You will not be sorry, She sounds like a sweet submissive dog. You will fall
in love I'm sure Valerie
--- On Wed, 5/4/11, freddyscribbles <[email protected]> wrote:
From: freddyscribbles <[email protected]>
Subject: [Chihuahuas] First time dog owner panic?
To: [email protected]
Date: Wednesday, May 4, 2011, 2:07 PM
I think I should address two things first
1. Adopting this dog was not an impulsive decision. Was it a purely logical
one? Probably not. But it was not an impulsive, spontaneous decision.
2. I do not regret adopting this chihuahua
That being said, have any of you dealt with first-dog panic? I have owned pets
before. They've gradually gotten bigger over time - fish, hamsters, gerbils,
rats. Of that lot, I think that the fish had the longest life expectancy - the
mutant fish lived for at least eight years. And I've never shirked
responsibility - when the gerbils fell ill or tore each other up in a fight, I
took them to the vet. Yes...gerbils. To a vet. Granted, this was not in
California where gerbils are regrettably (and annoyingly) illegal. I never had
any anxiety associated with these animals. Although, there were some issues
with the rats.
I've grown up with dogs although not directly - my neighbor used to breed
Siberian huskies, and the joke was that I was the bipedal child. At any rate, I
spent quite a number of summers taking care of the various litters and dogs she
had. I'm currently house sitting for a family that has two horses, a dog, and a
cat - these are all predominantly outdoor animals. The dog and cat come in at
night. Sylvie isn't allowed near the chihuahua until she gets a clean bill of
health.
To my knowledge, this is a very well behaved dog with a very sweet disposition.
But that sort of post-excitement panic is starting to settle in just a little.
The 'Oh man, what have I done' sort of thing. A friend said he had the same
reaction when he first purchased his chameleon. And that it also passed within
a week of ownership.
But for now, as things settle in, there is a definite sense of anxiety. Will
this end up being an animal that might, at some point, have to deal with my
potentially long work days? How long can I expect to be able to leave her on
her own? What things are now out of the question due to a dog? How will this
later my current lifestyle? Will I be able to provide her with everything she
needs? Did I really just commit myself to a relationship that could easily last
10-18 years?
I am glad that I rescued her. This sweet little girl definitely deserves a
second chance. But in spite of having gone out of my way to make sure she has
what she needs - bed, sweater, food, treats, carrier for car travel - part of
me is freaking out about the whole thing. I definitely want to make sure she
gets healthy. And I suspect that this relationship will work out. Worse case
scenario, I re-home her - although I'm hoping this is mostly the (temporary)
panic talking. Bottom line - I wanted to save her and get her healthy. Could my
life have been easier by finding a healthy dog? Definitely. That's just not the
way things worked out.
Right now...I'm just sort of feeling a little in over my head suddenly. Have
any of you ever experienced this before.
Thanks as always for your support!
-A
