My parents are going to be getting a dog, from a breeder, around late May. The three of us (Mom, Dad, and I) have been trying to find the "best" dog breed for our family, and I thought maybe some of the knowledgeable VB people might help.
Info about our family- We live in small house (1200-1500 sq. feet) with a medium sized yard. We live on the highway and don't have a fenced in yard, so we need a dog that doesn't need lots and lots of time to run outside, but instead, walks and to be let out on a lead. I am sure the dog will get walked to the beach or the park about five times a week, but probably not never single day. We need a dog without a TON of health problems, that is small-medium, that needs some exercise but not tons, and that is good with children. My little sister is 11 and tends to baby her pets really badly, but my Mom is the primary caretaker of our animals and doesn't baby them as much. She does groom them excessively. :p We currently have 2 cats that are well taken care of, except that they don't get immunized because they are indoor cats...but I'm supposing once we got a dog we'd have to immunize them. My big cat is a holy terror at the vet, thats why we only make him go in major emergencies. But thats another subject! So, what are some good suggestions for small-medium, decently healthy and well behaved breeds?
Thanks!!!
Lindsay

PS.- My parents are getting a dog. pretty much no matter what. So telling me "your situation is too ****ty to have a dog" isn't worth much., not to be a ****head. I'm trying to find the best fit I can for them, and it might not be perfect but its better than them just getting something because its cute, right? Currently they are looking at:
West Highland White
Cairn Terrier
Papillon
Mini Schnauzer
and a few more I can't remember. Lots of terriers though...which really scares me!

This is probably what you don't want to hear, but I suggest going to the pound and getting a dog that's between 3 and 5 years old. The upside is that they aren't as energetic as a puppy or younger dog and more than likely they are house trained as well. Plus, you'll be saving a life! I find mix breeds to better behaved and easier to train anyhow.

If they are really set on a pure breed, sometimes the pounds have pure breeds. Go to petfinder.com to see.

Breeder, huh?

This is probably what you don't want to hear, but I suggest going to the pound and getting a dog that's between 3 and 5 years old. The upside is that they aren't as energetic as a puppy or younger dog and more than likely they are house trained as well. Plus, you'll be saving a life! I find mix breeds to better behaved and easier to train anyhow.

If they are really set on a pure breed, sometimes the pounds have pure breeds. Go to petfinder.com to see.

Yes, I second what she said about petfinder.com
There are tons of rescue groups out there that concentrate on rescuing specific breeds, so you could still get a purebred, but you wouldn't be contributing to all of the horrors that breeders are associated with. It's a great site filled with a lot of great dogs that need loving homes.
I also second what she said about considering an older dog. Not only will an older dog not be as energetic (and in dire NEED of being walked every day), but it will have already developed it's personality and you won't have to worry about any surprise traits that might pop up.
Please, don't buy from a breeder.

The no-fence and highway thing scares me. I wouldn't get a terrier in that situation. They aren't known for their excellent recall generally. An older dog would probably be better too. Maybe a miniature poodle or poodle cross - they're good house dogs and pretty obedient. Or a sheltie (or cross). The Schnauzer is probably a decent choice too. But a slightly older already fairly obedient cross from a shelter would be my first choice.

I agree with trying to find an older dog, I've never seen anyone, no matter how responsible, keep a puppy from escaping for their entire puppyhood.

I also recommend using Petfinder to locate a rescue in your area if you absolutely have to have a purebred. And with an older dog, not only would you have the benefits mentioned above, but you'd be rescuing a dog that didn't have much of a chance. Everyone wants puppies. Very few people go to the shelter and ask for an adult dog.

If your parents won't rescue/adopt, and you go to a breeder, please do your homework and don't pick an irresponsible backyard breeder. Some folks here might disagree with me, but ethical breeders do exist, and under the right circumstances what they're doing isn't so bad (even though there's certainly no shortage of dogs that need homes), but that's another discussion.

I once did research on the traits of ethical breeders for my parents - because they were dead set on buying, and given the choice between them buying from an ethical breeder and an irresponsible backyard breeder, I had to help them find someone ethical. (I've just used the word ethical a lot, heh.)

Anyway, traits of ethical breeders:

-They'll have the geneaology of every dog they breed, going back to the origination of the line.
-They'll have extensive records on the traits, health, and behavior of every animal they've bred, and be able to discuss knowledgeably how they've used their breeding program to exemplify the positive traits of the AKC standard for the breed in every pup.
-You should be able to see the parents of every pup they have. (Barring sickness, or a stud being away to perform, etc.)
-They won't be in it for profit, but for the love of the breed. Despite that, the prices will be high and they should have some kind of screening process before letting you buy.
-They should make you sign a contract that you won't show or breed the dog, unless you purchase a show quality animal or buy breeding rights (which I would discourage) and agree to take the dog back anytime during his/her lifetime if for some reason you can't care for him/her.
-The entire operation should be sanitary, organized, and professional.

