Would like to take a rescue dog in, but unsure (never owned my own dog) what to head towards. Really like Lab X or collie X and one that would be over 4 years. But have been told collie’s can be too clever for there own good and become destructive. And i’m none to clever myself.

Would like one to be able to run with me out on the MTB

Any advice/tips?

Spaniel?

Lurchers are realy friendly, very stupid and good fun.

Depends very much on the collie. A cross is certainly less work than a pure bred one. I have a farm collie myself, coming up for 5 and, yep, very clever (though still daft as a brush).

They do need a LOT of attention though – excercise… pretty demanding dogs. But he is utterly ace! They are crap on leads is another thing, I tend to put Jake on one only when absolutely necessary. They are dead easy to train though – well, except for road sense in Jake’s case.

Excellent dogs – working on building him up for mountain biking. He gets the idea, but tends to run across junctions even if there is a car coming, which is less than ideal.

I like Spaniels and Labradors, we’ve just had a new addition to the family, he’s a six month old springer spaniel called Louis, he wasn’t wanted at his last home as he was very demanding, but so far he’s no where near as bad as our daughters Parsons Jack Russell.

We have a Collie x lab (ringer’s her name) got her from Dogs Trust 6 yrs ago. Yes she is VERY cleaver, to much so for her own good at times but has never been destructive in all the time we have had her. She has an appetite like a horse but then most lab/lab x’s have. She is happy as long as she gets some food/exercise/fuss/sleep (in that order).

If you’re fit, and the Rescue place has one, you could try a Rhodesian Rideback. They can run all day apparently (when over 1 year old), and if you come accross any lions they’ll take care of them for you 😀

We’ve been keeping an eye on the local rescue centre. Is there any other brands we could consider? The sml lab size is better than the ridgeback. Iive see one of those and although nice perhaps a little large for us.

I hope you know what you’ll be getting yourself in for!
We’ve recently taken on a year old German pointer and it’s more work than you can imagine.
Don’t think by taking on a 4 year old, you’ll get something already house trained – you’ll be taking on all the faults they’ve developed and will be hard to get rid of.
Just by chance found out that ours is a good dog for taking out on the bike, but that’s balanced by the nightmare she is taking out the rest of the time – she was never walked before we got her (lived on a farm), so is taking ages getting used to normal walking on a lead.

I’d liken the experience so far to adopting a hyper-active child which cannot speak!
Has it’s moments but you don’t get much “relaxing time”.

Springer Spaniel. A lot of work but intelligent and enthusiastic dogs. We rescued a one through a breed rescuer who is local to us.

Have a look at some on www .NESSR. net

Working cocker is top of my list at the moment, though I’m still not over the loss of my beloved spaniel in November yet really.

Had a collie as a kid, agree with RobS says about the lead thing! Ours used to go for the morning paper by himself-didnt read it tho!
But he would only ever run backwards about 6″ off the front wheel of my chopper
Got a greyhound now-stupid but fast
A lurcher could be good- more staying power than greyhound, or beagle?

techsmechs – Member
We’ve been keeping an eye on the local rescue centre. Is there any other brands we could consider? The sml lab size is better than the ridgeback. Iive see one of those and although nice perhaps a little large for us.

Ridgebacks are classed as a ‘medium’, but then I suppose unless a Great Dane is an XL it would be!! 😆

I have to say its a nice lookng dog. I dont really know enough about the breed.

Got 2 rescue collie dogs, both short hair, super energetic love going out on the bike don’t get in the way while riding can go for hours ( the one did 5 hours at coed y brenin last year) do need to be kept busy but my 2 are not destructive at all! Go for it. Try the dogs trust or just for collies try wiccaweys.co.uk

Boxer,but then I’m biased 🙂

As mentioned with a rescue dog the dogs history is going to matter more than the breed. A good rescue centre should match you with the dog and they should also be prepared / expecting to take the dog back if things aren’t working out, its nice to think that the dog has been ‘rescued’ but its as likely that they’ve been handed in by owners who can’t cope with them. Thats no reason not to do it though, treat it like a project – you’ll get back what you put it. If you’ve never owned a dog then the trick would be to get some good books on dog training/ownership, look for ones that deal with correcting behaviour and training older dogs, rather than ones that only deal with training a puppy from scratch.

