Dog recommendation URGENT please

[AliBaby]

Have you gotten a doggie yet??? Let us know when you do? Hope you are starting to feel safer in your home.

[1MOREPLZ]

I would recommend a cross breed dog. They tend to have less medical problems and you can get the best of both dogs.

hmmmm quite a broad statement to make considering you have no idea what hereditry disease are being passed down from each parent, because most cross-breeds wouldn't have all necessary health testing that all reputable breeders should do

good dog for children and will let you know about strangers..

staffordshire bull terrier
boxer
labrador

[Ellee05]

We have a maltese ****zu and he is great. So friendly and we never have a shortage of people wanting to look after him when we go away But at the same time he will bark if he needs to, especially when DH is on night shift, he feels like he has to protect me I'm sure. We are going to get another dog after the bub has come and planning on getting a maltalier (cavalier king charles x maltese) I've done a fair bit of research and found that the terrier in the maltese is good for alerting you but without being annoying and the cav is easier to train and very easy to look after.

Burkes Backyard website has reviews on all sorts of dogs.

All the best.

[LuluHB]

I would have to disagree that boxers are great dogs for children. Boxers are fantastic dogs (I had two) but I would never, ever have one with my young children. They are incredibly exuberant dogs and one of their dominant breed characteristics is that they are habitually puppy-like. That's a fantastic trait in a dog but given my male weighed in at just under 60kgs, that gets damn dangerous when they are playing with young children, however well trained they are. They would be great if you had teenagers but not for anything like MummaB's babies.

Also, I think those condemning mixed breeds should probably give a little consideration to the fact that EVERY breed of dog, horse, cat, guinea pig is derived from mixing breeds at some point. Its not as if one day there simply existed hundreds of different breeds of dog and one has nothing to do with the other. While I agree that there are a lot of "designer" puppies out there and a lot of them are the result of backyard breeders who mix whatever cute dogs they have on hand, there are also some reputable breeders who are responsibily going down this road too.

[*Efjay*]

staffordshire bull terrier - very "talkative" dogs. Also very destructive. very solid dogs also. Good control will be needed so they don't try & push you around. Same with the kids. You need be sure the kids can assert themselves well.

boxer- Very bouncy dogs. Remain puppies for some time & can be rather destructive with digging, chewing etc if not given enough stimuation. They love their squeaky toys also. I like boxers, I have a 5 yr old Boxer who is just lovely. She was a handful as a pup though. Would chew everything. They need to be shown how to be good dogs. They are very smart, just need to know how to use those brains.

labrador - personlly can't stand Labs. Too in your face IMO. But again a very smart breed that needs to be shown how to be good. Lots of training etc. But can be a handful with out the right attention.

[christy]

*whoa* girls...

I have worked with dogs for the past 10 years. I have specialised in behaviour as a nurse for the greater part of my career, including working with a behavioural specialist.

There are some broad statements being made, and mostly with personal experience. The problem with that is dog behaviour is 1/3 genetic, 1/3 environmental and 1/3 based on the first 6 weeks of the dogs life.

So most labs are goofy personified. I whole heartedly agree! Most staffys are noisy, most boxers are goofy as well for the first few years, most terriers are nippy.... etc etc these are "most" and it is generalised.

However, there are some statements here which I definately disagree with. I think if anyone wanted to choose a dog, it should be done in person with a vet check prior to purchase and with research from... um... how should I say.... objective information? Most posts I've read here are biased.

My biase is towards dogs that have a low bite hibition. So dogs which over and over and over again have proved themselves to not bite. The best way to get a guarantee that your dog will be that way is to : a) get a dog from the RSPCA or animal shelter which does behaviour testing prior to adoption (it is manditory that the RSPCA does this!) b) take a dog trainer to test the parents of the dog c) have a health check done on the parents as well as the pup prior to buying.

If you are spending lots of $$ on a dog, its worth doing your research. I mean if anyone told me they wanted a Shar Pei, I'd tell you to save at least $5000 for your first 2-3 years. Thats without the purchase of the dog.

ETA: sorry Katones but I totally disagree on the cross bred thing....

[AliBaby]

hmmmm quite a BROAD statement to make CONSIDERING you have NO idea what hereditry disease are being passed down from each parent, because most cross-breeds wouldn't have all necessary health testing that all reputable breeders should do

Maybe you have misinterpreted my post katones.

It is what I personally recommend as what was asked for in the original post question and I dont need to have it knocked down because it is in my opinion.

I also used the words "tend to" which means exactly what it says....i.e not always but most of the time. have a look at statistics on lifespans of dogs who are cross-bred compared to pure-bred.

Also, when I said you get the best of both dogs, it doesnt necessarily mean behavior but in regards to health, an example would be a dog breed with a squished in snout (who would normally suffer alot of breathing problems) mixed with a dog with a longer snout would most likely have less problems or a dog thats hair doesnt fall out (like my jack russell x shihtzu).

I dont think I made a broad statement at all. It was my opinion. Hopefully this is just a misunderstanding of what you thought my post meant.

[Freya]

I have to disagree about the generalised statement that labradors are any more exuberant or puppy-like than other dogs. From what Ive seen its a common behavioural thing for ALL young dogs. Hence why they are puppies THEN adult dogs after a certain amount of time has gone by (for labradors its 3yrs or so before they really settle).

The key thing many of the PP have said is TRAINING. I think every dog should have puppy training, not just the breeds that have been tagged as "difficult" so to speak.

