Well for the airfare thingy, it's usually like a battle of who has the best broadband to get in and book the flight for tickets that go at 99 cents. My friend tried it before and it usually sells out in minutes.

I'll talk more about the doggy stuff since I have a cutie-pie at home so popular that my friend actually created a facebook account for him. And you kinda cannot say no to a face like this:




Anyway thats besides the story. A dog like all the others have said is more than a decade of commitment. When my BF and I first got Jasper at 2 months old, I was looking for a job and he was still in uni, so there was always someone around to be with him. Puppies are just like babies, they need alot of attention. We woke up sometimes in the middle of the night to clean poo and pee. And also biting/chewing things are one of their favourite hobbies until they get to the age of over a year old. So if you're want to get a puppy, make sure you have time to train them properly and be prepared for some disasters like things getting chewed. The best way to curb that is to buy them toys. (Jasper has about 9-10 toys he can choose from so he grew out of that chewing stage a bit faster.) Stay away from petshops, they are overpriced. Look on trading post for private sellers. Puppies range from $300 to $1200 depending on what breed of dog you want. Pet shop prices are usually double the price of private sellers for the same breeds. Like Jasper (a Maltese/Poodle) cost about $695 from a pet shop, we got him for $300 from a private seller.

As for adopting/buying and older dog, we actually adopted a 9 month old puppy some time in July. The owner was moving overseas and she promised us he was house-trained, well-behaved and stuff. But it turned out otherwise (he peed and shit anywhere he wanted and even did his business while walking or playing on the corridors and even on our bed or when we carried him!). Also he was an "outside during the day to shit/pee anywhere" dog while ours was always kept indoors and brought out for walks during the weekends. In the end he was sold to another couple who can take better care of him. That's why as mentioned, if you adopt, you got to pick a dog that suits your life style and be prepared that they may have some old bad habits stuck from their past owners. Adoption is available from RSPCA or just google dog adoption. RSPCA adoption:
Adult $210
Puppy $260
Senior $155
Dogs available at the Burwood shelter now

Also you got to think about large or small breeds, hyper active or more well-behaved / smarter breeds, indoor or outdoor. etc.. Ahh I've got too much advice to tell you, been keeping dogs since I was 7 yrs old. If you get a chance to meet at another group meet, I can tell you more.