Perhaps think more about dogs that need rescuing too, retired greyhounds need homes and are easier to live with than you’d think, contrary to what you’d imagine they are lazy arses who spend most of their time asleep.

What skidartist said, except Greyhounds aren’t supposed to be much good as trail dogs – short sprints only.

lurcher Greyhound X collie type.

one of these

DEzB is right about greyhounds- fastest thing you’ll see on 4 legs, but cant go for long! Me and Jim the greyhound are out for an hour on a morning- he’ll normally have a good run for about two minutes in that time- then hit the sack for the rest of the day
Collie would be my choice for trail dog

Westies Rock..

Well, Eric does….

Have a look at this site as well. We got our Tri-colour Collie from here, loads of advice and people to talk to who know about rehoming dogs.

http://www.dogpages.org.uk

Don’t get a dog. Yet.

If you have never owned a dog, going to a rescue dog is a massive jump that has more pitfalls than successes. ‘Borrow’ a dog from friends – see how you get on with a dog, dog-sit for people. Also – will you be around during the day, or will the dog be home alone?
I’ve got a rottie that my now wife rescued before we met. He took a couple of years to train up from agressive EVERYTHING, but he is now a PAT dog. Rescuee dogs are usually rescue for several reasons. Unfortunately, many of the rescue cross-breeds demonstrate the bad aspects of the 2 dogs over the good aspects – which is very hard to deal with.

I’m really pro-dogs and dog ownership, but please do some practical research for the sake of you and any dog.

Thanks TT, thats the kind of advice I need – I have lived with dogs before but never my own if that makes sense.

Its is something I have been thinking about for quite some time, but I certainly wouldn’t want to go into it lightly. I want a friend for a long time and hope to find the perfect dog for us.

Any websites you can recommend for more information? I want to try to get as much info/advice before I take a dog on.

If you live anywhere near Stamford in Lincs you can come and meet my mutt! You’d probably do well to ask around friends and see whether they know any trainers/dog people/vets etc and talk to them. Again – use people you know to walk thir dogs. Look at your lifestyle and see what nature of dog would match you rather than ‘that looks a nice dog/breed’. Nothing worse than seeing a working breed not getting worked and then getting bored/destructive. Oh – seriously – watch The Dog Whisperer and Dog Borstal – if you realise that it is usually the people who have the issues, then you’re halfway to being a good dog person!

Ask TJ, he’s always got great advice on what to do vis a vis dog ownership, and he’s a real enthusiast too!

I have a couple of Collies, and they are great. Rob S has summed them up quite well. Taking on a dog is a very big deal, but it is great having a dog in your life, our dogs are a very big part of our family, they affect what you do a lot, but that is mainly a positive thing.

I know a few people who have rescue dogs, and they have been a lot of work but very rewarding. Puppys are a lot of work as well, it is easy to make a lot of mistakes as you train them.

Innes

I’m biased, but here goes –

Don’t get a working dog unless you can keep it active, ideally with you all day. If you can do that, and train it properly, then they are the very best of dogs.

Personally I prefer hounds. They are quite happy to lie around all day so long as they get a bit of excitement at some point – needn’t be a long run so long as it’s hard. Favourite running dog? Wolfhound or Great Dane, but make sure there’s no hip problems. Produce prodigious amounts of poop, so best for open country unless you like scooping.

If you like an enthusiastic best friend ever dog, there’s nothing like a Staffie.

Avoid dogs that have been bred for “beauty”, brains seem to suffer, with the exception of the big poodles, which are a good dog.