One thing Ive been thinking about MummaB (having had dogs before and after kids) is that maybe you should wait until the boys are a bit older. Our labs were grown before the boys became an issue with owning pets ie playing outside so we rarely had any probs regarding nipping, over-excitement resulting in spills etc. I truly could not imagine raising a puppy with two very small kids, it would be like having 3 kids and I think the puppy may get confused by toddlers 'harrassing' it and then an adult trying to train it. Which is why if we ever got a dog again, we would wait til the boys were old enough to participate in the training. And the puppy rearing because I can tell you its tough work! But if you stick with decent training they can be fabulously well behaved most of the time. Just my opinion from personal experience.

[christy]

AnnaT its a generalised statement, but as I posted about its wrong. 1/3 of all labradors behaviour is going to be the same. I have a pure-bred labrador. I was there when she was born, I know both parents, I've been a part of their vet checks prior to pregnancy etc etc... My dog is 5 years 2 months, acts like she is around... um .... 6 months when she is excited. Yes she is extremely well trained, especially around toddlers or children. She does bark. But she is goofy personified. As many labradors I know are.

Exuberance is not a bad trait in a dog, its something you can guard against with small children but its definately not a bad trait in a dog.

[Freya]

I agree it isnt a bad trait, my boys seemed to love it! They were about the only ones who could tire Sabre and Colt out

I just hate that people think they are this never ending destructive ball of energy, they do have quiet periods of being lazy but we got them for the fact that we felt kids would want a dog who was going to actively participate and at the start we had tons of time to put into them. Thats the other thing I forgot to mention about owning Labs MB, they are full on! If they arent walked and interacted with regularly they can be very destructive and misbehave. Which is why, when we moved here we found new homes for ours. I just didnt have the time every day to give them the time they deserved with 2, soon to be 3 small kids and DH doesnt get home til late etc. They were becoming a handful. We'd definately consider getting another one when the boys are old enough to help out, like I said in my previous post.

[Matryoshka]

Sorry about the lack of update.... the doggy plan got put to the side while i was in hospital.

We've decided to go with the Sheltie, think the characteristics suit what we'd like perfectly.

We are going to a dog show on saturday and viewing a male puppy 12 weeks old, he's the only one available at the moment as the other 2 breeders aren't doing them until later in the year. So hopefully he is *right* for us.

I have a question though, do ALL male dogs wee on everything outside or is it something you can train them out of? if not what do you do about your kids outdoor toys, bikes etc?

[ss_storm]

MummaB, we have an undesexed male dog and in his yard he doesn't pee on everything..he has only just learnt to lift his leg, so outside the yard when I take him for walks he loves trying out his new skill! Lol. Inside the yard though, because it is already "his" territory, he probably doesn't feel the need to mark it by peeing on everything.
Once they are desexed the drive to mark everything should also decrease a bit as they don't have all those male hormones racing around!

Good luck on the weekend, hope the puppy is right for you. Shelties are so cute

[christy]

Generally once the puppies get older and the hormones start to kick in and lift the leg, its time to get him desexed.. or just about time

[1MOREPLZ]

we have had pups lift their legs at "6 weeks of age" BUT that definatly is NOT an age to de-sex... i personally would have a male pup de-sexed before the age of 5 months old (your vet would be best to speak to about de-sexing) as some verts won't de-sex before a certain age.

christy ~ you have your views and i have mine all is good

Lulu ~ as i said to Christy... personal views... I have been breeding boxers for well over 10 years now and my eldest child is turning 10 this year NOT once has she been 'hurt' by being 'knocked' over by an over-exicited/bouncy boxer. And yep i have had both my eldest children out playing in the yard whilst my male stud dogs (both over 60 kgs ) out playing.. and not once did they come to harm Just my 2 cents worth.

MummaB good luck with the Sheltie they are lovely little guys.

[Smoke Jaguar]

we have had pups lift their legs at "6 weeks of age" BUT that definatly is NOT an age to de-sex... i personally would have a male pup de-sexed before the age of 5 months old (your vet would be best to speak to about de-sexing) as some verts won't de-sex before a certain age.

Actually, Victoria's Department of Primary Industries has a very good publication dedicated to explaining 'early' desexing, and this state is quite the pioneer in advocating early desexing and doing it well. I don't know what happens in other states exactly, except that all animal shelters in Vic now comply with early desexing and the vet clinics I know and trust, as well. As far as I've been educated by vets and the DPI, there are more pros to early desexing than later desexing and less cons than later, too.
The good doctor Hugh Wirth has also been a proponent of it. There is nothing to fear from early desexing, and that's not just my opinion, that's backed up by experience in Vic and study by the DPI.
Just to allay any fears about the practice
ETA:
We got our big dog (dane x alsatian)from the shelter - met him when he was 7.5 weeks old, was desexed at 8 weeks, brought him home soon after. For a large breed, I think we did well to completely house train him by 12-13 weeks. I guess it's like EC, you need to be aware and available to help with eliminations, and I was home full time with a uni thesis and got it sorted really quickly.

[Matryoshka]

Thanks for that, i think because he is already 12 weeks and from a show dog family, already toilet trained. But i wasn't sure about the territory marking.

I really hope his temperament is good and we like him, because looking at the pics of mum and dad, he must be a very handsome dog. I will update tomorrow.

[jackrose]

oooh,
am so excited for you!!

Our 11month old sheltie is still an absolute delight, (and came to us in a very similar way, 14 wks from show breeder).

All the best.

Is your little guy sable,tri or blue?

[christy]

Actually the early desexing has good points, but bad ones as well. The reason most vets have chosen to wait until 6 months has a lot to do with physical development and the metabolisation of the anaesthetics used. Its also better to wait before using pain relief for the puppies development. Most RSPCA's will desex prior to rehoming, and in that instance... if its death or desex... sure in a heartbeat I would encourage early desexing.

If its a male pup though, and his testicles haven't descended, the RSPCA will often take one out and not the other which can cause issues. Or they go ahead and do abdominal surgery which increases the risk.

Male cats, sure! but that is because they can be desexed under sedation safely.