What Dog?

After our dog died I vowed to get another but then son got Fergie or Woodle as wee call him ^ Westiepoo

We now have a loan dog best of both worlds we can have a dog when son working yet we are free to do things we want without thinking of doggy daycare when away.

Can I strongly suggest a complete out-of-left-field idea? A rough or a smooth collie.

I had one growing up, then another just before we left Canada. Both were of the ‘rough’ variety, and tri-colour as opposed to blue or sable. If I got one now, I would probably get a smooth. They are exactly the same dog, only with different coats.

They are thought of as Scottish, but are reputed to have been brought here by the Romans. They’re stunning dogs, with a perfect temperament. Apparently, the allies tried to train them as guard dogs during WW2, and while they would bark, they wouldn’t bite, so they proved useless. In other words, they are perfect with children and families.

As shepherds, they can run forever, but are just as happy to lie around in the house.

Finally, they are now fairly rare, so having one would put you in exclusive company! (Unfortunately, they are actually an endangered breed.)

I promise you won’t be disappointed.

I do find ridgebacks being categorised as sighthounds a bit bizarre considering I know the breed, they were originally bred for hunting lions and keeping them in an area so hunters could shoot them. I also consider most breeds to hunt ‘by sight’ so just basing the categorisation on that is bonkers.

What you’ve said is again pretty null so let’s break it down a little more and try to consider them and include them in what you want.

Grooming requirements? Do you want to need to take them to a groomers once a month? Need to brush them constantly? Want something that maintains itself?

Tenacious? Stubborn? Loyal? Biddable? Do you want them to be super friendly or aloof? Owner focused or independent.

Dalmatians – be aware of urinary stones, I believe owners feed specialist food. Originally bred as carriage dogs so they’re used to exercise and endurance.

Labs – both born and die half trained, be aware they’re genetically foobarred from an elbows and hips perspective.

Vizsla’s – you’ve said you want to be able to leave them alone for up to 4 hours, be aware they have a propensity to suffering separation anxiety because they want to be with you AT ALL TIMES. (The wirehaired are better because of the breed that were brought in.)

Id give a wide berth to any Brachycephalic breeds so boxers and the like because you want something that’s going to cope with running and heat and you know being able to breath!

Maybe best bet is to go and see some rescue and then if you need or want an opinion on one you like the look at then maybe ask?

I do find ridgebacks being categorised as sighthounds a bit bizarre considering I know the breed, they were originally bred for hunting lions

Yep, there’s only one way a proper sight hound would run if it saw a Lion!!

Ours is a Bordoodle. He was a reject. He’s made out of a Border Collie and a Standard Poodle so is a decent size.

He looks very regal. What a handsome chap!

Tara up there looks awesome, hopefully she has met up with Kea (who passed away a few weeks ago) on a beach somewhere and is having a race!

RIP Kea, I’ll miss seeing her photos on dog threads. I’m sure they are whizzing along the beach together!

Rescue dog.

What you’ve said is again pretty null so let’s break it down a little more and try to consider them and include them in what you want.

@GolfChick – Thanks for the feedback. I’m not being deliberately vague. I think part of the problem is we did very little research last time round and just adapted our lives to the dog and she was the best thing we could have asked for, despite things like anxiety and malnutrition took a huge amount of love/time to work through. We drove for 3 hours to re-home a dog we had never even seen before, knowing we could provide a stable and loving home. I guess that was the point of this thread is to start getting ideas of possible breeds to look and and do more research than when we were in our early twenties, especially now as parents.

Grooming requirements? Do you want to need to take them to a groomers once a month? Need to brush them constantly? Want something that maintains itself?

In answer to your questions, coming from a dog with a long, soft coat we are used to 3 times a week brushing and beard trimming, but visiting the groomer 2-3 times a year would be ideal. Lower shedding coat would be preferred and was a benefit of having the beddie cross

Tenacious? Stubborn? Loyal? Biddable? Do you want them to be super friendly or aloof? Owner focused or independent.

This is a good question. We did look at Italian Spinone’s, but one of the concerns was a character trait of being extremely loyal, friendly and owner focussed which can tip into a tendency for separation anxiety. These are worth thinking through as by default I would go with loyal, friendly and owner focussed but it’s a double edged sword I guess.

Thanks for asking these questions, it helps massively.

