| Pet ownership should be taken seriously | |||||||
| by BUDDY AMATO | |||||||
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Early housebreaking is vital for puppies. A good friend of mine recently adopted a dog that is two years old. Teh dog was going through some very difficult adjustments at first. Apparently, whoever owned the dog before he did didn't believe in bringing the dog inside a lot. That being the case, the former owners probably shouldn't have had a dog at all. Anyway, the former owners of this dog told my friend that he was housebroken and was very used to living indoors. However, the dog was initially very destructive, had no concept of why it shouldn't go to the bathroom in any room of the house, and was just not used to being indoors. It was very difficult for him and his wife to make the connection with the dog because the dog wasn't as used to people as it could or should have been. On a personal note, what that dog went through by being left outside so much was wrong. There is a big difference between a nice, sunny day and cold and wet weather. Any dog that comes inside regulary understands what furniture is and doesn't fling itself around rooms and jump on things. My friend and his wife are very good with dogs, and they saw this one through a very difficult time. With that said, there is still the issue of the housebreaking. When the dog has an accident in the house now, it is in my friend's kitchen, which has a stone floor and, thankfully, not a carpet or wood flooring. He used a lot of common techniques used with puppies to get this far with his new dog. The dog seems to understand the importance of not going in the house to some degree, but because of the occasional accident, the dog has to be crated whenever he and his wife leave for an period of time. This situation is not an ideal for anyone concerned. There is an argument that a dog that is two years old is as trained as he or she is ever going to get. Yet, he has to find answers now for the poor training skills of the owners before him. If someone is going to adopt a puppy, they have to remember that training is involved. It is unacceptable for dogs to be tied to a post and left outside with a flimy doghouse. If that is someone's idea of "Pet Ownership", then they should forget about it entirely. Dogs are members of the family. They deserve adequate food, water, shelter, medical care and acceptance into the family to whom they belong. If that is not the goal of a prospective pet owner, than is saves everyone a lot of time and energy if they just don't adopt a pet. If someone doesn't intend to be serious about pet ownership, then it's a subject that would benefit everyone if they just forgot about it entirely.
(Chief Victor "Buddy" Amato is the chief investigator for the Monmouth County SPCA, headquartered in Eatontown. For more information about this column, call (732) 671-9555.) (Chief Victor "Buddy" Amato is the chief investigator for the Monmouth County SPCA, headquartered in Eatontown. For more information about this column, call (732) 671-9555.) Buddy Amato is a Hazlet business owner, who operates Amato's Karate and Weapons Academy. For more information, call (732) 671-9555.
Copyright Buddy Amato Amato's Goju-ryu Karate, Nunchaku, Bo-staff, Aikido, Sword, Kendo, Sais, Kick-boxing, Tai-Chi and more 589 Palmer Ave, Keansburg and is the author of Buddys Animal Kingdom, NJ 07734 (732) 671-9555 |
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