How To Choose Your Dog

FAQs

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Here you’ll find answers to our most frequently asked questions. But first, why not….

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Most people make a mess of choosing a dog. It happens to 6.5 million dogs per year in the USA alone. That’s BILLIONS of dollars wasted. Heartache and tears. Unbelievable cruelty. So stop! Think!

Discover for FREE what most people will never know about choosing a dog for a lifetime of joy. Get your free guides today and you could be one of these people tomorrow! Get your Free Guides today by clicking this link

Here are the FAQs

How many breeds of dog are there?

There are well over 200 popular breeds and possibly more than 500 breeds worldwide. Some of these are only known in their country of origin. And some breeds have more than one type of dog in them. For example there are about 15 types of Afghan Hound in Afghanistan!

Do dogs cost a lot?

That depends what question you’re asking!

Puppies – good quality ones – are usually $800 to $1200 (£650 to £1,000). If you go to rescue centres you can usually adopt a pure breed (or any dog) for a donation towards costs – usually anywhere from $100 (£75) upwards.

But then you’ve got all the equipment (leads, collars, bedding, coats), food, insurance, kennel fees for holidays, pet insurance, vaccinations. You could easily spend $5,000 or more in your first six months. If you’re shipping from overseas make that $7,000!

The lifetime cost of a dog will be at least $16,500 with a basic level of care – basic food, basic insurance, basic everything. Not including more ‘advanced’ costs like kennel fees, holidaying with your dog, training classes and so on.

The most likely lifetime cost of a dog will be around $25,000 taking all things into account – and a good standard of care, food, equipment etc.

What’s the best breed of dog?

That depends totally on you. What works for one person will not work for another. If you want a good guard dog, for example, then a greyhound would be a poor choice because they hardly ever bark. If you wanted a low maintenance (grooming) dog then you would choose a short haired breed.

The breeds are as wonderful and unique as you are. Not to mention all the cross-breeds too looking for adoring homes. So you need to know your personality and lifestyle inside and out first. Then you’ll know what to look for in a dog.

Why do I need help choosing a dog?

Because lots of things can go wrong if you don’t follow the system. Then you’ve got a complete (and very expensive) disaster on your hands. You could waste $5,000 to $7,000, just like I did. And you could make more than one expensive mistake before you get it right (been there too!).

Plus you end up with a broken heart every time. It’s not as simple as choosing the first thing which looks cute. For more info, check out Quick Start Guide Lesson 1 or get your free -Guide.

Is it difficult to choose a dog?

No, but you have to know what you’re doing. There’s an easy but powerful process which all successful dog owners use, even if they don’t realise it. There might only be about 10-12 key steps, but there’s a lot of detail to absorb along the way.

Most people don’t know and will never know all those details. That’s why so many millions of people get it wrong and we have so many problems with cruelty and abandonment. So I created this site, my free guides and my e-book to help you get it right. more cheaply, easily and with less risk than any other way.

The Quick Start Guide introduces you to that process, and you can sign up for the e-book version here.

What’s the key to choosing the right dog?

Well there are quite a few! That’s a big question! Here are my favourites:

Total honesty. If you’re not honest, then you’ll try and make something fit that doesn’t. And then you’re in trouble. Be honest. Be brutally honest.
Under-estimate everything, rather than over-estimate. Then you know you’ve got your baseline requirement. If a dog fits that, then it’ll be happy on the days when you can give it more.
Make sure you always choose a dog that’s happy with the amount of exercise you can give it. Under-exercised dogs become problem dogs very quickly.
Your dog is your ‘mirror’. So if you’re sporty and outdoorsy, your dog should be too. If you’re outgoing and friendly, your dog should be too. If you’re calm and relaxed…. you get the idea!
Make sure it’s affordable – that you can pay for it week in week out for the next 10-15 years, covering all usual costs and any emergency vets bills.

How do I know I’m ready for a dog?

Well there are lots of ways to know you’re ready. I’ve covered about 19 key ways in my e-book. These are things most people never do or think about.

Most people think they’re ready and they just aren’t. And the people who think they are ready often dive in without any more thinking and end up with a problem. My theory is if you can honestly answer ‘The One Question’ then you’re ready. Go to Quick Start Guide Lesson 3

Can I be sure I’m a suitable home?

Yes, you can. There are lots of ways you can ensure being a suitable home. You don’t have to have a lot of money, or lots of time for exercise to be one. Care, love, attention and putting your dog first every single time are really important.

But you need to make sure your lifestyle supports a dog first. Then you need to look at what kind of dog works best for you. Helpful tips are included in Quick Start Guide Lesson 4 and Lesson 6. However there are a lot more issues covered in real detail in the e-book, so that’s what you need if you want to make sure you really are a great home.

Is there really such a big problem with people choosing the wrong dogs?

