Retriever Rescue

Hi all,

I'm new here and have been looking at this wonderful site for a few weeks now and decided to post as I could do with some advice please ....
My partner and I would like to add a golden retriever to our family. We don't have any children but do have regular visits from nieces and nephews ranging from under 1 - 17 years old. We also have 2 adult cats (1 male & 1 female - both neutered) - we have had the cats for about 4 years and are confident that they would be happy with a canine addition to our family. However - we don't know whether we're best to rescue and adult dog or buy a puppy. Rescuing a dog 'sits better' with me as I grew up in a house where we rescued many different breeds over many years - sometimes having up to 4 dogs, 2 ducks, 2 rabbits, 4 tortoises and an assortment or hamsters & gerbils at a time in our 2 bedroom house!! I have always wanted a dog of my own but have never had the opportunity to commit to the responsibilty as my partner and I worked full-time. I am about to go part-time (i'm a teacher - so also have the school holidays) and getting a dog finally seems a real possibility now and I am thrilled. In an ideal world cats and dogs would all get along beautifully - but i know that's not always the case. I'm wondering if we would be best to get a puppy so that the cats will teach it some manners and also so that the cats aren't too freaked out by the size of the dog at first. However, then I also wonder if a puppy would be 'too bouncy' and in turn freak the cats out even more. I'm in a bit of a quandry and could really use some advise/opinion of some experienced dog owners.

Many thanks
Bex
xxx

Hello Bex,

Ignoring ALL other aspects, the biggest risk you take is giving your cat`s the hump, if they are not pleased at having to share their home with a dog they will probably go walkabouts. Eventually cats & dogs settle in, but I wouldnt fancy leaving a dog alone in a house with two cats (Carnage).

We had Afghans and Siamese cats that all slept together, however the cats were introduced as kittens and even then there was much hissing spitting and clawing until, after weeks, a peace treaty was signed.

I think you will need a lot of luck, and hard work when the animals sensibilities will have to take priority.

Hi Bex, and welcome

We have had 2 Goldens, Leigh was a puppy who we bought from a reputable breeder, and Ella, who we rescued from Jan. We had Leigh for 12 yrs and she was a lovely golden girl. When we decided that the time was right to welcome another Golden into our home, we contacted Jan at the "Rescue". She has the wonderful ability to be able to match a dog with a prospective adopter. Ella came to us at 3 yrs old from rescue as a small, timid little girl, and in the 4 yrs that she has been with us, she has grown in stature and confidence, and is a joy to us. But you also have to remember that they all come with a history and we may never know what they have been through before. I know now that I would always go the way of the "Rescue", and if you did adopt, another Golden would find a loving and a 'forever' home.

I have never had cats so I can't help you there, but there will be friends along with their story's and advice.

All good wishes to you,
Jean

Hello Bex. Welcome,

In the main Goldens are not the most intrepid dog you will find and handled right the cats will usually be boss. However if you introduce a stressed dog straightaway to cats it may be a flurry of fur, but introduced when everyone is calm and well fed will usually work. But time & patience is th keyword.

Only you can decide whether you want a puppy or a Rescue. No one can tell you what is best for you.

Hi Bex and welcome, I can only tell you of my experience with my rescued dogs,three in all and our cat. All have taken time to get to know each other and were graduly introduced to each other,by bringing the cat into the room and stroking him on our knees and letting them come near and sniff him.The cat would keep out of the way at first and slowly but surely would come in on his own. All the dogs liked to chase him a little but he would always get away as we always left an escape route for him and we would always tell the dogs a firm no when they chased him.We never left them togeather when we went out.We lost our first golden over a year ago but he had become firm friends with our cat and when we lost him our cat seem to miss him as much as we did. Our two dogs now we have had 14 months and ten months respectivley the hardly bother our cat at all and he sits next to them on the sofa quite regulary. It takes time to get them to trust each other my first dog had a scratch on his nose that could be seen for years to prove this.I cannot tell you if it is best to get a puppy or a recue dog ,but for us I can honestly say things are fine in our house.

Hiya all!

Thanks for the lovely welcome and for all your advice and experiences.
I'm still not sure which way to go with this - so I think for the time being I'm not going to make a decision because I don't want to make a mistake and then regret it. I spoke to my brother about it today and he agrees with me that a rescue dog would make a wonderful addition to our family and he reminded me of all the fab dogs we had growing up. I live right on a park and i look out my window and wish i was out there walking & playing with my dog.

Some questions for Jan: - do you get many young goldens coming to you? Do you have many dogs waiting to be adopted? What's the whole adoption process? How do you match dogs with families?

Thanks again
Bex
xxx

Hi Bex I think you would be better giving me a ring so we can chat about this. I much prefer to talk to people and get proper feed back from what I am saying.