I got one dog was a stray, almost feral, on a farm. He causes me a lot of trouble over the years 😉 -- but I knew he was going to get put down if no one took him.

My other was a racing greyhound. Given that they are raised in kennels it was surprising how ready she was to live in a house. No trouble with house training. Just a few issues to begin with going on stars or in elevators.

I have never rescued a dog, as much as I've wanted to. I live in a small space and my apartment just doesn't work for even a bigger dog let alone more than one. But I live near a mom-and-pop pet store and around once a month they'll have rescue pets up for adoption. It just twists my heart - I often go by and love on those sweet babies, but knowing that I can't take any of them home with me just breaks my heart.

My pit bull who is almost 9 months old was a former neighbors and he had just gotten a full time job so he was not going to be keep her any longer. The pit had run away a couple of times and ended up at our house. My kids fell in love with her (okay, so did I) so when he said that he could not find a home for her and was going to take her to the pound, I knew I had to take her since they probably would have put her down because of her breed. It was a hard decision since I have never wanted a puppy because of the amount of work training and all. Plus, I had just lost my job and she was not fixed yet. But I could not let her go to the pound. She has done very well with my other dog although they do like to play fight a lot but she is wonderful with my kids and has a very sweet nature. It has been a little rough trying to get her not to pee in the house but we are working on it and she is getting better. I have had to puppy proof my house and keep everything out of her reach since she has went through a sweater, several pairs of shoes, a hair brush, and etc. But one look into her cute little face and I cannot stay mad for long.

My pup was a straight up vigilante rescue. My sister is a schoolteacher and the kids were all excited about him, but he was skiddish and hiding under a building, covered in fleas and ticks. My sister, being the doggy person she is, persuaded him to come out and he clung to/hugged her, so she decided to keep him and had the staff provide some help (it was even raining out!). He was eventually bathed, groomed and de-infested and took a little time to adjust, but now he is one of the family.

Our current ones are rescues, although my first was a pedigree. There were children in the house, so temperament was really important. A friend of the family was a working dog breeder, so one of the litter that didn't work out professionally wound up with us as a pet. He was a bit big for the breed, and would definitely rather sleep than work. Throwing a ball just left him looking at you, obviously wondering why you'd expect him to go and get it. I'm not saying he was lazy, but that animal spent more time on the sofa than I did! He'd go outside, have his walk and then head straight back to his favourite place and be snoring.

The current pair are a little more lively. They tend to wear me out, not the other way round!