Dusty 123
Well-Known Member
I had a Kerry Blue Terrier growing up
Your first dog?
- Thread starter Tinkerbee
- Start date
GSD Woman
Well-Known Member
My first dog, I wasn't quite 3, was a black and tan beagle/terrier mix. She died under horrible circumstances when I was a young teenager. My next dog was an Irish setter. We got her when the breed was starting to loose popularity in the USA and it was a huge mistake. We didn't have a fenced yard and knew nothing about training and crating. We had to rehome her. I didn't get a dog of my own again until I got my first German Shepherd. I always tell people I went from the dumbest to the smartest. In all honesty though the breed has recovered quite nicely over here.
Fools Motto
Well-Known Member
I've always been around dogs, labs, lab x's, collies, lurchers of sorts and whippets. Between the ages of 3 and 11 I lived in a big house that had a granny annex. Gran bred whippets, and she had at times, 15 or so 'whips' as we called them, were only the other side of a door, so if I wasn't outside playing ponies or walking them with gran, then I was there playing with the pointy noses, and helping feed and care for them. I can remember some of them now, Sticker, Whispa, Waverly, Chorus, Chortle and Cracker among others. Our side of the door we had 2 dogs, a wonderful collie x called Shadow and a lab called Shackle who was grumpy and liked her own space. (she bit my thumb once, because I went to hug her. I learnt).
A wonderful brindle lab/lurcher mix whom we called Bramble was our family dog in the 90's. We did agility together. She was a very good dog. Sadly she went before her time due to a ruptured tumour we didn't know she had. We had another nervous lab type with her, called her Mica. Then along came Ebby, a whippet x lab, my very first dog in my own home, with my own family. Every dog is great in their own way, but Ebby was truly amazing. She was loyal, never did anything wrong, was always there when needed, and loved the kids when they were babies, sitting quietly with them when they were sleeping in the pram or playing with them if they were trying to throw her ball. She also loved the command 'hoover' - ie - pick up the mess they dropped from the table!! She had a massive stroke in 2018, just shy of her 14th and I knew it was her time. A very sad day. Much missed. I've got a springer and another whippet x at the mo, lovely dogs, but Bramble and Ebby will always be my stars.
A wonderful brindle lab/lurcher mix whom we called Bramble was our family dog in the 90's. We did agility together. She was a very good dog. Sadly she went before her time due to a ruptured tumour we didn't know she had. We had another nervous lab type with her, called her Mica. Then along came Ebby, a whippet x lab, my very first dog in my own home, with my own family. Every dog is great in their own way, but Ebby was truly amazing. She was loyal, never did anything wrong, was always there when needed, and loved the kids when they were babies, sitting quietly with them when they were sleeping in the pram or playing with them if they were trying to throw her ball. She also loved the command 'hoover' - ie - pick up the mess they dropped from the table!! She had a massive stroke in 2018, just shy of her 14th and I knew it was her time. A very sad day. Much missed. I've got a springer and another whippet x at the mo, lovely dogs, but Bramble and Ebby will always be my stars.
DressageCob
Well-Known Member
My first dog was a Lakeland Terrier named Eddie. I was 12 and given the choice: either we went on holiday to Disneyworld Florida (which I had been begging to do) or we got a puppy. I chose the puppy. We selected the breed out of the encyclopaedia of dog breeds and found a breeder by contacting the kennel club.
He was born on 01/08/2000. We went to choose our puppy on the way back from Alton Towers one day. There were two dogs left. One was a little tubby dog that was friendly but not overly interested. The other was smaller but intrigued. We went for the nosy one.
We picked him up when he was 8 weeks old. We didn't know any better so travelled him home in a pet transporter we had for my rabbit. He was sick all the way home, and did worried pooing too. He was never completely happy with travelling ?
What followed was 15 years of barking, licking, walking, running off, chasing rabbits and pure unadulterated joy. He was my best friend to the end. He loved going to the beach and rivers to go paddling but never over the knees. He got his gold kennel club award and good citizen award, and ran through hoops of fire with our dog display team. He loved his family. He wouldn't recall to his name but if you shouted "SWEETIES!!" he'd come at full speed.
I lost him in August 2015, just after his 15th birthday. He was senile and had lost a lot of his sight. He was still cuddly and loving and still had a good appetite, but he kept getting confused and upset. We decided to let him go before the bad days outweighed the good. I still miss him, even though I got a puppy in February. He will always be the best dog I'll ever own.
I decided not to get another Lakie. I didn't want to know how much of his adorable quirky personality was him and how much was just a breed trait.
He was born on 01/08/2000. We went to choose our puppy on the way back from Alton Towers one day. There were two dogs left. One was a little tubby dog that was friendly but not overly interested. The other was smaller but intrigued. We went for the nosy one.
We picked him up when he was 8 weeks old. We didn't know any better so travelled him home in a pet transporter we had for my rabbit. He was sick all the way home, and did worried pooing too. He was never completely happy with travelling ?
What followed was 15 years of barking, licking, walking, running off, chasing rabbits and pure unadulterated joy. He was my best friend to the end. He loved going to the beach and rivers to go paddling but never over the knees. He got his gold kennel club award and good citizen award, and ran through hoops of fire with our dog display team. He loved his family. He wouldn't recall to his name but if you shouted "SWEETIES!!" he'd come at full speed.
I lost him in August 2015, just after his 15th birthday. He was senile and had lost a lot of his sight. He was still cuddly and loving and still had a good appetite, but he kept getting confused and upset. We decided to let him go before the bad days outweighed the good. I still miss him, even though I got a puppy in February. He will always be the best dog I'll ever own.
I decided not to get another Lakie. I didn't want to know how much of his adorable quirky personality was him and how much was just a breed trait.
IngramsRoughDiamond
Well-Known Member
I grew up with an Airedale, he was brilliant! My dad name him Boxcar Star or the Opry (Boxie for short) after the country singer Boxcar Willie. Dad's best friend was the producer of the BBC Radio 2 country music show and when Boxcar Willie came to England, Uncle Jonny told him all about his best mate naming his dog after him, to which Boxcar asked to meet him, our dog not my dad that is! They even got there picture in the paper! Both over here and in the states!!
IngramsRoughDiamond
Well-Known Member
Boxie was here before me and was my bestest friend growing up, we lost him when I was 11 and he was 16. 20 years later I still miss him.
CinnamonChristmasCookie
Fais pas chier!
I'm enjoying 8 years old being a widely cited age for the first dog, is that how long parents can hold out for? Are you particularly insistent at that age?
I was 7, I think.
My brother in law had promised my niece for years. She got to 12 and we said she’d leave home before getting her dog! We looked up a litter one day, working bred, KC registered and decided, because it was raining, we wouldn’t go to the Hertfordshire Show. Phoned my bil, told him to meet us in Northants. He agreed, the mad thing! We ended up taking the puppy home for 2 weeks until he was ready to take him, some work thing. Zak was remarkably tolerant!
Puppy belly!