Yes! In fact the problem is way bigger than huge. It’s horrific. It’s on a scale most people (including me) find hard to imagine. Possibly hundreds of millions of dogs every year suffer needlessly because of it.

HALF of all dogs bought or homed each year will be sold, given away, abandoned, neglected, dumped in rescue or killed (euthanised) in less than 12 months. 6.5 million dogs per year end up this way in the USA alone. I’d show you pictures of what happens to these dogs but it would make you sick. But if you really want to know, all you need to do is Google ‘abandoned dogs’ and look at the pictures.

I’m allergic to dogs – is there one for me?

Yes, most likely!

There are some people who might never be able to have a dog. A friend of mine has a son who starts wheezing as soon as he’s in a room where a dog has been. And no, he doesn’t always know there has been a dog in there first.

Happily, I’ve met several people personally who are highly dog allergic and still found something they could adore.

There are nearly 50 breeds of non-shedding, low allergy dogs and another 15 or so which might be ok for you. They are all shapes and sizes and fit all kind of households. You can get that list by signing up for my free guides - it’s a FREE bonus which you can pass on to anyone you like and post up on any site you choose, including forums.

So get your free guide and get stuck in!

Is it better to get a puppy than an adult?

Not necessarily. Puppies are just babies with fur. They need constant attention up to at least 6 months, sometimes more, so are often not good for working households. In fact unless you can afford full day doggy day care I’d never recommend a puppy for a working household.

Adult dogs can come complete with most or all of the work already done for you, which is a bonus.

Work-at-home households should be able to manage a puppy – the key is to have someone around most of the time.

I’ve heard people talk about dogs and bitches. What’s meant by the terms ‘dog’ and ‘bitch’?

The word ‘dog’ is the male, and ‘bitch’ is the female. I use the term ‘dog’ to mean all dogs, because this is easier than saying ‘dog or bitch’ every single time.

Are looks important?

Not as much as you’d think. Of course we all have preferences. But there is no point choosing a beautiful looking dog only to find out it’s not right for you. I did that and got a very expensive problem which cost me a lot of money, having shipped him from overseas and then having to ship him back!

Look at what matches your lifestyle first. Then choose something you like the look of from your shortlist. Many owners of rescue dogs say the dog’s personality is what makes them loveable, not their looks.

Surely having one dog’s very much like having any other?

Absolutely not! Say for example you decide you want a medium-sized dog. Some have long coats, some short. Some are very trainable, others are not. Some are great with people, others are not. Some hunt game and the next door neighbours cats, some don’t. You need to appreciate the difference between the breeds and how well that suits you. See Quick Start Guide Lesson 5 for more information.

Can I rely on friends and family for advice?

Their input will be helpful. They can give you information on what it’s like to live with dogs generally and what to expect. But you and they have different lifestyles. And they probably don’t have 20 years of life with dogs including breeding, rescue work, sourcing puppies to order, taking dogs to dog shows, giving breed-specific advice and so on.

So take their advice, but use it along with your own research to make good choices of what dog suits you.

It’s really important to me that you get the best advice possible, which is why I’ve created my e-book. It’s a lot cheaper than diving in and making a bad choice. About $870 cheaper!

Can I use free information off the internet?

Yes of course! There is a lot of it about. However if you look closely, most is vague. It’s also inconsistent and difficult to piece together. If you’re a first time dog owner, or someone who made a bad choice before it could do more harm than good. That’s because it doesn’t lead you through the right process or give you all the detail you need. To be honest, there’s a lot of it there, but it’s no better quality than when I started choosing dogs using breed books well over 20 years ago.

So yes, use free resources on the internet to supplement your knowledge. However, don’t rely on it to tell you everything you really need to know about choosing your dog, because it won’t.

Why can’t I got to a pet store?

If you’re in a country where pet stores are still allowed to sell dogs, beware. The first problem with these stores is they buy cheap and sell high to keep their profits up. They often buy from puppy farms – where puppies are simply bred in warehouses on a massive scale without proper care or attention. That’s why they are called ‘farms’.

These dogs don’t live in a home. They don’t even have the luxury of a kennel. They live in small crates stacked on top of each other sometimes several stories high. Often these farms produce poor quality, sickly or bad-tempered dogs, landing YOU with the vets bills.

The second problem is pet stores aeren’t specialists in the different breeds. Do you think you’re going to get good quality advice about what is going to suit you from a spotty youth who’s never owned a dog before? Unlikely.

The third problem is that pet stores are there to sell you things. That puppy is costing them money. So they are only really interested in selling you that puppy as quickly as possible so they can make a profit.

How do I get a healthy dog?

Wow that’s a big question. The key to this is to get a good breeder – one who dedicates their life to improving their breed. One who really knows all about the health issues and actively breeds to reduce them. Then make sure the breeder’s dogs and puppies are properly health screened.

