Corey - this is not meant to be cruel, really it isn't. So please read it in the spirit in which it is intended.
This comment stood out to me in your last post.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Ckimba99  Trust me, when I made the decision, I spent at least 20 minutes in my room with Rosco. I spoke to him, he played with his bone a bit, we lied on my bed, and I thought deep and hard about everything. Everything Bob said, all my choices, options, avenues I could take... Everything. This was not a rash decision whatsoever, so no matter what anyone says, I know my decision was right. |
Before you ever consider getting another dog, wait. Give yourself five years or more before you take another dog into your home. If you need dog companionship in the meantime, volunteer to help local rescue people or a local veterinarian or dog trainer. But whatever you do, no matter how much another dog may seem like the right one, don't bring any dogs into your home for the next five years.
In the meantime, print out every one of your posts on this forum and the responses. Put them in an envelope and every couple of years pull them out and think about how you might have done things differently.
To be successful and have the kind of relationship that you obviously desire to have with a dog, you need to be ready for all of the ups and downs of puppyhood, puberty, adulthood, illness, disability, and euthanasia. You should have spend months thinking through all of those things, and done so years before you even get the dog.
You comment above tells me that you are trying to do your best and make the right decisions as things come along. That's very different than being prepared ahead of time for whatever you may encounter in your dog's life. You need to be at a very different place in your life before you are truly able to act in that second way. You'll know that you are there when you can reread all of the responses to you and agree with them - not with your own. :) And that includes with being able to honestly agree with my comment about needing to wait at least five years before getting another dog to the point where that's the kind of comment you yourself would offer to Corey in 2008.
You don't need to be isolated from dogs during that time, but offer your time and your memory of your love for Roscoe in volunteer service for dogs that you do not own. Use that time to learn from rescuers and trainers. Seek out people on this forum who've offered you help and advice and see if they can get you some experience as a runner or helper at dog shows, fun matches, and obedience trials. And do this all to be of service to dogs - not as a way to shop for a next dog.
Something went very wrong to end with young Roscoe being euthanized. No matter what part breeding or health may have played, you played a bigger part. Owners always play the biggest part. If you are even considering the idea of having another dog in your future, you need to spend years preparing yourself and getting yourself a variety of volunteer experience so you can ensure that no dog under your care will ever go off track and be anything less than the healthy, balance, happy and trustworthy dog of your dreams.
So fire up your printer and get yourself a big envelope. Be sure to include all of your previous thread as well. And five years from now I'd really like to see you post a follow up to this - before you begin to select a next dog.
Lynda