Buying a dog, which breed to get??

[MikesCalais]

Ok, so I've finally convinced everyone to let me buy a dog, providing they agree on the breed

now personally i LOVE doberman, i love huskies, and i love labs (in other words, all the big dogs) problem is, theres a small backyard, and i dont want to subject a big dog to that

anyway, heres a little list of things that im looking for:

- medium size
- ok with a smallish back yard
- good looking (no offence there are some real ugly breeds out there )
- good temprement
- good with children
- doesnt shed its coat too often
- good gaurd dog (doesnt have to be, but would be prefered)

i think thats about it for now... I have lots of parks in the area so itll get plenty exercise regularly

whatever breed i'll be getting it as a puppy n it'll be trained starting as early as possible

umm so yeah, if anyone has any suggestions, let me kno

ta

[tim005]

i personally love red heelers.
had one a while back, lived to 18 and was so good with me and my brother and sister. even once got my mum when my little brother fell in between our fence and our garage. smart dog.
now we have a jack russel, they are on acid.....

[MikesCalais]

haha yeah, one of my uncles has a jack russell, i remember when it was younger it was just non stop!! so theyre out of the question, theyre too small anyway

I have had a look into red heelers, i dont mind them actually, but not quite sure yet.. but its in there thanks!

my old man wants a schnauzer, i refuseeeee... theres no way, so i have to come up with a good enough alternative

i wish i could get a doberman argh

[davway]

just something to keep in the back of your mind.
The smaller the dog, the nastier the attitude usually is.

Call it 'short mans syndrome' if you will.
i dont know if you have little kids, but little dogs wont put up with the shit that kids usually dish out so i wouldnt recommend anything smaller than a Jack Russel.

[Tas_HSV]

just got a 10 week old pedigree doberman pup,should be here in tassie in a few days,dont need a huge yard if you plan on exersising in parks etc,and great with children if you bring them up with the kids apparently,which was the main part of deciding a new dog for me.

[MikesCalais]

I'm gonna go in to a couple pet shops tomorrow to look around (hopefully gonna buy a dog directly from a breeder though) but i have a little short list going:

1. Doberman (tas_HSV - thanks for keeping my hopes alive )

2. Rhodesian ridgeback, theyre such a beautiful dog, and its said they dont need a large backyard if they get daily exercise

3. Hungarian Vizsla

its pretty obvious i prefer big dogs

Im trying to keep my options open though, hence this thread

[faroogoo]

Boxer,had a female for 14 yrs before she passed very loyal dog,A walk morning &/or night keeps them happy & you fit lol.Excellent temprement around kids.

Will get another Boxer one day.

Have a 10yr old Jack Russell now,He's all heart & no brains will take on any dog no matter what the size,especially his buddy a fox terrier before he passed.(got the battle scars to prove it)Good around kids though.

[Sharoo]

My ex bf has a Mastiff x ridgeback and despite his size is a gorgeous dog inside and out.He is great with my kids and doesn't need that much exercise.
He is a really good guard dog. His size alone is a deterrent followed by his bark that goes straight through you.

I have a Mastiff x Staffy atm, we adopted her from the RSPCA. I have a 2 & 3 year old and she is fantastic with them.
I look after my brothers dog a Jack Russell x and I don't recommend one! I swear he barks at the wind changing direction.

I think you should be right with whatever breed of dog you get. I believe a good owner makes a good dog and if you train it right and set boundaries with the kids from day one it should go well.

[1vngal]

Sketti!!!! Get a Mollie dog!!!

[Fun_Bucket]

I'm looking to get a dog soon, and if it was for the hair all over the place issue, i'd have a german shepard. So i'll probably look at a Rhodesian ridgeback , they grow to be a good sized meduim dog, and there short haired also. There smart dogs, good for guard dogs, and are a real people dog. Many people will bag them out though, saying that their viscous and what not, but it's all bullshit. It all comes down to how an animal is raised. Also rather leave a baby alone in a room with say a German shepard or a Ridgeback, than something like a friggin Jack Russell, those things are just pure evil!!! You like rigeback's already i go for one of them.

