First Family Dog
Discussion
My son (5) and daughter (7) are desperate for a dog. So I've slowly softened my "It'll bloody well be me walking it!" stance to the point where we're now seriously considering getting one in the near future.
I was brought up with working dogs (collies, jack russells) so don't really have a great appreciation of dogs as household pets.
Anyway, the obvious choice (for me at least) was a Retriever - which seems a good natured and patient breed that would adapt to family life fairly easily.
However, we went to a dog show at the weekend to get to know some breeds / breeders and several other dogs are now being waved around. I'd just appreciate some view on these if anyone has direct experience:
1) Chow : from what I can read can be aloof and pretty territorial. The dogs we met were very patient and friendly - which seemed a little counter to the reading I've done. I'm guessing lots of socialisation with other dogs and kids as a pup is key. Anything else to consider?
2) Samoyed : seem fairly ideal as a family dogs, barring what I would imagine would be fairly constant coat upkeep / grooming.
I'm kind of torn at not being able to get an older rescue dog.....but my relative inexperience coupled with young children does make me a bit nervous taking this approach.
Thoughts / opinions...most welcome :-)
I was brought up with working dogs (collies, jack russells) so don't really have a great appreciation of dogs as household pets.
Anyway, the obvious choice (for me at least) was a Retriever - which seems a good natured and patient breed that would adapt to family life fairly easily.
However, we went to a dog show at the weekend to get to know some breeds / breeders and several other dogs are now being waved around. I'd just appreciate some view on these if anyone has direct experience:
1) Chow : from what I can read can be aloof and pretty territorial. The dogs we met were very patient and friendly - which seemed a little counter to the reading I've done. I'm guessing lots of socialisation with other dogs and kids as a pup is key. Anything else to consider?
2) Samoyed : seem fairly ideal as a family dogs, barring what I would imagine would be fairly constant coat upkeep / grooming.
I'm kind of torn at not being able to get an older rescue dog.....but my relative inexperience coupled with young children does make me a bit nervous taking this approach.
Thoughts / opinions...most welcome :-)
Chow's might not be ideal for a first dog. They need a lot of training and socialisation to avoid being territorial, and to avoid being antisocial with other dogs.
Samoyed's are generally a lot easier, but it isn't just grooming... be ready for them to shed a *lot* of hair around the house.
Retrievers are generally good family dogs if they are well trained and socialised, but can be high energy and require a fair bit of exercise.
You didn't mention how much you wanted to walk them, so it might be worth making sure you look at breeds that match the level of walking you plan to do.
I always wanted a German Shorthaired Pointer, but ended up with two Great Danes as they require far less exercise, albeit with a much larger food bill.
Samoyed's are generally a lot easier, but it isn't just grooming... be ready for them to shed a *lot* of hair around the house.
Retrievers are generally good family dogs if they are well trained and socialised, but can be high energy and require a fair bit of exercise.
You didn't mention how much you wanted to walk them, so it might be worth making sure you look at breeds that match the level of walking you plan to do.
I always wanted a German Shorthaired Pointer, but ended up with two Great Danes as they require far less exercise, albeit with a much larger food bill.
spookly said:
Chow's might not be ideal for a first dog. They need a lot of training and socialisation to avoid being territorial, and to avoid being antisocial with other dogs.
Samoyed's are generally a lot easier, but it isn't just grooming... be ready for them to shed a *lot* of hair around the house.
Retrievers are generally good family dogs if they are well trained and socialised, but can be high energy and require a fair bit of exercise.
You didn't mention how much you wanted to walk them, so it might be worth making sure you look at breeds that match the level of walking you plan to do.
I always wanted a German Shorthaired Pointer, but ended up with two Great Danes as they require far less exercise, albeit with a much larger food bill.
Thanks....I reckon up to two hours walking a day, either my partner or myself can work from home most days which gives us some flexibility - having said that kids have "promised to walk the dog every day!"Samoyed's are generally a lot easier, but it isn't just grooming... be ready for them to shed a *lot* of hair around the house.
Retrievers are generally good family dogs if they are well trained and socialised, but can be high energy and require a fair bit of exercise.
You didn't mention how much you wanted to walk them, so it might be worth making sure you look at breeds that match the level of walking you plan to do.
I always wanted a German Shorthaired Pointer, but ended up with two Great Danes as they require far less exercise, albeit with a much larger food bill.
I would not recommend either of those breeds for first time dogs.
Both vey high maintenance breeds, chows not the friendliest, Samoyeds better temperament but can be nervy dogs and stubborn due to being a spitz breed, will need to check the breed lines for diabetes, not a breed I see much these days. Intense grooming needed for both breeds they matt up horribly without.