Italian Spinone – personally I’d be more aware of the character trait of stubborness which I’ve heard from owners they have a tendency to be. Nobody has made me aware of a tendency to separation anxiety at least. The other reason I’d swerve them is their size, they’re getting close to ridgeback size and you have to consider if the dog is stubborn enough to look at stiles and think ‘naaaaaah’ then whoever is with the dog has to get them over it. I’m not sure character wise they’re a fit for a biking dog. I know a lady with one who does canicross and the dog goes the speed it wants and doesnt drive forwards, and she has to find gates/stiles it can fit through otherwise they’re stuck.

My Ridgeback would do similar with stiles but they’re known for being very regal and she would look at stiles as if to say ‘oh no my dear I couldn’t possible degrade myself to jumping over that thing, I’m afraid you’ll have to carry me’. It was a challenge when I was mostly alone and she was 40kgs!

I think definitely now with your life with kids etc. you need to consider something that fits you rather than you fitting them.

Dalmatians – be aware of urinary stones, I believe owners feed specialist food. Originally bred as carriage dogs so they’re used to exercise and endurance.

The rescue linked will state if the dog is prone to stone forming (so far, touch wood) we’ve not had this problem in 25 years. Originally bred as hunting and guard dogs in Croatia (Dalmatian Coast) and then trained/bred for carriage running once they arrived here. Not all of them have the instinct for following a wheel (current dopie dog likes the running and endorphin high but will range far and wide without some correction) but they have all barked the house down for DPD or Amazon intruders and loved chasing squirrels, rabbits etc.

All but 2 have loved a swim and getting wet, having a bath not so much.

In the same, “recommend what you have” way… Vizsla. Physically in the same mould as the German Short-haired pointer mentioned above so happy cycling. Very affectionate and love people.

Lundy is quite small for a Vizsla at about 23kg – but probably fits the medium size you’re looking for. She’ll run miles given the chance but never wants to be too far from you (velcro dogs).

I am going to reiterate my previous statement.

Just go and have a look at whats available and see which one you click with? Getting bogged down in “types” if you are considering rescues is just writing off the perfect dog that you don’t know you need this time.

There are enough counterexamples of every breed to mean you might get the lazieist “active breed” ever and be wholly disappointed*

* Disappointed is the wrong word.

Wot he said ^

Any tips on finding rescue centres/organisations that will re-home dogs with small humans? I’ve checked our area which has a Dogs Trust, Perthshire Abandoned Dogs, SSPCA etc. All have stipulations where even if a homeless hound is great around kids, they have to be 8-10+ depending on the organisation. I’m totally agreed on the idea of just making visits and seeing what clicks, but it doesn’t seem that straightforward. I’ll send messages today to find out if there is flexibility in this, but would love to hear if anyone has been in a similar situation. If it’s a hard and fast rule I guess we start looking to smaller charities or private rehoming etc.

Ours is romanian rescue. They were pretty relaxed*.

We found her on pets4homes and searching adoption.

*Not in a negative way more of a case by case basis.

Had a dalmation that had to be protein free or it had urinary stones which was expensive and painful for him.

got a lab.  immediately jumped on us when we met him as a pup.  turns out he’s like that for anyone and over exuberant.

Both lovely dogs for their own ways.  think you got to go with your heart and what sort of dog you like the look of rather than a box ticking paper exercise

Time for an update!

We found a local rescue centre that brings dogs from shelters in Bosnia to the UK. Meet Ted, a 7 month old hound that probably resembles closest to a Barak Hound. He is absolutely brilliant and I forgot how hard work it is having a puppy around. We had to wait a couple of months while transport was arranged and the first two weeks at home have been very chilled so he can take his time to settle in.

Congratulation.

The best dog in the world is always the one you have 🙂

Thats some top bed floppin there

that second picture tells everything you need to know. that’s a very happy dog! congrats.

BTW the best dog in the world was my old spaniel. sorry about that. 🙂

@nickjb is that lab still looking for a home?

Fellow Bosnian Trickster sniffs him inappropriately as a welcome, he might still be a bit young for her though, she prefers her boys a little more mature then flirts like crazy!

Brave putting the food and water on the carpet…

well done @mrgrim, thats one content looking dog! Hope you all enjoy many happy years together!

He looks fantastic and at ease. Enjoy.