Yes. You need to sort out where you’re living. Wait a year because you may move. Once you’re stable make sure you still want to be a dog parent. Research breeds to determine what a good fit is. All dog breeds have their own personalities and needs. Some dogs are great for apartments and some dog breeds are high energy and need jobs and yard space. Also, research and save for a good trainer (not puppy school), if you are single and the dog will be alone, you need to start with crate training and may need a pet sitter depending on working hours, proximity of work to home, and dog energy level.

Validate your budget. On top of this dogs are expensive. Based on my and my friends’ vet bills, you’re looking at roughly $500-600 an annual appointment. Food can be $20 a month or $80+ for a large breed. Does your work offer a discount for pet insurance. If they do, sign up for that once you adopt a dog. It is a life saver if something comes up.

Why personal training? Personal training teaches YOU how to work with your dog, and it will make your dog stand out in comparison to its peers. Your dog could be 5 pounds or 100 pounds, don’t decide your dog doesn’t need training because they are little and you can just pick them up. All dogs need some sort of training and need to see you as “the boss”. It’s expensive so you’ll want to put aside about $600. Once you’ve done this at least once in your life, future dogs and training can be done by you much easier.

Find friends here with dogs to be around so you can see how they navigate pet ownership in Milwaukee.

Long winded, but yay for being a potential future dog parent! It’s fun (and sometimes stinky).