What's it like to adopt an older dog?

By “older,” how old are we talkin’?

7 and up.

Pros: they don’t chew the furniture, they may not bark their heads off when someone is at the door, they might be house trained.
Cons: they could possibly miss their former owners so much that they run off. I mean they can run then walk for miles and you can’t figure it out because you’ve been super nice to them. They are , in my opinion, looking for their previous owners. We had this experience with two dogs!

Depends on the dog, kind of. Some dogs start acting old at that age, and some are spry little things for much longer. Our schnoodle was 8 when we adopted her, and was a fairly normal dog until she was about ten. She just gradually declined after that.

Good things to think about would be their maturity level and previous training.

I would want to make sure the rescue group who has the dog up for adoption has done temperament tests on the dog. If it passes those tests, it is a wonderful idea to adopt an adult. As was said it saves you going through the chewing, housebreaking and other undesirable aspects of puppyhood. You are sure of the size of the dog, you know what kind of grooming will be necessary. It is a win win under those circumstances.

You can expect the same basic pros and cons that would apply to adopting any intelligent, living mammal that was not with you from it’s beginning. Remember, you’re about to assume a leadership role that neither of you are accustomed to.

for the record, this applies to children too

The pros are all what all the above have said.
The only con I can think of is a shortened life span with you. But that is never a guarantee anyway. I adopted a three year old and a 2 year old boxer. I had one 4 years, the other 2 years before they both died of different cancers. Would I do it again? Yes, I have adopted another 2 year old.

My parents allowed me as a teen to adopt an older dog (long-haired dachshund). Cutest little guy. Unfortunately, we soon discovered that the dog was dying of some incurable disease and the original family didn’t want to deal with watching him die. So, it was a sad and deceitful situation.

Having worked as a dog walker a few years ago, I dealt with a few older adopted dogs with health issues. The individuals who adopted them knew in advance and were prepared to deal with potential crisis situations.

The only cons, I would say, would be not knowing of any health or behavioral issues in advance of adoption. Otherwise, knowing what you’re getting into, no matter how old or in what health condition, would be your personal choice as opposed to being a “con.” Some people enjoy caring for older and/or ill dogs.