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The Pet Thread


mirandaw

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House rabbits are awesome as a grad student! I'm currently in the process of bonding these two (that's a bit stressful, as bunny fights are heartbreaking). The grey one is my holland lop bunny Femto. The dutch (b&w) is the newest addition to the household named "Fermata." (combining music and science-get it??) Fermata is a rescue bunny and a sweetheart, she's tolerating Femto but he has fallen completely head over heels in love. I'm amazed with how much personality these little guys have.

It makes me giggle every time to see little balls of fur hopping around my living room. Seriously a mood lifter no matter what kind of day you have had.

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House rabbits are awesome as a grad student! I'm currently in the process of bonding these two (that's a bit stressful, as bunny fights are heartbreaking). The grey one is my holland lop bunny Femto. The dutch (b&w) is the newest addition to the household named "Fermata." (combining music and science-get it??) Fermata is a rescue bunny and a sweetheart, she's tolerating Femto but he has fallen completely head over heels in love. I'm amazed with how much personality these little guys have.

It makes me giggle every time to see little balls of fur hopping around my living room. Seriously a mood lifter no matter what kind of day you have had.

I've been desperate for a rabbit for ages now. I had an angora for a while but she passed. Theyre seriously the perfect mix of dogs and cats. (also, an aside: I had a dream I rescued three house rabbits that had been dumped outside. Then they all magically bonded and we lived happily ever after, the end)

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I've been desperate for a rabbit for ages now. I had an angora for a while but she passed. Theyre seriously the perfect mix of dogs and cats. (also, an aside: I had a dream I rescued three house rabbits that had been dumped outside. Then they all magically bonded and we lived happily ever after, the end)

I wish there were such a thing as "magical bonding." My house is really tiny, and juggling two bunnies in two cages with separate "romp" times is getting old. Can't wait until they sufficiently bond and live happily ever after in the same place (which is actually a homemade bunny-worthy palace).

'Yall should seriously consider bunnies! Especially now after Easter- so many people buy them as a gift for their kids and then when the novelty wears off they end up in shelters. Poor guys.

I can totally see myself becoming a "bunny woman." You know... like a "cat lady" but with little floppy big-eared rabbits instead of cats.

I seriously want to leave lab right now and go home to play with them.

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I've seen this thread around for some time, and finally opened for the first time a couple days ago. I ran out of up-votes for the day by the end of page 1. :)

This is my rescue muted tortie, Olivia. She came home with me on Superbowl weekend of 2007 as a 4-month old kitten.

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My BF has a rescue boxer-lab that I adore as well:

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Sadly, both live far away right now. I found out at the last minute that the apt I was signing a lease for didn't allow pets, so Olivia went to my parents' place for the year...I didn't want to show up for the start of grad school without a place, and have to re-start my whole apt. search. I will say that while having BF and family far away is hard, I miss having animals around everyday so much more!

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Just a note to anyone planning on an adoption when they move to grad school: please, please give senior cats or dogs a chance. A kitten may seem like the most appealing and fun option, but kittens very rarely encounter trouble getting adopted. Seniors, on the other hand, may live out their final days (and it's a truncated period, as limited space makes them more "expendable") in a shelter despite the fact that nothing is wrong with them. You would make a huge impact by helping out a senior pet who has been forsaken. Not to mention that their dispositions can be eccentric and interesting -- a kitten will be a lot of work on top of a transition to a new school and location.

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Just a note to anyone planning on an adoption when they move to grad school: please, please give senior cats or dogs a chance. A kitten may seem like the most appealing and fun option, but kittens very rarely encounter trouble getting adopted. Seniors, on the other hand, may live out their final days (and it's a truncated period, as limited space makes them more "expendable") in a shelter despite the fact that nothing is wrong with them. You would make a huge impact by helping out a senior pet who has been forsaken. Not to mention that their dispositions can be eccentric and interesting -- a kitten will be a lot of work on top of a transition to a new school and location.

