Travelling 500 miles to get a new dog
 

OK - First of all, I put that "Travelling" up there mainly to keep this oriented in the right direction. My question is actually on a different topic, but the Fodorite community is always so helpful and knowledgeable, it's where I think to turn for assistance (especially given all the wise and caring info in the current "sick kitty/should I leave for 4 days" thread I just read).

We WILL soon be making a 500 mile round trip to pick up a shelter dog that we just visited yesterday (we're waiting on an adoption approval and neutering). But he appears to be a chow-mix and I've just been prowling Google etc, reading some great stuff - AND some downright scary stuff - about chows and/or chow mixes.

So my question is - does anyone have a favorite pet-owner forum where I can chat/visit/learn, Fodors-style, about this anticipated venture of ours?

We're not neophyte dog-owners; had a long-haired shepherd mix for 14 years and a lab mix for 5, and did obedience training with both of them. I'd just really like to be able to find some other chow or chow mix owners to hear about their experiences. Thanks!

Good luck with your new family member and how heart warming!

No personal experience but what about this?

http://www.chowchow.org/

http://blogs5.nationalgeographic.com...hisperer/?p=24

http://www.petshub.com/dog/breeds/chow-chow.php

http://www.chowclub.org/

Hi, Congratulations to you and your new pup !
Most towns have rescue organisations, check with a local vet and ask about that.
You can post on a chow site ( above) and the dog owners will most likely give you more help and advice than you need. Dog people are like that :D
Chows can be ferocious and amazing family pets, it all depends on his life before you get him.
My grandmother had two , the female would not let children near her, the boy would lie on the floor like a rug for my cousins and I to play on.
Good luck!!

LOL mclaurie, great minds!!

Thanks - I knew I could count on y'all! mclaurie, that chowchow.org looks like it might help - seems to have forums such as I'm hoping for.

This dog (wanna see him?
http://www.ichs.net/dogs/sly.html

is by no means full chow - the chow part seems mostly evident in his coat. But the negative stuff I was reading about chow mixes, mainly on one particular site, really put a scare into me.

bestfriends.org has an excellent forum for questions from pet owners/soon-to-be-pet owners.

Just remember that all dogs are individuals; you can get a difficult dog in any breed, or a wonderful dog in any breed or mix.

As a teenager I dog-sat two chows. Mom chow was tempermental (irascible is the word actually) but her son was the sweetest guy ever.

That you've had dogs before and did obedience training is a great help!

Goto www.gardenweb.com and click on their Pets Forum.

Aww tucker, look at that face! He is lovely. Good luck!

Oh tuckerdc, what a precious pup! Just look at that face--I can certainly see why you chose him.

He looks a lot like my sister-in-law's pup, Penny. She was also a shelter find.

Good luck with the adoption.

Byrd

Oh, those eyes! Let us know how the trip goes - I think that will be an interesting trip report.

My best friend's dog is a chow lab mix and is the smartest animal God ever put on the planet. Scary smart.

When my girlfriends and I travel and they bring their dogs (three of them), Hunter Bunter is in charge of the other two. If Molly (Springer Spaniel) or Brandy (Golden Retriever mix) start acting up, Hunter Bunter will just throw them a 'look' and they behave.

She is extremely loyal and would guard Mary Ann with her life.

dsquared: yes, putting a strange doggie into a strange car for a four-hour trip with....strangers!...should make for a very interesting trip report! Needless to say, we'll plan on frequent stops (and treats).

And thanks to all of you for the input and encouragement. "That face" is what captured us when I was doing a pooch websearch. He's a ringer for our first dog, Bruno.

The Garden Web pets forum was a great suggestion, aileen. (I'm checking out all the others, too). I was just reading a Garden Web thread on pet names. The one that made me laugh out loud was from someone who said their Boxer should have been named Bounty, cuz when it came to any food that hit the floor, she was the quicker-picker-upper. (Would have been the perfect name for our recently/oh-so-dear departed Tucker, too).

GoTravel: Our posts crossed - thanks for sharing, it's just the kind of personality I was hoping to hear about!

tucker, I swear Hunter Bunter understands what people are saying. It is the eeriest thing and glad the story helped!

On the whole, I think rescue animals make the best pets.

He is precious! What a love. God bless you for taking a shelter dog. We have five shelter/reject dogs and they are wonderful. Of the five three are chow mixes. They are very different personalities but there are certain characteristics they share. One, they all have spotted tongues. Two, they are smart as whips and never needed to be told anything twice. Three, they are loyal and loving. None of them has ever displayed any aggression or intolerance. They are all in great physical shape, they love to play and run. Do I begin to sound just slightly partial to my pups? I admit it! Four of my five work as therapy dogs with elderly adults and children with serious disease. They are unqualified successes as I am quite sure Sly will be. Congratulations on the new addition!

PS when I first met my husband he owned a chow, Fu Dog Chu, who allowed birds to sit on the edge of his water bowl. He was the sweetest dog ever. Got bossed around by a long haired daschund, he was a very humble dog. Every breed can have problem animals, but in my experience the problems come more from owners than dogs. With your background I expect you to make a great team. Good luck.

Awwwwww he is soooo cute!!! Looks like maybe some collie? Best of luck

TuckerDC - he looks great!! We have a shelter dog that came with similar worries (adult dog, no knowledge of her background, "bad" mix - lab/rottweiller/pit bull). She has turned out to be a great dog. She has her quirks (in 5 years we haven't been able to get her to stop barking at the intercom or the elevator), but with love, TRAINING and lots of treats, I get all sorts of compliments about what a well-behaved animal I have (if only they knew the truth).

Talk to your vet and get a recommendation for a private trainer who specializes in rescue dogs - it will be the best money you spend on this very lucky animal. Good luck.

To be honest, I have not had very good luck with several chows who lived in our neighborhood. I had a large gentle German Shepherd in our two acre fenced yard. Every morning the two chows up the street would run down and try to pick a fight with him through the fence and be very intimidating to us when we would try to chase them away. Whenever we would ride bikes up the street, the chows would run out and bite us on the ankles. Of course, it would have helped if the owners had been interested in controlling the chows- this was in Mississippi in the country. So chows have never been on my list of dogs to consider owning.

I think there is a list somewhere of dogs who bite most frequently. It would be interesting to check with a vet to find out where chows would be listed on that. My daughter recently had a very difficult chocolate lab rescue dog, and to our surprise the vet said that labs actually are bad about biting. Our experience with that lab has led us to be very careful with future dog selections.