What kind of dog should I buy for my wife?

[cbh]

My wife’s dog died 2 yrs ago and we haven’t replaced her (the dog) yet. I’m looking for a dog that would be a best friend to my wife, but also serve us well should the unthinkable happen. These are my “requirements” for a new dog:
1. Must be my wife’s right hand.
2. Friendly. We have a big family with lots of other dogs in the extended family. It must get along well with both small people and other dogs.
3. Must be willing to protect the family with its life if called on. My daughter’s fiancé is K9, so training won’t be an issue.
4. Willing to hunt and track. This would be a backup role, but is important nonetheless.
5. Not dumb.
6. Prefer short hair. But not set on that. It gets hot in the summer and cold in the winter.
7. 30-100 lbs.
I’m hoping that someone out there read this and said “That’s my dog!” Thanks in advance for your help.

 

[galaxyquxxn]

@cbh We have a black mouth cur lab mix, and she’s beautiful, and intelligent. Curs are bred for home protection and hunting. They get to be around 40-100lbs. Also, they’re amazing with kids. I recommend looking at local shelters before you decide to go to a breeder, there are plenty of wonderful dogs that would fit all of your criteria.

 

[cbh]

@galaxyquxxn Absolutely. Our local shelter will be my first stop. But, I don’t want to go in there without knowing kind of what I want. Otherwise, we’ll walk out with the first cutie my wife lays eyes on.

 

[mark0086]

@cbh You're kind of asking for the moon here. If you want to go to the shelter for this dog then you will have to take what you get. Unless you get a puppy. Also shelter puppies tend to be a mix of who knows what. How are you going to get your requirements from a shelter dog?

Your requirements can be met by looking at the dogs in the sporting group. Setters, pointers, retrievers etc. I have Gordon Setters. My boy is 97 pounds and can hunt like a pro. He is also my love bug and super attached to me. I have a bitch that is 78 pounds and she would kill for me to protect me and our home. It's just her nature.

Sporting group dogs tend to make wonderful family pets. A nice Springer Spaniel would meet your requirements. If you really want a dog to meet your criteria I think you need to choose a breed then find a reputable breeder.

The shelters are full of wonderful dogs. However how are you going to know if it meets your criteria?

 

[cbh]

@mark0086 I agree it’s a crap shoot. Even with a reputable breeder, you could end up with an idiot of a dog that will only walk backwards on a leash. This is Day 1 of my dog search. I haven’t even told my wife that I’ve changed my mind about getting one. I figured I’d put the wish list out there to narrow down the results. And if the shelter doesn’t have anything in the neighborhood of what I’m looking for, then we’ll start looking at breeders.