Breed Suggestions

[Guest Tess32]

My colleague is after her first dog.

The situation:

- 2 kids, 4 and 8, both boys. Not overly gentle, not overly rough.

- Neither parent has had a dog before

- Mother will be home for the first few weeks and then dog will be in backyard. She is contemplating a dog run setup.

- Dog will predominately be outside, but allowed to come inside in the evenings for some family time.

- Dog will be walked minimum once a day, maybe twice.

She would like:

- reasonable shedding

- Not overly dog smelly breed

- easy to train

- laid back nature

- won't go insane if not walked/exercised for a day

She is currently looking at a goldie..

Any ideas?

[aussielover]

No offence to goldie people, but I have found many of them to be smelly (the dogs, not the people ;)). They also are very heavy shedders- don't wear anything black!

I'm sure regular bathing and grooming can help to minimize this.

Is she specifically after a large dog?

Edited July 27, 2010 by aussielover

[cramet]

goldie will be right with the right guidence (spl)

tell her to visit some breeders as well as to have a look at breeder of her second choice of dog and then make her mind up

i know people wont agree but i belive any breed is suitabul for some one as long as they have the right guidence from a club or a trainer or a breeder

some one that can help with the progress it up to the owner to make this happen not every one else to make it work

[Guest Tess32]

No offence to goldie people, but I have found many of them to be smelly (the dogs, not the people ;)). They also are very heavy shedders- don't wear anything black!

I'm sure regular bathing and grooming can help to minimize this.

Is she specifically after a large dog?

Not REALLY, it's more the idea she'll feel a rough & tumble capable breed would be better with young kids.

[corvus]

Spitz breeds don't smell much at all and the ones in the herding group tend to be easy to train and not as active as other herders. The trick is finding one that doesn't have outrageous amounts of hair. ;) Maybe a corgi? Although I have to be honest and I think that corgi hair is worse than my Lapphund's hair for shedding. The Lappie doesn't tend to leave a lot of hair around, as it usually gets caught up in his coat and only comes out when you brush it, but having said that it seems there's always one stray Lappie hair that will be left behind whenever you touch something you are trying to keep clean. Where do they come from?? And there was that time in McDonald's when I was just about to order and I'd just rubbed my face and something was left behind and it was tickling me and I put my hand up and found this massive knot of black and grey Lappie hair stuck to my face. Just what you like to have on your face in public. At least that kind of thing doesn't happen with a corgi.

[Ons]

i'd go a male golden if you want a quieter dog but i thought of golden before i read they were looking at a golden but then I am bias. ;)

mmmm must go smell mine, never found them smelly unless Ons has rolled in manure ;) but I will agree with the shedding.

[Guest Tess32]

If anyone can recommend any goldie breeders with quieter dogs in VIC...let me know...if she goes that route.

[Ons]

i'll ask my two breeder friends.

Onslow I got at Armidale. So bit far to go

[Dame Aussie]

I was thinking Goldie too before I read the whole post. I don't know how easy they are to train though having never had one?

[dee lee]

i'd go a male golden if you want a quieter dog but i thought of golden before i read they were looking at a golden but then I am bias.

mmmm must go smell mine, never found them smelly unless Ons has rolled in manure but I will agree with the shedding.

;) Me too.

My Goldie is calm and gentle, the sweetest dog alive!

But all the other goldies I have met have had lovely natures, even if some of the young-uns are a bit bouncy, they still are so sweet and happy. Perfect for kid rumbling.

My dog is in heaven when the kids play with her!

Honey is a completely inside dog and doesn't smell at all. I constantly ask my non-dog owning friends if our house smells, tell them to be honest and I get a consistent no.

If I can feel her fur getting a little less soft I know its time for a bath (about once a month atm).

The shedding IS fullon though and I do wear black every day. I get used to the white hairs (and dribble marks) all over me. Usually wears off by the time I get to work.

She is active enough to go jogging with me but also will laze about no probs. A half hour fetch session is occasionally all she will get (I hate walking her in the rain- too much fur to dry! :D ) and she is fine.