All that being said, again, I strongly urge you to encourage your parents to adopt. Good luck finding the right dog for your family! :)

(I think a small to medium lab mix would be good, but probably it would be best if the dog was mixed with a breed that didn't require as much activity, since I think labs themselves are pretty energetic.)

ceryna- See, thats the thing. A lot like you, I am just advising my Mom and Dad. They make the call in the end, and their call has been NOT to get one from the shelter, because of several bad experiences. One was with an older dog that had serious aggression problems we were not prepared to take on and another one that was just completely insane. We were told she was a beagle, but she turned out to be a Jack Russel Terrier, and at any rate, that dog was freaking nuts. My Dad has ethical standards though, and I will go with him and advise him about the breeder (even though I am afraid of dogs...these are small dogs...!) I can also say that not gettin a puppy...eh, they just aren't going to do that. I would, but it isn't my choice here. This is for an 11 year old and she wants a puppy, and we have cats with most dogs need to be socialized with.
Also, the highway thing. Its not like, an expressway. Its US 12, which is a country highway, you go 45 MPH in front of our house and its not that busy. Also, our backyard is enclosed with trees and some fencing- we've never had a cat get hit, and they occassionally do escape. Harry just rolls on the porch like a freak, though. :p
stellar, I will look into pet rescue groups and see if I can find anything. I'm going home tonight so I can finally talk to my Mom and Dad about this in person.

You could become a foster parent for a dog. That way you have a try it before you get it kind of deal. As far as I know, there's always the option of adopting the dog from fostering. The best person to ask would be KPickell how that would work.

Or a sheltie (or cross).I would not go with a herding breed under those conditions. You probably don't want a working breed either. It sounds like they're going to want something more laid back. Actually the breeds mentioned in the second post don't sound like bad choices altogether.



If they are dead set on buying a puppy from a breeder, I can't stress enough how important it is to make sure they're adopting from a reputable breeder... As Cyrana posted, there are a lot of things to watch out for.. And actually I just posted about this in Eclipse's thread this morning, so rather than repeating it all I'll just point out the link to that post: http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showpost.php?p=1239298&postcount=28
and also this thread, http://www.veggieboards.com/boards/showpost.php?p=1226506&postcount=4 though I haven't finished it gives you links to the Dog Breed Selector Quiz that they might find helpful. ... Good luck.

:wayne: I'm packing to go home, but I am going to sit down and thoroughly read all this, then paraphrase it to my Mom and Dad. I am a little frustrated with their laziness in finding the right dog and I'm starting to think we should just go to the shelter.

Maltese are ideal for people who like to groom their pets excessively. :p If you get one that's about 4 lbs at the age of 10 - 12 weeks, you'll end up with a sturdier Maltese.

Ok so maybe a lower hyper dog with long fur for grooming.

Pomeranian?.

Maltese are ideal for people who like to groom their pets excessively. :p If you get one that's about 4 lbs at the age of 10 - 12 weeks, you'll end up with a sturdier Maltese.
Maltese can be extrememly stubborn when it come to training, though. I've got one whom I love dearly, but he is truly the most "challenging" dog I've ever dealt with. Also, maintaining a "show coat" is practically a full-time job. My boy has long ears and a long tail, but I keep the rest of his coat cut pretty short, as he's not at all fond of being brushed ...

On the plus side, Maltese are great lap dogs. :)

A Japanese Chin might also be a good option. They've got long, silky coats, but tend to be low maintenance. They're relatively easy to train and have more limited space/exercise requirements.

Your dog is very cute and calm looking. :)

Hehe.. My Rascal is like a wild beast.

Fact is you don't know a dog's personality even if you go to a breeder. A rescue group will have a good idea about what a dogs like. Or even look at craigslist. Perhaps someone has to give up a dog and would be well aware of their personality.

I don't think your situation is a crappy one for a dog. As long as everyone is really careful about opening the door and not having the dog dart out and make sure your dog gets the proper amount of excercise. Personally I think that it's better if a dog is inside and getting walked daily as opposed to one that's in a yard all day and night.

Your dog is very cute and calm looking. :)

Hehe.. My Rascal is like a wild beast.
Heh. That's Wild Man's absolute angel of a sister in the picture. Funny thing is, she's the one I found in deplorable condition and rescued from the side of the road across from a dog farm, yet she seems totally secure and relaxed. My Maltese I got as a puppy, yet he's the one with "issues." :confused: He's generally a sweetheart for me, but woe be to anybody else who tries to approach him!

As for space requirements, what the OP described should be fine for a small dog. I live in a 500-square-foot or so apartment, with roughly the same amount of space on an enclosed roof top, and mine do just fine with that even though they don't get walked (huge dog industry around here and all sorts of nasty viruses floating around as a result). They get active play time every day, they have access to the roof top in nice weather, and they seem quite content with that.

We are looking into mutts at the Humane Society, but its hard to decide how big they will be when you see puppies! And they don't always know exactly what breed the puppy is, either. We're also thinking about Bichons, which we heard from the local vet are generally good natured. There are still a few breeds we're looking at, but...