To ask for your dog breed recommendations?

Rescue greyhound - if just retired from racing, you'll need to be prepared for house training though.

I agree 😬

They're so popular on here but I just don't get it, haha.

I always think greyhounds look like the absolute bores of the canine world. All big 'poor me' eyes and the shivers Sorry to any owners - I'm sure I'm probably wrong!

I don't know what breed would fit all those requirements, but I definitely won't recommend what I have, as I believe all spitz breeds are fairly heavy shedders (and most if not all tend towards barking, too). Mine are not all-day barkers, but they do react loudly to anything out of the ordinary, which makes them excellent watchdogs. The house will be covered in dog hairs, but at least they don't require stressful and expensive visits to the groomers. They very rarely need bathing, and though everything online insists that they must be brushed frequently (2 or 3 times a week), ime that's a fib. They're actually quite low-maintenance, as long as you can accept a life with dog hair on everything. My personal dog breed deal-breaker is that I'll never choose another breed that truly does require frequent grooming to avoid matting. It's a nightmare if the dog doesn't enjoy being brushed.

Of course, that’s the best bit surely

I'd like to second that. Our 3/4 lab one 1/4 poodle needed 2 full on hours of walking every day, whatever the weather. They are lovely but terrible scroungers and hoovers and shed enormously. I could never stop mine barking at the neighbours, no matter how I tried and trained, we did lots and lots of training.

I've met a couple of nice cockapoos but again, that might be just luck.
neighbours who needed a dog which wouldn't set their child's asthma off got a Havanese. Cute as a button, needs moderate exercise, likes a cuddle, needs clipping regularly.

My brother has several lurchers and a whippet, and they are the most chilled out dogs I've ever know. I've never heard them bark even once. They love a walk, but once they're back home, they'll stretch out and cuddle up and be perfectly content. They have a similar cheekiness to terriers too - they're just much more calmer than my Bedlington and Border!

I know they're not exactly small dogs, but might be worth thinking about anyway.

This is why whippet lurchers are my favourite - bit scruffier and less nesh than the pure breds.

We tend to treat minor injuries ourselves, but I was brought up in the countryside where everything was rinsed and liberally doused with purple spray. Unless it was hanging off, the vet wasn’t called!

Another vote for retired greyhound. They are super chilled and need way less walking than you would think. I might be biased as we have 4 sighthounds, who are currently stretched out asleep on sofas. hey won't move until hey hear me making lunch.

That would be fine as long as you have them a chance to be off the lead.

Can I ask? How much exercise does a lab need? I regularly go for 2 x 1 hour walks a day - would this be enough for a lab?

Again - as said before - Labs need way more than an hour walk a day!

You want a "chill" lab - exhaust them out first!

I do like whippets, my friend has one, but you def need good insurance. Her one has been at the vet several times because she would cut her very fine thin skin on branches, fences etc when zooming through woods and fields on walks.

My friend didn't feel it was fair to not let her have the freedom of off lead zoomies as we live in a beautiful rural area but her skin is fragile and seems easily damaged.

Try this - www.purina.co.uk/find-a-pet/dog-breeds/breed-selector

I was reading your post thinking Labrador. Parents have black labs. I haven't grown up with that breed but from what I have seen they are super chill, smart and trainable, great pub dogs if you need that, and don't even bat an eyelid when my nephews used to trod on their tails or 'pat' them.

Boston Terrier - don’t need much exercise, don’t shed, very gentle with kids, no crazy barking, v intelligent

Why are people suggesting labs? OP said less than an hour per day walk. Labs need long walks off lead. Greyhounds good as an early poster said

Ive had two spaniels - one lived till 16.5 and the other died last year at 17.5 years...

Defo a Chinese Crested - hairless one.

Whippet would be a good shout

Bedlington Terrier!!!! Lazy and lovely!

Snap!

Lurchers - whippet / terrier mix, ideally.

pros:
Smallish, not at all yappy, great with kids, sleep a lot, only need short (fast) walks but can also do long ones.

Cons:
bony but want to be on your lap all the time, think they are cats but hate cats, don’t respect the furniture being for humans

If you like the terrier cheek but want something a bit less annoying, lurchers are the best.

Whippet just won Crufts again so Rescue Whippets might be hard to get. Lots of adult Lurchers and Greyhounds in rescues though. They’re not smelly (like Labs are, sorry), sleep most of the day and need a short sprint to keep them in shape. They're proper snuggle-bugs, great with kids, and keep foxes, badgers and cats out of your veggie patch. You will have to make room on the sofa for them though (and probably your bed too). :D

Toy or miniature poodle, fun and easy to train. Don't shed but you do need to either learn how to trim them (and have tiny fragments of wool soaring through the air and settling on every available surface) or pay someone to do it for you every 6 - 8 weeks.