Help CubeDweller pick a puppy

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ed97fzj80 said:
That's my German Shepherd. She'll sit on the porch for hours, and the only time she gets up is to go greet people who are walking by. It's a little upsetting to the moms with strollers the first time they experience it.

(<---- Not that one -- that's Minna, my young one. She doesn't go out without being leashed. She's great with people of all ages and sizes but unreliable with other dogs, and she's a cat chaser.)

Gracie is old, though, so she's really mellowed. I'm not sure I'd want a GSD with small children, because they tend to be very large and in charge. That GSD would have to be carefully chosen and very specifically trained. They're intelligent, high-energy dogs with a strong sense of the pack order and, if you get one with a strong prey drive, that dog is a really bad candidate for sharing the house with other small furry things.

A border collie or Aussie would probably be a better shepherd-type dog for youngsters. My mom always had Aussies when my sister and I were growing up and they were always gentle with their people but protective of them too.
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Mrs Cube had GSD's as a kid and loves them. I'm not so thrilled with the undercoat shedding and the extra attention required with GSD's to maintain their placement in the pack. I hadn't considered Aussies, and we have the space for one to run free in the pasture :hhmm: Wonder if one would try to herd the dottirs?
 
My vote goes for a golden or a gsd.

Both have similar qualities. The goldens are super friendly and will lay in the same spot for days. The gsd will do the same but it will do it because you told it too, and not out of laziness. The golden will make a great family fun dog, and are big enough that they have an intimidating bark, and could probably lick someone to death. The gsd has a bark and has the general fear factor that keeps people at bay. As long as you don't have an alpha or an untrained resued they can be whatever you want them to be. My gsd just got back from training (2 weeks) and she will lie in the same spot until I tell her to move.

Given the choice of only having one I say gsd all the way.

Since picking out puppies and dogs are one and the same I thought I'd post up some pics.

A fluffy guy like this:
DUNCANPUPPY.jpg


Will turn into a lazy one of these (until you say "ball"). Granted; he's seven here and deep in a winter coat but he's still 100lbs.
JILLANDDUNCAN.jpg


A cute fuzzy one of these:
Frida1.jpg


Will get to about 65 at ten months. I don't know how big she will get but I think she will will out at about 80. This is Frida at 7 months.
FridaandJill7months-1.jpg


I wouldn't worry too much about kids and german shepherds. When you have a good one they understand pack mentality and always fold in under humans. I could train Frida to be mean but it certainly isn't in her nature. We got Frida before Jill could walk, and they came up together. The baby set the rules and the dog stays at the appropriate level. Frida will snap and play hard with other dogs but is is uber gentle with Jill.
Jillnfrida-1.jpg
 
Best bet is to make a couple notes about what you want in a dog and then take a look at the different breed catagories, like:

Toy
Working
Hunting, etc.

I personally don't need a dog for hunting or one that fits in a small space, etc. On a related note I have had a couple of situations that gave me a reason to think this kind of thing through more than I normally might have. To me, if it lives in my house it has some responsibility... be that my wife, kids or even a dog. That for a dog means that it's got to be good w/ the family but also not just capable of watching and defending, but interested in it.

That weeds out several of the catagories. I also expect a very smart dog, easy to train, etc. Hunting dogs can be smart but the more focused they are on whatever they were bred for the more of a one trick pony you wind up with. I have memories as a kid of chasing our family beagle all over the south end of town. Her nose would be an inch off the ground and she'd run full tilt boogie for hours. Completely deaf when she was on a scent and nothing would distract her. Nothing. The characteristic that might make a dog great at one thing or another can be a huge drawback in regular day to day life.

Generally, a working breed will be better at watching and defending, etc. They'll usually be a little more tractable and easier to train in my experience. I like to avoid AKC breeders as they breed for appearance almost exclusively and that's never a good thing as smarts aren't a necessary component; therefor they are often missing. They also can have some curious health concerns due in part to line breeding, etc.

Figure out what you need from it, nail a book to help you narrow your choices objectively, and then start rooting around for a breeder of whatever dog you want. Make sure the breeder works the dogs rather than just breeds them.

Here's a book you'll find interesting and pretty accurate:

The Right Dog for You

The author lists out all the breeds you'll normally run across and details the various traits surprisingly well. Your library will have it buy you'll need to wrestle every 12 year old veterinarian wannabe to actually get to peek at it.
 
B.T.W:

Beagles will not s.t.f.u. :eek:

My brother had two. Lots of visits from the bitchy neighbor calling animal control. Then he spent a week working a wildland fire and when he got back his wife said "they got out; don't ask me again". Endless energy; he was glad she found them a new home. Beagles were bred for hunting so their bark/bellow is loud and carries.

Boxers are high energy a can jump six footers; training will be a must.

Look around, and around, and around, and around at both different breeds/breeders and puppies (if you don't meet the parents it's just a crap shoot).

