The Right Time to Get a Puppy?

If you have been looking for a Cavalier these days, you know that there has been a real run on them. Top Meadow has never had so many inquiries, and our friends in the Cavalier world tell us the same thing. Some people So is this a good time for you to get a puppy?

Here are three reasons we hear from people wanting Cavaliers.

I'm looking for a puppy to help me with stress.

We actually recommend Cavaliers for stress and anxiety, and they are among the top choices for therapy dogs. Few things help unwind at the end of the day like a half-hour holding a Cav in your lap while reclined in your recliner. Blood pressure down, serotonin up! (And no hangover the next day.) That said, if the stress you're feeling is from a fluid employment situation, for example, then you need to ask yourself if you have the stability in your life and home that a new puppy needs so that he or she feels settled and welcome.

I work from home so I have time for a dog.

If you work from home, your Cavalier will love you. In fact, we do not place our puppies in homes that are vacant from 9 to 5. The question to ask is, “Is my new work-from-home arrangement truly a permanent one?” Many companies were saying five years ago how great work-from-home is. Economic forecasters were predicting the death of office real estate. Well, the pendulum seems to be swinging back a little with major business journals running articles identifying as problems a fraying of unit cohesion and a decreasing of productivity, now that the work-from-home adrenaline is not flowing quite so fast. Before the pandemic, did you work from home? Is your new situation permanent? No one really knows what the next dozen years will bring, but that’s about the lifespan of your new Cavalier. He or she wants to spend it with you. (Side note: we’ve placed Cavaliers with people who take them to work each day. Chris brings one of ours in often. We love these kinds of offices!)

We are looking fora pet for our kids/

Kids at home? Hooray! Chris is always saying, “The worst thing you can do to children is make them sit at a desk for six hours!” We are huge fans of young children’s having pets. Our four sons did (Obviously!) Cavaliers give love, join in adventures and tea-parties (well, we’ve seen pictures, anyway), understand kids when no one else does, and sleep on their pillows (if that’s what you want). Some questions to ask: Are your little ones at an age to help with feeding and training? Can they keep the floor clean of LEGOs and other chokeables? Are your hands full as a parent with piano and ballet and judo and soccer. Basically, do you have time to train and love a Cavalier so he will he or she will be a hqppy member of the family?

There are many more questions to ask, but they boil down to this: If you want a Cavalier, then for sure, keep looking till you find your new best friend. Maybe we can help! Please give it some thought to how a Cavalier will fit into your life every day,