Likewise, a Newfoundland might be a source of joy for a casual, sprawling family, but a horror for someone who wants to keep an immaculate house. Answering the questions below can give you a start in thinking about what kind of dog suits you. You can have a beautiful dog, but if its behavior drives you nuts, you will resent the dog. While puppies can be absolutely adorable, they demand a lot of attention, patience, and expense. Puppies need obedience training and socialization.
Puppies can also go through a destructive phase, and chew everything they get their little paws on.
And unlike cats, puppies are not naturally housebroken - you must take them outside every few hours until they understand and can control themselves. Plus, you need to take puppies to the vet for a series of vaccinations and to be spayed or neutered, and those bills can add up quickly. When you get a puppy, you are getting an unknown quantity. You can mold a puppy's behavior, but its genes may well govern its basic temperament. Hobbs, an eight year old hound mix, celebrated Christmas in a new home after being adopted through The Senior Dogs Project .