Suitable breeds

conniegirl

conniegirl

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I'm starting to consider a 2nd dog and wondering about what breeds may be suitable.

My current dog is a 5yr old beagle who is just as happy asleep on the sofa as he is going out for walks.
He is not particularly high energy unlike a lot of beagles although I do suspect it is because he gets a good amount of walking each day.
Both myself and my husband work so most rescues will not rehome to us (dogs left for max 5hrs a day).

So what I'm after:

Small to medium breed (bigger than a JRT but smaller or same size as a lab) preferably something not a million miles off beagle size.
NOT another beagle (one at a time for those)
NOT a collie - I do not have the time or energy to attempt to wear one of those out on a walk (big believer in a happy dog is a well walked one)
A friendly cuddly breed (my beagle will cuddle but only on his terms and only for about 5 mins)
we will be looking at starting a family in the nearish future so a family dog
something that is a little less independent minded than a beagle.
I don't want anything delicate or prone to health problems.
Whippets and Staffies really don't appeal to me aesthetically.


I realise that being a family dog can be trained into a lot of dogs but I want something that is naturally inclined towards it in the first place.

So suggestions please!

I don't want to go out buy something that would support bad breeding, but equally I'm not opposed to a good cross bred dog.
husband says says no poodles either, but I'm open to a cross if I can conveniently forget to tell husband that it is x poodle
 
A show bred cocker spaniel, a border terrier or a cavalier king charles spaniel would fit the bill - obviously all sourced from ethical breeders who put health at the forefront of their breeding programmes.
 
Border terriers, as WGSD says, are lovely friendly, easy dogs. They are less terrierlike than many.
 
WorkingGSD said:
A show bred cocker spaniel, a border terrier or a cavalier king charles spaniel would fit the bill - obviously all sourced from ethical breeders who put health at the forefront of their breeding programmes.
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These were the EXACT ones that came to mind for me too! :D
 
You may find a cavalier breed rescue (I think there is one main page with links to lots in different areas?) that will consider rehoming to home with working owners if there is an existing dog there for company. It took months (I'd got a new mutt from elsewhere before they got in touch and so my requirements for matching changed) but one of the branches near me called me up about the possibility of me taking on two.

I certainly considered them suitable to have around little ones based on child having interacted with them before. Likewise cockers, although I'm personally not big on the huge ears.

AS it happens our terrier x (not JRT, think long silky hair...) rehome is perfect. He has learnt tricks even with the main trainer being a young child and the dog being rather older. Delighted child and delighted dog (with the attention and treats!).

Also: a Bichon is not a poodle so crosses with those are completely allowed, right?

Neither breed in our x is known to be child friendly particularly but the x is very, very much so and also bigger than either breed so a bit sturdier.

If you go for a rehome and get it from a private home you'll be able to see the environment it is used to and gauge temperament too.
 
Annette4 said:
Up until the last line I was going to suggest a whippet :lol:
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Sorry but I'd be terrified it would break something! those legs look so delicate!

alainax said:
Cocker spaniel ticks all the boxes! And willl love the plenty of walls.
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Current beagle is very happy, he normally gets about 45 mins in a morning and 2 hrs in an evening. Even during the stonking hot weather my OH was getting up at 5am to take doggy out in the cool and we were going out at 9pm at night to make sure he got his walks and didn't overheat.

When my beagle is well walked he is so much better behaved, without walks he has a tendancy to pee in the house, have everything off the coffee table and then tip over the kitchen bin. With his walks I think he is too busy sleeping to get into trouble
 
I was also going to suggest a whippet until the last sentence! They are definitely not delicate don't worry about that!

I think cockers are nice enough dogs but personally, I wouldn't have one. They have bundles of energy and the ones I've known have been a bit resource guard-y and very food thief-y and noisy! But it sounds like you walk a lot which would be good for a cocker and they might be better behaved then the ones i've met!

I agree a terrier could work well too, border, JRT or something like a cairn?
 
Whippets look fragile but are tough little things. Scale up and think about a greyhound. Mine just adores her cuddles,, great with children despite not living with any.
 
My vote would be a Border Terrier, fantastic dogs with brilliant temperaments. My friends has a BT x JRT and he is fantastic, great with kids, other dogs loves a good walk but equally happy to laze around the house. I believe he is 3/4 BT so has more of a border temperament and colour but with a slightly longer nose - he is adorable.
 
