my parents know that i can be very responsible(well at times) u see i already have 1 blue rat named lucy(which by the way the breed of rat the blue rat is a very good breeed of rat!!)and i have 1 tabby cat named fonzie and when ever i ask 4 a dog they say "Serena ur not ready 4 a dog!!" then i ask "when will i be?" then THEY say "when ever u show us ur ready" help me!!!WHAT DO THEY MEAN!!I REALLY WANT 1 PLZ GIVE ME ADVICE ON HOW 2 GAIN THEIR TRUST ON GETTING A DOG!!!!!HELP PLZ!!!

it could be the responsible thing.you see being responsible with a cat is totally different from being responsible with a dog,and being responsible with rat is totally different from being responsible with a cat.understand? basically,i think your parents are trying to say be patient,calm,and responsible and we'll see what happens.hope this helps!

animaldude1094

Study about dogs and taking care of them and try to involve them Example:[J=me M=mom]
j:guess what mom
m:what
jid you know that THere is a dog that can siff out drugs and illeagal items at airports it's called a beagle.
END
Okay so that one was dumb but try to watch dog shows on animal planet but make your parents watch animal precinct[it worked with my mom i getting another dog from a pound in like a month. Good luck

Also. Do you feed your cat everyday? Do you feed your rat everyday? Do you excersice and bond with them? I think that they also may mean that you need to take FULL responsibility for your pets right now and then maybe you can get another one. Alot fo times the dog is the PARENTS JOB. When you can get a dog they are probably wanting it to be your dog. Hope this helps,
CORGISRLOVABLE

A dog requires a lot more responsibility than either of the animals you have now. Also it is another added expense for your parents, because the dog has to go to the vet too.
Until you become the responsible person they know you need to be (you seem to know you aren't 100% there yet), could you do some volunteer work at a local Pet Resuce Place? They often need people to walk dogs and attend to their needs. That will give you more knowledge about dogs, their care, and the different breeds of dogs and their characteristics so when the time comes you will know what kind of dog you want to fit into your life.
Remember purebreds live 8-10-12 years and some mixed breeds can live for 15-18 years.
If you have playtime with your cat I bet you could teach her some tricks like a dog would do. I had a cat, Nick, he thought he was a dog. He would shake hands, roll over, jump through hoops, jump from post to post-he would do anything for food. He liked a little tuna on a plastic spoon and would lick it off after his trick.

Educate yourself about dogs.

Find out why shelter dogs are good choices for adoption and tell them, volunteer at your local shelter to show them you are responsible and dedicated.

Research the importance of leash laws and talk about it over dinner.

Reserch different breeds and tell your parents which would be best for your family and why.

If you do things like this, and talk about dogs to your parents non-stop, you'll be going in the right direction to convince them you are ready for a pet.

thanks 4 all ur advice and i really do feed them and give them water,clean cages and litter boxes for my pets!!!I actully dont take responsiblety 4 my room so that might be it but i'll use all ur advice to use it 2 get a puppy!!And dont worry i'm like a expert on Dogs so no worrys about that part!! thanks again!

Read even more on dogs. See if anyone around you needs a dog walker, or sitter. Volunteer at your local animal shelter.
Try training your pets as well. It's not that hard, and it can really get you ready for training a dog. I haven't messed with training my cat much, but after one session of about ten minutes, she would touch a target on command. Try training your rat. I trained my first guinea pig to open her cage and jump in, and to lick me when I was around seven years old. It's defiantly possible, and I've heard that rats are pretty smart.
Another idea is to write a persuasive essay about why you are responsible for a dog, and why your family needs one/wants one. My friend did this and was able to get some gerbils. And her family HATES rodents. Make it really good and use some dog facts in it. Especially about how dogs can improve your health.
And take care of your room. lol, I'm bad at that too. It's also one of the reasons my mom is resisting on letting me get a sugar glider. And I already chose mine.

what you are doing is good and just keep trying to convince your parents you are ready. DON'T BEG them for one though. You probably won't end up getting one.