[MikesCalais]

haha manda what is mollie anyway??

holdencommodorevp, i agree with you there, ive been doing a fair bit of reading on them and it all seems to be pretty good, theyre a great looking dog as well, and i like how they dont mind just hangin out as well theyre supposed to be really calm when theyre inside.

the onlyyyy problem with the ridgebacks (theres always at least one problem isnt there) is that theyre relatively 'rare' so theres a limited supply which means you might have to wait a while and ive been waiting for 21 years so im about done waiting lol

[5ivespeed]

english bull terrier. they are a decent size if you dont get a miniature. good guarddog. dont shed coats. and are good with kids. people get pitbulls mixed up with them so they sometimes get a bad name for no reason. best dogs ever

[5ivespeed]

oh and dont get a doberman. they dont look right with long tails. same goes for rotties and boxers. they should still dock their tails

[HoldrodeoLT]

Ill recommend mastiff x staffy till im blue in the face...
This is my dog lex, he is a staffy x mastiff x bull arab, in this picture he is 16 weeks old and weighs 17 kg already!!... Only thing with this breed is that they eat like theres no 2morro
Other than that there a great dog

[padrickz88]

Mike, im telling you right now, a poodle would be perfect for you lmao...... could you imagne you going down to errol for a coffee with tha beast? baahaha

btw i have 2 labs, there not that big to be honest BUT they eat anything you put infront of them, and dont stop......

[redcv6]

definitely an American staffordshire terrier.
AVERAGE HEIGHT: 17-19 inches
AVERAGE WEIGHT: 57-67 pounds
LIFE SPAN: 12-14 years

[ScoHar]

I find mongrels to be some of the best dogs you can get with the best temper etc, I would suggest say a staffie x huntaway or similar, have a few friends with staffy x dogs and they have been some of the nicest dogs I have ever come across, I have always had purebred dogs and always seem to have trouble, 1st 2 dogs I ever had, had heart defects both show dog purebred, then the next I had (jack russell) got leukemia at 8yrs old, didn't last long after that, I would suggest a mongrel but at the end of the day the way the dog acts all comes from the way its been brought up, there are some with more tendancies to be angry but most dogs regardless of the type can be trained well.

[Tas_HSV]

oh and dont get a doberman. they dont look right with long tails. same goes for rotties and boxers. they should still dock their tails

Most breeders still do dock the tails,its still legal in WA,so they send the pups to WA and get the tails done(or maybe pay a fee to a WA vet to just SAY the tails were docked there.....cynical i know).My pup has been docked legally,all the certifacation etc....

[MasterOfReality]

Most breeders still do dock the tails,its still legal in WA,so they send the pups to WA and get the tails done(or maybe pay a fee to a WA vet to just SAY the tails were docked there.....cynical i know).My pup has been docked legally,all the certifacation etc....

Awesome.

Didn't know that. I wanted a Doberman (had one as a kid) but not being able to dock the tail put me off.

[GAMBLR]

We grew up with a rottwieler and i loved that dog. had the best temprement even though it has been classified as vicsious by some poeple. Simple thing is, we got taught not to irritate the dog, and it wouldn't attack us.
Currently mum has her ShihTzu cross Maltese. very loyal, well trained but because he hasn't grown up with young kids, he's not too good at that. trying to teach my cousin not to annoy him is difficult as well. fairly high maintenance and they WILL take over as head of the house, but they think they make good guard dogs lol

[MikesCalais]

Mike, im telling you right now, a poodle would be perfect for you lmao...... could you imagne you going down to errol for a coffee with tha beast? baahaha

btw i have 2 labs, there not that big to be honest BUT they eat anything you put infront of them, and dont stop......

LOL oh yea, there at errols cafe with a poodle... id rather buy a... i dunno, turtle? lol

I'd love a lab but dont they shed their hair alot? and it looks like every dog i look at just eats constantly so thats not a problem

[MikesCalais]

definitely an American staffordshire terrier.

This was the first dog i was really looking at but then i called up a few dog schools and heaps of them said that they dont take these dogs, and also apparently they have to be muzzled when you take them out?

i dunno, thats just what i was told, and as soon as the oldies heard that, it was game over, but such a nice dog!

[faroogoo]

Pretty sure Cropped ears ^^^ are frowned upon & are illegal in most if not all Australian states.So it wont look as menacing as that.

[VTO11]

yeah my vote is the american staffordshire terrier also, great dogs.

[1vngal]

haha manda what is mollie anyway??

She's a Staffy x Blue Heeler