How do you feel about dogs? Poll
 

Working off of Graciegirl's post about your feelings about dogs.

Love dogs. Owners of dogs..... Depends.

I think you would have a special person if you could find one half as wonderful as any dog.

:agree:
THIS is the better answer. If the owners were more responsible about their dogs and courtesy of others. But, let's not get into dog pooping replies.

They enrich our lives

My opinion means nothing !

life span...
 

If dogs lived as long as humans lived and humans lived as briefly as dogs live, it might be a better world.

Mine is an addiction I don't care to break. I have made a lifetime of accommodations to have them in my life- all worth it!

Had to vote I don't feel comfortable around them. Last year I rode my bike 1500 miles and was attacked three times- once a mailman driving by had to help me. Just yesterday I was walking down a path and a dog came flying towards me barking like crazy with the owner saying "he won't hurt you" while the dog is barking like crazy and charging around. It is hard not to freeze up and owners don't understand when you are afraid you are afraid. Almost like post traumatic stress. Obviously people see that I am freaking out and ready to have a heart attack and call their dogs away- I cross the street if I see someone walking their dog and try to avoid them, but you can't avoid all dogs in this world unless you live in a gated dog free community.

Now I have gotten to know many well behaved dogs and their owners - I can pet them and be around them without panic. We have even owned a few but I insisted they were very well trained and very well behaved.

edited to add this happened in NY state. While in TV I have had dogs come up to me, and several bark, but not loose. I still avoid them even on a leash.

What a wonderful world this would be if people were as loyal as dogs.

Thank You
 

:pray:

I have never meet a bad pet only bad owners

If I were a writer I would write the story about how much my beloved Duffy taught me about unconditional love. We were together for 13 years and he never let me down and when he looked up at me I only saw love and devotion in his eyes. For 13 years he never showed anything but complete joy when I walked in the door and the little guy was frequently in pain. The saddest part about having a dog as your best friend is the emptyness they leave in your heart when they pass on.

:agree:I CONCUR. I never would have gotten through my husbands' passing were it not for the love of my little dog Rosie. :pray:

I've had dogs most of my life and can say that they each have been the most loyal, patient, and "understanding" friend I could have. Don't get me wrong, my human friends are great, I love them and have no doubt that they would help me at the drop of a hat, but a dog is different. Bad day at work? My dog somehow chooses to be silly and nudge me for an extra walk. I guess the best thing to say is that "to know them is to love them". My neighbor also gave me a poignant quote (I don't know the author or even if this was his own observation) recently after we lost our 13 year old lab/Newfoundland mix, "They give us their hearts, and they take ours". I had to turn quickly away...............

with our last one gone, i just am not going to start again, its too hard when they have to leave

When I return home, whether it be in five minutes or five hours, Oh what a reception I receive. Two doggies that are so happy to see me, they could turn themselves inside out they are so excited. Try finding as loyal a companion. Although I am lucky, my husband does receive me with like excitement, he doesn't drool as much though :)

Would have liked a choice of, "Better than most people". :)

Dogs are so much company and they love unconditionally. I will be moving from South Louisiana to The Villages the end of September, renting for two months (thank you Audrey) then buying a Courtyard Villa - mainly for the dogs comfort and safety. I try to adopt senior dogs and give them a good life for a few years. I am so looking forward to The Villages and meeting all of you!

Wife and I had several dogs over the last 50 years. Always did our best to train them to behave properly like we did our children when they went out with us to eat at a restaurant. It does take time and effort to train a dog properly. Sometimes (depending on the dog) you need professional help. In our early working days, I traveled a lot, we always had a trained dog at home. Our last dog was a white toy poodle. She was a great companion and lap dog. She lived to see a couple years of retirement and we went out of the "pet business" for good. Of course, never say never!

I feel exactly the same way.

Createquilts, I agree w ya all the way...







Createquilts, i agree w ya all the way!
Dog lovers need to understand 'different strokes for different folks"

Oops. I didn't realize this was the official thread for the dog poll. I answered all the questions on the other thread.
Easily confused,
Judy

Thanks for Graciegirl for thinking about doing a poll on opinions about dogs.
 

I am so happy that most of the people who responded to this poll love dogs.

I have mixed feelings about both dogs and people having lived next to a pit bull trainer in Palm Harbor for a while. He always kept the dogs in cages in his garage which I thought was awful. It probably also made these pit bulls not very friendly around humans as humans had kept them chained up.

Pit bulls also seem to have an instinctual tendency to be very aggressive. Not sure if the best trainer can turn something that has an aggressive instinctual nature into a sweet pooch.

Even our usually sweet Dalmation could get nasty if you threatened any family member. All it took though as approaching another family member while this person was lying on a bed. We got this Dalmatian as a puppy so we never trained her to be protective that way.