Don't just let the wife pick the dumb cute waggy one (mine did that TWICE and tried several times since). Dumb dogs are painful lessons in patience. You're the sucker that picks up the poop for the next 10-15. Get a smart civil one.


Best of luck.-Josh
 
Short hair and slightly intimidating and good with kids:

Great Danes, Boxers.

They are also dumb as a brick.

I would get a GSD and deal with the hair or have him live outside.
 
'74 UA FJ said:
Short hair and slightly intimidating and good with kids:

Great Danes, Boxers.

They are also dumb as a brick.
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Haven't seen a smart dane before but we just had a boxer adopt our family a month or so back. Showed up starving on our porch on an Alaska saturday winter morning.

He's no dummy. I haven't really worked with him much yet but he's got the general idea and does it right about 80-90% of the time. Sit, lay down, stay, bark, don't eat till given the ok, etc. I train in German commands because I speak German poorly which means I'm not going to be telling the dog to do the same excersize 5 different ways. Consistency is a lot easier that way. German commands also lend themselves to being "barked" in a way that seems to get the dog's attn.

He'll be biting and releasing consistently on command within a year and he's about 10 months old now. I'd say he's pretty smart. He'll damn sure be intimidating when needed once the training is down well enough that it's a conditioned response.
 
I agree totally BUT a Heeler is a working dog and it can take some time to calm them down if they are pined in...however the other is a much calmer dog with very much the same traits....and BOTH are crazy feaking smart:eek:
tcb said:
Was just fixing to post the same thing. My Heeler is a hell of a watch dog and in her younger years, she'd play, run, whatever you wanted to do, all day long. They shed a bit with the double coat, but you can't ask for a more loyal, fun loving, adventure companion.
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Go get a mutt from the Humane Society. We got a Boxer/Ridgeback mix from the HS over 3 years ago. She's an awesome family dog, has mucho patience with our daughter and hangs around her all day and sleeps with her in her room(nice protector). Thing about Boxers/Ridgebacks, if you don't exercise them, they get bored and may dig holes all over the place, and they like to catch and eat rabbits and lizards that wander into the yard.
 
cruiser88 said:
I agree totally BUT a Heeler is a working dog and it can take some time to calm them down if they are pined in...however the other is a much calmer dog with very much the same traits....and BOTH are crazy feaking smart:eek:
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Mine was wild for a couple of years... but I wasn't running her 20+ miles a week like Cube is talking about doing.... That will sap the energy out of that dog. I think it would be fine.
 
You be right...quick story
Organ Cave rescue....1993 I had only did 1 cave trip currently and dad called me out on 2 kids(my buddys at the time) for this rescue. I went in with the first group and was stationed at the throne room by myself(and dads heeler) with hand me down cave gear. 2 hours latter I realized I am in trouble and about mile and a half in so I started with the dog to the entrance because my electic light failed and my carbide lamp was taking a s***. Anyway...got to Organ mainstream and my light quit...dog went nuts so I grabbed on her tail and she led me out to the commercial pathway where it was lighted....about 3/4 of a mile. I kissed that dog ..while shaking like a little baby...she was 15 human years at the time. I have been hooked on heelers ever sence. Keep in mind Organ mainstream is really a river with bolders almost the size of a homes.:beer:


tcb said:
Mine was wild for a couple of years... but I wasn't running her 20+ miles a week like Cube is talking about doing.... That will sap the energy out of that dog. I think it would be fine.
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cruiser88 said:
You be right...quick story
Organ Cave rescue....1993 I had only did 1 cave trip currently and dad called me out on 2 kids(my buddys at the time) for this rescue. I went in with the first group and was stationed at the throne room by myself(and dads heeler) with hand me down cave gear. 2 hours latter I realized I am in trouble and about mile and a half in so I started with the dog to the entrance because my electic light failed and my carbide lamp was taking a s***. Anyway...got to Organ mainstream and my light quit...dog went nuts so I grabbed on her tail and she led me out to the commercial pathway where it was lighted....about 3/4 of a mile. I kissed that dog ..while shaking like a little baby...she was 15 human years at the time. I have been hooked on heelers ever sence. Keep in mind Organ mainstream is really a river with bolders almost the size of a homes.:beer:
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I don't know anything about caving and s***, but I'll probably never own a dog that's not a heeler. My girl hits 10 in a couple months. I can tell that she is starting to slow down..:frown: She doesn't love the frisbee as much as she used to. I used to be the one that got tired, now it's not the case.
 
i have a red heeler. all the ones i've ever seen have a very loud piercing bark. i didn't mean wimpy. if anything, they're like the friggin' tazmanian devil when they get going. she can sure as s*** put the boots the our doberman pinscher, and he's got 50# on her.

mad max had a heeler...
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Our yellow lab is the most laid back dog I've ever known. Wouldn't hurt a flea, the kids and cat can do anything to her and she has never ever reacted in a way that concerned me. She won't leave the yard since I installed a Wireless Fence™ and rarely needs to wear the collar that goes with it. She rarely barks but when she does it's pretty scary sounding.
 
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