Dog Breed Recommendations

[Miss Wiggle]

were moving house in about 18 months, and we'll be wanting to get a doggy. Our house now isn't big enough for anything other than really little dogs and we'd prefer something bigger so we're going to wait until we have room and get one then.

now we've loads of family with dogs but i've never had one myself, so while I know a few basics and how to play with them, i don't know a massive amount about dog care and breeds, so I'm just wanting to do a bit of research and finding out now so I can be all prepared and ready when we can get one.

Now I know it's down to the individual dog and they will have they're own temprements, but I know you can at least get a generla idea from the breed. So firstly what we like is big dogs, want something with a really soft loving temprement but that can be good fun too. I'm just gonna want to cuddle up while Ian will want to play fight! I know some breeds are all inbred and struggle breathing we don't want anything like that. They're gonna have to be able to get on with cats as well.

The main problem that I can see is that while we like big dogs, i've got a really bad back so therefore if we got something strong it would be down to Ian to walk it, but Ian's job means he may have to work away sometimes so he'd only be around at the weekend, so we'd need something that's not gonna get so strong I can't take it out, or something that would be fine with just short walks through the week so long as they got a really good run around at the weekend.

So if anyone's got any suggestions of breeds to look into that'd be a really good starting point!

 

[michellebradford]

we have a springer who will be 2 in july, he does pull on the lead but springers are really easy to train and when hes not on his lead he walks by my side with no problem,

only problem springers are chewers!! we have lost a table and chairs already and a number of the childrens toys, but we love him to bits and hes great with the kids he lets them poke his eyes stick there finger up his nose ad lay all ovr him and when he's had enough he gets up shakes and walks to his cage and the girls know that when he does that hes had enough and they leave him alone.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

awww he is cute, we'd rather not something that's gonna chew the furniture though, just spent far too much on a new suite, wouldn't be happy if it got trashed!

 

[black angel]

How about a rescue greyhound? They are supposed to be laid back and not as energetic as they seem.

Golden Retriever springs to mind as well, lovely big friendly dogs.

With any breed I would say to go to either puppy training classes or with an older dog obedience training, so you both get the right start.

Are you after a pure bred as a mongrel can be a good idea as well, theres plenty of puppies in rescue centres and the staff can tell you what you need to know.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

i'm not 100% decided if we should go for a pure breed or a mongrel or a pedigree or a rescue dog, I have a rescue cat i got her when she was 2 years old and I felt the rspca didn't tell me the facts about her behaviour etc, and while i love her to pieces had I know more I would maybe have thought twice about getting her.

i know a few people with purebreed cats and dogs all of them have lovely temprements and are well behaved.

so while I know there's a lot of dogs desperatley in need of a good home, part of me say's once bitten twice shy.

But also while puppies are really really sweet I've got a kitten who'se just coming up to 1 year old and it's been a tiring year with her!! So part of me say's maybe an older dog would be better..... and if you get an older dog it's more likely to be a rescue dog right? Cos things like purebreeds will go as pups.

I've not made my mind up at all yet, also it's gotta be a joint descision. Just trying to weigh up some options now, I'm still open to any possibilities.

Can you give me a ball park figure how much training costs, never done anything like that before but i'd like to. Just trying to budget and plan!!

I'm not massivley keen on retrivers, just from a looks point of view, I don't know anyone with one so wouldnt know for temprement.

A greyhound could be quite cool, is it a bit of a myth how much exercise they need then? My sis has a little lurcher puppy and she's soooo cute, but bloody hell does she need exercise, good thing they live on a farm!

 

[Leopard-danio]

Italian greyhounds are nice, they are half the size of the average greyhound. I saw a few at crufts, were beautiful don't require that much grooming, i don't think they would need as much exercise as the average greyhound either. Found this Link

Hope that is helpful

 

[black angel]

Ive never owned a greyhound but I have read that they arent as energetic as most dogs, but will leave that for someone who owns them.

Your local paper will have dogs for sale and theres always papers like Loot and other free ad papers that you can look in.
It took me 3 months to find our dog and we went to rescue centres and breeders and eventually found our dog, A german shorthaired pointer.

I think if you find a breed you like the look of then do a bit of searching on the net. Im sure the dog people here will help you find the type you might like.
As for training, I dont know what the cost is now as we did ours in 1999.

You have to consider as well the cost of the injections and the booster each year, plus insurance and neutering. Feeding it alone can cost upward of £10 a month depending on size.
Insurance for our dog is £10 a month.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Italian greyhounds are nice, they are half the size of the average greyhound. I saw a few at crufts, were beautiful don't require that much grooming, i don't think they would need as much exercise as the average greyhound either. Found this Link

Hope that is helpful

can't get on that link from work, will look later though, thanks

Ive never owned a greyhound but I have read that they arent as energetic as most dogs, but will leave that for someone who owns them.

