Pet Tip: The Size And Activity Level Of A Dog Are Not Always Correlated

One of the great joys of sharing your life with a dog is the fact that they have the potential to act as ambassadors for making new friends and acquaintances. People are far more likely to strike up a conversation with you when you are with a dog. On the down side, people are also likely to make comments and offer advice without solicitation.

I recently had a third lesson with a lovely woman who had adopted a five-month-old Newfoundland puppy from a rescue group. A few minutes into the lesson, I realized that her eyes were welling up with tears. She explained that she was feeling terrible guilt about her puppy. It seems that someone had stopped her on the street to let her know how horrible they thought it was that she had such a large dog in the city. I assured her that her puppy was lucky to have been adopted by her. Not only was she being diligent about his education and socialization but, she had carefully chosen a pup with a low-key nature whose activity level was relatively low, especially compared to many smaller dogs. It seemed this pup was superbly suited to apartment and city life.

She had also chosen to adopt a special needs puppy that, due to a medical condition, would need to have a carefully controlled and somewhat limited exercise routine for the next 6-12 months. The rescue group was surely thrilled to have found a woman who was a stay-at-home writer, with loads of time to provide for this dog's special needs care. They also rightly as... Keep Reading