Choosing a dog

[Wellwellwell3holesintheground]

Hello, I was hoping some of you could help me think through getting a dog. DH grew up with dogs but I have never owned one. My sister has had one for 8 years (wire/border terrier cross) and I also dog sit for a friend's lurcher collie cross.

I absolutely do not want to rush into this and am prepared to spend a couple of months thinking and researching (which is hopefully where you lot come in!). I've spent ages googling and it's a bit like baby advice - many different ideas, all valid and no one prepared to get down off the fence. So I want the truth! If I gets the end of this and it's not practical then so be it, no dog, however sweet they are.

We have three children (11,8,5) and run our own business which would allow us to have the dog with us all the time. DH feels that he would rather get a puppy so he knows it is properly trained and how it reacts to things.

We have a decent sized garden (have chickens in an enclosed pen and guinea pigs which spend the nights inside and days in a run outside) and are within a 5 minute walk of several open spaces despite being in a city. Short drive to woodlands, rivers and down land. I also have some money set aside for anything we need and the first year's insurance etc PIL happy to dog sit if we need ever.

So where the hell do I start?! I don't think I want a small dog and nothing huge. And then I get stuck. So if anyone has got to the end of this, how do I go about working out if and when and what we should get? Thanks for reading!

Meeting both parents can actually not be so good - if they are physically close (or in the same household) they could be closer related to each other than is genetically good for their offspring. Many breeder source the sire for their litters from far away for that reason.
I am not saying that is the case here, but it is a factor.

I agree with asking "Why is he breeding her?"
What breed is it and what is he asking for the puppies?

Friends of my brother's (I don't know them) just had 12 (12!) healthy puppies from their Rhodesian Ridgeback bitch. They are going to be sold for 1800 Euro each. But of course money is not the motivation here at all…

I wouldn't buy from a "mate's dog", unless he is a reputable breeder. He will be in it for the money I bet.

A rescue, or if you want a specific breed, then research your breeder well. There are loads of threads on here about what to look for in a breeder.

Lurcher link are also fabulous (so I'm told by many) if you are looking for a lurcher type. They also quite frequently have pups. Beware that pups are hard, hard work and not quite the romantic idea you have in your head when thinking of getting one. I speak from recent experience! Again, just have a scroll through the threads on here :)

I have a crossbreed and she is lovely. Mostly. I got her at 12 weeks from a local rescue. Best thing I ever did, although I may not have said that when I was in tears thinking I had made the worst decision ever in the early days. It's tough!

Overall though, dogs are a fantastic addition to a family. Can't wait to see what kind of dog you settle on!

Is the "mate's dog" a breed you were actually considering or is it just a case of convenience?

I'd also want to know why they're breeding, what they're hoping to produce, why they chose to use that specific dog for the bitch (other than because it was the closest one that still had his bollocks) and whether all appropriate health tests for the breed have been done on both dogs.

I'm not against all breeding per se. My mum, my sister and my SIL have all bred litters in the past, always to get a new puppy. None of us have ever made money from it, in fact it's an exhausting pain in the arse caring for bitch and puppies and finding good owners for the ones that weren't the pick of the litter. Between us we've made healthy contributions to the gene pool for Dalmatians, Cocker Spaniels and Basenjis.

By far the hardest work was the Dalmatians. Weeding out the rosy-spectacled prospective owners whose total knowledge of the breed was what they'd picked up from watching Disney movies gave my sister sleepless nights for several weeks. It didn't help that her bitch had 14 puppies... we ended up with five staying within the extended family and two buyers ended up with a Buy One Get One Free deal!

I was just looking into another dog as well. Stuff that's been brought up to consider would be: shedding and grooming requirements, energy levels, work or prey drive (e.g. are herding dogs likely to nip ankles of small children, hunting/hounds likely to chase small animals, cats etc), lifespan and known health problems for specific breeds, climate where you are, temperment etc.

There's a few online quizzes you can do that ask questions about that and spit out a list of 10 best dog breeds for you, that kind of thing. If you're looking at a shelter/rescue though, I would think a lot of the dogs would be mixed breeds?

I have a wolfhound x mastiff and he is the biggest sweetheart. A lot of people recommend golden retrievers for family dogs as well. Hope you find a beautiful addition!

He wanted his bitch to have two litters before being done. She had the first a while ago and he definitely didn't make any money from them. In fact he made a loss as he paid for dog sitters while the puppies were tiny. I don't know what breed she is but I know she is mid sized and the father is a lurcher cross. I have never met her but DH has multiple times and he thinks she has a really lovely nature and is beautiful. I think breeding her is a tad sentimental - anthropomorphising at its worst. She doesn't need to have another litter 'because she really enjoyed being a mum'.

I wouldn't buy a puppy from a breeder who is producing multiple litters because they think it's a rewarding experience for their bitch, regardless of whether they're making money or not.

If you're happy with a mongrel or random crossbreed then a rescue puppy is really no more of a risk than buying from someone chucking the closest two dogs with working reproductive systems together. If you'd rather buy a puppy then a decent breeder with a clear goal in mind who is doing everything right is worth their weight in gold.

It will be two litters in total but something about it doesn't sit right with me. And the dog has been selected for good temperament. But I'm not comfortable with the reasoning.