Duplex Pet Options

godtabh

Girl friend is looking to get something for her birthday.

She was looking for something like a rabbit or dog. Dog would more than likely be indoor but we do have a decent sized balcony and thats also why she was considering rabbits.

Dog has to be non shed as the GF is allergic.

Walking and taking care of either shouldnt be a problem. We both work full time but the GF loves walking so if we went for a dog it would get plenty of exercise.

Any ideas?

crotalus667

godtabh wrote: »

We both work full time but the GF loves walking so if we went for a dog it would get plenty of exercise.

Any ideas?

Dont get a puppy they need alot of company ,

Glowing

A cat? (better still, a cat from the DSPCA?)

I wouldn't recommend a dog if you're going to keep him or her locked up inside your place all day .. cats are very independant and are great company too.

Sigma Force

One thing to just be wary of is that if she is allergice to dog hair rabbit hair can be a bit of an irritant so if you know of anywhere you can go to see some rabbits first to see if she is allergic. There's also the hay that can irritate allergies as well. Bunny hair tends to be pretty fly away.

Rabbits do make great house/aparment pets. There's a link in my sig where you can click to get more info on their care and neutering etc.

Ideally though rabbits should be kept in bonded pairs they also require vaccinations and litter training but can't help pooping everywhere.

If at work for long hours then a pair of rabbits would be more fair they do love company so a bunny proof room or large pen or bunny proofing the balcony would be an idea.

Rabbits come in to rescue a good bit so worth looking around for a pair of already bonded rescue rabbits, that have perhaps already been neutered/spayed. They can live for 7-10 yrs. I think allianz still do rabbit insurance which is vital because when they do get sick they can become pretty ill and it can be expensive.

They are great fun though, need lots of space and things to rip up and play with.

godtabh

we both hate cats

crotalus667

godtabh wrote: »

we both hate cats

What about a pet rat ????

godtabh

She isnt keen on something like that

crotalus667

godtabh wrote: »

She isnt keen on something like that

so are reptiles out as well?

Satyr_The_Great

a non shed dog? i dont think you are gonna find one..dogs are gonna shed hair, even more so if kept indoors all the time cos they are not as intouch with the seasons as a dog that is kept outdoors.

Kevin!

Satyr_The_Great wrote: »

a non shed dog? i dont think you are gonna find one..dogs are gonna shed hair, even more so if kept indoors all the time cos they are not as intouch with the seasons as a dog that is kept outdoors.

Some dogs don't shed by nature, mine doesn't (bichon frize)

Glowing

godtabh wrote: »

Girl friend is looking to get something for her birthday.

Sorry, but this has been grating on me everytime I open this thread!!

Your girlfriend is looking for 'something'? Think long and hard whether or not a dog would be your choice because you can't think of anything else to get (and hate cats) or whether you genuinly love dogs (they are a HUGE (and expensive) commitment as all dog owners will admit to) .... if you keep an indoor/duplex dog, you can say goodbye to your afterwork pints etc, as one of you will have to be home at the same time every day to let it go out and pee.

I'll probably get killed for this ....

godtabh

Will its not till the end of July so at least I'm looking into it first

godtabh

Kevin! wrote: »

Some dogs don't shed by nature, mine doesn't (bichon frize)

Westies do as well

morganafay

Bichon Frises don't shed, and are really lovely, sweet natured, small dogs. So that bit easier to look after and good for an apartment. It would still need alot of attention and a walk before and after work. And would need to be housetrained well if it's in all day. Also just wanted to add, that if she wanted a Bichon then they need loads and loads of grooming.)

Has your girlfriend had a dog before? Or any other pet? If she hasn't had a dog before then I'd probably recommend a rabbit because dogs are such a handful. Rabbits obviously need alot of attention too but are much easier to look after than dogs (in my opinion). They can be litter trained, but some will be better than others. One of mine uses her litter tray perfectly, but the other only uses the litter tray half the time, and the floor the rest of the time. Also rabbits can live a long time (10 years maybe) and need neutered, vaccinations and all that aswell. And she might be allergic to rabbits too . . .

seamus

godtabh wrote: »

She was looking for something like a rabbit or dog. Dog would more than likely be indoor but we do have a decent sized balcony and thats also why she was considering rabbits.

Rabbits require exercise too, so you would need to have somewhere that you can take the rabbit(s) out of the hutch and let them run around, every day. I know people who let them run around their sitting room, but they could end up getting stuck or injured if they're unsupervised.

Dog has to be non shed as the GF is allergic.

Is she allergic to dogs or allergic to animals in general? It's rare enough to be allergic to animal hair, though this is usually what people think it is. More often than not it's an allergy to the animal's skin and saliva, and the allergies vary from person to person and animal to animal.
Even short-haired breeds shed hairs 1.5 - 3cm long, these are far too long to cause irritation in the eyes and nose.
My wife is allergic to (but still loves) cats, and has no allergy to dogs. So you need to find out what you are and aren't allergic to before picking an animal. The length of the hair isn't that important - though shedding is an issue because obviously it leaves hair follices and saliva everywhere, which is what causes the allergic reaction.

Walking and taking care of either shouldnt be a problem. We both work full time but the GF loves walking so if we went for a dog it would get plenty of exercise.

Yes, but would it be at home all day on its own? How much exercise the dog gets is less important than how often the dog gets it. One 2-hour walk a day will leave your dog knackered and well exercised, but it'll still be lonely and troublesome (bored) if left at home for 8 - 10 hours a day. A 15-minute walk every 4 hours mightn't exhaust the dog, but it will break up the monotony of the day and he's less likely to go crazy when left on his own.

If you work full-time, at the bare minimum, the dog needs to get out when you get out of the bed, at lunchtime and again when you get home. This is especially true in a duplex because the only way the dog gets out to run around is if you bring them out.

I have a staffie in a duplex and it works fine, but it changes almost every aspect of how you have to run your life. It's no longer OK to go to work on a Friday morning and not get home until the wee hours of Saturday morning without putting plans in place.

Lexie_Karas

Can I ask a question regarding the allergy... if she's allergic to dogs and got a non shed dog granted it'd cut down on the hair around the house in general but would she still not have a problem interacting with the dog itself? I'm thinking that she still wouldn't be able to cuddle it or give it a huge amount of affection or it would trigger the allergies?

Maybe I'm wrong, and as Seamus says it could be an allergy to saliva or something rather than the dander in the coat.

If it turns out that she's allergic to other animals rather than just dogs ferrets might be a good idea. They're fur is considered hypo-allergenic and I know personally I'm allergic to rabbits, cats, hamsters and god knows what else but ferrets are grand! I'd recommend doing an awful lot of research before committing to a ferret though, they take up a little bit more time than a cat but a little bit less than a dog and on top of that they aren't as straight forward as you might think.

As a suggestion though would it not be better to let your girlfriend choose her own pet? For your present you could do a load of research on differant animals, prinit it all off and offer to take her shopping for all it's needs and bring her where ever she needs to go to choose whatever pet she decides on. It'd still be a very sweet gift but at least it'd be exactly what she wants.

godtabh

This is a joint project. I'm just asking the questions here.

She has asthma hence why she needs non shed. Allergic migbt be the wrong word.

Sigma Force

Asthma can be irritated by critters like cats and rabbits, as said best thing is to get her to spend time around rabbits, dogs etc. and see wether she reacts to them.