Pointy hound types, come hither...

[GeorgianMumto5]

...and tell me more about your dogs.

I'm awaiting a rescue dog, but it's a specific breed of dog (toy poodle) and I fear I may be waiting forever, so I thought maybe I should consider other breeds. I need a dog that is low allergen (hence poodle) and fairly small (hence toy breed). I need a dog that requires daily exercise, but doesn't need loads of exercise. My health would both benefit from and cope with that.

Would a whippet also fit the bill? Someone told me that greyhounds are low-allergen. I wondered if that is the case for whippets too. A greyhound would be too big, I think. I only have a small 2-sweater sofa and I gather they like sofas.

I have 2 DC, aged 7 and 10. The 7 yr old wants a dog who will 'run fast and catch a ball'. The 10 yr old wants one she can do something with, e.g. train, dog agility, etc. I would obviously be the main carer and I want a dog anyway. I want a youngish rescue, not a puppy.

Any advice? Would I be better sticking with poodles?

I think whippets look gorgeous too, what with the pointiness, the wing-nut ears and the big eyes.

poodle puppy it's not a teeny puppy though.

Poodles aren't low allergen though, no dogs really are, they may not shed fur everywhere, but it tends to be skin and saliva that people are allergic to.

Greyhounds and whippets are lower allergen because they have very fine coats, so shed a lot less. A greyhound could do all of those things in your OP, although a lot of them are too lazy and stupid to do agility, some may enjoy it.

Lurchers are fantastic, you could go for a fine coated whippet/collie x that x would fit the bill perfectly (I know of such a dog needing a home btw )

Whippets are more energetic in general than greyhounds, although still quite dumb, on the whole, you do get some smart ones, the flying whippet (my dad's rescue whippet) is super smart and would excel at something like agility.

It's definitely worth doing more research OP, I'd meet a few before committing to anything, just to be certain you are not allergic.

'It's definitely worth doing more research OP, I'd meet a few before committing to anything, just to be certain you are not allergic.'

That's what I was trying to get at when I was wittering about poodles...you'll need to check how you react to different breeds if you're considering them.

Thanks!

I've hung out with a toy poodle and a bedlington and fared pretty well. I have hung out with jack Russell/staffie/lab/spaniel types and not fared so well. I do reasonably well with westies, but the bedlington and the poodle have been the least allergenic for me, so far. I also seem to be fine with a cavalier/bichon cross that I know. I know someone with either a greyhound or smooth coated lurcher, so I'll ask her if the dog and I can spend some time together.

I don't think any dog will be 100% allergy-free for me, but I'm happy if my reactions are simply muted. It's not a serious reaction, it's just uncomfortable.

I'm entertained by the idea that I can choose between 'thick and lazy' and 'intelligent and highly strung'. Not sure which I'd prefer, to be honest. Both have their attractions.

tablu, I've my eye on those two. They look and sound gorgeous. However, I don't think I'll ever persuade dh to get two and they need to be renamed together, really. I hope someone lovely adopts them soon.

I would echo what others have said about spending time.

Ds is badly allergic to spaniels etc and reacts quickly. We went to meet a whippet/greyhound X rescue and ds reacted badly to that. We ended up researching lower allergen dogs and ended up with a Border Terrier. He is great and ds hasn't had any problems at all.

Oh, border terriers are cute! I hadn't considered them. Thank you. I do love a good terrier.

Somehow, I ended up marrying a man who (while otherwise perfect in every way) is allergic to dogs, horses and cats. We researched carefully and are now owned by four greyhounds, all of whom he adores and cohabits successfully with. We really notice a difference though when we visit friends with longer haired dogs - he starts getting sneezy/sore eyes within a couple of hours, and is violently allergic to horses/cats still.

I know several greyhounds who do well at dog training classes, and Evesham Greyhound and Lurcher Rescue currently have a gorgeous young chap called Arri who is a star at agility and loving it. Evesham will rehome nationally by the way. There are some gorgeous pics of him on their FB page.

Yes, they are not generally the brightest of dogs but some can and do cope with and enjoy things like agility and all ours love things like basic clicker training/obedience. We've previously taken older greys through KC Good Citizen - our darling old boy who we lost last year did his Gold at the age of 12.

Depending on the cross, a whippet x would be a cinch for stuff like this, though don't rule out smaller greys. There's actually a remarkable size range in the breed. Our largest male has a back size of 32" and weighs around 38kg - our smallest female has a coat back size of 26" and weighs about 24/25 kg. She is very dainty and petite. The only thing ours won't do is run after or catch a ball - they think it's completely beneath their dignity, though a potential squirrel will have them screaming across the field at Warp Factor 11.

