Another what breed for me thread Which breed for me?

Me and hubby are determined that we will be having another dog in the hopefully not too distant future and I thought I'd ask a bit of advice here.

Whether you have had dogs previously
I've had 3 dogs, all of them trained and cared for by myself. My parents paid vet and food bills for Shadow and Wolf but I did the training, walking etc. Shadow was a border collie, Wolf a rottie mix and Rupert quite possibly a GWP mix.

Your circumstances - do you work etc?
At the moment I don't have a job but am hoping to get a part time one.

How much time you have for exercise
However long is necessary really. I enjoy long walks with a dog and am happy to do it on a daily basis. Normally I would say a good couple of hours a day regardless of weather. However, if I've had a seizure walks would be shorter for 2 or 3 days. I could increase mental exercise though.

Whether you have children, other pets etc
No children at the moment but we do plan to have them at some point and there are lots of children round here. No other pets at the moment either.

What characteristics you are looking for
Nothing smaller than a Springer Spaniel and we can't consider a Staffie. No professional grooming needed, I'm willing to brush daily but don't want to spend hours doing it. I want a dog that's intelligent, not too difficult to train and would probably enjoy training in something like agility or heelwork to music. I would like a dog that can be let off leash which I know pretty much rules some breeds out.

What breeds you have already looked at and your thoughts on them
Boxers. I've never met a boxer I didn't like. I love the fact they seem to hurl themselves into anything they enjoy doing with every inch of their being. The fact that practically every dog I know has issues with boxers worries me though.
Border collies. Shadow gave me a love for the breed but the noise sensitivity of so many of them puts me off. I prefer the working bred to the show to be honest but worry about whether I would be able to fulfil its needs.
German Shepherds. This is the breed my hubby would really like as he grew up with them in a way. Not a breed I'd really considered before, most of the ones I've met have been weedy, rabbit eared, nervous and snappy, but having read about them on here and various other places and seen pictures of well bred ones I have to say the breed has grown on me. Again, I prefer the working to show type and have the same worry as with a border collie.

Anything else you think might be relevant or important
The above breeds are just ones we've talked about, we're certainly willing to consider others. Hubby is in the army if that makes any difference.

Just a stab in the dark but have you considered a Viszla? They are clever things, the 2 that weve owned and the 3 that I walk are all brilliant, both wire and smooth coats. They can be utter wimps but they adore their people. Good with everything as far as Ive come across.

What about a Lab?

Or a Flatcoated Retriever?

Both are intelligent, very friendly breeds that you could definitely let off leash without too many worries. Also both breeds have a lot of energy for long walks and possibly agility training etc?

You coped with Rupert, I am sure you could cope with a WL GSD, and there ARE some lovely GSD about, and you ARE in the best place find one!

ps if you are thinking of a Boxer, the German ones can be quite different to those you find in the UK in outlook I mean, you should try and go and see some, I have seen some LOVELY working ones on DVD.

I was in the working line GSD thread again the other day (just before you lost your Rupert ) and I remember seeing your reply about your hubby wanting a GSD in the future.

I would say look a little closer at WL GSDs I have only had Zak for a month, but I adore him already

I didn't realise that SB, thanks for the heads up. Something to look into more closely then.

I know hubby would really love a GSD and they do seem to fit with everything I want in a dog. I'm willing to put work in with a dog so will certainly keep looking into the working line ones.

I have thought about Labs Tabitha, they just don't really stand out to me as a breed I really want to own. Same with a Vizsla. Never thought about a flatcoat despite knowing someone online who's owned them for years.

You really can`t go wrong with one (or two)

of these...



And there`s always some cracking dogs in Rescue, you know.

Awww beautiful photo Claire

I too have GSDs, both SL and WL. I've had Koda a little over amonth now (he came home with me on 22nd November) and he's fitted in very well.

Most GSDs can be a little wary of new situatrions but that is easily overcome with training. The ylearn things easily (a little too well at times) and love to have things to do.

If you are interested in training, agility, HTM, obedience, working trials etc then a GSD will tick all of the boxes for you. They're usually happy to do anything so long as they can be with you.

As Claire said, you can't go wrong with 1 r 2 GSDs (or 3 or 4! )

Golden Retriever?

Like your choices and thinking. From your list GSD or BC would be in my mind. Gwen Bailley does a CD with lots of noises to help you de-sensitize to noises

Thats true, many breeders in the UK have import studs from the continent in their kennels , some fabulous dogs, but as SB says they breed and like a dog with more "drive"

Do a search on.......... ATIBOX, the world boxer show, you will see how they show them, they have the dogs facign off in the ring to show "presence"

You will also note, you don't get many woman showing the dogs either.

My aim is to get to it one day, think it sin France this year.




http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=-zO7f2IHAvQ#t=6s

Sounds like a GSD would be ideal for you. Would you be looking for a rescue or one from a breeder?

If you did decide to look at BCs, then I would suggest looking at lines that are not noise sensitive. My own two collies were/are absolutely bombproof regarding noise sensitivity and nothing bothers them - thunder, fireworks, gunshot etc. However, hubby's working dogs (who are all bred along the same lines) are all a bit sensitive to loud noises and are afraid of thunder, fireworks and gunshot (not when working though ;-))

I am going to be a bit pedantic here (that will make a change eh)

I think you have to be extremely careful to differentiate between sound sensitive and sound shy, the two are not identical.

In fact IME (which is not vast but I have researched it a bit with various behaviourists) it is easy to desensitise say a "gun shy" dog but it is not at all easy if totally possible to to desensitise a "gun sensitive" dog. (insert sound for gun)

I am not sure why that is, but I have seen dogs at Working Trials for example able to cope with the gun test but not with the noise of a crow scarer.

This is just one example and of course that has been trained and is context specific, whereas various other sounds are not context specific and can happen randomly; which is ONE of the reasons I believe some dogs will always be sound sensitive.

For some, the drive for the (insert relevant object/activity) will override this, for others it will not.

So there are a number of factors to consider with sound sensitivity which IME is generalised rather than specific.

Not sure that makes sense, but it IS NYD

Either really Loki's Mum. Having looked at the websites for local shelters though I think we may have a slight problem with the language barrier whether we go to a breeder or a shelter. I would like a puppy really but I'm not going to rule out an adult if it fits.

Not sure I want that sort of "presence" in a dog Is that the sort of thing to expect from them in every day life? Or is it something encouraged in the show ones to show presence?

Ruperts reactivity to other dogs is the one thing I would have changed about him. I can deal with a dog who doesn't like other dogs but the whole staring, lunging and the absolute focus on another dog is something I don't want if I can avoid it.

Why on earth would anyone want to ENCOURAGE that kind of behaviour towards other dogs?

thats what i want to know

I was gonna ask the same thing!!!!

It looks good----they think.

I think it is appalling, hackles up and ready for the off!

I think as SB does----you coped with Rupert you can cope with anything now. Especially if you get a pup and can bring it up as you want to.

rune