There are many things you need to consider before purchasing the right dog breed dog or puppy.

You need to ask yourself these questions:

1- What type of dog are you actually looking for?

2- Do you really have the space or yard for a dog?

3- Do you have the time to exercise a dog?

4- Some dogs need grooming and extra activities due to boredom, do you really have the time? 5- Your lifestyle .You don't want to buy a dog that needs constant attention if you are never home.

6-Patience, as all dogs need someone who is patient ,especially a puppy with obedience training and potty training.

Dogs are great companions but require a lot of care, and once you buy the dog or puppy you are bound for its life span to care for it.

If you are buying from a breeder, make sure all health checks are done, and you are provided with papers to confirm the pup came from healthy parents.

A decent breeder will offer a money-back guarantee if your puppy fails the initial health exam and should have had his vaccinations.

If you get an adult dog or puppy from a shelter he should have received preventive health care and checked for heartworm and also another other defects.

But not all shelters will do any more checks on a puppy other than the routine check of healthy looking, weight, and temperament etc.

This I should know as I own two lovely dogs.

My silky terrier in 9yr old and I bought him from a breeder. All the correct checks and he is perfect. He was trained as a guard dog but yet is fantastic with my children and my family.

My other dog is a 12month old white bullterrier pup, that we bought from a shelter thinking we hit the jack pot with finding a pure bred bully in the pound. We asked the right questions, like where did she come from, and were told she was handed in as a stray. Wow What luck we had.

She is healthy and very playful. So we got her home and I noticed very quickly that when I called her she didn't come to me, or when I turn on a vacuum cleaner while she was asleep she didn't budge once!

So off to the vet we go suspecting she is deaf, and yes it was later confirmed she was born deaf and it is genetic.

She is visual trained , not voice trained and it takes a lot of very hard work, and the shelter never picked up on it as she was just like any other puppy in the pen being playful and would greet them. But it was only by her vision, not by being called.

So before you take the steps in buying a dog, be sure it is what you really want to do and can really offer the best care for it as they are not ornaments to sit in a yard. They become your child and will always depend on you.

If you don't have the time to play with your dog, walk it, or generally just be there for it .

63% of Australian households have some sort of pet in their home.

But with today's hectic lifestyles maybe some people should think twice before buying a dog that eventually grows up to become something more than what they may have bargained for.

But the upside to owning a dog, is the fact regardless , you have their unconditional love.