It would be wrong of me to let Ds throw a squirrel, wouldn't it? Shame - it is his one request of a dog.

I've got three greyhounds of varying sizes and degrees of stupidity! Missile is the smallest and is Shipley-sized at 24" and 22kg. She is also very intelligent and has been taught some tricks. She'll chase a ball but then just rolls around 'killing' it. Stanley is the largest and dumb as soup but he loves chasing a ball and even brings it back and drops it on command to be thrown again. One of my friends is allergic to dogs normally but has no reaction to my three.

Missile = Maisie
Shipley = whippet

Bloody Kindle

There is a pointy in our park who is always chasing balls from a flinger so some must like them.

But my Border LOVES football....sorry pointy types, I do like them but I'm team terrier . Go on, look at my profile and resist that little furry face!

Oh but they're only tiny...two of them is still smaller than most other dogs

Most dogs will chase something...does it have to be a ball? squirrel ball hybrid lol

What about a whippet/Bedlington if you've already tested bedlingtons out? The rescue I got ours from lets you have a trial foster to start with which I think is really sensible (and they rehome across the country too)

Fan, I love terriers too! Just that DH's allergies make them impractical for us. There were masses of terrier/pointy combos at the Greyhound Extravaganza recently, and of course it's a classic pairing among the working dog fraternity. I have terrible cravings for whiskery lurchers and deerhounds/wolfhounds too - I have to get my fix by doing transports and other voluntary stuff

Love the squirrel ball - that might be enough to persuade them....

My whiskery lurchery loves her squeeky squirrel thing that we bought her - and it hit the ceiling last night as she was playing with it...

All of my Dad's pointies chase balls. They go mad for them. My pointy looks at him like he's lost mind when he asks her to go and chase One of them digs a hole if you kick the ground, not something we have taught him, he did it when he came to us. We think he must've been used for rabbiting before being dumped

One of his is a whippet, the other two are lurchers, one a bull breed x and the other unknown.

I had a foster lurcher who loved balls, he was obsessed with them, although when he indicated an interest I encouraged the obsession so I could use them as a recall tool around other dogs, it worked very well. He was also super smart and loved clicker training and would've done really well at something like agility.

Thats is why I think it is so important to spend time with individual breeds Scuttlebutler as ds is fine with borders but not greys. Staffies and JRT's set him off too. It must vary person to person.

Dooin - our first lurchery dog would dig where you told her to - she loved it - and we got her as a puppy at 7 wks.... (this was many moons ago). Our current dog, who almost certainly was used (unsuccessfully) for working looks at you as though you were mad if you suggest that she might investigate a mole hill (that you've seen being pushed up as you've walked towards it). However, she did manage a few paws at a rabbit hole that she bumped into when following a rabbit in the dunes on holiday recently.

My lurcher lurves balls - and frisbees - and just about anything else you can throw for him to run off with retrieve. He's also clicker trained and whilst not the brightest bulb in the box is still smart enough to enjoy training and learn stuff - not in the same way as my GSD, Wheaten or Collie cross were, but enough to be well behaved and have nice manners.

If I were you I'd be attracted to the bedlington/whippet combo, but definitely try and meet a few of each breed before making up your mind.

Mind you - I have a huge soft spot for border terriers as well and was planning to get a bt pup later this year until I gave into my true feelings for another pointy. I would love a pointy/terrier though, that would cover all my bases.

My Wheaten used to dig when/wherever you told her to. She wasn't a rescue though and we had her from 7 weeks old. She was particularly good at digging on the beach - not recommended if you don't want your suncream covered in flying sand. The dcs used to use her to dig moats around their sandcastles.

She never dug in our garden, but if we told her to 'dig dig' she'd oblige with gusto!

My last dog would dig on command as well...I don't even know what he was, lol. We were told he was a collie cross, but I suspect that was a gues as he was picked up as a stray when he was fairly tiny puppy, re homed and returned before we got him. He looked lurchery, but bigger than most and chunkier.

When it comes to playing and doing obedience or agility...most breeds will do well enough to satisfy a child, they'll play something and you can do basic obedience even if it's a bit more challenging.

I'd just find out which ones suit your allergy and keep an eye out for any of those.

Oh my gosh, fanoftheinvisibleman, how cute is your dog?! I am in love. I think I know one of them, I just didn't realise it was called a border. I'll ask if I can hang out with her, too.

So, I'm getting a toy poodle, a whippet, a border...

MarmaladeNapkins, Missile would make a great name for a greyhound though, don't you think?

Make it Miss Aisle for a bitch... they do look like models after all.