I got her as a adult rescue though so cant help with breeders, I just wanted to give my vote for them as being a great family dog. Well worth the shedding. ;)

[lappiemum]

Spitz breeds don't smell much at all and the ones in the herding group tend to be easy to train and not as active as other herders. The trick is finding one that doesn't have outrageous amounts of hair. ;) Maybe a corgi? Although I have to be honest and I think that corgi hair is worse than my Lapphund's hair for shedding. The Lappie doesn't tend to leave a lot of hair around, as it usually gets caught up in his coat and only comes out when you brush it, but having said that it seems there's always one stray Lappie hair that will be left behind whenever you touch something you are trying to keep clean. Where do they come from?? And there was that time in McDonald's when I was just about to order and I'd just rubbed my face and something was left behind and it was tickling me and I put my hand up and found this massive knot of black and grey Lappie hair stuck to my face. Just what you like to have on your face in public. At least that kind of thing doesn't happen with a corgi.

LOL - I have a couple of sticky hair rollers in my house for moulting season.

I wouldn't recommend a Lappie, not on the basis of moulting (most breeds will shed) but because its going to be predominately an outside dog. Lappies need to be with their people - they are very family orientated and social.

I would be concerned that any breed left on its own for extended periods of time may develop seperation anxiety related behaviours. Walking alone is not enough, they need mental stimulation as well.

Good luck to your friend.

eta - I should clarify, Lappie are fine to be on their own for periods of time, just not that they should be outside for most of the time.

Edited July 27, 2010 by lappiemum

[poodlefan]

Many Golden Retriever pups are quite full on and I'd be worried about the encouragement of any rough and tumble behaviour in a breed prone to mouthing.

Would they consider a more mature dog?

[Guest Tess32]

Many Golden Retriever pups are quite full on and I'd be worried about the encouragement of any rough and tumble behaviour in a breed prone to mouthing.

Would they consider a more mature dog?

No don't think so, they are definitely in the "we want a puppy for our family' brigade.

I don't think they mean rough play though, just for eg, a breed that is generally tolerant to a kid accidently falling on them etc.

[poodlefan]

Many Golden Retriever pups are quite full on and I'd be worried about the encouragement of any rough and tumble behaviour in a breed prone to mouthing.

Would they consider a more mature dog?

No don't think so, they are definitely in the "we want a puppy for our family' brigade.

I don't think they mean rough play though, just for eg, a breed that is generally tolerant to a kid accidently falling on them etc.

If they want a 'tolerant' dog, then they need to spend a lot of time and effort searching through breeders to find one with dogs of sound temperament and who has an ability to match dogs to families. The breed club in the State would be an excellent starting point in terms of education and sourcing pups.

There are other retrievers they might consider - Flatcoat, Labrador, Curly Coated etc. Most would have less grooming than a GR.

Personally I think obedience training is a must for these dogs. They need to occupy their minds and they need to learn manners young.

[Aziah]

Spitz breeds don't smell much at all and the ones in the herding group tend to be easy to train and not as active as other herders. The trick is finding one that doesn't have outrageous amounts of hair. Maybe a corgi? Although I have to be honest and I think that corgi hair is worse than my Lapphund's hair for shedding. The Lappie doesn't tend to leave a lot of hair around, as it usually gets caught up in his coat and only comes out when you brush it, but having said that it seems there's always one stray Lappie hair that will be left behind whenever you touch something you are trying to keep clean. Where do they come from?? And there was that time in McDonald's when I was just about to order and I'd just rubbed my face and something was left behind and it was tickling me and I put my hand up and found this massive knot of black and grey Lappie hair stuck to my face. Just what you like to have on your face in public. At least that kind of thing doesn't happen with a corgi.

I considered suggesting a Corgi (either Cardigan or Pembroke) but only being allowed in briefly at night was a real turn off, they are real family orientated and thrive on spending time with their people so I don't think either would be suitable.

Pembrokes shed quite a lot, far more than most anticipate

Edited July 27, 2010 by Aziah

[Monah]

I was also thinking a more mature dog

I've had 2 goldies, both male. I guess mine were sooks! as they would not have coped with too much rough and tumble (although very laid back, they would have taken too much of it and not complained), also very strong on lead so need good training, easy to train if consistant as most dogs are.

Obviously if they dont have a lot of interaction with the family (just wondering about the time inside duriing the evening) any dog could become overexcited, esp with young kids running around, and the cycle of 'too excited to be allowed in, cant come in, so...gets too excited when he comes in......so, cant come in.." is very probable.

