Breed Selection

[Maia]

I am responding to a comment made on another thread where cavaliers were mentioned as being gentle little puppies.

I have to agree.

Years ago, when my children were very young, I was in love with Staffies. I had been since I was a teenager. So, after a good long search, I found myself the most gorgeous little black Staffy pup. Now, I loved that little girl to bits, but I can tell you, we were NOT a good match. She was just so so full on. I had two young children and this pup had no off switch. She was high energy all day every day, chewing everything in sight. I used a crate for periods of the day and took her to months of dog training. We could do all of the obedience stuff, but it was her energy I just could not handle.

Looking back, she probably needed hours of walks to burn off some of that energy - something with two small children I just didn't have time for.

In the end, at 18 months, I rehomed her with a tradie who wanted a high energy pal to hang out with him all day every day and to take surfing on the weekends.

I know it turned out well in the end, but it is still something I get really upset about when I look back. I was not the right owner for that dog and I was constantly frustrated with her. I should have done more research to save both of us from ending up together. It was just not fair on the dog. Her start in life, with me, was certainly less than it should have been.

A while later, still wanting a dog, I did some research about matching dog breed with owner temperament. I am a very laid back, quiet, and not very energetic person. The pup I found this time around was a little fluffy muffin - a shihtzu cross. And from the moment we laid eyes on each other, it was a perfect match. He was gentle and quiet and responsive. He house trained quickly, he wanted to be by my side all day, he was gentle with the kids. It was so clear to me then that everything they say about finding the right breed is true true true. He wasn't a perfect dog by all means, we still had the odd issue to overcome, but I could manage him and we had such a great bond.

Now, years down the track I have just recently got myself another pup. This time, again, after very careful breed selection and discussion with my partner about what is right for us. We have chosen a gorgeous little cavalier girl.

Again, it has not been issue free. She is a pup and all pups are hard work. But her temperament is so sweet ang gentle and responsive. And she has an off button - long sleeps during the day. :-)

It is my relationship with her that makes me recall my poor staffy all those years ago who just found herself in the wrong home. With young children I did not have the time to give her the owner she deserved, and her high energy made her simply not a good match for me in general.

I always tell people now who are wanting a very quiet gentle dog to go for a nanna dog :-) (If a nanna can cope, then I should be able to as well.)

Just something I wanted to share.

Maia :-)

[FranVT]

What a good post Maia I too made a mistake like yours when I was 18, just out of home, had some 'issues' going on mentally/emotionally etc. I rescued a puppy from the pound because I was lonely. Geo (so named because of his map-shaped brown patch on his lil face) was a JRT x Miniature Fox terrier. That's a LOT of energy and he needed a lot of attention/exercise, which my lifestyle did not enable him to get. I thought I was doing the right and noble thing by rescuing him but he was so wrong for my lifestyle and was not a good match for me though I loved him dearly. I rehomed him to a lovely family made up of 2 fitness-freak police officers and their 5 sons ranging in age from 10 to 17. They live on the beach and last I heard Geo was going strong still blissfully having 2 beach runs a day and he is just the most loved little dog. All the naughty (boredom-induced) things he did with me are gone because he is NEVER bored and always exercised.

If we never make mistakes how are we to ever learn? I still berate myself for ever rescuing him, though I don't regret saving him from the green dream, I wish he hadn't had to go through the few months of boredom / excess energy before meeting his forever-family.

The dog I have now is just perfect for me

[persephone]

Two good posts - I am glad the dogs got homes tailor-made

[FranVT]

Thanks pers, I was worried I'd get an immediate flaming I know I did the wrong thing but I fixed the mistake as best I could and more importantly learnt a valuable and never-to-be-repeated lesson.

[Monah]

Wonderful and responsible posts You both did the unselfish thing, both loved the dogs but realised it was not to be, and the dogs in turn ended up in the perfect homes for them. Very considerate and generous.xxxxx

[wuffles]

Great post

I also think it's worth mentioning that there can be marked differences between individuals of the same breed, so it is important to consider the temperament of an individual puppy/dog as well as their breed. Of course there are averages, but there are also dogs at either end of the scale. We had a CKCS in our puppy class that was the noisiest, naughtiest, cheekiest, over-the-top puppy there! Her owners were thoroughly overwhelmed as they had chosen the breed for its quiet and gentle temperament.

[jazawayaya]

What a good post Maia I too made a mistake like yours when I was 18, just out of home, had some 'issues' going on mentally/emotionally etc. I rescued a puppy from the pound because I was lonely. Geo (so named because of his map-shaped brown patch on his lil face) was a JRT x Miniature Fox terrier. That's a LOT of energy and he needed a lot of attention/exercise, which my lifestyle did not enable him to get. I thought I was doing the right and noble thing by rescuing him but he was so wrong for my lifestyle and was not a good match for me though I loved him dearly. I rehomed him to a lovely family made up of 2 fitness-freak police officers and their 5 sons ranging in age from 10 to 17. They live on the beach and last I heard Geo was going strong still blissfully having 2 beach runs a day and he is just the most loved little dog. All the naughty (boredom-induced) things he did with me are gone because he is NEVER bored and always exercised.

