Another 'what Breed' Thread...

[Baileys mum]

I'm very biased but I think an Australian terrier ticks nearly all your boxes.

They are a very friendly, charming,loyal little family dog with pesonality plus!! They adapt well to all sorts of living conditions including rural or city living, have a low shedding easy to maintain coat, very trainable as they love to please their owners, are very healthy & absolutely adore children.

The only downside is being a terrier they have high prey drive & you would really have to watch them around chooks & other small animals.

They could be socialised as puppies with small animals, but they would still always need to be supervised together IMO.

Other than this an Aussie would be perfect for your home.

I did actually consider an Aussie as I have known a few and as you say they are great little dogs-very underrated, the only thing is the chook issue, we also have Guinea Fowl that wander around the garden...they are great early warning systems for snakes so I like to encourage them! I am definately going to keep aussies in mind tho, as in all other regards they fit the bill.

It's great to keep them in mind anyway, We cetainly need more people owning them, & if you can work out a way to safely manage them with your smaller animals, I think an Aussie would be perfect for you.

I see you are in Tassie, I do know of a good breeder over there, if your interested please feel free to PM me.

Nicole

[Gayle.]

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Edited March 16, 2011 by GayleK

[SparkyTansy]

Being that you are quite experienced with dogs in general, I wouldn't look past a setter. If you want something a little more docile, an ES would be a good choice of the 4 varieties. The downside to owning them is that they don't have a great recall, so are better walked on lead. They have selective hearing so you have to be prepared for this, but they are generally a very loving breed. If you keep on top of their coat requirements (brushing, and stripping if you are showing), they don't shed buckets of hair. The grooming aspect for showing can take alittle work to learn, but if you had a breeder local to you they could show you the ropes on grooming for the ring.

They are wonderfully gentle with kids and they should be quite passive towards other animals, but like any breeds, needs training if chasing is a no-no.

They can take a lot of work as puppies, but i have found that my two matured quite quickly after they hit 12 months of age.

Edited March 16, 2011 by SparkyTansy

[Lady Flying Furball]

How about a rough collie...Lassie come home. Or I was thinking a Golden retriever, pity about your hubby!

Aussies are great, or a cav as already suggested.

[OSoSwift]

You mentioned a Whippet.

I have a similar lifestyle to your but have young kids here full time.

We have cats, sheep, cattle, horses, guinea pigs, Guinea Fowl, Alpaca and chooks.

The dogs are not left outside to their own devices as we have only livestock fencing and I don't want them to learn they can nick of hunting. But they are out when I am they run around, play etc and do not bolt off.

My guinea pig and her babies got flipped out of their house when a strong windgust came up one day, I thought for sure they would get killed by the Whippets, two good roars from me and they stood back and watched me doing rugby tackle dives after guinea pigs and didn't hurt one even when one bolted right under Lewis's nose! I was very impressed by that!

They go up to the fence and sniff noses with the Alpaca and horses, pet cow and pet sheep. They do not go into the paddocks unless invited (which is EXTREMELY rare) we have single strand electric cattle fences. All have recieved one zap and stay away from the fences.

My dogs have extremely reliable recalls and they are that way because I have worked at it from the day they arrive here and still reinforce good recalls often. They get walked through the farm on lead due to snakes and roos but we have a good 5 acres around the house they use for running.

They are extremely good with the kids and my youngest in particular, they are not dogs who jump up but that could be the training as well. They have no doggy smell and shed very little. When they do have their shed and I notice some hairs left on my clothes when they sit on me I go over them thoroughly with a zoom groom - all sorted.

They are very quiet inside, up for a good game and run or a good long walk, but other than that lay around. We don't allow running or zoomies inside, inside is quiet time. They are quiet, don't need a lot of food but do need to be kept out of very hot and cold weather - they make excellent bed warmers and love cuddles

[Debyork2]

Thanks everyone...it really does help to have input from owners of other breeds, I think by process of elimination I'm really down to Whippet or English Setter, OH is very keen on Whippets! I am just too concerned about an Aussie with the backyard birds! I remember one of my Mum's Danes used to share her bones with the chooks but one day a particularly stupid chicken got into a panic about something and took off squawking-the Dane chased it and caught it, and would have killed it if we hadn't been there, so I don't think any dog is really 100% safe with chooks. I don't want to start off with a breed with a high prey drive and have to always be trying to keep a lid on it-I'd rather have a breed that is not naturally inclined to chase and kill things and gently discourage any signs of bird chasing. So will do further research on both breeds-might trot off to some shows and have a look around, and once again thanks everyone .

[Gayle.]

