Give me your expert opinion on my two final breed choices

[Pollycazalet]

Am doing lots of research and think I may have narrowed possible dog down to lurcher and poodle.

Here's my criteria - what do you think? A good match?

A dog which needs an hours walk a day plus one shorter one but can do longer at weekends.

Good with kids -ours are older 11 and 14 and want at least the older one to be able to walk the dog independently.

Minimal moulting and smell - don't mind grooming.

Smallish in size as our house is not huge and garden is tiny.

Cat friendly or at least not cat aggressive!

We are all out three days a week from 815 until 4 so the dog would need to be walked by a dog walker/ friend.

Bright and easily trained ( not sure if this is so much a breed thing as character thing though)

Don't really think I can cope with a puppy so might want an older dog.

I don't really want a puppy as I said earlier. Not sure how likely it would be to find a rescue poodle.

Lurchers and GHs are ideal lazy peoples dogs.

I had an large lurcher and he needed one sprint a day. The rest of the time he was a complete couch potato. This is typical of the type. They are fast - but high energy they are not.

He moulted like mad all year round. I've never met a dog that moulted as much.

Adorable temperament. Complete wuss - he'd scream if you even looked as if you might tread on a hair of his tail.

I've never had a poodle. My current dog is 1/8th poodle but that doesn't really count! I'd like one though; I like teaching tricks :)

There are breed specific rescues, not sure where you are but a quick google may find you one.

My friend found a poodle that a couple had bought then they had to move due to work
It was 18 months old and lovely
They advertised it on the internet which is a little worrying
I am sure there is a poodle rescue or get to know some breeders who may know of dogs
I never thought we would have a poodle (allergies was why we got one) but I am sold
She does prance and she can walk easily on her hind legs waving her front legs in the air (DS is slightly embarrassed by this!)

He sounds gorgeous calamity! The moulting is an absolute deal breaker though so I think lurchers are off the list.

Lurcher Link are good too. They tend to say whether good with cats or not, and are very reputable.

Cross posts! Although I think it is rare to actually have a dog that doesn't moult, a lot of the non-moult dogs are myth I think:)

Aw roadwalker your poodle sounds gorgeous too. Have looked at rescue poodles but they are all very hard line on not giving a dog to a household where there isn't someone around most of the time

I have a very short haired staffy, she only needs a quick buff with a damp cloth to clean her to a velvet shine! Some greyhounds are equally short haired.

Both types would be happy with the amount of exercise you propose as they are total couch potatoes!

The staffy would love you and your children to bits - they are very affectionate dogs who require a lot of cuddles!

I had a greyhound which met all your requirements apart from size.

Whippet?

i would go to a rescue centre and be matched with a specific dog rather than a breed. Certainly a dog thats a bit older, since it will be an empty house all day

It always amazes me that people on dog forums make it sound like you cant have a dog unless you are home all day! 3 days of being left 8hrs with a dog walker visiting wont harm the dog. If you get a rescue you will be able to specify you want a cat friendly dog who can be left. This is what we did we now have a cat friendly Bichon Frise who can be left home alone usually for 5hrs on a weekday and thats with no dog walker viiting.

It amazes me that people on dog forums make it sound perfectly acceptable to leave dogs for hours on end. Dogs have no choice and have to adapt to this but it does not mean that they are happy or like it.

Dogs need company and attention and should not be left for hours on their own.

I agree yoube. There are lots of dogs in rescues for years who would have a much better life with the op!

An hours walk a day plus a shorter walk, plenty of human interaction within the home (2 dc's), visiting dogwalker!
A rescue dog will land on it's feet with this setup!

I agree with nutty.its no life for a dog to be left alone.

There's a poodle rescue called Oodles of Poodles which you might find helpful - they had some lovely sounding dogs in the week. I follow them on Facebook.

Greyhounds do not need lots of walking as they're generally lazy buggers. 20 mins twice a day is fine, if you can let them have a safe sprint off the lead so much the better. The rest of the day they'll cheerfully hog yoursofa and snooze.

Google Retired Greyhound Trust for more info and a rescue centre near you. My lovely Stanley (lurcher) came through their Shropshire branch and he is wonderful.

He copes perfectly with being alone for 6 hours while I'm at work, as long as he has some hidden treats and chews to find and R4 playing in the kitchen. He gets a 30 min walk at 7am, we leave at 8.30, then he gets a 10 minute nip round the block when we get home at 4 followed by a 20 minuter after tea. He has a much better life than he had in kennels and I am so, so pleased that we adopted him.

Poodle Rescue (Poodles in Need).

Much better a rescue dog has lots of loving attention, a family to call its own, a few walks a day than stay in kennells for years even if the pay off is it has to be alone for some parts of the day. Im sure if you asked my rescue dog who is currently sleeping on the sofa her head in DHs lap she much prefers life with us than being repeatedly over looked in the shelter because she is too old!

Anyway this thread isnt about that it is about the OP and I dont want her to feel she cant have a dog unless she is home pretty much all day because that just isnt the case.

My lurcher doesn't moult (very fine coated) and is cat safe. He's happy to have two short walks a day, or to run for hours and hours.

Though hes tallish (not as big as a greyhound or a wolfhound/deerhound lurcher type) he curls up small and doesn't feel like a big dog.

Cmotdog came from EGLR who foster all their dogs so know them very well. Dogs go onto their FB page first, so you can stalk them!

Both fine dogs. Lurchers do need a good excersize but twice a day should be fine and twenty minutes each time would be plenty. I like lurchers...they can be chewy like all dogs if they get bored. They like to chase stuff.

I love the idea of rescues getting homed BUT I am always wary of rescues and kids. You dont know the dogs back ground and it would be awful if they snapped at a child. The thing is they are animals and if they feel threatened they could easily snap...even a chihuahua or small dog can do damage to a child. Not sure if you have a child op but dont feel guilt tripped into a rescue.

There is a huge difference between an owner being home pretty much all day and being out for 8 hours per day for almost half the week.

However, the best judges of whether a potential dog would be OK with that would be staff at whichever rescue the OP is looking to adopt from. They know the individual dogs and know which would be well matched with the home she can offer. Many rescues will look at individual circumstances and needs of individual dogs, rather than having blanket policies.

An intelligent dog, which needs lots of mental stimulation may not be the best choice to be left regularly as they will find their own entertainment. A less intelligent dog does not necessarily mean difficult to train, in fact, often quite the contrary! Our less than smart lurcher was not difficult to train even though she came to us as an older dog with unknown history.

I thought poodles were prone to separation anxiety due to their intelligence. Sure I read that about them, never had one though.