Dog recommendation URGENT please

[AliBaby]

Cross breed dogs or the new craze 'designer dogs' are laden with health problems. You can NEVER guarentee their temperament for many reasons.

One reason for this is that they are bred by 'back yard' breeders meaning they are not registered breeders so it is not compulsary to do health checks on the Dam and Sire.

No registered ethical breeder would ever cross breed. A puglier, spoodle, labradoodle are all mutts no matter how cute they are.

If you want a dog that is gentle with children and is also a good guard dog, get in touch with some registered reputable breeders after researching different breeds. They will cost a little more and you may need to wait a while plus they will check you out thoughly to make sure your home is suitable for one of their puppies but they are health tested, microchipped, and vaccinated and healthy.

If you don't want to wait then why not get in touch with the many dog rescue organisations. Their dogs are in foster care and are temperament tested making sure they are suitable with children, other dogs and generally healthy and happy. They also come desexed, microchipped and vaccinated. The rescuers can also point you in the right direction with suitable breeds.

Good luck in your search. There are so many doggies out there just waiting for their loving forever homes.

I am sorry but I have to disagree with this post. Not all crossbreeds are laden with health problems. In fact a lot of crossbreeds eliminate health problems in dogs. Cross breeding a dog also stops blood lines getting to close which cause genetic problems in dogs.

Quote from Wiki:
"Several studies have shown that mixed-breed dogs have a health advantage. A German study finds that "Mongrels require less veterinary treatment".[4] Studies in Sweden have found that "Mongrel dogs are less prone to many diseases than the average purebred dog"[5] and, referring to death rates, ?Mongrels were consistently in the low risk category?.[6] Another study reports that ?The median age at death was 8,5 years for all mixed breed dogs and 6,7 years for all pure breed dogs... For each weight group, the age at death of pure breed dogs was significantly less than for mixed breed dogs?,[7] and a study in Denmark finds that "Higher average longevity of mixedbreed dogs (grouped togther).[8]"

I am not for people breeding dogs in their backyard but there are registered breeders who do breed cross breed dogs properly.

All cross-bred dogs and pure- bred dogs sold at shops or from breeders come with a 2 week health check and a free vet check. They all are also microchipped and have usually started their initial vaccinations.

Also you can never guarentee the temperment of any dog pure bred or not.

[Smoke Jaguar]

I love a crossbreed, which is why I'm not afraid to get my dogs from the pound My favourite dogs have been crossbreeds, but for one notable exception - my Irish Terrier who was gentle as gentle can be, the biggest sweetheart of all until my Dane cross came along (I think my Irish Terrier sent him to me!).
Purebreds can cost you the earth to take home and are going to cost exactly the same as a mongrel for vet treatment - they don't come with guarantees against accidents! It's like horses - a $10K horse goes through a fence about as expensively and likely as a $500 bitzer

[Shades]

I guess I'd make a distinction between a 'crossbreed' eg. Poodle X Labrador and a 'mixedbreed' or 'mongrel' which to me means a cross of lots of different types, to the point where you're not even sure what breeds it's grandparents were. I'm not sure if a crossbreed of eg. Pug and Cavalier would have the same degree of sturdiness healthwise as a true mongrel.
But then, there is the phenomenon of 'hybrid vigour' - the burst of fertility, good health and growth that is seen in the offspring when two unrelated breeds are mated. The longer that these breeds have been separated, and the greater the differences between them, the stronger will be the resulting hybrid vigour.
So I guess there are arguments for both sides.
And I've been told before that I make trivial little distinctions between words that don't really exist!

So I guess this was a fairly pointless post in the end... sorry.

[Paddywhacks]

I am sorry but I have to disagree with this post. Not all crossbreeds are laden with health problems. In fact a lot of crossbreeds eliminate health problems in dogs. Cross breeding a dog also stops blood lines getting to close which cause genetic problems in dogs.


I am not for people breeding dogs in their backyard but there are registered breeders who do breed cross breed dogs properly.

All cross-bred dogs and pure- bred dogs sold at shops or from breeders come with a 2 week health check and a free vet check. They all are also microchipped and have usually started their initial vaccinations.

Also you can never guarentee the temperment of any dog pure bred or not.

