My guess is that is part of the reason that the International Association of Women In Fire And Emergency Services thinks women should comprise of 17% of all first responders (when in actuality it's 3.7%), rather than, say 50%. That 17% probably does not include the sizable percentage of women who would not reach the…

Hybrid vigor is a bit of a myth. Myth is probably too strong a word, but it's a bit overhyped. Mutts don't actually have less health problems, as a whole, than purebred dogs, there is just a lot more invested in tracking and identifying health problems within a defined group. With a mutt, you don't know what you're…

Yeah I am always surprised by all the ads on Craigslist for English bulldog studs. If you are one of the few that actually should be breeding your dogs (and I have mixed feelings on whether dogs that can't naturally reproduce should even be bred, TBH), you definitely don't need to advertise on CL for a stud or bitch.

Yeah, it was never my plan to go to a breeder. However, I would have preferred to go to a rescue, especially one that had a dog in foster care rather than to pay someone on Craigslist a "rehoming fee" (sale fee) for their dog. I didn't mind paying rescue adoption fees, but I didn't like the feeling of putting money in…

I can vouch that there really are places that require credit checks. Overreaching does not even begin to describe that particular requirement.

A lot of them are really good people and have no idea what they're doing isn't the best, in the long run, for the animals. But it's not really a good thing to breed just because you have two dogs that you think would have cute puppies.

I don't get it. if you don't care about dog breeds, why does it matter to you that you go to breeders who are licensed and have two purebreds as pets in their home? Why not any random dogs? Why not just go to a shelter?

I understand your position and absolutely understand why organizations screen. At the same time, I think adoption standards can be abused, just like any system.

I think the age thing has a lot to do with it. I got denied from a LOT of places because I was under 25 - even though I made explicit references to this and how I planned to handle the standard transient lifestyle of a young person if I had a dog. In fact, one rescue advertised on Petfinder that they just wanted…

Most places I went to wanted to do a home inspection. And honestly, I think requiring a fenced in backyard sends a bit of the wrong message, since it suggests that you don't need to exercise the dog - somehow, your backyard is going to do it for you. Many city dogs don't have fenced in yards and are quite happy -…

Breed standards aren't arbitrarily set - often they are based on breeding a dog that conforms to the standard of what the dog is meant to do. Dachshunds, for example, were bred to be long because of their job, to burrow down badger or rabbit holes. Most breed clubs don't actually set arbitrary standards.

Just FYI, most people wouldn't consider people who keep two purebreds as pets and occasionally allow them to have pets doing what's "best for the breed." Even though they might love the pet, most people consider that backyard breeding and it's not doing good things for animals as a whole.

I hope to encourage others to think about NOT getting tattoos by stating my opinion in such a way as to make it CLEAR that there is no good reason to get one and that they are ONLY a detriment to the human body.

I had the same trouble as thebeeze when I was trying to adopt. I had initially wanted to go through a rescue organization (it didn't help that near where I live, most of the "highly adoptable" animals are removed from shelters by rescue orgs before they are even advertised to the public) but most required things like…

They actually do home inspections.

*In your opinion*. Those are the words you keep forgetting.

Frankly, this doesn't bother me. For one, within the city limits of San Francisco I doubt there are actually that many breeders (most responsible breeders - ie the ones that health test, show, carefully choose which animals to breed, adhere to the Rules of 7, etc) tend to live a bit further out from the city. For…

Yeah I think my aunts and uncles would find my very strange if I just started calling them George and Sue. Plus kind of disrespectful, in some weird way.

I don't think she was (principally) Latin, though I don't know if she had like, a grandmother that was. That's really interesting though!

Want to talk weird? I knew a girl in high school who, when talking to her brothers, would refer to her parents as "my mom" and "my dad." And this wasn't a divorce/multiple stepparents type situation either - but she would say to her brother "Oh is my mom picking us up from practice or is my dad?"