Nova Scotia Toller Vs Golden Retriever

[Angeluca]

To be constructive what about a Shetland sheepdog?

Those I met that were trained were fantastic beautiful dogs?

More experience people can tell you if they would suit.

[RallyValley]

Well it definitely looks like the Toller is ruled out :laugh: I really don't think a BC would be suitable as my friend & her husband are disabled to the extent where anything more than a walk they couldn't handle. He is on a walking stick & she has her own physical problems. But they would have lots of time for training not involving anything much physical (for them) & that is why the GR suits them. Also they go away a fair bit & need to leave the dog with their daughter & young family. A shame a miniature GR does not exist :)

What about a Brittany spaniel, bit smaller and still very smart, the ones I have met haven't been as high energy as the tollers and BCs I've met

I'm not sure a Brittany would suit if you are ruling out a Border Collie. They are fairly high energy dogs, one of my puppy families owns and shows Border Collies and finds their Brittany is more 'full on' than the Borders are.

Brittanys are beautiful friendly dogs and are physically very sound. They have much less coat maintenance/shedding than a Golden, usually max out at around 21kgs for a male. The biggest downside is they do require physical and mental stimulation or they will create themselves a 'job', which can be something as inane as chasing butterflies or as annoying as destorying things.

[Ptolomy]

Not all tollers scream and some you think don't scream until out of the blue they find something very very exciting

Generalizing here - goldies tend to become couch potatoes at 2 - tollers are Peter Pan dogs and stay young forever.

Goldies are bigger and drop way more hair than tollers.

Tollers don't do well with repetition type training - if they get it right once - move on.

[OSoSwift]

OH.MY.GOODNESS I really don't think I could live with that scream!!!!!!

Having said that Wilson is being a pansy and going through the "oh my god you have left me in the other room I am going to die" yelling of late! That is pretty bad but has nothing on that Toller scream!

[PuddleDuck]

It's really odd but I actually find the scream WAY less annoying than when Doof (GSD x kelpie) barks. They only scream if they are really excited (or hanging out with a toddler apparently, although her toddler scream has a lower pitch) and it just tends to make me laugh. And no one has called the cops yet

[HazyWal]

7. The Scream - Many Tollers have a penetrating scream which they produce to indicate excitement and eagerness. To the uninitiated, this can sound like the dog is being fed into a wood chipper;

Louis does this

Is the scream comparable to the Greyhound Scream Of Death (GSOD)?

Generally produced after a mild stubbing of a toe

Yep

[Leah82]

I think there is an assumption that dogs in the working group are a higher in energy than other groups.

I've looked into both Brittany's and Tollers before while looking for a future breed thinking that they would only require as much exercise and stimulation as your standard spaniel or retriever but wikipedia told me I was wrong :p

[The Spotted Devil]

Leah you've gotta meet my very "un-standard" Spaniel :laugh: Bloody energiser bunny

[LisaCC]

I think there is an assumption that dogs in the working group are a higher in energy than other groups.

I've looked into both Brittany's and Tollers before while looking for a future breed thinking that they would only require as much exercise and stimulation as your standard spaniel or retriever but wikipedia told me I was wrong :p

My Aussie the "high energy working dog", is only 6 months old and super lazy.

He's got the energy when he wants to, but there are days where he objects to walks and would much prefer to lay on the couch instead

[RallyValley]

Leah82 they do have an off switch and are easy dogs to live with (mine cope on a suburban block with a tiny yard and are alone while I am out 9-10hrs a day for work) provided you give them daily exercise and mental stimulation. They are bred to hunt all day if required and have to have the intelligence to do so. Depriving them of a job and a physical outlet is asking for trouble.

They are an absolutely fantastic breed and I would never have anything else now.

[Leah82]

I think there is an assumption that dogs in the working group are a higher in energy than other groups.

I've looked into both Brittany's and Tollers before while looking for a future breed thinking that they would only require as much exercise and stimulation as your standard spaniel or retriever but wikipedia told me I was wrong :p

My Aussie the "high energy working dog", is only 6 months old and super lazy.

He's got the energy when he wants to, but there are days where he objects to walks and would much prefer to lay on the couch instead

My parent's Kelpie is pretty lazy as well, he spends most of the day moving from one napping spot to another.

As soon as you start up the 4 wheeler though it's go time.

[LisaCC]

Yea, you don't want to be in hearing distance when he see's a tug toy or the clicker come out

[Leah82]

Leah82 they do have an off switch and are easy dogs to live with (mine cope on a suburban block with a tiny yard and are alone while I am out 9-10hrs a day for work) provided you give them daily exercise and mental stimulation. They are bred to hunt all day if required and have to have the intelligence to do so. Depriving them of a job and a physical outlet is asking for trouble.

They are an absolutely fantastic breed and I would never have anything else now.