THey do mouth and depending on the dog, can be complete twits for the first 2 or 3 years. Mine were angels

I didn't find them smelly but i am used to having several animals indoors so maybe I'm immune!!

Goldies are lovely.

[Monah]

My colleague is after her first dog.

The situation:

- 2 kids, 4 and 8, both boys. Not overly gentle, not overly rough.

- Neither parent has had a dog before

- Mother will be home for the first few weeks and then dog will be in backyard. She is contemplating a dog run setup.

- Dog will predominately be outside, but allowed to come inside in the evenings for some family time.

- Dog will be walked minimum once a day, maybe twice.

She would like:

- reasonable shedding

- Not overly dog smelly breed

- easy to train

- laid back nature

- won't go insane if not walked/exercised for a day

She is currently looking at a goldie..

Any ideas?

sorry, I forgot much of what was posted when I posted!

Maybe you could very gently advise her that a young dog walked once a day with minimal human contact in the evenings may not end up being easy to train, laid back or sane, no matter what breed it is, esp if it is in a run all day too. I know this may be normal for many dogs and that's fine, but if she is expecting to keep a pet this way and also have a great pet, it may become disappointing. Young goldies are very active (and so are old ones given the chance )

They can also knock children and adults over if excited through lack of company.(and do major excavation work in the garden )xxxx

[corvus]

I don't really think any dogs are in the their element with being left out of family life... but a lot of dogs cope with it well enough. The more time I spend with my dogs the more I wonder how the majority of dogs get by. Kivi coped fine with being on his own in a yard all day and then coming in to spend time with us when we were at home... but when I started working from home he turned into a giant, needy sook and feels it is necessary he always be in the same room as me. He has even reverted to puppyhood days of trying to sneak onto the bed to sleep at night and coming up for cuddles on the lounge. He was fine when he was getting much less people time, but he's much happier with more people time. I wonder if it's the same with all dogs, really. We did kinda breed them to be dependent on us.

[GoldenWei]

Goldies are definate shedders, if they get one with a wavy coat as opposed to a heavy flatter coat they don't shed AS MUCH, but they still shed. For a first time dog owner..... I'm not sure I'd recommand a golden puppy... they need plenty of mental stimulation and training in the early years, and they don't settle down until, oh about 3 or 4 years old. They can be terrible chewers, and if they don't get much interaction with the family then they won't be happy at all.

I've never found any of mine to smell much, they are inside a lot. It would definately be a case of go with an experienced breeder who can pick the right puppy for a first time dog owner if they went down this route. I wanted to hand my 3rd golden back to his breeder after 3 days, he was that full-on, but he's turned out to be a beautiful, but still active golden now he's matured a bit. He was very easy to train, but we did start from day 1.

[GoldenWei]

My colleague is after her first dog.

The situation:

- 2 kids, 4 and 8, both boys. Not overly gentle, not overly rough.

- Neither parent has had a dog before

- Mother will be home for the first few weeks and then dog will be in backyard. She is contemplating a dog run setup.

- Dog will predominately be outside, but allowed to come inside in the evenings for some family time.

- Dog will be walked minimum once a day, maybe twice.

She would like:

- reasonable shedding

- Not overly dog smelly breed

- easy to train

- laid back nature

- won't go insane if not walked/exercised for a day

She is currently looking at a goldie..

Any ideas?

sorry, I forgot much of what was posted when I posted!

Maybe you could very gently advise her that a young dog walked once a day with minimal human contact in the evenings may not end up being easy to train, laid back or sane, no matter what breed it is, esp if it is in a run all day too. I know this may be normal for many dogs and that's fine, but if she is expecting to keep a pet this way and also have a great pet, it may become disappointing. Young goldies are very active (and so are old ones given the chance )

They can also knock children and adults over if excited through lack of company.(and do major excavation work in the garden )xxxx

x2 They need to be trained early on not to jump up, or they WILL knock over the kids. My first golden knocked over my 60kg aunt. Even if they are taught this, be careful when they do zoomies, all 3 of the goldens I have owned have knocked me over at some point becasue they weren't really watching where they were going.... and I didn't move out of their way quick enough.