For me, it was essential to get a young adult dog. Dex is about a year old. I don't have the stamina and ability to chase after a puppy or take one outside to potty all day and night. I don't have the patience to go through the teething stage again. Getting a dog who is already housetrained and has good manners is the only thing that would work for me.
On the other hand, in many cases, an older dog comes with issues. Maybe they aren't properly housetrained, or the previous owner let them bark all the time. They may have been treated badly in some way, and you have to build trust from the ground up. If you get a puppy, you start fresh. You can make a point of rewarding the behaviors you want and teaching them to avoid behaviors you don't want. You teach them that humans are friends. You get to smell that delicious puppy breath.
If I was able to do it, I'd probably have gotten a puppy, but since I can't, I'm so glad Dex and I were available to each other at the same time. |