Your local paper will have dogs for sale and theres always papers like Loot and other free ad papers that you can look in.
It took me 3 months to find our dog and we went to rescue centres and breeders and eventually found our dog, A german shorthaired pointer.

I think if you find a breed you like the look of then do a bit of searching on the net. Im sure the dog people here will help you find the type you might like.
As for training, I dont know what the cost is now as we did ours in 1999.

You have to consider as well the cost of the injections and the booster each year, plus insurance and neutering. Feeding it alone can cost upward of £10 a month depending on size.
Insurance for our dog is £10 a month.

yeah this is what i thought if we can find a breed we like, or even a couple to choose from, we can thenhunt through our options.

yup, as we've got 2 cats we know the cost of food, kennels, insurance etc so I'm prepared for that, obviously like you say it's gonna depend a bit on the breed how much food they need etc.

thanks

 

[black angel]

Heres a pic or two of our dog

Another point is that no two dogs of the same breed are alike.
For instance, I had a german pointer years ago and she was the sweetest dog you could have, never barked at anyone, soppy as anything and was happy with a half hour walk at night and a long run at weekends.
Callie *above* is the complete opposite. Barks at anything, scared of anything and is mega hyper active even though she will be 8 in February. Her walks are hikes every day.
But shes a lovely dog and would defend you to the death.

Any other breeds youve looked at? How small a dog would you consider? Maybe a westie or cairn terrier?

 

[Miss Wiggle]

awwwwww lovely doggy!! they look like 2 dogs stuck together though the way the markings change completely from neck down!

yeah i fully appreciate no 2 dogs are alike and you need for the nature of the individual dog, but you can usually get a rough idea about the breed!

hmmmm smallest i reckon i'd be happy with is something like my mum's dog, he's a black lab crossed with something like greyhound so he's got a much smaller thinner body than most lab's. his head is maybe mid thigh height, body comes to around your knees. something like that would be as small as I'd want to go.

 

[TigerIssey]

Look at the kennel club site among breeds, you should be able to see the qualities of each breed.

Crufts is coming up, if you could get there, they have stands with representatives from each breed, you can pet the dog, talk to breeders etc.

A five week puppy training course cost me 30 pounds and an 8 week follow on course cost me about 50 pounds. This was 4 years ago.

I have staffies myself but do know some other breeds and their little traits. Often breeders may get an adult back if people split up and can't decide who is to have the dog, these are often good dogs to go for. Also if you want an adult well trained look at police dog trained rejects. They don't meet all the standards for a police dog but are extremely good dogs if you can get them.

Anything else ask away!!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Look at the kennel club site among breeds, you should be able to see the qualities of each breed.

Crufts is coming up, if you could get there, they have stands with representatives from each breed, you can pet the dog, talk to breeders etc.

A five week puppy training course cost me 30 pounds and an 8 week follow on course cost me about 50 pounds. This was 4 years ago.

I have staffies myself but do know some other breeds and their little traits. Often breeders may get an adult back if people split up and can't decide who is to have the dog, these are often good dogs to go for. Also if you want an adult well trained look at police dog trained rejects. They don't meet all the standards for a police dog but are extremely good dogs if you can get them.

Anything else ask away!!

some good ideas there thankyou!!

think Ian would like a police dog, he could pretend he's off fighting crime with it!

oh other point to mention is that Ian's big sis is about to start breeding huskies..... so there's gonna be a lot of very cure husky pups around that we could probably get cheap..... i know I'll struggle to not get one, but i'm pretty unsure if they're the right breed for us, I think they'd be too big and strong for me to walk.

 

[TigerIssey]

They definately need lots of exercise and specialised diet, but there are some fun things you can do with them.
You could take them sledging, I know around here somewhere a friend of a friend does this with malamutes. Could be something fun and exercise for the dog!!

 

[Miss Wiggle]

they are lovely dogs and we enjoy playing with her two.

and i've seen husky pups and i know i'm gonna want to take one home with me!!

but i'm trying my best to be sensible and get what's best for us and our lifestyle not what's easiest to get and cute!!

 

[black angel]

Ex police dogs are a good idea and I used to see the RAF dogs a lot and they are well trained and disciplined. There was one a huge black shepherd that retired at 7 years old and he looked so mean, but he was such a puppy at heart.

If you can go to crufts then thats such a fantastic idea.