No you are right, you can never guarantee the absolute temperament of any dog BUT with a purebred dog from an ethical registered breeder they can predict temperament fairly accurately.
There are NO registered breeders with the ANKC that cross breed dog. That is completely wrong. If there are 'breeders' out there telling you they are registered breeders and cross breeding then they are lying to you and are completely unethical.

True registered breeders don't breed for money, they breed for the betterment of their chosen breed to make them the best dog they can be.

When I talk about health checks I am not talking about a vet check I am talking about Hip and elbow scores, dental checks and some cases DNA testing.

All breeds have problems but when you bring two completely different breeds together you bring two sets of problems into the mix.

Hybrid vigour only happens when both the Sire and Dam have perfect genetics. It's rare.

[skybie]

i agree with janie, no matter what breed u get its all about the training u do with the dog. we have a golden retriever, she's just turned one and is amazingly gentle with our 2 yr old, she's nver jumped, scratched, growled or anything at her, and charlottes done some pretty god awfull things to her.
golden retrievers are very very protective of children and wil put themselves between the child and a threat, ours puts herself between out daughter and other dog when our other dog play growls at charlotte. not being bias but i would recommend goldies to anyone with kids

[aussiewillow]

I have a Maltalier Maltese x Cavy

Cavys are awesome dogs, loyal gentle, inside lap dogs. The maltese gives them a bit of "life" they bark at intruders but won't attack a fly, (moths yes but not flys).

A smaller dog around children might help because they won't knock them down with excitement.

[jackrose]

Yes, shelties are very easy to fall for, lots going for them and cute to boot!

with regards to the breed question, they are their own breed and only look like miniture rough collies (Lassie). They were bred in the Shetland Islands hence 'Shetland' sheepdog.

I love shelties, but I thought they weren't good with kids? Otherwise, size and intelligence, thumbs up.

I think they can have a reputation for not being great with kids as they can have a tendency to be aloof with strangers... hence strange children. As with any dog, it takes good socialisation and a good temperament to make sure this isn't the case. And as Paddywacks said:

No you are right, you can never guarantee the absolute temperament of any dog BUT with a purebred dog from an ethical registered breeder they can predict temperament fairly accurately.

We visited a breeder and met our dogs parents who both had good sociable friendly temperaments and discussed our needs with the breeder. We chose an older puppy rather than a 10 week old who was already on the way to being quite well socialised and we were therefore more confident of his personality. Our Sheltie loves, loves, loves kids! Our kids, visitors, kids in the street... he can't get enough!! (+he loves cats too, was brought up with cats in his breeder's home and we have 2)

I also did a lot of research about how to judge puppies personalities and although it is not foolproof, it is a really good way to determine which puppy in the litter will be best for you and your needs. Try googling "puppy temperament test" or something similar for some information. Wagging school on ABC2 has a fantastic video of how to pick a puppy by personality. (Let me know if you want any info on this, as someone else has mentioned here, choosing the right puppy temperament is much more important than choosing a particular breed).

I would have loved to get a dog from the pound but in the end decided to go with a pure breed as I wanted to know as much about where it came from, what its parents were like, what its breed temperament was most likely to be as I knew it needed to live with a baby/child. figured that although this does not give me any guarantees, it does arm me with the most knowledge I can have. When the kids grow up and if we ever choose to get another dog I will definately look at a rescue dog, but only when the house is full of adults.

As I have said, we are so pleased with our sheltie, he has been a dream dog so far which is fantastic with a baby/toddler in the house, but then most people are pretty happy with their choice of dog I think!!!

[jackrose]

What would you consider reputable???

Mayaness and Paddywhacks have given you great advice, another thing to look for is someone who wants to do checks on you too! A reputable breeder would never want their "babies" to go to the wrong home and will only sell you a puppy if they believe you are the right person for their beloved dog! The breeder we visited was definately like that with us!

What part of Aus are you in MummaB? I can recommend contacts in Vic...

[alioops]

MummaB - Have a look on the RSPCA website (adoptapet dot com dot au) at the nearest shelter to you. in the about me section of the dogs you like it will say whether or not they would be good with kids. We are looking at a Terrier cross Sharpei who is adorable and is good with kids. The RSPCA do pretty through temperament testing and they are also much better than getting a dog from a shop because they include everything. I think they are around the $200 - $300 mark including desexing, microchipping, vaccinations, worming, and health check.

