[Breeds] Please help us choose a breed, Q&A inside!

[pmcgee60]

Introduction

1. Will this be your first dog? If not, what experience do you have owning/training dogs?

YES!!!!

1. Do you have a preference for rescuing a dog vs. going through a reputable breeder?

Breeder pls

1. Describe your ideal dog.

Our ideal dog is a basket of snuggles and fun. But really, we would like a large-ish, hypoallergenic dog, that

is ok being at home alone for some times, as we both work full-time. We would like a non-aggressive dog,

that does not bark too much, and has no trouble being social with humans or dogs alike. The coat does not

matter a whole lot, we love the appearance of both Weimaraners and Sheepdogs. Well, just not straight, long

hair (looking at you Afghan Hound).

1. What breeds or types of dogs are you interested in and why?

Sheepadoodle - large, gentle, playful, non-shedding, adorable, smart and loving

Bernedoodle - see above

Portuguese Water Dog - see above

Airedale Terrier - This one is a little more challenging. We love its appearance, but are not sure we are able to

provide the stimulation it will need.

Great Dane - Love the kind hearted nature of this dog, but the drooling and size may be a problem. As well, we

live in a small/medium sized house now, but with our work, we may be moving and could be living in

apartments and condos in the future

1. What sorts of things would you like to train your dog to do?

MAKE COFFEE.... jk. But seriously, if someone has trained their dog to do this, hit us up. We'd like for the dog to be obedient, but are not looking for a performance dog.

Care Commitments

1. How long do you want to devote to training, playing with, or otherwise interacting with your dog each day?

Probably an hour per day, once they are trained. Walks, grooming, etc we are happy to provide, but don't

want a high maintenance pooch.

1. How long can you exercise your dog each day, on average? What sorts of exercise are you planning to give your dog regularly and does that include using a dog park?

1 hour comprising of walks, park play or backyard play. Neither of us are joggers. Maybe bike rides on-leash?

1. How much regular brushing are you willing to do? Are you open to trimming hair, cleaning ears, or doing other grooming at home? If not, would you be willing to pay a professional to do it regularly?

We would be willing to do a moderate amount of grooming, but like we said, we're not looking for high-maintenance. Mind, as we don't have kids, this dog will probably be treated like one, so yes to some paid care.

Personal Preferences

1. What size dog are you looking for?

medium to mammoth

1. How much shedding, barking, and slobber can you handle?

very little, some, just a table-spoon

1. How important is being able to let your dog off-leash in an unfenced area?

Not too important, as it may be hard to find depending on our location

Dog Personality and Behavior

1. Do you want a snuggly dog or one that prefers some personal space?

ALL THE SNUGGLES ARE BELONG TO US

1. Would you prefer a dog that wants to do its own thing or one that’s more eager-to-please?

Bit of column A bit of column B

1. How would you prefer your dog to respond to someone knocking on the door or entering your yard? How would you prefer your dog to greet strangers or visitors?

Slobber on the guests, not us. I.e., we're not looking for a guard dog, so friendly is preferred.

1. Are you willing to manage a dog that is aggressive to other dogs?

Nope.

1. Are there any other behaviors you can’t deal with or want to avoid?

None that come to mind. Poops indoors would not be welcome.

Lifestyle

1. How often and how long will the dog be left alone?

Fairly often, full-time hours, though we are willing to spend some money on doggy day-care

1. What are the dog-related preferences of other people in the house and what will be their involvement in caring for the dog?

N/A

1. Do you have other pets or are you planning on having other pets? What breed or type of animal are they?

No, and no.

1. Will the dog be interacting with children regularly?

Seldomly, though we do have nieces, nephews and friends with children that may visit from time to time.

1. Do you rent or plan to rent in the future? If applicable, what breed or weight restrictions are on your current lease?

Yes, but not right now. We would be committed to finding the right place to live for our dog.

1. What city or country do you live in and are you aware of any laws banning certain breeds?

Canada - I believe there are some, but not on the breeds we are interested in.

1. What is the average temperature of a typical summer and winter day where you live?

Summer: high ~30C

Winter: low ~30C

Additional Information and Questions

1. Please provide any additional information you feel may be relevant.

One of us is willing to do a lot of brushing, the other is skeptical.

