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Breed suggestions


karen15
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my boss is talking about getting a dog. I believe they're first time dog owners, with one 7yo boy. He is after small to medium short hair (not keen on grooming long hair dogs, which is fair enough). He mentioned golden retriever, Labrador and pug. He's only just started considering and wants to find a registered breeder for whatever he decides on. He understands you need to wait with breeders and that can be a year or more.

 

After some suggestions of small to medium short haired dogs that would be good for first time dog people. Pugs and labs would work, but there may be others he could check out. Situated in Brisbane, sounds like it will be allowed inside with air-conditioning (I mentioned pugs can struggle in the heat and his reply was no worries, we have air con :) )

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Gosh, I'm not sure that I would class a labrador or a golden as a medium size dog - I think of them as large, but if he is happy with that size no worries!  Goldens also need brushing every few days to avoid matts.

Is he aware aware that labs and pugs shed very, very heavily and it is short spiky hair that sticks to everything? :laugh: the best way to keep on top of the shedding is to brush a couple of times a week.

Another fairly easy small/medium short hair breed to consider is the whippet (don't shed quite as much as the above breeds). If they a have a backyard to romp in a couple of times a day they will snooze the rest of the time! Will not have problems with the Brisbane climate either!

If he doesn't mind a little bit of regular exercise then a beagle might be a great match too. They are not a difficult breed, but do need regular exercise if they are not to develop bad habits.(The sane goes for the lab and golden though!)

Yet another great family dog to consider is one that looks like it needs a lot of grooming but actually only needs a thorough brush and comb once a week - the Cavalier KCS!

As always, breeds being considered should be thoroughly researched so that the buyers know what health tests should have been done on the parents. A visit to a dog show (most weekends in capitals cities) is always a good start!

 

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silly me RP. The Ekka is on in a couple of weeks and would be the perfect place to check out dogs! Boss is not real good with breeds. He mentioned "those ones that round up sheep" probably wouldn't be good for them :) So I think labs and goldens are more because he's heard of them than anything else.

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Not sure if this is what all labs are like, but end of last year my younger cousins bought their first dog, a lab pup. (He's about 10 months old now) He is HYPER! He is obedient and will sit when you tell him, especially if treats are involved (that's why he's Mr Chubby) but he's bloody full of beans! Everyone is onstantly going "Sit", "ouch/no", "off" etc etc. while trying to have a chat. 

He looses it with excitement when guests come, (even us) he zooms around and jumps up and nips. I thought "he needs to get some energy out, let's go play fetch" we played for a bit, it was a pretty unstructured interpretation of fetch :laugh: But it was all going well, until he ran up, dropped the toy, and just chomped me on the hand..! Which isn't great as he is a teenage dog and they've been trying hard to teach him not to do that but he just can't contain himself. And it does hurt now that he's a 30kg teenager!

I haven't been around him long enough for him to settle properly though, I'm sure he's very good when he settles.

Makes me relieved I have adult dogs! :laugh: (and mine are pretty chilled by nature) 

 

I'm sure most labs aren't quite as hyper, but I'd personally not get one as a first dog. (Lab people correct me on this) unless they have a pretty big yard and are ready for lots of big walks & dog training classes. Plus if they wanted small to medium, Labs are pretty large. 

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Ask your boss what kind of lifestyle they'd have with the dog, so there's more to narrow it down to.

- How many walks a week? And how far? 

- Will they be going to dog training classes?

- Can they deal with jumping, nipping, pulling on lead, crazy puppy? Have they researched training? Otherwise maybe a mellow adult?

 

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LOL .. medium ? Not a lab ! plus the shedding ....!!! 26 hrs a day :) 
First timer ... p'raps not a pug either . Brachy breed .. breathing probs ..kid/s wanting to play /hot weather ...

Mini Schnauzer?
Whippet
CKCS
maybe a Golden Retriever ...

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I can't vouch for all labs obviously, but I now own 6. Ranging in age from 6years to 5 months. I wouldn't say that one of them is hyper. They are happy to go for a walk as often and as far as I would like, but if not they just hang around and snooze. They are great inside and none of them ever mouth. I found all of them easy to train, and really have never owned a breed as easy to have around. I really can't understand people that have such problems with their labs. I have one boy who chewed a bit, but grew out of it at 18months and none of them dig. I do spend quite a bit of time with them, but I do see them as quite an "easy" dog. 

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