I am in your shoes in away, but I already have the dog. In fact, you know how it is most kids dream to a have a puppy. I have 2! I got my first dog when I was 7 and I am now 13 almost 14. I got my brother a puppy and he only took care of it while it was a puppy and so now I take care of it because I got it for him. That dog is 4 yrs. old now. My only problem is they are both active, they have to stay on chains while I am not home, and I am the ONLY one taking care of them. Plus I have a kitten and a cat that got caught in the fan belt of our flatbed farmtruck. It was sad I thought she was killed. One of my dogs has separation anxiety now because my sister's dog died friday before christmas. The most dogs I ever had was 4 and it was hard. One was indoors (small dog), and the rest were outside. I had to walk, feed, exercise, groom, and keep all of them happy. plus I had to feed and halter break my calf, feed cats and fish, and do homework.

I am just saying if it is your first dog and you are mostly going to take care of it, try getting an adult dog first. It teaches you how to take care of a dog, but you don't have to teach it everything or keep a close eye on it or all that other fun but time consuming stuff. I am still trying to train my dogs and they are 4 and 14 yrs old (very active and sometimes annoying). But what ever you think you are ready for. My sister was 12 and thought she was ready for a puppy. She took care of it while she was young then as she got 1-3 years old. She basicly abandoned her, left her on her chain ALL DAY, and never did anything with her hardly. So as an animal lover, I took her in. Fed her, played with her, and other stuff like that and don't forget I still had my other 2 dogs. 3 dogs is alot to do by yourself. When I found her dead(she had a heartattack), I cried because she was not longer able to play with my other dogs, but then she was in a better place.

Cats are fairly aloof animals who want attention only when they want it; they don't cost as much at the vet (from my experience) and they take care of themselves. Of course, human care is necessary if you want to keep the cat comfortable around people.

Rats are social animals and really do require interaction and bonding every day. It's best if they're kept in pairs with other rats. Honestly, I would say there's irresponsibility if you're keeping a solitary rat, if only because that's detrimental to the rat's health. Human interaction is one thing, but rat-to-rat interaction is best for them.

Dogs are a handful, to put it objectively. While raising cats is like dealing with teenagers after a year, raising a dog is like raising a child but more dependent. Dogs require a lot of attention and commitment, as well as time and money. This usually gets pushed off on to the parents, as it's been said before. They require more training than a rat or cat would (at least, this is the case in my experience). Thusly, they require more companionship.

It may also be the mere fact that you have two pets or so already and they don't feel you're quite ready to have another that requires as much, if not more, attention and care than the rat and feline combined.

I have been in your situation before. Having a dog is COMPLETELY different than having a rat or a cat. Everyone has already made a lot of great points so I wont get into that stuff.

Have you considered the finical aspect of having a dog. Your parents will be paying for everything with a dog and those bills are much higher than a rat or a cat. There are many shots, flea meds, fixing the dog, possible grooming etc. And on top of that food and training is expensive. So you may feel ready and responsible but maybe your parents are not ready finically.

When I was younger I always wanted a dog- we never had any other pets because we always lived in apartments. When we finally moved into our own house when I was 14 my mom felt that it was the right time to get a dog. I ended up finding Kassie in an ad in the paper- she was a rescue. However four years later I left for college so now my mom is left to take care of her- and our other dog that we found in a park two years ago

If you really want a dog then maybe you should do all you can to show you are responsible. Take care of your pets fully. Also parents like it when you do chores without being asked to do so

i agree of what animaldude1094 said. my parents did the same thing with me. Just try and be as responsible as you can, showing responsibility to your rat, everyday and then maybe your parents will say yes to a dog.

ur advice was the best advice i ever heard!!!and thank you because on november 2(my b-day!) i will be getting a Schnauzer puppy!!how u may ask,well my next door neighbor linda (who is in her 40's but she like my bff!!!)her schnauzer cha-chi just had puppys and my grandma is going to get one of the puppys in 2 weeks!!Anyways linda said she will find a good price for my mom for me to get one of diva's puppy's!!(diva is her other schnauzer)she is going to breed her soon and she is going 2 have the puppys in november!!thank you!!it was hard not begging for a dog but i went threw it!!thank ya'll again!!! ~dogluver8293

well congratz the advice helped didnt it well maybe you will get lucky and get it before your birthday .......