aged parent or grandparent.
Being a responsible pet owner and considering the changes in your life and the life of your bulldog as he or she grows up is not only important it’s something that needs to be done before you bring home your new little one. I always tell people who pick up their puppies from me…
Congratulations, it’s a boy!
Congratulations it’s a girl!
Because you have had a baby. I want people to realize how serious this is and how precious that little one is to us and to them for their entire life.