I spoke to a brittany breeder about an adult dog they were selling when we were looking for a friend for Collie. She said the dog needed to be taken on an hour bike ride daily as well as mental training. That's too much exercise for even me :p

Beautiful dogs though and I like that they have shorter hair than cockers and springers. If I end up back in sunny WA one day I might look you up :)

[sheena]

This led me to Youtube... Oh my god.

HOLY BAJEASES If I heard that i'd call the cops, I will now know to peek over the fence and look for a toller first .

Definitely no tollers then.....the cops would be around their place all the time then one day when they really need the cops...they would be saying "Oh it's just the bloody dogs again" & my friend could be being murdered in her own kitchen

[sheena]

Leah82 they do have an off switch and are easy dogs to live with (mine cope on a suburban block with a tiny yard and are alone while I am out 9-10hrs a day for work) provided you give them daily exercise and mental stimulation. They are bred to hunt all day if required and have to have the intelligence to do so. Depriving them of a job and a physical outlet is asking for trouble.

They are an absolutely fantastic breed and I would never have anything else now.

I spoke to a brittany breeder about an adult dog they were selling when we were looking for a friend for Collie. She said the dog needed to be taken on an hour bike ride daily as well as mental training. That's too much exercise for even me :p

Beautiful dogs though and I like that they have shorter hair than cockers and springers. If I end up back in sunny WA one day I might look you up :)

Leah...(please excuse my ignorance) but what breed is your dog, Sarah?? Yes I thought about maybe an Aussie as all the Aussies I have met are pretty laid back. Brittanies are a beautiful dog, but not for these people.

[LisaCC]

I wouldn't recommend an Aussie if she wants the personality of a goldie/lab. I purposefully went in the opposite direction of my lab.

[cali]

lol Baby used to run around screaming her head off every time I tried to play with my dogs, it was awful for everyone..I cant imagine my neighbours enjoyed it, I hated it and my other dogs would get mad and attack her, so obviously THEY didn't like it and I don't imagine Baby enjoyed being attacked all the time! she stopped when I got Gem and Gyp..Gem and Gyp are not as obsessed with fetch as my other dogs, so rather then play with me, and get mad and attack Baby mid game, they would stop playing entirely and chase her around barking in her ears non stop.... Baby has not run around screaming since..taste of her own medicine

and ya the reason I have a BC, a Toller, an Aussie, ACD's mixes and a JRT mix is precisely because I hate the golden/lab personality lol

Edited November 19, 2013 by cali

[Leah82]

Leah82 they do have an off switch and are easy dogs to live with (mine cope on a suburban block with a tiny yard and are alone while I am out 9-10hrs a day for work) provided you give them daily exercise and mental stimulation. They are bred to hunt all day if required and have to have the intelligence to do so. Depriving them of a job and a physical outlet is asking for trouble.

They are an absolutely fantastic breed and I would never have anything else now.

I spoke to a brittany breeder about an adult dog they were selling when we were looking for a friend for Collie. She said the dog needed to be taken on an hour bike ride daily as well as mental training. That's too much exercise for even me :p

Beautiful dogs though and I like that they have shorter hair than cockers and springers. If I end up back in sunny WA one day I might look you up :)

Leah...(please excuse my ignorance) but what breed is your dog, Sarah?? Yes I thought about maybe an Aussie as all the Aussies I have met are pretty laid back. Brittanies are a beautiful dog, but not for these people.

Sarah is a poodle x cocker... we think. I got her through a rescue that takes on retired breeding dogs from puppy farms. She's very sweet and doesn't have an aggressive bone in her body but it was a requirement that we had another dog that could help her adjust to home life. She doesn't look like a typical poodle x either because I clip her face and head which I think makes her look so much cuter :p

[pie]

I spoke to a brittany breeder about an adult dog they were selling when we were looking for a friend for Collie. She said the dog needed to be taken on an hour bike ride daily as well as mental training. That's too much exercise for even me

With the 1 hour bike ride - you can fall into the trap of giving your dog too much physical exercise - which means it takes more and more to wear them out - I know because my brother made this mistake with his dog :laugh:

Mental stimulation / training is far more exhausting than running walking the same amount of time - if you build up your dogs fitness you will have to keep it exercised at that level. This is true of any size or breed of dog really

[Salukifan]

What about a Brittany spaniel, bit smaller and still very smart, the ones I have met haven't been as high energy as the tollers and BCs I've met

Brittanies are a utility gundog, not a spaniel.

Frankly, if they want a smaller, calmer, outgoing dog very suitable for obedience work, they could go a long way before finding a better suited dog than a CKCS in my opinion.

Very capable little sports dogs. I know a GR owner who has just "downsized" to a CKCS and is very happy.

Anyone who thinks that Australian Shepherds are all easy going needs to read the aggressive dog suspensions in their state canine journals - they feature regularly. That is not a dog to treat like a teddy bear - they need boundaries.

Edited November 20, 2013 by Haredown Whippets