[Matryoshka]

Thanks for all the feedback, its become a very educational discussion!

I would love to adopt a dog but i wont We adopted a cat many years ago and it repeatedly attacked me. We were unable to train it and they wanted to medicate it, which i refused to do. When we took it back they said it had been a stray couldn't be domesticated. After that experience i'm fearful of animals that have not been trained or where you don't know their background experiences.

[Smoke Jaguar]

MummaB - cats are another thread for another discussion all together!
If you had gotten a dog, it would require work, no matter which one you got, and you have got a lot on your plate

[tattoo_mama]

I guess I am biased because I really don't like "little' dogs, my parents have had 2 Boxers are they have both been fabulous.
The one I grew up with was terrific with us kids including my down syndrome brother who was over affectionate with him (a lot of dogs will snap at little kids cause they are so cuddly with animals), but she was also a great gaurd dog....very easily trained also...very obediant.

Only problem they have ever had with their boxers is they seem to stay puppies mentally for a long time....as in very excitable and licky...but as long as they get affection and physical stimulation e.g. Walks, they are fine.

Being purebreed they can have health probs (most common in boxers is hip dysplacia and tumors) but my parents got thiers from a breeder recommended by WA Boxer club and haven't had any probs, and they aren't as huge as most ppl think! No bigger than a lab!

So overall, good with family and kids, great gaurd dog and very loyal.

Good luck choosing

[Smoke Jaguar]

I think you could only not like 'little dogs' if you've never had one!! I had never had a 'little dog' and thought I didn't want one until I realised that little dogs aren't 'little dogs' across the board. There are toy dogs and there are dogs in small bodies who are every bit dog as a big dog...and terriers give you 100% dog for your efforts :P
My DP was convinced he wouldn't like a little dog until we decided to be the rehome for a Westie. Right up until she arrived he was resentful of the idea. As soon as she arrived he had a change of opinion, and to figure out why started to do some Wikipedia searches and look into not only her breed, but terriers in general. Then HE was the one banging on about how good terriers are! My poor big dog started to get told "why can't you be a real dog like Coco?", cos he's so gentle and reticent and not a go-getter at all!
We've got something living in our house at the moment and we're not sure what it is (it's bigger than a mouse, that's for sure! Could be a small possum) and we've got our Westie on the case. She's tireless, full of personality and energy and is as effective a guard dog as our daneXshepherd
So, before you write off 'little dogs', remember it's as sweeping as saying you don't like cars that aren't blue!

[tattoo_mama]

My grandparents had 2 maltese and they were awful yappy things, always biting my brother, and my aunt had a beagle that rooted everything (lol) so that's my experiences with little dogs.
So I may have had bad experiences with the little dogs I've come across, nevertheless boxers are fab!!

[*Efjay*]

, nevertheless boxers are fab!!

Yep, agree with you there.

[Freya]

I personally would never buy a mix-breed dog and as you know we always had purebred labradors.

You can get health probs with any dog so whatever breed you do decide to buy, I would do a thorough check of what *possible* problems they could get. But as for temperament, having owned both purebred and shelter dogs, I would always go purebred. You know the bloodlines going back often 2 or 3 generations and you can see parents/siblings for yourself.

Id look for a mid-size dog, they arent too small or too big and generally can sound ferocious in the dark! Oh and I ditto whoever said about Boxers, they are such adorable dogs and all the ones Ive met Ive been impressed with. If we were ever to have dogs again I would get a boxer

ETA - females are generally smaller than males in most breeds but can be equally as good guard dogs.

[krysalyss]

On the subject of mixed vs pure-bred dogs. It is true that hybrid vigour exists but in well established breeds from a reputable breeder I wouldn't be too worried about inbreeding. Plus you can mix two breeds and get the worst of both.
Having said that I have worked with animals for a long time and would always go a shelter. I just know how many say bye bye there. And I am not talking about aggressive, ugly dogs with behavioural problems. I am talking great family dogs left behind for ridiculous reasons. If you do your research you can get an awesome dog. I have the best dog who I did practically no training with. He was five when I got him and had had four previous homes - all for preventable reasons. I just chose very wisely. Of course training a dog is part of your committment as an owner and really enhances your dog-owner relationship. Good luck with your search.

[Smoke Jaguar]

maltese aren't terriers! True maltese fans know this and hate the mistake