To all you people who say get a rescue dog ...

[RudePepper]

Time and time again on here I read 'get a rescue dog', 'don't encourage breeding', but it is really hard to find one.

I have been looking for a while now and would quite happily travel a hundred or so miles to see the right dog, but just can't fine one. We have children, so I want something with a known non-aggressive history - just a normal family dog.

Can anyone give me any tips please? I am all googled out.

www.yrdr.co.uk/portfolio/chase-2

Chase.

You'll have to actually get in touch with rescues...as a rule they tend not to put the easy to rehome dogs on the website.

I was just scrolling down to post the same!! It's definitely worth registering interest and getting home checked by rescues even if they don't currently have any dogs that you're interested in.

Don't immediately discount dogs that have been returned to the rescue. Obviously it's important to know why (and whether it's indicative of a failing on behalf of the rescue to place the dog appropriately) but there's a whole host of reasons a dog might be returned which don't mean the dog is unsuitable as a family pet.

I have a rescue staffie and although yes he's a staffie and we have all the baggage that comes with that image of a staffie owner. He is the most perfect dog!

Good recall, laid back, lovely with my 2 year old, steady personality and friendly, no problems and I hear this a lot about staffies.

I'd suggest actually going along to some of the rescue homes to meet the dogs, one might strike you when you see it in the flesh.

I really hope you can find one, your lifestyle sounds ideal, and you sound so sensible and realistic.

There is a dog sitting in a rescue home, cold and lonely today who could be warm and loved with you very soon. Please don't give up and buy a puppy.

I'm picking up my first rescue dog on Saturday. I'm mildly terrified, but my gut feeling is that I've made the right choice.

I'm not in the UK, so it might be a little different, but basically my procedure was: identify a breed I thought would fit my home & lifestyle well, then sign up to all the rescue groups' websites, input my preferences and check obsessively!

I'm getting a 2-year-old whippet X. Whippets are my favourite breed, and it sounds like they might fit your requirements too. Very gentle, clean, need a good spurt of exercise regularly but are otherwise lounge lizards, not barky or slobbery. They are a bit sensitive and don't do well with too much noise or chaos, though, so that might be a deal-breaker.

The rescue organisation was very up-front about my dog's training needs. She was taken off the streets after being found emaciated and sick. She will need a lot of training in some areas (jumping up, in particular), but I'm prepared to put the effort in.

I have already bought her (amongst other things) an engraved tag, a Kong chew toy, and a feather-filled bed.

Good luck in your search, OP.

crapcrapcrapcrap thanks - it is the rescue people themselves that have been telling me that we shouldn't take a lurcher off lead though - I don't have experience of the breed.

I'm not sure it's fair to have a puppy when I am working from home tbh. Sometimes I can be on the phone for an hour - puppy would be bursting!

Thanks Koala - love whippets and all sight hounds - but my bunch of boys (humans!) are lively chaps (well behaved, but active) we we need to search hard for the right whippet.

Rude Thank you. My children fell in love with one yesterday, they liked it as they said it understood what they were saying and could dance on its hind legs! But it had a history of growling at toddlers and running away as soon as the door is open. I know we'd need to be careful with the door anyway, but we're too close to a main road for that.

Pacific yes would very much consider a greyhound - have someone coming to see us soon hopefully. Ditto local lab person I found today.

Whippet Rosie is gorgeous - will give them a call

needastrongone - Chase is lovely, but probably a six hour drive each way ... (forgot to say we are in the South). Children not all teens for Marley.

Good luck Koala.

Thanks everyone - comments all appreciated! Keep suggestions coming!

I would echo what others have said, that it is well worth contacting rescues and registering your interest. Most of them will have eyes that light up when you tell them you work from home, and also that you are not fixed on a particular breed.
The fact is many rescues are way too busy to always update FB or websites and often have many dogs which you won't see by just googling.
If you pick resue which works with fosterers then you should be able to find a dog which has been child tested, amongst other things. It's not necessarily a fast process, we are coming into a busy time of year - IME the preChristmas dumping of dogs is about to start, followed by the post Christmas dumping of puppies :(

We got MuttDog (pic on profile) from Many Tears Animal Rescue. She's a collie x springer x something else and she would tick every single 'want' on your list.

www.manytearsrescue.org/dogslookingforhomes.php

Rocky, Arthur, Keen and Dex at MTAR look like good matches for you. Best of luck :)

Just a comment about working from home, we took on a rescue staffy-cross 4 weeks ago, I work from home but found the first 2-3 weeks I did minimal work as I was having to keep and eye on him the whole time.

I was getting very frustrated with my lack of work output and it was my fault for not realising how much time Ddog was going to take up initially. All is fine now, we have a routine, he's settled and you may have thought about it already (he's our first dog) but just a heads up!

