NetNews Usenet Archive 1993 #3/NN_1993_3.iso/spool/rec/pets/dogs/16738

Internet Message Format | 1993-01-21 | 2.8 KB

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From: [e-mail] (r l taylor)
Newsgroups: rec.pets.dogs
Subject: Re: dogs and mortgages
Message-ID: <[e-mail]>
Date: 21 Jan 93 16:47:47 GMT
References: <[e-mail]> <[e-mail]> <[e-mail]>
Distribution: na
Organization: AT&T Bell Labs, Whippany, NJ
Lines: 43

In article <[e-mail]> [e-mail] (Todd Wallace) writes:

>A long time ago, my wife and I agreed that we
>would not get a dog until we had a mortgage -- because it's
>harder to get an apartment, it's not fair to the dog not to have
>a yard, etc., etc.  However, since we were both raised with
>dogs, it's getting harder and harder to resist, esp. with those
>RCA ads on tv.

>What is the consensus around here? Is it wise to get a dog while
>living in someplace you do not own?

Well, I don't know if it's wise or not, but I do believe it's possible
to be a responsible dog owner and have a healthy, happy, well-adjusted
dog in a rental house or apartment.  Assuming you have a cooperative
landlord, renting a house isn't much different (from the dog's point
of view) from owning one.  Of course, you need to be especially careful
to prevent your dog from causing any problems...In an apartment, it's
a little harder, but still feasible.  You'll need to make the commitment
to ensuring your dog gets adequate exercise, which may involve a lot
of on-leash time instead of playing fetch in your own fenced-in yard.
And you should be very careful to clean up after your dog - immediately.
One of the things I'm enjoying about owning a house is that, if my dogs
need to go out in the middle of the night, I can put off cleaning up
their mess until the morning.  Guaranteed, when we were in an apartment,
the first time I did that, someone would have raised a ruckus.

One other thing to consider is that getting a dog is a long-term commitment.
If an apartment complex starts becoming an undesirable place to live, (as
ours did) you may not be able to move quickly.  It's hard to find rentals
that allow dogs, so you might have to take something less than ideal.  And
there's no guarantee that your landlord won't change his/her mind in the
future, so it's a good idea to have some kind of contingency plan.  If it
came down to it, is there someone who would care for your dog till you could
find a new place to live?

Of course, there's no guarantee that a homeowner won't suddenly be homeless,
either...All we can do is make a commitment to doing the best we can for
our dogs.  If you're aware of what this involves, and willing to make that
commitment, I would say you're wiser than a number of dog owners I've seen.

Roberta
...and the DoberPuppies, apartment dwellers for 4 years...