What's the easiest breed? Discussions

Just a discussion thread really. What do you think is the easiest breed of dog to own? What do you think makes a dog easy? Eats little? Easy to train? Low drive? Low exercise? I think it must be very individual (for example I'd find a highly driven dog that was eager to train easier than a low driven dog that doesn't move much but also doesn't do what it's told....or course that is contingent on the dog actually getting trained).

If a first time owner wanted an "easy" dog and was only able to put in minimal time and effort, what breed would suit?

(yes I know probably a stuffed toy dog! And if you don't put the effort in then you shouldn't have a dog etc. But this is hypothetical thread just out of curiosity of how people view certain breeds )

Cavalier King Charles and Labs
Seems to come up a lot when asked about easy dogs ..

Yes I see that too but I disagree with labs. Sure they are family friendly but mostly they are smart, energetic dogs. Many that I see, including one that belongs to a "friend", is over fed, under trained and under exercised, leading to a fat, hyper dog :? I think this easy reputation means that many labs needs do not get met, because Andrex dogs train themselves dontcha know

I would agree that the labrador's good reputation doesn't always do them any favours - they are lovely but still big, strong dogs who need a lot of exercise and training. Aren't golden retrievers said to be more laid back? Maybe they are a bit 'easier' than the lab.

I don`t think it is breed - I think it`s temperament. The 2 easiest and hardest dogs I`ve had have been German Shepherds.

I agree with claire, its down to the individual dogs, between myself and my mum we own 5 GSD's ( though we dont live together) every single one has a different personality

On the whole i would say a greyhound is an easy dog to own. They are lazy, not too bright (like a collie say which needs more metal sitimulation), not got a lot of coat to groom and dont have many breed health issues. Some can have a prey drive but if got from a puppy say i dont think it would be an issue.

Having had them now for over 20 years I would say the whippet is an easy dog .
Don't eat too much .
You can lift / carry them short distance if you have to ie due to injury etc
They have a very non aggressive personality .
They are very healthy .
They are easy to train but not overly intelligent like a poodle .
Their coat requies little or no work and they don't even cast much hair .
If you have 2 or more they will run and play on walks and tire themselves out .
They are not too big so you can get lots in the car and in your house

Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, can take as much or as little exercise as you want.

Smart

Quiet

Small

They are hard to fault (apart from health concerns)

I love CKCS, if someone is looking for a family dog, I often think of them, such fun little dogs. Their health is their major down point one of my trainer's CKCS has just been diagnosed with Syringomyelia, it's the safest thing ever

Agree with greyhounds too they are such a great first time dog and so many retired dogs available, so sad they often get passed over because everyone "wants a puppy"

Agree with the temperament thing too, and of course there will always be variations within breeds, but there are definitely traits which make some breeds more challenging than other breeds.

Having owned one - I couldn't agree more with this. (But if you get them used to LOTS of exercise, which I did - they won't be happy with less!)

My feeling is that, unless you've owned most breeds, you are not qualified to state which is the easiest. Only the easiest out of those you've owned.

I agree about the GSDs all being very different. But they are smart and smart dogs can be 'easy' to own if you are prepared to train them well.

I think a well trained and well behaved dog is 'easy' to own. But depends in what sense you use the word 'easy'. If you mean a dog that doesn't require much attention or exercise - that would be different to, say, a dog that was quick and easy to housetrain and never likely to be aggressive.

My current dog - a min pin, is turning out to be probably the 'easiest' dog I've ever owned. (But I might have said the same about GSDs, mongrels and Cavvies at the time when I owned them !!!)

I'll second retired greyhounds. Happy with anything, easy to walk, just want to be with you.

Well bred Labs and Golden's are way up there IMO. Well bred being the key word here.

They should be adaptable, easy going, laid back, biddable, non-aggressive, gentle and quiet.

The Labs I have owned and looked after and the Golden's I know/have looked after (working and show types) have all been extremely easy dogs.

The easiest is the one that is the best match for the person

I always wonder at the advice given to first time owners to go for an 'easier' dog first time, its kind of like saying if you want a dog you should go for a cat first time to get used to owning an animal`
In some respects I would say owning an 'easy' dog first prepairs you LESS for a 'difficult' dog as you now have expectations

I know owning Ben really didnt prepair me for owning Mia - more the research I had done on the issues you can have with collie types helped me with Mia

As soon as I read the opening post I thought ....Cavaliers!

As far as individual dogs though, you couldn't get much easier than my JRT. She'll take as much or as little exercise as you want to give, she's laid back, obedient, healthy and eats fresh air.

The easiest breed of dog for me is a shar-pei. I find them incredibly easy and rewarding to live with.

Would I recommend them to a first time dog owner or many average dog owners? God no!

If people want an easy dog to live with, I recommend there are several places to purchase one from depending on their aesthetic preferences and how much they want to pay. Depending on that I'll recommend a breed from a to a Russ to a Steiff.

Pal of mine is involved with rescue whippets and has a couple herself. She's always had dogs and is always saying whippets make wonderful pets and are very 'easy' and undemanding.

I don't know much about them myself.

I think lots of great points have been raised in this thread:

*Easy will depend on your circumstances and personality
*Each dog is different within the breed and may or may not conform to 'norm'.
*'Easy' may relate to health or lack of, grooming requirements, train-ability, exercise requirements, etc.
*Easy for a novice vs easy for an experienced dog owner.

So looking at the above criteria of easy...for me the easiest dog for me and people similar to me is the Greyhound!

*Healthy
*Virtually no grooming or shedding
*Take as little or almost as much exercise as you'll give
*Inactive around the house
*No previous experience (usually) needed!

I personally often recommend Greyhounds (I'll stipulate those who have raced or been raised to race) to my friends or people who ask about 1st time 'easy' dogs (if they suit their lifestyle obviously), although there are some other breeds I'd consider to be generally 'easy'...Whippet, CKCS, Staffie, Westie.

In general, I agree with a lot of what Insomnia has said.

However, in terms of training, I'm not really convinced Greyhounds are particularly easy (although possibly I'm doing something wrong or Guinness is as stubborn as a brick wall).

I also find myself wishing he had a bit more "get up and go" to be honest. Most dogs I know love to go for a walk, as soon as you say "walk" or pick up the lead, you have an eager dog waiting to go out. Guinness is the total opposite and doesn't want to leave the house unless he has a pressing reason to go outside. I'm sure that if he could talk he'd say "Oh no, not again!" whenever one of us picks up his lead.

Maybe he's just not typical of his breed. I don't know, he's the first one I've had.

I agree in terms of training. Greyhounds wouldn't be an easy breed for someone wanting to do lots of training with their first dog...
Axel is different in that he does get excited to go out, he loves going on adventures and different places with us! I like that about him, he does enjoy walks - just doesn't last as long as other dogs, so perfect for me