Help finding the right breed for us, please help. Which breed for me?

Don't see why they shouldn't with training. Scent following rather than prey drive too.

You are obviously drawn to the look of the hound, so givent hat fact to be honest the Beagle would probably be the best for you, as they do have a show/pet strain.

What you need to know is that most of the "hounds" you are looking at are still very much "primitive" breeds, and that means, they are still very much bred for the job in question.

Fox and other hounds are still used to do the job they are bred for, they still have a very strong instinct, to hunt, range and work on their own... they have yet to be domesticated/diluted to the point of a family pet..

Most breed over a period of time will have been adapted to fit into family life and will have to a degree have their basic instincts diluted.... most hounds.. have not, as they are mainly bred by hunt.working kennels and as such will have been bred for the highest prey drive, they will breed from the best with the best hunting skills.

The Beagle on the other hand is one from the sub groups that is one that would fit into a family home more easily than others.. as they have over generations been spit to accommodate family life or work, as with other breeds, Labs/Springer's/ and such.

What about the Rhodesian Ridge back, have you looked into them.

But if you wish to move away from the hound group, (I would in your circumstances) why not look to some gun dogs or other groups,, you will find many have show strains and as such will be bred more to fit into family life.


You are an active family , and seem to be prepared for the time you are not at home, so there are many breeds that would fit you.

You may baulk that this but have you thought abotu the Rottweiler, or a Boxer, a Labrador Springer Spaniel.

I understand yo also dont want a puppy, but most breeds have their own rescue, or you can also try going to individual breeders , they sometimes have dogs they have run on, or retired from the show ring, they wish to re home.

To be honest, your list of wants is so long , its going to be difficult to help you,

You need to shorten it, size, coat type and looks, for a start, this may help a little more in deciding.

Hmm noses on legs following scents = dogs with great recall.

I am thinking of bloodhounds, foxhounds, otterhounds, etc etc ALL of whom follow the SCENT of prey, rather than the prey itself, now I am trying to remember WHY none of these feature heavily in any obedience field.............

Have you tried this to try and narrow your search?

http://www.the-kennel-club.org.uk/services/public/findabreed/Default.aspx

The retired dogs from the link look like they are trained to track a specific scent and leave livestock etc alone. If you can train a dog to follow liquorice rather than pheasant it ought to be possible to train a reliable enough recall - Chat with the rescue folks would be good though.

I am only slightly insulted that you dont want a staffie, moreso cos it does infact tick some of your boxes. HOwever that aside, I think you need to decide what you want from your dog, in terms of what lifestyle, do you have time to committ to training etc and if its more a companion than to do showing/agility etc then I think the best fit is to go to a dogs home and get matched up with a dog that may suit, be that a crossbreed or whatever. The key here is that no breed is guaranteed to fit into the "what it says on the tin" of that particular breed.

You are perfect people to offer a home to a dog in need \nd you dont have a particular definite breed that you both love and have always yearned for, thus a trip to rescue would in my humble opinion be the best way to go !!

I looked into Trailhounds also when I was searching for the 'right' rescue dog.

I was advised that they are perfectly able (and inclined!) to jump over fences; they are also very high energy. I thought they were absolutely stunning, but had to acknowledge that they were probably a tad too much for me.

What SRS said.

terriers or a basset, if you were to get a springer definately show, however these rarely turn up in rescue, i have seen 3 through in the 5 years i have been involved with springer rescue, I would cross the Brittany off now, they aren't the easiest dog in the world to train, and again rarely come up in rescue, we daycare both a beagle and a basset, the basset has the most character out of the two and doesn't seem to need as much exercise, the Beagle is plain lazy, however neither can be let off lead as they are both likely to follow their noses.

I would be inclined not to get hung up on breeds and go to a rescue that fosters their dogs rather than kennels, this way they will have a good idea on temperament, cats and health in general, you may find that there is a x out there that matches your requirements perfectly.

WELL SAID.


Totally agree

I think it also depends on the OP's expeience with dogs, are they first timers or expeienced dog owners, i think trailhounds etc are for experienced owners that know how to train and cater for those types of dogs needs.

I would say a lot depends on the experience of the potential owner, a first time owner probably wouldn't know a lot about training etc, depends how much they want to get into it i suppose but the OP stated an hours exercise a day so beagles and such like i would have thought need more than that ?

Sorry duplicate

Agree with this, its what i was trying to say lol

A word of warning - Bassets shed like crazy!

[*]Brittany: Still looking into, everything I read sounds good, but I'm yet to meet some owners.


I've tried to provide as much information as I can, which has probably put many people off reading this altogether. lol But hopefully it'll help us 'find our breed'.

Many thanks,
David[/QUOTE]

Thought I'd give you my thoughts on brittanies, as I have one, (well, he's brittany x setter but he's brittany, in looks and character) lovely dogs, very loving, intelligent, quick to learn, good with kids, eager to please (typical gun dog breed really) they are extremely active and love to run, and don't like to be alone for along time (but what your routine sounds ok, ) with training they are very obedient. They seem to be very low shedders, (Jed hardly sheds at all) and very low grooming needs) beware however, 'cos if they haven't been well socialized, they can be very nervy. But don't rule out rescuing a brittany, cos they are great dogs ( shame you're not in Italy 'cos there's a perfect one in a rescue here)

They are first-time dog owners.

I'd stick with Beagle Rescue tbh, if you really like Hounds then they'd be your best bet pet wise!

Border Terriers would suit you also I think, although to keep their coat in top condition they'd need to go to a dog groomer regularly to be hand stripped so this may not fit into your minimal grooming requirement!

I'd also reiterate that it's good to remember that although pedigree breeds will have specific characteristics, each dog is an individual in it's own right so may not behave exactly as described by books, the Internet etc.

what about a whippet?

We fosterd a trailhound or cross he was the most affectionate gentle dog we have ever had and it broke our hearts to let him go:-(

Where abouts in the UK are you?