What Dog

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crackerjack

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Not 100% sure yet but in the next few months thinking of getting a puppy. I have a few ideas of what breeds but want to see if anyone comes up with something else that would be suitable. So here is the requirement list
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- Medium/ large Dog ( nothing too humongous!)
- Not even sure if this is viable but exercise would be about 1/2 hour to 1 hr walk per day in the week ( plus large garden whenever) and longer on weekends. Accompany on hacks and jogs.
- Preferably minimal moulting.
- easy-ish to train as would be first dog in a few years.
- be able to be left alone for a couple of hours ( obviously not when a puppy but a bit older)

Any breed recommendations or am i to fussy and just shouldn't bother at all
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! Thanks
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Im a vet nurse and tbh, you cant go wrong with a trusty labrador. They are easy to train, decent sized and very loving. Ive been nursing for nearly 5 years and only come across one nasty lab. Springer spaniels are also great and pretty intelligent. Cocker spaniels can be prone to behavioural problems (please dont anyone be offended by that! i have a cocker and he's lovely but believe me, they can turn a bit nasty). German Shepherds tend to moult quite a bit and i personally wouldnt trust one i didnt know with strangers. Border collies can be nasty and they just turn all of a sudden. They give you a bit of a funny look with their eyes before they do it tho! On the other hand, collie are very clever and easy to train and some of em are soft as s**t!
Only thing i will say is dont take your puppy on hacks to run along side your horse when it is only a puppy (up to a year old normally and up to 18 months old in very large breeds). Walking should be kept constant and two 15-30 minute walks twice daily are better than one 30-60 minutes once daily. Over-exercise can lead to joint and/or bone problems and is discouraged. Also ensure you feed a good brand puppy feed until they are 1year old (18months in large breeds) as they need the correct levels of protein and calcium:phospherus ratio. Hill's, Royal Canin and James Wellbeloved are all good foods. Any more questions just pm me.
You could always get a good old heinz 57!

Ps
didnt mean to offend anyone re dog breeds, these are just a generalisation of breeds we get in practice and there are always exceptions that are lovely dogs!!
 
I feel that 30-60 mins of exercise is perfectly fine for those breeds and terriers aren't particularly easy to train. If your dog has outside access most of the time then that is a bonus.
 
Black labs don't moult nearly as much as yellows (believe me - years of experience!!) Really super, loyal companion and very biddable but definately only choose one that has had hips, eyes and elbows scores from both parents.
 
What about a greyhound or a lurcher? Maybe not the easiest to train, but greyhounds generally don't require a great deal of exercise and tend to lie around a lot. I've never had one admittedly, I am a confirmed collie and shepherd dog owner, but I have friends who have them and they are quite gentle and quiet dogs around the house. They don't shed much and are a decent sized dog.
 
[ QUOTE ]
What about a greyhound or a lurcher?

[/ QUOTE ] Ditto that - collie x lurcher would be particularly good as you get the trainability and loyalty of the collie, but without the hyper activity level!

A whippet is another good choice, although maybe too small for what you want. However, they have lovely short coats and all the ones I've known have made fantastic pets. (I actually wanted a whippet, but my OH didn't, so compromised on a lurcher!)
 
That's why a collie x lurcher is a good idea - the trainability and loyalty of the collie makes recall much easier. Mind you, it is not just sight hounds who disappear off after rabbits etc - have known loads of dogs of various different breeds who do so!

My collie x lurcher is definitely more obedient to recall than our old springer spaniel was!
 
Black lab vote here.
Mine is now 6 1/2 months, is my first dog and is an absolute angel in every way, apart from his tendancies to eat everything in sight!!!
 
"collie x lurcher would be particularly good as you get the trainability and loyalty of the collie, but without the hyper activity level!"


....alternatively you COULD get the hyperactivity of a Collie with the nonexistant recall of the sighthound ....nature comes up with a whole load of surprises
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We have a wheaten terrier who doesn't molt at all all year round
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She is medium size and is fab with children and also horses! Just not with dogs but I think that is because we got her as a semi-rescued dog and somethng must have happend in her past. Good luck in finding one!
 
Get a rescue Greyound fantastic pets
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!

Get one from a "Retired Greyhound Trust". If you want any info please pm me!

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When I read through your criteria I immediately thought that one of my dogs sounded perfect; he is a black lab. He's medium size, doesn't need hours and hours of exercsie, very trainable and super obedient and he is fine left alone during the day. He does shed a fair bit of hair but no more than the other dogs I have. I also have a foxhound (doesn't even fit one of your criteria!) and a yorkie.
 
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