Drawing the Line on Design
Jul 19th, 2008 by Lauri
Dogs are better than people. Love them. But like so many other things that have been labeled “designer,” today, some pups that were once called crossbreeds are now dubbed Designer Dogs. Our culture has become obsessed with anything that is marketed with that word and tiny dogs are no exception.
There are Malty-poos, Yorkie-poos, Cock-a-poos, Schnoodles, Schmalties and Morkies that have gained tremendous cache because they fit inside of designer handbags that coordinate with designer clothing, designer shoes and designer jewelry. Plus, a living, breathing, designer puppy can also kiss lips that are coated with designer lip-gloss!
Over the years I have had a basenji, a fox terrier, 3 Yorkshire terriers and a Wheaten terrier. The last, a sweet, sweet, smart girl named Morgan - our hairy daughter - was exactly one year older than our two-legged daughter, Tracy. They grew up together.
After Morgie passed, we needed time to get over losing her and we also came to realize that our lives had become too busy to be tied down to a new puppy. The years have gone by quickly and, now, we have been dog-less for more than a decade. I know there will be another lickum-stick in our future but our next pup will likely come from a shelter which, to us, is a lot cooler than buying a designer dog. Besides, we already have a designer in the house.
Shelters are like going dog-Green.
Rescues of particular breeds are great too! When our Golden Retriever died, we went through a golden rescue to adopt a new friend. We didn’t think we had time for puppy training. Piper is already housebroken and somewhat (we’re working on it) trained. She fit right in!
Suzanne,
It’s good to know that there are rescues for particular breeds, too. Thanks for the heads up and good luck with Piper!