Make sure YOU know what health issues there are in the breed first. Some breeds are a lot more ‘unhealthy’ than others. And check the puppies out properly before you decide. This is a really big question. Go to the Quick Start Guide Lessons 7-9 and 11. or your free-Guide version. Then have a look at the breed profiles on the site.

There are many superb tips on how to get a healthy dog in the e-book - far more than most people will give you.

There are lots of dogs out there. Why do I need your help?

You don’t – if you want to make mistakes and get an unsuitable dog! I didn’t get any help and I made three mistakes costing me over £5,000 pounds sterling before I learned it the hard way. That hurt.

Half of everyone who buys a puppy wastes their money. That’s probably between $600 and $1,000 down the drain before they’ve even counted the cost of the equipment, food, bedding and pet insurance. You never get those costs back. And to cap it all, if you take the dog to a rescue centre they’ll usually charge you to take it in.

The Quick Start Guide introduces you to all the key steps to choosing your dog correctly. It draws on well over 20 years of personal dog experience, around 80 years of breeder and rescue experience from different people, and personal case studies of what can go wrong as well as right.

There’s so much more to it than that thought which is why I’ve put it all down in over 300 pages of everything you need to know.

Will you really help me choose the right dog?

Definitely yes! If you follow the proven system I’ve laid out for you. There are 12 powerful chapters covering every last detail I’ve ever used to choose perfect dogs since I learned what I was doing. There is experience from renowned dog breeders, from well known rescue centres and lots more.

Not only that I’ll save you time, save you money, and cut out all the risk.

All the tips and secrets used by successful dog owners and breeders for choosing the right dog are there. All you have to do is take advantage of them by clicking here

Do I need any special knowledge first?

No. You don’t need to prepare or learn anything before you start. Everything is laid out for you in easy to follow steps and simple language. In fact, if you don’t know anything that’s an advantage, because you don’t already have any bad habits or think you know it all!

All you have to do is take advantage of what’s been prepared. It’s all been done to help you so you get it right and live happily with your dog. Save time, money and hassle by clicking here

Is there anything else I should know?

Where do I start! Yes, yes and yes! That’s why I created my e-book. So you get answers to ALL your questions,save time, save money and cut out ALL the risk! And the best part is you only have to learn it once! Just click here

How do I know you know your stuff?

See the letters on my Reviews page. Some are dog breeders, some are owners, some are would-be owners who already know me. New ones are coming in all the time. Click here for Reviews

What’s a review?

This is where you tell someone how pleased you are with something you bought from them, or something they did for you. They then ask your permission to reproduce this on their website or in sales information. When your words are used, this is called a ‘testimonial’. However I’ve used ‘review’ because it’s shorter and frendlier.

Ok, say I’ve got your system, done my homework and am still unsure. What then?

Just get in touch! You have 5 e-mail support included in the package free of charge. Tell me what’s bothering you and I’ll do my best to answer. It helps us both learn new things. Mail me at bev@howtochooseyourdog.com

Can I give your information to other people who are also thinking of getting dogs?

Yes for the free guides.

The guides are free information for you and to send on to anyone else they might help. No strings attached! They will change too as this site develops and you tell me more about what you need.

These reports were designed to be shared. You are encouraged to send them out to anyone you like. Post them up on forums. Send them to animal charities, vets and other animal specialists in your areas. Put them up on any websites for instant download.

NO for the e-book.

The paid-for e-book and bonuses are the way I make a living. They feed and clothe me and my dogs. They are all copyrighted to www.howtochooseyourdog.com and Beverley Nash. You only have the right to use them if you have pourchased them. If you send them ton other people you’ll be subject to legal action.

If you’re pleased with what I do simply direct people to me. You can also affiliate and earn 40% commission on any sales. Click here for more information

Will I get spammed if I opt for the free reports?

Definitely not! I can’t stand sites where you sign up for a free report and then get a message every single day until you get so fed up you unsubscribe. It’s not a good way to do business! It will all be spaced out. And you won’t get recommendations for any products or services I haven’t checked personally.

Plus I never share the details of who is on my list with anyone.

Are payment details secure?

Yes. Your card details are processed using a secure server operated by Clickbank. None of your payment details are recorded on my site and can’t be accessed intentionally or accidentally.

What’s your returns policy?

My returns policy is I hope you’ll be so delighted with anything you buy (and your eventual dog) that there won’t be any! However, return anything you buy within 60 days and I’ll refund the money in full.

How do I cancel my order?

After ordering, if you change your mind, you’ll be able to cancel using the Clickbank order receipt. If you have problems just e-mail bev@howtochooseyourdog.com

However, if you do decide to cancel, I’d like to know why you changed your mind. If there’s anything I can do to reassure you, let me know.