1. Feel free to ask any questions below.

We hope we have provided you with enough info to give us a hand at finding our unicorn-dog. Please let us know if you need any more clarification, and THANK YOU FOR YOUR TIME, DOG-LOVERS!

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@pmcgee60 Hey OP! We are happy to have you here – r/dogs is a great community!

If you are interested in going through a breeder you'll want to make sure that breeder is reputable. A reputable breeder is worth their weight in gold. I have two dogs – a Bernese x Great Pyr from a pretty bad backyard breeder, and a lab from an awesome breeder. The Berner (while a wonderful dog) has needed more than $25k in medical care in her 4.5 years so far. The lab is still a youngin', but he has certainly had a better start to life.

When looking for a reputable breeder you want to consider the following:

1. Health testing – all reputable breeders perform the genetic health tests recommended by OFA on their dogs. These tests should be verifiable through the OFA database. A "health guarantee" without results in the database is not good enough.
2. Contract – Their contracts will include a 2 year health guarantee (minimum) and a "right of first refusal" clause that requires you to return the dog to them if you are ever unable to care for it.
3. Pricing – reputable breeders will not charge more for specific colors or other physical traits.
4. Proven dogs – reputable breeders will have proven the "worth" of their dogs in some public venue, be it conformation, dog sports, therapy, service, etc. etc.

In addition to that, reputable breeders will interview you before allowing you to purchase a puppy. They will ask questions to make sure your family is a good fit for one of their dogs.

---

I saw that you linked a doodle breeder below. At first glance I don't see any information about health testing on the parent dogs. According to OFA these dogs should have the following tests on record:

• Hip Dysplasia
• Eye Examination by a boarded ACVO Ophthalmologist- recommend each year until 5, thereafter every 2 years
• Autoimmune thyroiditis
• EIC (Exercise Induced Collapse)
• Cardiac Evaluation (Optional)
• Congenital Deafness (Optional)
• Multiple Drug Sensitivity (Optional)
• Cerebellar Degeneration (Optional)
• Primary Ciliary Dyskinesia (PCD) (Optional)

I would not work with a breeder who is failing to perform these tests.

---

A purebred poodle or Portuguese water dog would fit your requirements and would be much easier to find from a reputable breeder.

Best of luck with your search!

 

[pmcgee60]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Wow, this is super helpful, thank you so much. We had no idea the assurances that reputable breeders provide. It appears we have much more reading to do!

We certainly are not familiar with all breeds of dog, so if a breed comes to mind that may fit our criteria, please feel free to suggest it.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@pmcgee60 Sure thing! I also didn't know what went into a reputable breeder when we got our girl so I try to help wherever I can.

These days the cost difference between a well bred pup and a backyard "designer dog" is not hugely different. Better to go with the excellent breeder, it'll save you in the long run!!

Is there a reason that standard poodle isn't on your list?

A Wheaten Terrier might also be of interest – they have the "doodle" look and are hypoallergenic (I think.)

 

[pmcgee60]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Regarding standard poodles, it's hard to put our finger on why it doesn't appeal to us; perhaps aesthetic.

I think the Wheaton Terrier is a little on the small side, but thank you for the suggestion. What is your opinion of the Airedale Terrier?

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@pmcgee60 There are some great posts floating around here that show all the different "styles" of poodle cuts... if you let their faces grow, they are quite doodle-y!

I don't now any airedales myself, but I'm not a fan of the wire hair.

 

[pmcgee60]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Since we started this thread we've been doing a little searching about poodles. They do seem like the right breed for us. And then, we discovered parti poodles! I think this suits our desire for a dog with some mixed colour. Are they more or less identical to the standard poodle in all traits but the colour?

 

[zoyla1]

@pmcgee60 This is correct. I have a parti poodle and it is a normal poodle just the color is considered a fault by the AKC. Though the original poodles were parti so it is very much a normal color of the breed.

 

[godsgal41]

@pmcgee60 If you want a dog from a breeder, cross the doodles off the list. There are no reputable breeders of "shepadoodles" or "bernedoodles."