We also said, on the way to rescue, no staffys or staffy-crosses and had completely overlooked him but after speaking to the rescue centre staff he was the one that fitted our lifestyle the best and we are (4 weeks down the line, mind, and see the thread on Separation Anxiety!) happy with him and he has been brilliant with my brothers kids aged 4 and 9, so have a chat with the staff, they'll be able to give you far more to go on than an advert.

I second what others have said about registering interest with the rescues, also stalk their fb pages, as often dogs come in and end up being adopted before they ever make it to the rehoming pages of the rescue's website. I'd also advise getting homechecked sooner, rather than later, as it bumps you up the list of potential homes when they're matching dogs to potential adopters.

Have a look at Mickey here. He's a bit younger than you were thinking of but very family/child friendly and looks like a gorgeous lad.

You may need to travel to find your perfect dog. Our lad was a good 7/8 hour drive away, but being willing to travel shows commitment to making the adoption work. Alternatively, lots of rescues have a network of volunteers that work together to facilitate transport runs to get dogs to their new families, so don't always discount dogs that are some distance from your home.

It may take a while for you to find the right dog, but it will be worth it when you have your perfect match to cuddle up to.

Have you tried http: www.spanishstraydogs.org.uk/? Some of their dogs are already in the UK being fostered, for example Amelia (hope the links work, I rarely post and it's my first time trying) . I know a few people who have adopted successfully through them and have been very happy, and I'm just about to start the process myself.

www.manytearsrescue.org/dogslookingforhomes.php

Pro Dogs Direct (South East) Mostly in foster homes/kennels around Guildford. Looking for foster homes - could be a way forward for you as well.

www.ravenswoodpetrescue.co.uk/animalmenu.php?species=1 Ravenswood]] Cambridgeshire

Balkan Underdogs

Action Aid join the FB group and you'll be able to chat/see the dogs available.

Hope this helps.

There is a Jack Russell Rescue based in Herts/Beds which might be near you.
www.jackrussellterrierrescueuk.org/
disclaimer - I don't know what they are like but from their FB page they seem genuine. They neuter and fix up all the dogs before allowing them to be rehomed.

They rescue dogs and then place them with "foster families" until they can be permanently rehomed.

JRTs are lovely funny little dogs IME.

I second what a previous poster said about lurchers - they are not a breed as such but a cross breed (a sighthound crossed with something else).
We have a rescue lurcher (staffy x greyhound) who is fine off lead - she's a smart wee cookie, tough as old boots and a great family dog. We also have an ex-racing greyhound who is also a rescue. He's a gentle soul - doesn't bother about anything, doesn't need muzzled and completely small dog and cat safe. Can't let him off lead though - his recall is pants and only ussain bolt could catch him when he gets going!
Basically, it's good to know breed characteristics but really each dog is different - get one who has been in foster care though and the rehoming charity should have a good idea of what they're like in a home environment.
Good luck! You dog is out there somewhere!

Thanks everyone - looking at all these links - really appreciate it.

RudePepper - might you be able to go and visit your nearest Dogs Trust? You could talk over your needs and family circumstances, and see what dogs they'd recommend. You might also find that you walk I to the kennels and fall in love with a dog you wouldn't have considered, from the online write-ups.

We went to the Dogs Trust to look at a brown lab cross - he was a beautiful long-haired dog with the sweetest face - but when we got there, another couple were already walking him (and fell in love with him and adopted him), so we looked round the kennels, and dh's eyes met those of a black lab cross across the crowded kennel, and it was love at first bark. She is now curled up on the other end of the couch and it turns out she is the perfect fit for our family.

Hi - a bit late joining in here. We have a rescue dog from a local dog rescue home in The Chilterns and I registered and then I volunteered to go and walk some of their dogs - only once a week for a few weeks - this way they can see you are committed. I then rang the centre every week until one day they said they had a new dog in and he might be suitable and he is the most gorgeous dog in the world. You have to keep ringing - all the good ones will go if you don't ring them regularly - they don't have time or money to keep in touch with everyone themselves. Good luck.

Try All Dogs Matter - speak to Ira she is amazing!

www.alldogsmatter.co.uk/

I said definitely no staffy and we now have a beagle staff cross and he's fantastic. It's lots of hard work and quite a tie but we adore him. It's like the 3rd child I never had! Good luck

It is a sad thing to say, but I expect if you wait a few weeks the rescues will be full of lovely dogs bought as presents and abandoned after Christmas. Maybe you will be able to give one of them the loving home they deserve.

SDTG I just gave one of my colleagues exactly that advice

In these parts the traditional pre Christmas dog dumping of dogs has already started.

Next comes the puppies who didn't get sold in time for Christmas.

Then come the unwanted puppies as presents :(

rant over

How about a collie if you are going to be around all day?

Wiccaweys.co.uk

Collies aren't for the fainthearted but make lovely dogs for intelligent people

I second the poster who mentioned about volunteering. Dp works a couple of hours at the weekend in our local rescue centre and we could basically have the pick of any dog there. Also we know in advance when certain dogs are coming in. We haven't adopted any yet but have one on a long term foster and foster others for short periods.