There are many benefits to adopting an older dog. Whether you choose your dog from an animal shelter or a dog rescue sanctuary, you’ll have a grateful canine on your hands. Choosing an older animal also eliminates the guesswork about his full adult size and his temperament, which can be an unknown when a puppy arrives in a shelter or sanctuary and has yet to develop his or her personality fully.

There are other advantages to choosing a grown-up dog, as well. The puppy learning phase is already over. The dog is generally housebroken and sleeps through the night. He or she doesn’t need so many trips to the vet. The dog typically has outgrown their impulse to take everything into their mouth and chew on it. They most likely will not jump up on your houseguests and will stop their protective barking once you give them verbal assurances.

Basically, your older dog has already learned how to learn and this is a big advantage for you! Though your household may be run differently from anything the dog has known previously, the older dogs brain is wired to follow human direction and adapt to your schedule very quickly.

The older dog also understands how to assume their rank in the family pack. They can be gentle with children and have enough experience to know when they should seek out a quiet place, away from the demands of your children. An older dog – especially one who has already shared a household or played with other dogs – is more likely to assimilate into the existing hierarchy established by your other dogs. In a worse case scenario, the older dog has already clearly shown how they interact with other pets and so there are no surprises.