Ideal Dog Breed for Busy Family

Hi Shoot! Hope you're keeping well these days.

Whippets are lovely dogs and, like Greyhounds, surprisingly don't require as much exercise as the "working" breeds. Any large-ish breed will generally require a goodly amount of exercise, there's no getting away from it.

Why not get an older dog? No house training, fewer walks, more love, know their name, louder snoring. The Labrador Rescue Trust (and I would assume most other organisations) would be very pleased to demonstrate an ex-loved animal, and they come with pre-existing medical costs covered.

Whippets are great dogs and often take on the characteristics of the owner.

Seriously though a neighbour had one and it had a great personality.

A friend of ours has a whippet and this one is 'laid back and lazy', I'm told they are all like that. Lurchers are far more energetic, I've had two at the same time but never again, I don't have the energy.

Good call hafler; only downside is, if you get as attached to dogs as we do, you've got to put up with the trauma of losing them rather sooner. Our current Lab. is an ex-gundog, five years old. Mind you, apart from being incredibly greedy (as all Labs are) she loves long walks.

We have whippets and highly recommend them. Very healthy, don't smell, don't noticeably shed, don't need grooming and with a good temperament. They like to get a bit of exercise but they really have an "off switch" and are happy to lie around most of the time. They're reasonably smart and affectionate without being needy.

But really, if you're not set on pure-breds, the best thing is to save something from the pound.

Battersea have 12 mo Husky...

http://www.battersea.org.uk/apex/WEBIndex

+1.

Hehe! Greedy, yes. Ours is so old and stiff he won't move from resting unless he's absolutely guaranteed some morsel. What he lacks in mobility he makes up for in 'spying' round corners and under tables.

Sorry to learn of your loss.  It's heart-breaking having to have a dog put down, even when it is for their own good. Getting another soon fills the void. 

Labs and Golden Retrievers generally have calm and easy-going temperaments. Great family dogs.   

Of course all puppies are hard work, though very loveable, so like one or two others on here have suggested, you might do well to look for an adult dog that needs re-homing.  I know several fellow dog-owners who have homed an adult dog, in preference to getting another puppy, and they have been happy with their new companion.

Mike  

Why not find out if there is a service dog training establishment near where you live. You take a puppy, take it to classes where it is taught to do the tasks it will have to do for someone, you get food and vet bills paid, the enormous gratitude of the person who will have the dog to help them.

Service dogs include, Canine Partners, Hounds for Heroes, Guide Dogs and several other types.

After you hand back the one year old dog, you then have another puppy to "lick away your tears of sadness" and so on.

My choice would always be a Labrador or Golden Retriever, but only if you can give them lots of exercise. They're nearly always greedy, and really need (and enjoy) lots of exercise to keep their weight under control. If you can't give a dog loads of outdoor time, I agree that Whippets are a great option. Dogs like that are sprinters, and a short amount of time (off the lead, obviously) to let off steam is enough.

Dalmatians in my experience need a huge amount of exercise - unsurprising, as they were bred to spend all day running. I can't think of a breed less suited to indoor life. Weimaraners are similar, and often are ill-tempered unless they get loads of time to exercise off the lead.

The comments above are, of course, generalisations. I've found that the dogs with the best temperaments are those who grow up in a house with young children, of whom they then become tolerant, trusting and loyal.

My cat, on the other hand, can take a running jump, land on the lid of my LP12, curl up and go to sleep, all without causing the stylus even to flinch, whereas Labradors and LP12s are a match made in hell!

Good luck!

It's always hard replacing your dog, we grow so close and lose them so quickly. Our last 2 have been Blue Cattle dogs. We rescued them both around the age of 4, both dogs have been wonderful with our large extended family.

My advice is any dog, it's how you treat them that matters.  

Good advice above and I'd add not to discount a mutt - you'll get the best of all breeds. In my experience, a mutt puppy from a pound/shelter will never fail to show its appreciation for having been rescued to a loving home with consistent training.

The ongoing fascination with those breeds puzzles me. I just don't get it.

No expert but have been considering a dog myself and these two breeds are routinely on top ten lists for intelligence and friendliness. They also come with the warning that they need lots of exercise, especially the young ones. Not enough exercise and your Eames chair becomes a chew toy.

Clay

Be very careful when buying a Labrador, they are prone to hip dysplasia.

My wife and I spend 22 weeks a year in Spain / Europe and the rest in the UK (we are both retired) and keeping a dog would be impractical. However if we did buy a dog it would almost certainly be a mongrel. They have no inbreeding and are healthier and more intelligent as a result.

I once kept a bulldog and the vet bills were sometimes equivalent to a mortgage. 

Regards

Mick

Having just picked up Twig, a gorgeous, super-friendly Lurcher from Battersea, I can strongly recommend rescuing a dog rather than going to a breeder.  By all means have an idea of what kind of dog you think may be suitable but always try to let the dog choose you, rather than the other way around.

Richard, please get in touch.

Exactly. There's plenty of unlucky dogs that need the warmth of a good family. Btw  crossed breeds are stronger and healthier. I got my two trouble makers by a woodcutter for free and they are beautiful!

Thanks Mick......good advice. I am going to seriously consider a mixed breed rescue. Neighbors have one and it's been great for them. Under the title you thought you had heard everything I thought what the heck is a Lurcher? Never heard the term but sure enough do a Google and there they are! Lovely dog.

My random Lab observation (and this is of dogs I SEE exercising on our local walks, not the ones that are at home by the fire) is that few get enough exercise. They're mostly fat, and many have hip problems.

However, friends have a nice one that does get exercise and is a healthy weight, but they have to work hard to stop it overeating as it will steal food at any opportunity. Labs eat anything and everything and theirs has been to the vet a couple of times to have things removed from its stomach. It has cost them a small fortune. It is perhaps overly friendly, making a real pest of itself for hours on end when we are visiting them. And they shed, smell if not bathed, and create huge piles of "waste". A lovely dog in some ways, but not for us. 

Now that's my style of dog!

This is Merckx. He's one of our Whippets. The "crazy uncle".

I got Lukey from the pound, and I'm very glad I did.

He's not great with other (male) dogs, but fine with people of all shapes and sizes, he was well trained and as soon as we met I just knew somehow.

For several years I was under the impression that "Malinois" was the French for mongrel (although confusingly the first two syllables are the French for 'clever' which is - in his case at least - a wee bit, er, optimistic). Then, someone pointed out to me that "Malinois" is in fact a pure breed (of Belgian Shepherd) so I had to apologise to Luke via the medium of long walks and bones, something I've been happily doing ever since.

The breed is (genuinely) quite intelligent, very faithful, and they look like German Shepherd puppies (Luke is 23kg, so very medium sized) they have none of the leg issues that German Shepherds do. Apart from his absolutely staggering ability to convert relatively small quantities of dog food into preposterously large quantities of fur, I'd recommend this dog-shaped dog breed very highly.

But nevertheless next time I will go to the rescue centre and let another dog pick me. 

Very cool. What a neat dog. 23kg is a great size and with none of the hip dysplasia issues, what's not to like (except the shedding)?