Alright, I know this is a bit of a weird one.. but hang in there with me.
My husband and I just recently got married. When we first started dating 5 years ago, we each had our own dog and eventually became a sweet little blended family.
2 years ago, we lost my beloved pup unexpectedly, and since his dog was a senior, we decided to let her be the center of our attention for the rest of her life, which was 12 wonderful years that sadly ended in September 2021.
My heart is very ready to give all my love to a new pup. My husband is still a bit hesitant about the whole puppy thing, but it willing to hear my “sales pitch”.
He thinks it’s better to get a puppy when I’m at home on mat leave (we expect to start trying for a baby in the next year). But, being the one to be home with an infant and a puppy, I think just sounds like a bad idea. My ideal, would be to get our puppy this July (from the same breeder as our last pup) so we have time to train the little guy and have him a better established young adult before a baby comes along.
Additionally, we’ve both raised puppies individually but not together. I think it would be an excellent chance to hone our skills together before a baby comes along.
Lastly, I want a young dog when our baby comes so that they can grow up together. I think it would be beneficial to both the dog and the baby to become well adjusted to the other at a young age.
I’ve found a few opinion pieces I’ll link that capture my view points.
https://microbiomejournal.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s40168-017-0254-x
https://www.fatherly.com/play/having-dog-prepares-you-for-having-kid/amp/
Also, here are a few of my own bullet points addressed to him:
I would work from home for the first week to be here with the puppy
For the second week I could work from home in the morning, so the puppy was only gone for half a day by himself before one of us got home from work.
When he’s old enough, I suggest taking him to freedom house for playing throughout the week and kenneling when we need to. It’s close to the highway and most convenient for both of us to do pick up and drop off.
I don’t want to have a puppy and an infant/toddler at the same time. I’d much rather have a puppy first.
If we got a puppy in the summer and we were lucky and I got pregnant in the fall, the dog would be well over a year before we had a baby. I think it would be much easier to have a dog who’s already potty trained and a young adult before a baby comes along.
Wouldn’t have to pick him up until after our Vegas trip in July
Would be old enough to have bordetella and rabies vaccine (10-12 weeks) and allowed to go to camp, before Septmmber if we end up going away then too.
If you’re specifically worried about the puppy phase thing, I would be happy to adopt a young adult dog, I’m open to breed.
I thought about endeavoring to write this myself but when I started googling essay writing tips, this service came up and it seemed worth the shot!
My husband is a business man, a successful entrepreneur who runs his own company. He’s very savvy, intelligent and relies on facts and logic much more than emotion in decision making. He knows how I feel and how much I want a puppy, but I want to help frame my opinions in a way that’s most persuasive to him.
