Hey guys! I used to frequent this forum two years back to get some dog breed recommendations. Looking at my first posts I feel quite embarrassed over how naive I was, but hopefully that has changed! So I may end up getting a dog after the summer, and while I have my eyes on our local animal shelters there aren't any I can adopt at the moment. So I am back here for suggestions and ideas. I am mainly looking for: - A small to midsize dog. - Easy to train (my main focus is in advanced tricks and obedience) - Calm indoors, or at least has an 'off' switch. - Generally gets along with other dogs and feral cats. Dog breeds I am considering: Working Cocker Spaniel: My current favorite breed. I love these dogs but I worry that since I don't hunt nor have access to agility and flyball classes they may get restless. Would advanced obedience training be enough to drain them? (With daily 1 hour walks of course and coming with me wherever I go, including the beach.) I am NOT considering the show type, I don't like dealing with their coats and I am not a fan of their general build. Boston Terriers: While not as laid-back as say French Bulldogs, these guys are supposedly more biddable and are the perfect size. However, I heard bull-breeds are harder to train due to their stubborness. Can a BT reach high levels in obedience quickly? I know all dogs are trainable, but I am curious about the general ease of training them. Also a lot of my family members hate the brachy look. Corgi (Pembroke): This breed seems to tick most of my boxes but they are a hard breed to find here (Middle East). My house has a lot of stairs so I worry about their legs and back, especially when taking them out for potty. I also would rather not deal with heavy shedding dogs if I can help it since my sister is mildly allergic to dog hair, she doesn't live with me but I do want her to visit! Those are my top 3. I'm also considering French Bulldogs (but not very biddable and sometimes a bit too lazy), miniature Poodles (can I keep them unclipped?) Papillons (too small and delicate for my nieces to play with), and Kooikerhondje (very hard to get, but love the size and shape.) Any help or info would be more than appreciated. Thanks!
I'll just suggest smooth fox terriers because I love mine haha Here at least the wire ones seem to be more common and dont shed as much as the smooths. Very clever and not too big; not sure about the cats but mine get along with other dogs and are happy chilling out indoors so long as they still get their walkies and/or playtime in the garden The only one on your list I have any experience with is the French bulldog. Very cute, but didn't half make some funny noises when he was moving around!
Hi What about an italian whippet,they may be a bit small but have the heart of a lion also the daschund,the other breed would be the Bearded Collie or Polish lowland,they are good all round family dog.crystalgirl
BlueJay - Ooh, good recommendation. I was eyeing the Rat Terrier as well since they're supposedly one of the calmer terriers. How energized are they indoors? And will I end up having holes in my garden? Crystalgirl - I would rather own a Dachshund to an Italian Greyhound. While they may have the heart of a lion, I worry that my nieces may be a bit too rough with him/her. They look so delicate! Like little twigs! I would worry! Tangutica - Oo, Miniature Pinschers are so damn cute. I love the Dobie look (even considered the German Pinscher cause they looked so similar!) Are they decent in obedience?
My foxies are happy to sit for a cuddle and nap, or will stay quiet for ages with a good chew bone! They do tend to have a mad half hour or so in the evening, but mostly they are nice and easy going. Holes... um... well we like to think of it more as helping the wildlife - frogs always enjoy extra ponds! That said, my flowers and vegetable patches have remained perfectly safe
From your description I thought miniature poodle, then saw that was a breed in your extended list. They do require clipping, but it can be done in a trimmed all over low maintenance type cut rather than a show cut. They certainly seem to tick all the boxes on your list
Sneaksywhippet - I forgot to post why I wasn't so into the miniature poodle; the main reason is the high maintenance in grooming. I am not a fan of the poodle cuts and would go for something akin to teddy bear or pet clip - but even that requires near daily brushing to avoid matting. I am not big on grooming the dog myself so with hiring groomers it'll cost a pretty penny after a while (especially in hot climates, need to get it constantly trimmed.) But aside from their coats they do indeed tick every box! A part of me even considered getting a poodle cross just to get all of the poodle-ness and none of the coat! (But I heard even that is a gamble as their coats change over time.)
I have a Jack Russell who has four interests in life:sleeping,eating,cuddling and walking-not always in that order! He's great with other dogs,adores children,the smaller the better as he doesn't have to stretch too much to give them a cuddle! When I first got him from a lovely little old lady,he had very little training but within 6 months,he was a different dog-his recall is 100% better(but like many dogs,he does tend to have selective hearing at times,specially if there's fox poo/smells around ;-) ) He's also stopped humping every dog within a 100mile radius He's also started responding to the whistle now as well I've never had a Jack Russell before so don't know if they're all as easy to train as my Benji,or if I was just ''lucky'' (or just firm enough)
The reasons putting you off a poodle are exactly the same reasons that put me off. I would like something one day that little bit more trainable than my whippets, but still with little/no shedding. Poodles tick all the boxes for me but the grooming time and cost really does put me off too. Saying that, my friend has a miniature poodle and I don't think he needs much day to day grooming. She clips him every 4-6 weeks or so (I think) in a short all over style. She does it herself which keeps the cost down but it is time consuming (a couple of hours per clip).
Spaniel sounds good but that 'off switch' doesn't always work. Sounds like you can offer a good amount of exercise but the mental stimulation is a must.
I'm going to go ahead and obviously recommend the French Bulldog My Bernie is only 17 weeks old but loves a good run around the park, easy to clicker train because he responds so well to food rewards and quickly tires out which means he'll switch off quite literally and cuddle up to you whilst snoring in your face lol.
Sneakyswhippet - True, it just sounds like a hassle for some reason, enough of one to put me off (same with the show cocker, in comparison to the working strain.) Phil - Oh trust me! I think one of the main reasons I want a dog is for obedience training and for tricks. Whenever my friends bring their dogs over, that's the one thing I keep talking about. I also fiddle around with training theirs but its more difficult when they aren't your dog. I have heard people claim that actually using physical exercise to drain their energy would never work but should use mental stimulation to tire them out. I'm just not sure how true that is and wanted to look into it. If it is true, this will definitely be the breed I'd get. Petitsfilous - My friend has a French Bulldog and I'm absolutely in love with him! He is a sweetheart who loves everyone and would never hurt a fly; only he isn't very biddable, but it could be because he wasn't trained to be. Plus my mother hates the look of my friend's dog and vetoed them vehemently (don't ask me how I can convince her to get a BT either, I'm working on that too.)
From that list, I would choose Smooth Fox Terrier because all the ones I have met have been lovely! Don't be put off by having to search for one: that's a good thing because it means the people who breed them and own them aren't in it to make money / promote the breed as a status symbol.....and don't have to advertise.
