dalmatians

islander

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Has anyone got experience of dalmatians? I have always wanted one and have read lots of books about their character etc but would appreciate some advice from anybody who has actually owned one. Still at the research stage and would ideally like a rehomed/rescue. I work from home, have kept large and small breeds in the past and have lots of nearby beach/country walks.
 

jakkibag

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Hi,
I have two big spotty lumps in my life, They are NOT for the faint hearted!! They take strong discipline and lots and lots of excercise! We live on a farm and they are kenelled outside with a huge run through the day while we work.
They are fantastic with the horses, both hack out quite obediantly, have done some road dog training with both of them ( can be found on The carriage dog website) however they do have a bit of selective hearing going on, ( even though though both have Baer Hearing certificates)
I couldnt imagine not having a spotty, but for a first dog, id see if i could borrow/walk one a few times before making a firm decision ;)
 

Baileybones

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Mine was a brilliant dog although quite neurotic - almost Collie like.
She was the best dog I've had in terms of obedience and followed me like a shadow. She was always within ear shot even if I couldn't see her and she never really had any formal training as such.
Her only "downsides" were she could become fixated on things and was a real creature of habit. She was also incredibly vocal and was always chuntering on about something or other :)
Can't really comment though on whether any of this is breed specific as she was my only one. A neighbour has 2 and they both seem to be quite highly strung as well , very noisy and the younger bitch seems very wary although doubtful she's had very good socialisation as the dogs are rarely walked.
 

chahala

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Hi

We rehomed one- he was a year old and his owners were separating- they felt it was upsetting him and sent him back to breeder who rehomed him with us. He was a lovely dog who lived to be 13 when testicular cancer and arthritis got the better of him.

I would say they are not bet suited as a first dog as they can be quite sensitive , need a lot of exercise and can be very strong and wilful. However they are brilliant company, affectionate and seem to love children and other animals. We would not hesitate to give another a home. People cannot help smiling at them and they do like to smile back. Ours was a stickler for routine; walk, breakfast, snooze, messabout, snooze , tea, socialize with family , bed. when we moved from town to country he was appalled at the lack of pavements, general unruliness and frightened of cows. He did not like water very much and found the sound of waves on the beach a bit overpowering. My attempts to take him hacking were thwarted by the fact that once mounted he could never work out where I had gone! Short coats are nice to care for but beware; short hairs get embedded in things and what the things that don't show dark hairs will most certainly show white ones.
 

islander

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Thanks for your replies. I guess they are what is called 'high maintenance' dogs. I have had very active terriers before, so am used to a busy outlook on life. My OH has working gundogs, my ex didn't like dalmatians though I'm not sure If he ever knew any - he "didn't see the point of them". Eventually I didn't see the point of him either!
 

Baileybones

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Thanks for your replies. I guess they are what is called 'high maintenance' dogs. I have had very active terriers before, so am used to a busy outlook on life. My OH has working gundogs, my ex didn't like dalmatians though I'm not sure If he ever knew any - he "didn't see the point of them". Eventually I didn't see the point of him either!

Oh dear god - I'd fair rather have dogs around than a man - far more loyal and far less mess ;-)

My girl was high maintenance but as you've had dogs before sure it's nothing you can't work with. The fact you work from home will probably be perfect and the fact that they are often sticklers for routine may work in your favour. Not sure if the others experienced this but my girl wasn't terribly social and by that I mean that although she was brilliant with other dogs she was never particularly fussed if they were there or not. She always wanted to be with me but when I got another dog to keep her company she wasn't fussed in the slightest. And for what it is worth she was no more demanding than my current GSH Pointer is.
 

satinbaze

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I have known a few Dalmatians as I worked on the film 102 Dalmatians. They are very trainable especially with clicker training/operant conditioning. They are Aldo high energy and need good amount of exercise as an adult.
A friend of mine had a rescue Dalmatian who was the thickest dog I have ever met, very gentle and sweet but so stupid. You could see her trying to work out what you were asking her to do and the lightbulb moment when she got it. Maybe it was her poor start being locked in a garage that did it.
 

Suec04

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I have a spotty dog! We have had her from a puppy and she is now 7 and STILL acts like a puppy :) she likes you to think she is daft but actually she is very clever - she can suss out a treat ball in seconds! very food orientated and a stickler for routine - god help you if you go to bed later than usual or dare to sleep in past her alarm. :D She isn't very obedient but i think that is our fault not hers but she does have her moments when she does exactly what you ask, when you ask! she has boundless amounts of energy and she makes us laugh hysterically with her antics. as much as i love her and wouldn't be without her, would i have another? not likely....give me a collie any day :)
 

