Dear Lord people have children and go to med school.
The biggest thing is do you have time to train the dog and train him well, and do you have back up for when you get stuck?
And here's a big thing that gets me. People don't research the best breed for them enough. Temperament, grooming, intelligence, and trainability--well, there's a lot you have to consider. And dogs do get into trouble when they are bored. If you get a bigger breed that is more like a work dog, like an Alaskan Malamute, well they are work dogs that need space and a lot extra exercise--beyond walking and a little playtime.
I mean you've got to be fair to the dog. And puppies, well I've bred, delivered and raised pups. But I also had help--was a good learning experience for my kids--especially when the bitch gets out of the whelping box and the puppies are whinning for their mother so they can nurse. Many times the kids or I would have to wake up and put mom back in w/ puppies and make sure they all latched on and effectively nursed. And like human babies, they nurse every two to three hours. Some mornings my daughter didn't know which end was up, and it was a bit of a hint about motherhood--at least early on.
The good thing was they followed mom and dad outside and did what they did, so they housetrained pretty well.
The bad thing is their chewing. It's not so bad if you don 't have expensive or new furniture. But if you have stuff you want to keep. . .well . . .
You can crate train them. That usually works well for people; but they still can't be stuck in the crate all day--and dogs are pack animals. . .so they don't really like being lonely. And God I loathe when people tie their dogs outside and leave them. That's just so horrible to me.
So they are kind of like childen. If you can train them, get to them in a reasonable period of time and spend time with them, as well as be prepared to take them to their vet visits--or the occasional emergency visit b/c they chewed the wrong thing or aren't eating or drinking and are getting dehydrated--and if you can see that they are regularly washed, nails clipped, and groomed--Oh yea, and brush their teeth regularly, then think it over. (if they are like mine and don't shed, they'll need a lot of grooming--it helps a little with allergies, but I have multiples,so it can get a bit expensive). If you can give them the love and attention they deserve and make it work and also have friends or partners or girlfriends/boyfriends, whatever, that can help you with them, they are so worth it.
It's one of those individual questions. What works for you won't work for someone else.
I love dogs and have always had them; but they can be work at times. They are also fun and cute and loyal. See, once you get one, you may find it tough to decide that it's too much for you. Plus then they have to go and reacclimate to someone else. Dogs do get stressed--and as I said are pack animals. Very few of them are like lone wolves.
Cats are nice too; I just tend to favor dogs. Dogs are inteligent animals and really they prefer to be clean, and that is part of the premise behind crate training. They are sensitive to smell and they tend to hate being near their own or anyone else's filth. That's why the crate size has to be just right for the particular dog. Seriously.
Will they get adventurous and get into things and get dirty? Yes. And they will have fun doing it; but they don't want to stay that way.
And even if they are more like inside dogs, you have to do your part with worm, tick, and flee preventions. And that can be expensive, especially if you have multiples. You do NOT EVER want to have flees. They can be a nightmare to get rid of, even with a lot of vigilance on your part. Got them one time many years ago--and I'm not even sure it was the dog that brought them into the house. They can be carried on people from their home to yours too. I'd be shocked after that experience to really believe fruitflies multiply as quickly as those SOBs. But within a week or so, we were 100% flee free--larvae and all. You have to do everything to break the flee reproduction cycle, and it can be a major pain.
Yes, dogs involve some work. But once they are trained and adjusted, no they are not as much work and involvement as children, or even say gardening in the summer, depending on what you are growing. And the benefits, at least to me, outweight the work or occasional problems. They also can go running with you and have been shown to decrease BP in people.
Why not borrow someone's dog when they are on vacation in the summer--if it's an easygoing kind of dog? Of course it is not the same as your own--training, temperament, bonding etc; but it will give you some idea of what's involved and if it is doable for you.
Just don't love em and leave em.
Also, the women will take notice if you can effectively handle caring for and loving a dog while doing the med school thing. So you might want to wait until you want to attract females that are true "couples" material.
