Want to get a dog - narrowing down poss breeds

[basildonbond]

Hi

We are in the process of researching getting a puppy and would like to canvass opinion on different breeds.

I've not had a dog since my gorgeous but very dim cocker spaniel died when the children were very small. We have been dogless for several years but now dd's 'I want a dog' campaign is gaining momentum!

We live in a suburby bit of London, ten minutes walk away from a big common and with lots of other places for walks an easy drive away. We have a reasonably big house with a small/medium garden. The dc are 10, 13 and 16 so no longer small and dd especially (the 10 year old) is v responsible. We have a much-loved and not particularly confident cat.

We had Labradors and a rescued collie cross when I was a child and I adopted a rescue cocker spaniel at 6 months when I was a student. My parents' border collie died two years ago and is still much missed by the children.

We would like a medium to large but not enormous dog, which likes exercise but doesn't go completely doollaly if it's not being worked all day (I grew up with a strict regimen of two dog walks a day whatever the weather!). As far as temperament goes we would like a kind, affectionate, intelligent breed which is not going to torture the cat. I know we should really get a rescue dog but I know a lot of rescue dogs have 'issues' and are older and I would love dd to have the experience of having a puppy and being able to train it right from the start.

So far we've thought of Labrador and or related crosses, but they might be a bit too big and are a devil to keep slim once they get older (our first lab was so lovely but obsessed with food and was constantly running off scavenging), we know border collies but they can be a bit manic, we know spaniels but they're not always the brightest of dogs, my parents have suggested a poodle and dh is keen on the idea of a rough collie

Any ideas/feedback on any of those breeds would be great plus any others we've not thought of yet to throw into the mix

Pro Dogs Direct (South East England) and South East Dog Rescue wouldn't be too far away. Others are Heathlands in Hertfordshire, Four Paws, Hope Rescue, Wagtails Rescue (Essex), Oldies Club, Many Tears, Black Retriever Rescue. Many rescues will have puppies, unwanted litters or young dogs put in rescue for many different reasons. You can google Dogpages and get a list of rescues in your particular part of the country. I found all these through Google, most of them have Facebook pages as well.

If you are willing to rescue a dog from abroad there are so many rescues operating in Spain like SOS Animals UK, RSDR in Bulgaria, Action Aid for Animals in Romania, Sirius Dog Sanctuary and Desperate Greekies as well as rescues in Cyprus - they are all helping to home dogs in UK and other European countries.

You will often find that dogs on Dogsblog have often been rehomed - they don't seem to keep it very up-to-date.

There is a thread on here at the moment about someone trying to rehome a cocker spaniel due to a family death . If not what about a Doberman .

Poodle rescue dogs are fostered (in fosterers homes) in lots of areas, and assessed by their fosterers prior to being rehomed, so their personality and any issues will be known.

A lot of rescues work with a network of fosterers (Pro Dogs for one) so, if you have doubts about a rescue, a fostered dog will have been thoroughly assessed as to their behaviour with other dogs, often cats/children etc and so you could feel reassured as to the dog's temperament. Or, you could ask the rescue if you could foster a dog for a few weeks to see if it's the right "fit" for your family. I would think less about specific breed and more about temperament. It sounds like you have a busy schedule with three kids, I would really think about whether you want a puppy that requires 24/7 attention, housetraining, mouthing, pulling, chewing and all the other things that will demand your time and attention. There have been other threads on MN where people admit being brought to their knees emotionally and physically by the demands of a small puppy. And, kids don't always find puppies cute especially when their ankles are being bitten on a regular basis!

Don't discount Springers if you are prepared to give them 2 good walks a day, which you are. They are far from daft, my DH has a friend who trains Springer puppies for the police as sniffer dogs. Our 20 week old Springer picks stuff up very very quickly. And, given the correct exercise levels, not anymore loopy than other breeds who are worked. They are super family dogs, very friendly and cheerful and loyal, our puppy hasn't offended any other dog yet, he's not so in your face as some.

Puppies are bloody hard work, mentally and physically as others say, but you have 3 kids who are not babies and able to help out with training, walking etc. My DC are 13 and 11, this has helped tons. We love our boy to bits, despite the work! Although, I do think that had my kids been younger I would have found it tough.

You can get puppies from rescues too but if you do go down the breeder route, take your time and research carefully. We put a lot of time and effort into finding the correct breeder, which for us, has worked well.

I didn't know much about rescues before getting our puppy, and certainly wouldn't discount next time.

Good luck - how exciting for you!

Our puppy 'got' toilet training in a week to 10 days, slept through quickly and hasn't been too bitey, so we have been lucky but it is like having a toddler again

The Mayhew has some (mixed breed) puppies in at the moment, they are both very cute!

maggie they are!! but we won't be in a position to take on a dog until the summer, hence all the research now