Some of the small dogs at the local dog parks can also get nasty after you put them on a leash. They seem to take on an entirely different personality when they are restricted in their movements. The other pooches also re-act differently to dogs on leashes. Much more fights between dogs when one of them is still on a leash at a dog park.

Love animals!
 

I just love four footed critters. I am currently owned by 3 cats but would have a doggy in a heart beat if I was home more.

I am currently working full time and even though I work from home 2 days a week, the other 3 days are the problem. I can leave the house at 7:30 am and not get home until 7 to 8 pm. Too long to leave a dear sweet dog alone.

I love on every doggy I see being walked. I would love to have a dog some day. Hopefully when I retire.

Here are a few quotes about animals that I'd like to share with other animal lovers.

The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated.
Mohandas Gandhi

Our task must be to free ourselves... by widening our circle of compassion to embrace all living creatures and the whole of nature and its beauty.
Albert Einstein

Shall we, because we walk on our hind feet, assume to ourselves only the privilege of imperishability?
George Eliot

Life is as dear to a mute creature as it is to man. Just as one wants happiness and fears pain, just as one wants to live and not die, so do other creatures.
His Holiness The Dalai Lama

Mankind's true moral test, its fundamental test (which lies deeply buried from view), consists of its attitude towards those who are at its mercy: animals. And in this respect mankind has suffered a fundamental debacle, a debacle so fundamental that all others stem from it.
Milan Kundera, The Unbearable Lightness of Being

We need another and a wiser and perhaps a more mystical concept of animals... In a world older and more complete than ours they move finished and complete, gifted with extensions of the senses we have lost or never attained, living by voices we shall never hear. They are not brethren, they are not underlings; they are other nations, caught with ourselves in the net of life and time, fellow prisoners of the splendour and travail of the earth.
Henry Beston

Barefoot, these quotes are wonderful! Thanks for sharing!

Love the quotes Barefoot.

Barefoot, they are all wonderful quotes. I have a tee shirt with this one on it
"The greatness of a nation and its moral progress can be judged by the way its animals are treated."
Thank you for sharing.

if dogs weren't allowed there, I wouldn't even consider living there.

I'm with you sista.

Poll questions with two or more questions in each choice produce very skewed results. My answers to simple questions would be:

1. I love dogs
2. I do not currently have a dog
3. Dog owners should be respectful of other residents property and privacy

That's the reason we bought in The Villages. I know a lot of people would find it nutty, but we make all our life decisions with our pets in mind. We are dogaholics, and our plan is to always have two dogs.

We were having a problem finding a retirement community that allows large dogs, and more than one dog. Most communities allow only one dog and many have a weight stipulation of 25 lbs or 40 lbs. Not for us. When we saw that large dogs were allowed at the Town Squares, we were hooked. As we looked at resales in different Villages, everywhere we looked, happy people were walking dogs. And then we found the private dog park, Doggie Doo Run Run, which is heaven sent. So we have Biggins and LolliPop to thank for our decision to buy in TV.

90% of all dogs are better than 90% of the people I meet.:a20:

A dog can make a man better.

I totally agree.

Always had two large dogs. Now - somehow - we "ended up" rescuing this Heinz 57 varieties dog that I sometimes refer to as "mini mutt!"

Most of our previous dogs were in the 80 - 110 pound range. This one is about 30 pounds. But, I gotta tell you - she is one great lovable dog! Wouldn't trade her for the world !

Originally Posted by hope2soon
if dogs weren't allowed there, I wouldn't even consider living there.


We are so totally in agreement. We only considered TV because of what Barefoot said AND the CYV fenced yards. Then TV just kept looking better and better. (This coming from people who bought a motorhome to vacation with their dogs.) We acccommodate to live better WITH our dogs and we aren't going to chang that in retirement. So happy we found such a great place where we can do that. The 2 dog policy is a hard enough adjustment for me to wrap my head around, but we loved the other aspects of TV enough to do it.

Saved Westie from Gator
 

I found out that my Westie, Bounce, is more important to me than me. Last Friday Bounce was pulled into a pond by a seven foot gator. I heard her yelp and saw her in the gator's mouth moving out into the pond. I didn't think. I leaped and did a belly flop onto the gator. I was able to grab the gator's back leg and get my other arm around his tail. After a short battle with the gator, he released Bounce and we both got away. We are both fine.

Oh my. I am so glad you are both ok. What a terror! Where was this?

Hi GatorGus,
I see this is your first post. Welcome to TOTV! Funny thing is, I know who you are from your first post. lol. Heard about your incident from a friend who is your neighbor. I am so glad to that you are Bounce are ok. Be careful, btw. It's a jungle out there. :)