Basically dogs break down into 4 classes, basket dog, ankle dog, knee dog, proper dog 🙂

2Tall. you are right about “trying out” a dog, and think about the future…
When I got greyhound Jim, I was living with someone, then I was alone with the dog, another breed would have been difficult to keep, but thankfully g’hounds are low maintenance (unlike girlfriends)

We got ourselves a ‘Mount Currie Special’.. basically a bitsa rescued from the local Native Indian reserve. She’s a Lab Shep Cross and a little nuts, but time will tell as to how she goes when out on the bike. She’s only 11months now, so we’ve still got some time before trying her.
I wanted a dog that can run with the bike, but she’s got a few issues right now and of course rescue dogs don’t come with a warranty 😉 Mutts are supposed to be pretty hardy.. I’ve never heard her admit to feeling or showing pain.. but Lab X Shep doesn’t necessarily bode well for future hip problems.

Have friends with a German Shorthaired Pointer.. he’s an absolute unstoppable machine, and my business partner has a gay Hungarian Viszla.. an incredible trail dog that is happiest when out with the bikes. Thats Alfie, if you’ve been on holiday with us, you’ll know who I’m referring to.

DebZ
Hang in there on the short german.We r in the process of rearing a little un and i know exactly how your feeling,but this is our second and given a couple of years these r very rewarding dogs

Hi coasting – thanks for that (although its Dez-B).
We are hanging in – I guess pointers aren’t the most intelligent of breeds? Things are improving all the time. My wife’s uncle has always owned GSPs so we know they are great long term.
We only have 2 issues really – she is constantly on the scrounge and hates being on the lead. We’re getting there though and the fact that I can take her biking with me (how fast?!) means I am keen to get through the bad stuff.

My message was really to tell the OP that I’ve only recently joined the dog owning world and it’s harder than I ever imagined. Bringing up a baby is (literally) child’s play in comparison!

Sorry for a bit of a hijack, but I’ve been looking at taking on a dog for a while now. Always had dogs in the family, but have now moved away with work. However, the only thing that puts me off is the fact that the dog would be on his/her own all day whilst I am at work. Obviously they’d be getting walked before and after work and would have weekends away etc, but is it not a problem leaving them alone all day in the house when we’re both at work? How do you guys get round this?

We wouldn’t have considered a dog if we were both working full time, but my wife is a part-time lecturer, so is home some days and works short hours on others.
Luckily for us, we have a nephew who does shift work, so comes in and walks the dog during the days my wife works.
The dog still shows obvious signs of stress when left alone (destroying random objects eg. the Sky remote, whilst her play toys (Kongs etc) are all around).
I don’t think any dog should be left for 8-10 hours, except maybe an older rescue dog that is used to it.

what TT said up there ^ if you can borrow someones dog – regardless of breed – it will start to give you a little insight

first thing to remember is that any ‘active’ dog will need a minimum of two walks a day. are you intending to ride both of these. are you used to getting up and out every single morning regardless of the weather. how long do you imagine it will take you to bond with the dog and train it, firstly on the lead, then off lead, then controlled enough to ride with.
where and how will the dog spend its day?
do you have a secure garden?
will the dog holiday with you, what about nights out or weekends away?

ive a three year old dobermann (rescue) i prefer to ride without him tbh – i ride to escape, i have a dog for companionship the rest of the time.

Got a pointer x from the RSPCA 8 years ago. He and his brother were found in a high rise flat but they wouldn’t let them go as a pair. They had trashed to joint.

Even after having dogs all my life, he is the best one yet. When he was younger he would run all day with the bike, and then want more when i got back!! He’s slowing down now but can still do 10-15 miles.

As for being at left on his own, gf is a nurse and works shits so at most he has about 4 hours to kill. He has the radio left on for company. Only problem with him is he’s a hair dropper!! And lots of it!!

As other people have said above, “try before you buy” as it were. They are alot of work and can stop you doing things if you get asked at very short notice but are worth their weight in gold!! Good luck

We had a 10 mth Boxer, Rasmus off a breeder(because he wasn’t quite up to showing),we’ve had him nearly a month now & he settled in really well.As long as he gets a good walk morning & night,he sleeps pretty much all day.He can be a bloody nightmare when he’s awake though !
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As people are putting up pics. Here’s Hope:

By the way, our grass was green. now it ain’t!

dezb, dog rocks.
work better with bitches than dogs ime.