spottyUnicorn

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Completely crackers! Big, big personalities. Will follow you every where and hate to be left out of anything you are doing. Boundless energy, and always ready for a play how ever far you have walked or run that day. Love their food. Love people. Love the pub. Easy to train but also quick to pretend they haven't been trained when it suits! Quite vocal. Our boy is 15 months old and we have had him since he was 8 weeks. He is a joy to have around but some times he has been very intense, particularly since about 13 months onwards, some days he has really tested me. I work from home, so he's used to being with me most of the day, but seems OK with being left as well, but a lot of Dally's don't like being left. He's been away in cottages, camping, and on boats and taken the different places in his stride. I think they need to be kept busy and have good focused training, which needs to be ongoing. Ours had his bronze and silver KCGC before he was one ... but since then its been downhill so not sure we will ever get our gold! We have had a change of tactics to keep things interesting, so just started doing some fun agility, and trying obedience with a different trainer. A great dog to have around but if you don't want to end up with a hooligan you will have to work at it! Have you seen the British Dalmatian club and Dalmatian welfare websites? They have quite a lot of info on them including all the breed bad habits! The welfare site has a blog (max?) written by a family that re homed a Dally — might be interesting reading for you.
 

Kitty B

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That was basically our experience as well... I grew up around Dalmatians, then didn't have one for a few years. Then I bought a girl who was absolutely wonderful; she was sweet and obedient, but the dog died of renal failure very soon after we bought her. My next Dalmatian I got as a puppy, and we had him for two years... Loki was hyper and bonkers until he had been out for his walk, but then he would become far more inclined to at least attempt 'calm'. Like Pepsi, Loki had a brilliant temperament, he was very clever, but he suffered an acute case of selective hearing! He could walk for hours when we were out, adapted to new situations and places amazingly well, and on the flip side loved to flop on the bed while we watched TV at night. If he could get into something, he would... if it was in what he decided was his favor to magically 'forget' everything he had ever been taught, he would act like he had never had a day of training in his life... Dalmatians have that sort of personality that gets under your skin and sticks. Properly managed and stimulated, they can be your best friend, and Loki really was. He could be absolutely mental at times, but he was also very patient and forgiving. I would say, after having lost two in a row the same way, be aware of the health issues in Dalmatians, and know the signs. Other than that, lots (and lots...) of exercise, time with the family (ours have always been 'people dogs'), and mental stimulation equal a happy Dalmatian.
 

islander

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Lots for consideration, Baileybones, satinbaze, SuecO4, SpottyUnicorn and Kitty B. Really helpful to hear about your experiences and I shall definitely look up the welfare site. My old dogs are still around so will not be looking for another yet but like to be informed for the future.
 

jodie3

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I currently have three ( two are deaf) and although I also have an English Bull Terrier I adore (currentlŷ doing a very good impression of a lap dog) Dalmatians will alway be my breed of choice.

They are very human orientated dogs - where ever you are is where they want to be. They do need a lot of exercise but saying that if for whatever reason we miss a walk they are just as happy playing in the garden and then sleeping on the settee afterwards.
A common myth is that they are untrainable - they are actually very trainable but you have to approach it in a different way to a Labrador! They are charismatic dogs with huge characters.
 

Onefortheteam

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I have a nearly 2 year old dalmatian bitch. She is my first dog and I did sort of jump in at the deep end having never had a dog before and only occasionally looking after other peoples (older and well trained) dogs.

However, I haven't a bad word to say about my little dally. Shes genuinely been a pleasure, sure, been a little difficult here and there and her recall is still a work in progress anywhere there may be something distracting (aka another dog, flying bird or other running mammal.)
She's a stickler for routine as the others have said, she's more than happy to miss walks and play in the garden, go for 30 minute wonders round the pavements or 3 hour off lead walks over the countryside, she's very vocal about everything, very toy and food orientated, covers everything in white hairs and anything white is covered in black hairs which do not come off ever.

She won't be away from people unless she's eating or sleeping and is literally like a shadow!
She's also a glorified lapdog and is always on peoples laps or trying to climb on!
 

chestnut cob

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Agree with SpottyUnicorn's post. We had Dalmatians when I was younger. Parents had a dog and then a bitch. The dog was very good at pretending he had never been given an obedience training and could never be tired out. He would go on bike rides with Dad then want a long walk, then to play all night. Lovely dog, really soft, adored people, didn't care who they were and would go off with anyone if left to his own devices. The bitch was quieter but still a fantastic dog. I used to take her to the yard with me; we had a huge field that the baby racehorses used as training gallops (about 100 acres in size) so she would run around there with me on the horse when I did interval training/ fast work. She loved it.

Lots of health problems - both had digestive issues. Despite having a 5 year age gap and being from opposite ends of the country, they turned out to be quite closely related...

Would definitely have one myself in future though, great dogs :)
 

EAST KENT

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The Dalmation was one of the breeds James Hinks used to create the Bull Terrier back in the 1860`s. The batty sense of humour must come from them,as well as the spotty skin,which sometimes grow black hairs to become "ticks" ,a minor cosmetic fault. They also got improved construction from the Dally. I think it is a very beautiful breed ,but only get a properly BAER tested puppy
 
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