Best dog to get to keep our Staff company :)

[Marne]

Have posted several times before as we keep considering getting another dog, we looked into rehoming a older dog but i think it would be best for our other dog if we get a puppy.

We already have a 4 year old staffy, she's lovely but a bit hyper and naughty at times, she loves to mother things, seems fine with other dogs but gets very excited and playful with dogs similar to her (so we are thinking 'anoth staffy is probably not a good idea), she mothers the cat sinse we got him as a kitten so was hoping she would do the same if we got a puppy.

Dh wants a dog thats going to protect the house (poor lily does not do this, would probably lick someone to death if they broke in and never barks), so dh is thinking of a dog that would bark if someone tried to get in. I dont want a huge dog, dh said 'how about a german Shep' but i think that would be too big and hairy for our house. So we are looking for a dog that will bark, wont grow to big and will be good with the dd's (age 6 and 8), oh and it must get on well with our Staffy.

Also would it be best to get a male of female (our Staffy is female and spayed)?

I have got an eight year old staff and one year old yorkshire terrier. My staff is female and yorky is male (he is a bloody rascal and tries to beat her up). She loves him and they sometimes(ahem) share a bed together. However, she gets fed up with him and then lays on my bed or the sofa which he cant get on.

No expert but personally wouldn't want a "guard" dog with dc this age. Why do you want a guard dog anyway??? Our cocker spaniel barks if someone comes to the house...

Rainbow, we don't want a guard dog as such, just a dog that would bark if someone knocked the door or if someone came into our garden. I have wanted a dog for a while to keep Lily company but dh was not keen, there have been a few break ins near by so now dh thinks another dog would be a good idea.

I read that as Staff (employees) and though "how odd nice"

I really woudlnt go for a german shepherd, they are quite highly strung and whilst they are lovely dogs, need CALM! which your staffy isn't. Shepherds are very intelligent and can tend to be nervous if not trained properly, i woudlnt team a staff and a shepherd. MAybe a boxer? yes they are mad but they are pretty tolerant and have a good deep bark. Labrador too. I wouldnt rule out an older dog though, there are so many dogs in rescues who need new homes.

Honestly, I think a good better burglar alarm would be a better idea

My dogs do bark if someone knocks. And if someone opens the front gate. If they feel like it .

Only one of them barks a bit really, the other just joins in. If the slightly barky dog is tucked up in bed then she very often does not bark, or even get up to greet family members coming back.

I did mention a boxer to dh (i would lve one). I think we could get a recue dog as long as its a big (ish dog) as Lily seems mor ecalm with bigger dogs (probably becuase they are big and scary), she loves lurchers and labs but is a bit too wary of German sheperds, i'm not that keen on Gs's either as i have met a few nervous ones (i dont think i could trust one). Would love a springer (as i was brought up with them) but am worried as the 2 i have had in the past have chewed the house up.

I think Lilly would happily let anyone into the house or garden, would greet them with a lick and not make a sound .

Well i had two rotties, one i had from a pup and he would bark like a thing posessed if someone came to the door, run at the door and hit it with his head - id find people standing on the other side of the street when i opened the door. My second rottie was a rescue with aggression issues, he wouldn't make a sound when peole knocked on the door - guess which one you had to watch!

A springer is another mad dog that needs lots of exercise and mental stimulation.

i would heartily recommend a jack russel as i have two and they have such fun together, but they do like to play fight and a staff is a bit of a big opponent.

Wuld love a rotti, have seen several for re-homing but all say 'not suitable with children under 10 due to their size'

Have found some cross bread pups that i have fallen in love with, they are collie x husky x lab but not sure if dh is won over.

I would definately not have a rescue rotweiller with children under about 12 actually - they are a breed that need very firm and calm handling. They are my absolute favourite breed of dog but i wouldn't have one now i have DD2 who is 7, maybe when she is about 14. Also, you do have to bear in mind that rotties often end up in rescue centres because their owners can't handle them, haven't trained them properly so they don't come without issues - we had a rescue rotweiller, he was very challenging. Saying that, a staffy would DO MY HEAD IN, i wouldnt be able to cope with their madness. If you want a rotty, get a puppy.

I hate to be mrs negative - im with your DH on the collie x husky pups too. Dont got there!

We have Jack Russels now, they are fab, id love another big dog but couldnt cope with one just now. I hanker after an irish wolfhound but DP wouldnt allow it, he wants an american bulldog and in that instance, it would be "its me or the dog"

Have found a Staffyxlab in a rehoming centre, i am very tempted to go and visit him, although i think a staffy is probably not the best choice but was hoping the lab in him would make him bigger than Lily and slightly more intelligent .

A friend also has Staffy puppies (they are only a couple weeks old so not ready yet), i have seen photo's and am slightly broody. I guess it all depends what Lily wants, it may be easier with a pup as she would mother it rather than a dog her size who she would probably piss off wanting to play with it all the time.

They might not be so easy to find at rescue centres, but how about a poodle or spaniel or crosses of either of those breeds?
My Staff girl who's probably much like yours gets always wants to play with spaniels/poodles and their owners often say they have a 'thing' for Staffs!
(I think they tend to have well matched energy and silliness levels. Poodles = v v intelligent, too. Not saying spaniels aren't clever too, though...)
Oh, and whippets/lurchers?
None of these 'guard dogs' as such, obv... The joint joyous welcome of a Staff and Standard Poodle is a wonderful thing - can literally sweep you off your feet, though.

We've got a sausage dog and she is best friends with the staffie next door (we regularly look after their dog and vice versa) it's so cute to watch. She does suffer from small dog syndrome so is a barker! They are quite stubborn though and needs lots of training, but ours is fab! Good luck!

Our lab was a great guard dog and personality-wise would co-habit well with a staffy, both are lovers-of-life. They can be quite large but many are smaller.

I currently have a collie-lab cross who is excellent with our ds who is 2yo. He is not at all fierce so no good if anyone actually broke in but he does do a good job looking and sounding fierce to anyone who comes to the house.

We had a dachshund years ago and he had the most enormous bark - he also loved playing with other dogs and was very friendly all round. The long haired ones are the most placid.