Right: we "rescued" a lab who has been great, but had a lot of anxiety built up over being simply being left alone. People coming by the door eventually led to him destroying the front entryway.
The result: we started anxiety training, which has been effective. And a lot of work. Plus, not all dog trainers do this sort of thing, so it's a little pricier than most dog training. And, we as owners also needed some education on how to work with the dog. Considering that both me and my girlfriend grew up with animals (my dad is a vet, we always had animals), I would consider this point important; anxiety cases are not easy and not obvious for most pet owners to just figure out.
While puppies do require attention, they are a lot easier to learn to handle than an anxiety case. Anyone adopting an adult pet should be aware of the potential training costs, with medication, can extend well above $1000 USD. (And if the dog decides to destroy your furniture, well, there's that, too.)
I know I will think twice before adopting an adult dog in the future.
The result: we started anxiety training, which has been effective. And a lot of work. Plus, not all dog trainers do this sort of thing, so it's a little pricier than most dog training. And, we as owners also needed some education on how to work with the dog. Considering that both me and my girlfriend grew up with animals (my dad is a vet, we always had animals), I would consider this point important; anxiety cases are not easy and not obvious for most pet owners to just figure out.
While puppies do require attention, they are a lot easier to learn to handle than an anxiety case. Anyone adopting an adult pet should be aware of the potential training costs, with medication, can extend well above $1000 USD. (And if the dog decides to destroy your furniture, well, there's that, too.)
I know I will think twice before adopting an adult dog in the future.