Aibu that dogs are now a class identifier??

[MammabearX1]

Just that.... Since my dc have returned to school (London prep) the school gates are crowded with little fluffy pups.... All expensive cockapoo or cavachon types... Thorough breds seems to be gone out of fashion & there's not a mongrel in sight... I'm thinking these are a class identifier as those fluffy dogs are so expensive... My husband thinks it's down to the dogs size making them perfect for London living with smaller garden space etc... Is it just our school? When I was young the posh kids had cocker spaniels or some type of working dogs but then I grew up in the country...

@SmokedDuck

Your experience with one dog from a bad breeder doesn’t make it all meaningless!

When you are talking about lines that have the highest honours for good breeding, from the society that created and regulates purebred dog breeding, it kind of does.

And it's hardly an unusual experience, many of those dogs are conformational disasters.

In some breeds, yes. You’re right of course. There are however plenty of breeds out there that have natural conformation (no extremes). There are bad people in every breed and they are sometimes at the top. Isn’t this the same in all areas of life. There are many others though, who care a great deal, not only about the quality, including temperament, of the puppies they produce, but also about the breed in general.

There are so many wonderful dog breeds and cross breeds . I can’t really understand the popularity of cockerpoos (or is everyone now allergic? In which case, why not have a straight up Poodle and forget about the cocker bit?).

Am trying not to be snobby about them though as I have a cross-breed myself, a lurcher who we got as a “reject” for being crap at hunting and scared of everything. Best dog ever.

But everyone thinks that about their own dog

As to “class signifiers”, lurchers are traditionally travelers’ dogs (the word “lurcher” comes from the Romany word “lur” which means thief. All sight hounds are thieves really with their naughty rabbit poaching and counter surfing!) ...so not very posh I guess

At the next zombie apocalypse /lack of Waitrose deliveries we can just have rabbits for tea though

Same with shi tzus @Sweetpea1532

@PrintempsAhoy , what we need is Poochers.
Poodle X greyhound

Poochers! The wonderful madness of the poodle with the speed of a greyhound

Could be so much fun

Yes we should invent some new cross breeds.

How about a whippet-pug? A “wug”

It might be cute

A Wug would sort the nose problems out

@MrsPernicious

A Wug would sort the nose problems out

See people have tried that with JRT (ok not as pointy, lol) and sometimes it works, sometimes you get a JRT personality and activity level with a pug’s breathing problems

@EiffelPower,
Even older than the Pugs...that's some trend!

Pugs, shi tzus and chihuahua’s have always been small companion dogs and have existed for a long time. Nobody has suggested otherwise. However their popularity in the West is recent and has led to poor breeding practices and unhealthy animals.

The lack of critical thinking skills around this 🙄

We have a french bulldog

I have wanted one for years way before they got really popular but we had several bigger dogs and it wasn’t the right time for a smaller dog .
I don’t really care what people think about me owning one . I know I’m a good responsible owner .
He’s exceptionally healthy & can walk for miles has no breathing problems
Fully insured for 15k lifetime Insurance
I did my research with the breeder and I’m still in touch with the breeder and give him updates on my dog .
I met mum dad and sister and both the parents had the relevant health tests and he’s KC regs although I don’t really care about that as it’s not an indicator of a good breeding .
The only thing I didn’t realise is that he would be a complete and utter knobhead 😂 and is a thousand times more hard work than my bigger dogs .

What really annoys me is that people post about getting a puppy next week but it’s all about what shall I name it .
They then start bitching about the cost of insurance which can cost anything from £45 a month to £120 a month depending on your postcode.

French bulldogs are an expensive breed to buy and insure they can easily cost upwards of 2k for a puppy.

But They don’t check the price of insurance before buying the puppy and then can’t afford it
Insurance was the first thing that I looked at when buying my dog last year

I pay £195 monthly iinsurance for our hound.

Wow, £195!! What breed is your dog?

I wonder if premiums are lower if you select crossbreed, instead of cockerpoo etc?

We met a labradoodle pup at the weekend that they had just paid 3k for!

It is an indicator of the breeders priorities when their cockerpoo/something poo pups are double the price of a standard/mini poodle for example.

I love all dogs and the love most owners have for their dogs. I don’t love all breeders though. I do wish that owners do a bit more homework and are a little more patient. It’s not unusual to be on a breeders waitlist for a year, but we live in a society where people want things tomorrow and that’s puppies now too.

Blueboys77

Our Tom is a Deerhound and although not an especially well known breed, at 46 kg they look rather like a slightly smaller version of an Irish Wolfhound. When we are out and about that's what Dad's tell their kids he is. Our local veterinary practice is the most expensive in South London. It will be even more expensive next year when I have to pay 10% on top of the first £100. I probably won't bother to insure then and try to self insure instead, as lots of people do. We waited 18 months for him and yes, premiums depend on the breed, claims history, (he's had some expensive problems) and local area.

Wow! That's some cost for insurance...another plus for the cross breeds

fluffyugg
But he's worth every penny!

Lovely, my friend had a litter last year and I love following their journey. Gorgeous dogs.

@tommyhoundmum I'm sure! I've met a few recently serving as therapets...beautiful dogs inside and out

Bernewfoundland. The fluffiest dog EVER.

Yeah, 100%: people who are actually posh have rescue dogs. Cockapoos/ any Instagram breeds are try hard and in no way indicative of class.