How about something like a bichon if you can cope with the grooming? Seem like fab little dogs, family friendly, very underrated, IMO.
 
For a family dog, I really don't think you can improve on a lab, or of course a Labradoodle might be a bit smaller, I don't know their rehoming policy but I understand that the rescue society gets loads.
 
Pearlsasinger said:
For a family dog, I really don't think you can improve on a lab, or of course a Labradoodle might be a bit smaller, I don't know their rehoming policy but I understand that the rescue society gets loads.
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I resisted suggesting, but very much agree.
 
MotherOfChickens said:
labradoodles are ime very high energy and often come with grooming costs, just for OPs fyi.
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Yes, I would not actually suggest one iof them, but a show or pet type lab (HEALTH TESTS!) would be good. I still think they might be a bit huge compared to a beagle though, hard to cuddle something that squashes you.
 
deleted first comment...oops

however....

Personally I wouldn't have suggested a doodle anything. As much as I love a poodle, and poodle crosses are fab, it's not really ticking the boxes that the OP was looking to fulfil, especially since her OH isn't keen on poodles?

One of the reasons, I presume, that doodles end up in rescue - is that people don't take in to account for the high energy and high maintenance of the coats. I groom some lovely ones, but they are so well exercised and socialised - and they come to me at great expense for very regular grooms.
 
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Large amounts of exercise isnt a problem, our beagle needs at least 2.5hrs a day to keep him sensible.

Large amounts of coat care is another matter entirely!
 
conniegirl said:
Large amounts of exercise isnt a problem, our beagle needs at least 2.5hrs a day to keep him sensible.

Large amounts of coat care is another matter entirely!
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Sometimes you can get more wiry coated type doodles, but mostly the ones I see are fleecy and matted :/
 
Clodagh said:
I resisted suggesting, but very much agree.
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I am also one to vote Labrador. Similar to you OP we have a young, crazy JR (I also agree a well walked dog is a happy dog) and we ended up taking in my ex-bosses Labrador as they didn't want him any more - he was 10 at the time but is a great addition to our gang and has helped calm my JR down. He is 13 now but still going strong, when he passes I don't think I would get a puppy but would definitely look into an older rescue if they will allow us as we also both work full time.
 
When I looked for a buddy for my beagle (and yes one at a time is definitely enough) I got a springer. She is only a little springer, but solid with it, she is the cuddliest snuggliest dog you could hope for and much easier to manage and train then baddog the beagle was
 
Our (working bred) lab is excellent with children and loves loves loves a good cuddle even though her elbows are much too sharp to be a lap dog. Plenty of walks would suit and help avoid the destructive stage, she is lovely, but my heart belongs firmly to my JRT 😊
 
I disagree about the high energy thing with labradoodles, I think it depends a lot on simply how you look after the dog. Any breed can be high energy. I find ours intelligent more than anything and its actually this side we have to tire out a little more than the physical, which is why we do agility training once a week - keeps her thinking and sane. So I wouldnt discount them, ours truly is the perfect family dog. She also wouldnt hunt unlike a few of the dogs mentioned here, yeah she might attempt to chase something if it literally ran from under her feet but she's utterly useless and would never hurt anything. I looked at Beagles when I was deciding what type to get but decided against it when I realised what trackers/hunters they were. Grooming wise, mine has a weird mix of fluff and wire. She does get small mats on her back legs if we dont brush her enough, we get her clipped every nown and again, hardly a grooming nightmare ;)

Everybody has their own opinions, at the end of the day every dog is different so if rescuing one then I'd just go and meet them and see which one fits with the family.
 
I read this with interest as we are also looking for a similar type of dog. We have had 2 BTs and they were both fab dogs but one of them did have a strong hunting drive which over rode our recall training. I had so many anxious times when he disappeared on walks it has rather put me off having another and having him come back covered in mud or sand when he'd been down a hole was very worrying. However, he did come from a working breed, our other BT came from a showing line and was completely different. We are thinking miniature poodle but tbh my OH is not that keen either. I'm glad OP commented on her beagle as this was a possibility. I'd like a working cocker but unfortunately my SIL has one which is completely untrained, hence rather naughty which has put my OH off completely. We've been looking at rehoming centres and went to view one earlier this week but it had rather too many issues and with visiting grandchildren and an elderly MIL living with us, I do have to be careful. Agh, decisions, decsions!!
 
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