Retrievers ar a nice breed, but hips and elbow dysplasia is an issue unfortunately.
Crufts dog show in March have a great set up for discovering new breeds.
Breed rescues usually know a dogs character better re suitability with families,
We rehomed an 8 month old whippet who had not lived with children but was very friendly. She has been the perfect dog with our two. My daughter was only 18 months old when we had her.
The big difference is we had a dog already and both children have been brought up around animals and taught from a very early (ie before they were even crawling!) age re how to touch, approach animals etc.
Both vey high maintenance breeds, chows not the friendliest, Samoyeds better temperament but can be nervy dogs and stubborn due to being a spitz breed, will need to check the breed lines for diabetes, not a breed I see much these days. Intense grooming needed for both breeds they matt up horribly without.
Retrievers ar a nice breed, but hips and elbow dysplasia is an issue unfortunately.
Crufts dog show in March have a great set up for discovering new breeds.
Breed rescues usually know a dogs character better re suitability with families,
We rehomed an 8 month old whippet who had not lived with children but was very friendly. She has been the perfect dog with our two. My daughter was only 18 months old when we had her.
The big difference is we had a dog already and both children have been brought up around animals and taught from a very early (ie before they were even crawling!) age re how to touch, approach animals etc.
Edited by bexVN on Monday 9th September 23:07
S100HP said:
As above, I'd look at the whippet/greyhound type dogs. They love exercise, but they're equally as happy on the sofa for the other 23hrs a day. Very laid back dogs until they see something to chase.
Problem is - I have cats already.....I've heard that cats and greyhounds / lurchers / whippets are not the best mix.....towser said:
S100HP said:
As above, I'd look at the whippet/greyhound type dogs. They love exercise, but they're equally as happy on the sofa for the other 23hrs a day. Very laid back dogs until they see something to chase.
Problem is - I have cats already.....I've heard that cats and greyhounds / lurchers / whippets are not the best mix.....Whippet and Greyhound rescues cat test their dogs first to assess if cat friendly or not.
Mrs W and I are “puppy walkers” for guide dogs. In my experience, Goldies are amazing but quite wilful as puppies. Labradors are much more straightforward and more food orientated so easier to train. Both are great with children and very people centric so make excellent family dogs. There are any number of cross breeds
(guide dogs are experimenting with Labradoodles with good results) and G.R./Lab. crosses work well. Main advice I would give though is meet the parents, pups take after them fairly predictably.
(guide dogs are experimenting with Labradoodles with good results) and G.R./Lab. crosses work well. Main advice I would give though is meet the parents, pups take after them fairly predictably.
If guide dog type breeds appeal, there is scheme to rehome withdrawn g.d. pups. About 25% are withdrawn during their training period for a variety of reasons. E.G. some don’t take to the harness, have distraction issues or lack confidence in stressful situations. They can’t make it as a guide dog but make amazing (and well trained!) pets. They charge £350, which for a carefully bred (they breed their own dogs) and well trained dog is a bargain.
scrw. said:
Have to say Labs are the best, just watch the weight. Such laid back dogs with kids in my experience
Lab every time; golden or chocolate by preference for temperament. They take everything that a family can throw at them and just love you right back. Our lab is 11 now and beginning to slow a little. Daughter is leaving to going off to uni at the end of this week and I am feeling a bit sentimental about all the times we have had together as a family. Enjoy it whilst you can, as they say
. Dottie was the runt of the litter, still is at ~17kgs fully grown, stopped growing at 8 months old The ONLY bad thing about Labs is their fondness of fox poo LOL
beautiful-black-labrador-puppies-56d05a4ab1a9c by Old_Chad, on Flickr
IMG_20181222_122206 by Old_Chad, on Flickr
beautiful-black-labrador-puppies-56d05a4ab1a9c by Old_Chad, on FlickrIMG_20181222_122206 by Old_Chad, on Flickrtowser said:
Thanks all for advice......I’d done some poking around on the Kennel Club website regarding lab pups in my area. Was just wondering if a KC registered dog brings any benefits, will they be less prone to common breed diseases etc?
Those registered with kennel club should mean the b
hes registered are limited to how many litters they have and all tests are done specific to that breed, however it is no guarantee unfortunately. If you are serious about lab pups then I can put you in touch with an excellent breeder, you won't find better she is a registered vet nurse, has excellent clear lines all tested for everything she is highly qualified in do behaviour and will offer you all the help and advice you need for you and your pups (and worst case scenario she will take the pup back if an issue should arise)
In the meantime here is my whippet Bryn snuggling up to our cat Lucy (couldn't find it earlier!)
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