I am biased but a DOBERMANN. my little girl is 11 weeks ever so smart doesn't shed (yet) and is best friends with my lop eared bunny charles.. my two dobermanns back at my parents farm were HUGE dogs and although they sometimes jumped on us they NEVER jumped on my sisters twin boys from age 4 right up till 12 (when they were just about as tall as me) and even then it was just one welcome jump that was easily deterred...they are large (females smaller) but quite thin and they can flatten themselves out for a laugh haha...

I've always loved Aussie Sheps, Old English Sheepdogs and Bearded Collies unsure about the shedding though as I have never owned one.. but you can always shave them Maremmas are livestock guardians (bred to protect animals) and are used to being alone, so if you do on occasion have to leave (emergency etc) they will probably be a little less inclined to go nuts, again unsure about the shedding but I think any breed that isn't a heavy shedder would suit..

Good luck!

Just want to clarify something here.......shaving a dog won't prevent it from shedding, all it will do is ruin it's coat. The hair still sheds, it's just shorter pieces.

[LizT]

You are right about no dog being 100% safe with fowl. Our Schipperke killed a chook when she was about 3 years old. SHE was raised around them and never showed any interest in them as they wandered about free range about the garden. We were able to keep her away from the hens from then on in UNTIL she was about 14 years old and we moved to another poroperty where the setup was different. After being there for two years she killed 4 chickens in a row over a period of 10 days. We tried a number of different things from not letting the chooks free range (but their pen was too small to not let them out some of the day) to muzzles (which she kept getting off!) but she eventually got sent to live with my mother in her twilight years. She had stayed with mum on a number of occassions and loved it there...no chooks and no muzzle.

[BMAK]

i vote for a springer spaniel, they seem great around people, dogs, gentle although they are natural hunters, they are very smart and would be taught easily to accept your other animals and i know springer that tolarates birds out of a cage flying and goats.

*setter

*whippet

also on my list

then again kelpie (not biased one bit) great workers if you need them to round up your sheep/cattle ahha also great lounge lizards and companions

[Sayly]

Most Aussie Shepherds can't be left alone with chooks and some can shed absolute bucketloads (some don't). Their coat may be an issue if you have lots of burrs/grass seeds and I would not suggest shaving them.

[Debyork2]

i vote for a springer spaniel, they seem great around people, dogs, gentle although they are natural hunters, they are very smart and would be taught easily to accept your other animals and i know springer that tolarates birds out of a cage flying and goats.

*setter

*whippet

also on my list

then again kelpie (not biased one bit) great workers if you need them to round up your sheep/cattle ahha also great lounge lizards and companions

We don't actually have any sheep, our place is surrounded by a huge property(my OH works for them)and they have sheep-some of the rams are worth many thousands of $'s-wouldn't want a dog upsetting them!! They have lots of working dogs-some look pure Kelpie and some a mixture-probably Border Collie mixes, being a softy I feel a bit sorry for them as they live most of their lives penned up but they seem happy enough-they are very obedient, I love the way they pile on to the back of the Quad bikes . I thought of a Springer but call me shallow and old fashioned-I just can't get used to long tails. Our actual fenced yard is burr & grass seed free, it would just be a matter of keeping an eye out for grass seeds after walks.

[Embellish]

Whippet

I am an avid labrador lover / exhibitor and have been for years...... but they live outside as I have too many for insside - and I do love my clean house!! So, we decided to get a whippet for indoors with us, and for a second breed to exhibit - my OH kept saying - "why do you want a whippet - blah blah blah"

as soon as the whippy came home, she has been "his" baby. The whole family absolutely adore her. She is so very clean, a very easy to keep dog. Loves all visitors - and I am sure she thinks she is a labrador, and loves running with the big dogs!

So now my OH keeps saying that we need another........ which will happen in time. I truly believe they are a better family dog than the labrador, especially in the younger years with young families. Sorry - but can't reccommend them highly enough!!

[Alyosha]

When I read your first post I thought Whippet. Seems to tick all the boxes. And they're so lovely.

[jr_inoz]

I am biased - and think a sheltie would be ideal. My girl is absolutely brilliant around small children. Plays with a toddler next door all the time. She is gentle and friendly and affectionate with people. I think you just have to make sure you research your breeders and the temperament of their dogs.

Like a Lappie - only two coat sheds a year if a girl, one if a boy.

Getting a show prospect dog wont be that hard either - shelties are a popular breed.

The breed I did think of straight after your first post, that noone has mentioned yet is the Lagotto Romagnolo.

I have only met one or two but I think it would tick quite a few boxes for you.

Others in here would have better information for you about these though and their suitability.