Dog Breeds - Help Pick

[dfrecore]

I would be careful about getting a dog from a shelter just because of your son's needs. We tried the shelters around us, and all there were were pit bulls, pit mixes, chihuahuas, and chihuahua mixes. Not kidding, every single dog both times we went in. And our HO Insurance has a list of breeds we can't have, including mixes of those breeds. Which is fine, my husband runs, and when he is chased, it is very often a pit bull, so he was not interested in those.

We also get snakes occasionally, and my husband runs where there are snakes, so we actually had our dog take snake avoidance training. There are classes here in southern California for that, not sure where you live, but you can look for that.

We got a golden retriever because we wanted a good friendly family dog. After researching, and figuring out that there were very specific traits we wanted, we went for a pure breed from a very reputable breeder nearby. The good thing was that since the breeder was with the puppies since birth, she was able to give us exactly what we wanted in terms of personality type (CALM was my main requirement). While he is protective of our backyard, especially with the coyotes that come around, he is not what I would call a guard dog. But he's been such a calm, sweet dog with my family that we don't care. As for shedding, we could make a hamster with the amount of hair we collect every few days. It's ridiculous. He does have a "soft" mouth, and you could hold a tiny piece of food right in front of him and he would gently take it from you with his lips and take care not to bite, even when he was little. Definitely a plus with children.

Because of allergies (which I became aware of AFTER we got our dog), but since we so love our Golden, we opted for a Goldendoodle this time around. She is 7 months old, and so sweet, and crazy smart. Virtually no shedding thank goodness. She is also fairly calm. She has just recently started barking at the window if someone comes around - if they ring the bell, or come into the backyard, she's fine, but if it's UPS leaving a package, or the landscaping guy pulling weeds in the front yard, she does not like that. Seems like if someone shows themselves, she's ok, but if she does not know what they're doing, no bueno. Again, not a great guard dog, but better than the golden. She does NOT have a soft mouth, she definitely takes after the poodle side of the family. If you have food, watch your fingers or you could lose a couple!

Since we got both dogs as puppies, that was great for my kids. They were pretty young when we got our first dog, but were very helpful in helping to potty train the dog, and teach him tricks, and take him for walks. Since he was little when we got him, they didn't mind the size he eventually got. They also were pretty good about understanding "he's just a baby" when he did things they didn't like. Like eating their stuffed animals. And shoes. They learned to pick up after themselves better (win-win).

I would research some breeds and find a few that you like, and then work with some breeders to get the personality type that you are looking for. A good breeder will be able to help you get the calmest of the bunch in a litter (we had 3 choices out of a litter of 11 that she considered "calm but not shy"). We were very happy with the whole process and feel like we got EXACTLY what we paid for.

Although I don't think we would go to a shelter for a dog (just because of the insurance situation), we would definitely consider a specific-breed rescue organization to find one at some point in the future. Especially if the dog was in a foster situation, so we could get to know it a bit and talk to someone who had the dog in their home. Because of your situation, that might be a good choice for you as well.

Good luck!