Hello from the Newbie

[Georgygirl]

Hello Everyone!

I'm a college student from Iowa and I just joined the forum today! I don't have a dog presently, but I'd love to add one to the family sometime soon. I have two cats right now and they're great, but I grew up with dogs and it just isn't the same without one. I look forward to learning all that I can here. I think I'll have a lot of fun reading about everyones pets.

Jordan

[Crossfire Bulldogs]

Hello and welcome to Global Paw! Hope to see pictures of your kitties soon!

[britishbandit]

Welcome to GP!
Have you thought about what breed of dog you might want in the future?

[Cassiepeia]

Welcome to Global Paw! What breeds do you like? Any idea what you might get in the future? What dogs have you had in the past?

Cass.

[Shadowkins]

Welcome to the GP family!!

[calgal]

Hi and welcome. I love kitties, but never had one because of allergys. (husband) We do have three daughters.........Delsi, a 14 year old Chihuahua, Zada, a 15 month old Yorkie and Azrael, a 13 month old Yorkie.

[poodlesmom]

Welcome!

[reggies mom]

Welcome to GP!!
Glad you are here.

[mulroony]

Welcome

If you don't mind me asking what school?
I go to Illinois, but have two brothers that made the mistake of going to Iowa

[TribalRats]

Welcome to GP!!!!!

[Georgygirl]

I go to Illinois, but have two brothers that made the mistake of going to Iowa

OUCH! lol! Iowa State University. I really like it here because the city's not too big, but not too small. Anyway, to answer the other questions, my family got a Springer Spaniel when I was two and we grew up together. She was my best pal! She lived to be 15 years old. Then my family got a beagle which they still have now. She's a sweety!

I'm not sure what breed would work in my living situation so I thought I'd post about it here. What would be the right section to post a question like that? Here's pics of my kitties.

ALLIE

ABU



Jordan

[mulroony]

ISU is not as bad as UIowa (and I love watching how upset they get when you guys beat them in football ). Being a recent college student in a similar situation (I have not been to ISU, but I would imagine there are the basic similarities) I actually have advice.

First I am not sure what the living situation is like out there, but here it is pretty much apartment, dorm, or greek. On our campus there is only really two landlords who allow you to have dogs, and only one of them does not have weight restrictions, although the one that does will wave them sometimes. So go out and contact as many landlords as you can to determine their pet policies. Their might be 4 that allow like 30lbs or less but only one that allows all dogs. If you do rent make sure the pet contract is in writting, esp if the lease is different then the agreement, b/c landlords will say something and then 4 months later change their mind.

The next big thing is your ability to meet the breeds exercise requirement. I know I run my dog once a day, plus a couple walks, plus she plays with my friends dog just about everyday. Still there are days when students get swamped and if you can't keep up the quota it can cause problems.

Vocal dogs are usually a huge no-no. Sadly you would get more complaints to your landlord if your dog is overly vocal then if your neighbors saw you starving and beating them. (People tend to stay out of things until it is an inconvience to them)

If I was choosing a dog when I was a sophmore I would say I would go for a 3+yr < 30lbs dog from a shelter. Many shelter dogs are great for students since many of them problems w/ kids, but I can count the number of times my dogs interact w/ kids per year on one hand. A short coat dog is a must (count out a lot of roommates to alergies as it is) and short coats require so much less attention. A smaller dog also helps keep you food costs down. A low energy dog would be best unless you are active yourself and there are activities the dog can join you in.

My biggest bit of advice is talk to other students you can find that have dogs. Most of them will be more then willing to give you 5 minutes of advice. Illinois happens to be a fairly dog friendly campus, but ISU might not be. Also check to see if there is a companion animal club or something through you animal science department.

Sorry for the long post but hope it helps. (PS I think a whippet is the perfect dog for a college student)

[Georgygirl]

Ames is a pretty pet friendly place. Granted there aren't many apartments right next to campus that are pet friendly but there are many apartments around here that are. I live in a 3-br duplex. It has a very small unfenced yard. THere are a lot of parks and trails though around here so I'd like a dog that wouldn't mind a little hiking. I'm also not a big fan of little yippy dogs. I guess growing up with a medium sized dog made me like them better. Medum sized or smaller was what I was thinking. I love whippets but there aren't many around here. I'd also like to maybe get involved in agility. There is a kennel club in town that offers classes and I thought it sounded like fun. I don't think I'd want to seriously compete, but I thought it would be a fun way to bond with my dog. Other than not eating my cats that's all the requirements I can think of. I'd love to hear some other suggestions.

Thanks!
Jordan

[gsp4619]

Welcome!!!!