That's one of the many reasons why I do not want a puppy. My parents got the dog I grew up with when he was 2-4, still very puppy-ish while still (in theory) being able to hold his bladder for more than 2 hours. While DH wants especially young, he hasn't had to be one of the primary caregivers for an animal in years and he will be working from home- also there is an older adult that I am just smitten with. He sounds and looks so much like the dog my parents had. The rescue is foster based so I at least know that the seniors aren't going to be pts from lack of space.

I've been noticing an obscene number of HW+ dogs lately. I know Texas has a higher risk because of climate or whatever but it's a simple monthly pill. I've had textbooks that cost far more than the yearly prescription. It's just ridiculous.

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I also have house bunnies (rescues, of course, and elderly to boot). They moved with me from Seattle to Boston. Bonding was a painful experience, and it took them like 2 years to actually get really comfortable together. But now they are super cute, lounging around together like an old couple. And they run to the door to greet me when I get home, clean themselves, are litter trained--the perfect pets! I'd attach a pic but am having trouble figuring out how. I should get back to studying for generals anyway...

Edited by Usmivka
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I'm thinking about getting a dog after my first year more or less. I'll be starting in Ann Arbor this August. When I visited during the prospective visits, it seemed that every apartment I saw has pet rent, and it suddenly dawned on me that I'm finally going to be earning a full living stipend (which feels amazing after being in college and dependent on my parents and a collection of assorted scholarships) and I could possibly be able to have a dog.

I've never had a dog, but soon after I moved out my parents adopted a dog and then another one. I take care of them often since I live in the same city as my parents.

I went on adopt-a-pet.com and looked around, though I wouldn't be considering adopting until about a year from now at least. I'd set aside at least $1000 for emergency vet bills beforehand, and some more money for the adoption fees and miscellaneous.

If I do adopt a dog, I would get a dog that was somewhere between 1-3 years old, and on the smaller side (certainly not more than 40lbs, but not quite as small as a chihuahua). I'd want a dog who has been shown to have a laid-back personality, and isn't overly energetic (enjoys being in the apartment). Also, I'd look for a dog that has never had any parasites (namely heartworm or any gastrointestinal worms), skin conditions, or bad accidents like traffic accidents. I don't really care about the breed so much as the size and personality!

One reason for the age is, I don't want to have to move out of Ann Arbor in 5-7 years(my best guess for how long it will take me to finish my PhD) with a geriatric dog. I'm not worrying about the prospect of eventually moving with a small/medium adult dog (family and close friends have successfully moved as far as the other side of the globe with a large dog), but I don't want to have to move an aging dog who will no doubt have medical conditions as it nears the end of its life...And I certainly would never give up on a dog after I'd lived with it for that many years...I plan on staying with any pet I have until the end.

I've seen lots and lots of dogs so far that fit the bill, and I know that there will always be more dogs to adopt. There are so many dogs to adopt that part of my adopt-a-pet searching now is designed to keep me from adopting every dog I see as soon as I step foot in a shelter or pound. I also don't feel bad about not adopting a 'less adoptable' dog...Perhaps later in my life, when I am more financially stable and have more time, I will adopt a special needs or similar 'less-adoptable' dog.

Any suggestions? Feedback?

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I do not have a pet mainly because I don't think I could give it the affection it deserves, especially with a dog. I work long hours and I end up traveling a bit. I also want to be able to provide, but if something were to happen, I fear I might not be able to cover expensive vet bills. and I get SUPER duper attached.

When I come home I get to hang out with my parents' dog. She is a yellow lab-great dane-etc mutt (a "Great Labradane") and is 90 lb of cuteness and energy. She is terrified of the vacuum cleaner (even just looking at it) and loves, well, everything else. Since my brothers and I have moved out, my parents have focused their energy on her and have spoiled her ROTTEN. She is very smart and obedient, but that sometimes works against us (i.e. she knows what exactly annoys us/gets our attention).