If we never make mistakes how are we to ever learn? I still berate myself for ever rescuing him, though I don't regret saving him from the green dream, I wish he hadn't had to go through the few months of boredom / excess energy before meeting his forever-family.

The dog I have now is just perfect for me

Very nice posts You are both very lucky you found good homes for them.

This one is what I went through for the first few months of Banjo. I got him from the rspca 'breed unknown' I am now certain he is at least part Sheltie.

Anyway I just fell in love with him and being breed unknown I had no way to know his energy levels etc.

The first few months were horrible. The poor little thing had so much energy to burn, came with so many fear agression and non stop barking issues and I deeply regretted choosing a rescue and wished I had of reaserched a breed so I could get a dog that suited me.

Anyway after lots of work he was coming good and we thought a second dog would help even more this time I studied like crazy for a breed that would suit us. We ended up with Luda who really is perfect for us and she has calmed Banjo down so much that he isnt even the same dog anymore. He burns so much energy playing with her and I dont know- its like he grew up once he had a younger sister to look after

[Maia]

FranCQ I thought I might get flamed too. :-D

It seems such a common thing - people getting attached to the idea of a type of dog and ending up with a really bad match.

I had seen lots of very placid adult staffies who were moslty (fat!) couch potatoes. I naively thought that's what I would be getting. Mine might have been a super energetic example of the breed but any dog breed quiz I have done since tells me to stay away from terriers because of their high energy.

And yes, cavaliers can be very bouncy too. Mine is quite a handful at times (though getting better) and not nearly as placid as a cav my friend owns who at 8 months old you'd think was 8 YEARS old! She was also quite the terror in Puppy Class. LOL. The good thing with her now though is that a half hour walk and she's happy to curl up on my bed for a good long sleep.

FrancCQ - what breed do you have now?

[lappiemum]

great post. it should be pinned somewhere - maybe in breeds 101

[FranVT]

FranCQ I thought I might get flamed too. :-D

It seems such a common thing - people getting attached to the idea of a type of dog and ending up with a really bad match.

I had seen lots of very placid adult staffies who were moslty (fat!) couch potatoes. I naively thought that's what I would be getting. Mine might have been a super energetic example of the breed but any dog breed quiz I have done since tells me to stay away from terriers because of their high energy.

And yes, cavaliers can be very bouncy too. Mine is quite a handful at times (though getting better) and not nearly as placid as a cav my friend owns who at 8 months old you'd think was 8 YEARS old! She was also quite the terror in Puppy Class. LOL. The good thing with her now though is that a half hour walk and she's happy to curl up on my bed for a good long sleep.

FrancCQ - what breed do you have now?

I have a Finnish Lapphund named Luuka (meaning "lover of sticks"*)

She is a doll

I also wanted to say that I trusted that my breeder would pick the right puppy for me, I wanted a girl for a companion dog first, obedience/agility second with showing a distant third. And she picked SPOT ON Breeders are amazing. I didn't meet Luuka 'til the day I picked her up and she is just perfect!

*Not really..

Edited September 22, 2010 by FranCQ

[waffle]

I did the same thing, couple of years ago i adopted a whippet x from a rescue thinking she would be pretty laid back. She was pretty much the opposite, I took her out twice a day and when we got home she would still destroy shoes, run around the house, dig at everything. She also hated being alone and so we couldn't really leave her while we were out at work/school/uni/whatever as she would become really distressed. We told the rescue she wasn't suited to us and they took her back. Felt pretty terrible about it because I really wanted to help her and she was such a loving dog but she was just too much :rolleyes:

[Genabee]

Great post

I also think it's worth mentioning that there can be marked differences between individuals of the same breed, so it is important to consider the temperament of an individual puppy/dog as well as their breed. Of course there are averages, but there are also dogs at either end of the scale. We had a CKCS in our puppy class that was the noisiest, naughtiest, cheekiest, over-the-top puppy there! Her owners were thoroughly overwhelmed as they had chosen the breed for its quiet and gentle temperament.

Are you stalking me Wuffles????? :rolleyes:

[mackenzie11]

FranCQ I thought I might get flamed too. :-D

She was also quite the terror in Puppy Class. LOL. The good thing with her now though is that a half hour walk and she's happy to curl up on my bed for a good long sleep.

sounds like my mollie, she had her first obedience class last night - not good, all she wanted to do was play, she was obedient for about 15 min, after that she had had enough and just wanted to play in the freshly mown lawn, she kept picking up the grass and trying to give it to the other dogs, this is what she does at home, she has just started going on walks in the big scary outdoors, she has 3 walks a day for a grand total of about 5min, she hates it, all the noise from the traffic scares her, a bus went past today and it scared the daylights out of her,