 

[pmcgee60]

@godsgal41 Thanks for the reply. We are probably not familiar with the world of dog breeding. We are able to find "breeders" online that offer Bernedoodles, so I suppose the question is whether the breeders are reputable. Some of the ones online provide immunizations, and care for at least some time prior to the owner taking possession.

I'll link to this one, just as an example: https://www.sheepadoodlesbyliz.com/health-guarantee

 

[godsgal41]

@pmcgee60 This breeder would not be considered reputable. Just based on their guarantee alone, which is pretty meaningless because a vet isnt going to find any congenial issues in just a regular vet check. There are no mention of health clearances. Actual clearances thru an organization such as OFA, not just a vet check. They price their puppies based on color. And they use the same stud for all breedings.

 

[pmcgee60]

@godsgal41 Hi again, I wanted to ask you about parti poodles. We were on the fence about standard poodles, until we found out about these. The mixed colours fill the gap that we were looking for in a dog. Can these be found to the same breed standard as other standard poodles in all ways other than the colour?

 

[godsgal41]

@pmcgee60 According to their breed standard, parti colors are a disqualification so its not something that breeders would be breeding for.

https://www.poodleclubofamerica.org/

http://images.akc.org/pdf/breeds/standards/Poodle.pdf

/@orpah may be able to better direct you with poodles.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@godsgal41 Poodle colors are weird, there absolutely are responsible breeders with partis that don't show AKC or show their solids AKC. Multicolor poodles can be shown UKC separately from solid colored poodles, though there are definitely some more sketchy breeders focusing too much on color. It's a bit odd as the whole breeding off color thing usually is a big red flag but it's widely recognized as a naturally occurring pattern and there is no clear history on why it was excluded.

If there are local UKC shows, check previous entries and see if there are ever multicolored poodles entered. That may give some local kennel names, or may mean a good chance of meeting someone at a show that can point you in the right direction. It does limit yourself a lot to only want one color though, parti is recessive so rarely are breeders finding excellent parti breedings that will only result in parti pups. You may find a litter where there are partis but the best puppy available is solid. It's ok to have preferences but if it's parti or nothing you may wait a while if you want to avoid the pitfalls of breeders selecting too heavily for color and letting other things slide.

Edit- Do avoid mentioning color in first discussions with breeders, it can make them worry a breeder is going to be too picky about markings over the more important qualities of a dog so just be soft about askingafter partis. Say you are interested in finding someone that may produce them, vs you are looking for a parti. That my help get through the initial screening more easily

 

[godsgal41]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Thanks for clarifying. /@qurious4christ-Tumbleweed make sure to read the above comment.

 

[pmcgee60]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Thank you so much for your thorough reply. We are still learning our terminology and didn't understand the precise definition of parti (white + another colour?). There are a number of solid colours that we would also consider apart from the parti. We like a mixture of colour in one dog and white doesn't need to be one of them. Do these schemes still qualify as parti? Hopefully this should make things easier for us.

Regardless, the approach you have suggested is quite helpful and much appreciated.

 

[imagebeastmarkbeast]

@pmcgee60 Parti is white and another color yes. There are other multicolor poodle patterns that are accepted, but parti is the most common one that you will find outside of color specific breeders. Phantom is black and tan patterned, and brindle also can be seen. But again solid colored dogs are the most common and there is a lot of potential for missing out on a great dog if you eliminate solid colored dogs

 

[pmcgee60]

@imagebeastmarkbeast Understood, many thanks for your help.

 

[pmcgee60]

@godsgal41 Thank you very much for the clarification. This being the case, we're not really interested in getting a dog from a breeder as would match the description you have provided, so we can set that aside and just focus on the breed itself. Any suggestions there?

EDIT: ok, after considering your advice and that of others in the forum, using a breeder sounds like a wise choice. Thank you for your guidance.

 

[mattbrown1022]

@pmcgee60 No “breeder” breedings these crosses will be ethical because they are fundamentally creating mixed breeds for profit. The goal of breeder should be to breed towards the breed standard, but when they’re breeding mixed breeds for profit, there’s no standard to breed towards because there’s no ideal. It’s a business to the. Profits.