No pictures at the moment, but maybe soon. I am visiting my parents' house at the moment, so I have been hanging out with her a lot. I will miss her when I go back to work. :(

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545863_10151514676930327_684905326_23717909_1317318554_n.jpg

House rabbits are awesome as a grad student! I'm currently in the process of bonding these two (that's a bit stressful, as bunny fights are heartbreaking). The grey one is my holland lop bunny Femto. The dutch (b&w) is the newest addition to the household named "Fermata." (combining music and science-get it??) Fermata is a rescue bunny and a sweetheart, she's tolerating Femto but he has fallen completely head over heels in love. I'm amazed with how much personality these little guys have.

It makes me giggle every time to see little balls of fur hopping around my living room. Seriously a mood lifter no matter what kind of day you have had.

Cool pets! Do you leave them in your apartment while you're at school?

P.S. I get the music reference for "Fermata" , but not the science part.. enlighten me? haha.

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I've seen lots and lots of dogs so far that fit the bill, and I know that there will always be more dogs to adopt. There are so many dogs to adopt that part of my adopt-a-pet searching now is designed to keep me from adopting every dog I see as soon as I step foot in a shelter or pound. I also don't feel bad about not adopting a 'less adoptable' dog...Perhaps later in my life, when I am more financially stable and have more time, I will adopt a special needs or similar 'less-adoptable' dog.

Any suggestions? Feedback?

You might have already seen them, but I really like petfinder.com's interface and I found that more rescues in my area post on there or petango. I would try and limit the time you spend on these sites if you are planning on waiting a year. I started looking a year ago and it was just torture knowing we couldn't put out an application yet so the dogs I saw were likely going to be gone by the time we could. One thing you could do now is decide if you want to go through a city "pound"/animal control or through a smaller rescue (not all are breed based). If you want to go through a smaller one, you may want to contact them to say you are interested in the future in possibility adopting from them once you feel you have a good emergency medical fund (excellent idea by the way, my cousin and her husband spent ~3500 last year on double knee replacement for their dog when she tore her CCLs) and see what their adoption process is like, what they are looking for in an adopter, etc to get feelers out and show that you are interested/responsible. Are you looking for a pure-bred or a mix? I know people who can go on and on about their Heinz 57 dogs, and others who love knowing a bit more about what to expect with breed type.

DH and I made it through a really successful homevisit last week and am now inbetween that and visiting the dogs the rescue thinks fits us (we decided a foster based system would be best as someone has already started on manners and its easier to gauge the personality in a relaxed environment). It's a waiting game since the rescue is volunteer based but I'm really happy we're doing it, especially since they pull from shelters and from owner releases.

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  • 2 weeks later...

I love it, perusing this thread quickly exhausted my daily supply of up votes. Here's my little dober-girl, Misty. She's been with my parents for the last year and a half while I live over seas, but once I take stock of how grad school goes I'll look at moving her in. Although now she's so used to having my parents two dogs around, and their big yard, I might feel terrible trying to move her to a small apartment in the city!

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My goodness, the pictures from Dal PhDer and bluetubeodyssey just make me want to scratch those bellies. The bunnies are cute, but I wouldn't trust my dog around them! She's grown up with cats, but she loves to chase critters she sees outside.

Also, since everyone liked her, here's another shot of Misty in the car on the way up north a few years ago. She's a goofy puppy in an adult dog's body.

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Cool pets! Do you leave them in your apartment while you're at school?

P.S. I get the music reference for "Fermata" , but not the science part.. enlighten me? haha.

Sorry I just saw this! Yes. I made them a nice little condo and leave them in the house when I am at school. They have each other and lots of toys so they don't get bored. When I'm home they run free, but they are litter trained so it's not a problem at all!

"Femto"... like the science prefix... femtomolar? It means 0.000000000000001. (he's tiny)

Edited by MoJingly
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