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The doghouse

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Original poster

What made you decide on your dog?

33 replies

PlayingGrownUp · 14/05/2016 19:11

Did you know from the start what kind of dog you wanted? Did you end up with something completely different? Did something silly/ odd put you off certain types of dogs?

Would love to know!

OP posts:

LetThereBeCupcakes · 14/05/2016 19:14

I grew up with a lab cross so it was always going to be labs for me.

All of my dogs have been rescues and tbh they pick me rather than the other way around! Our girl in particular was just one of those "meant to be" situations.

Original poster

PlayingGrownUp · 14/05/2016 19:14

I wanted a cairn terrier. Other half wanted a King Charles cavalier. I wanted a boy. He wanted a girl.

We ended up with a boy mongrel who is a mix of King Charles cavalier, working cocker spaniel and poodle. Only took us 3 months to agree!

OP posts:

Floralnomad · 14/05/2016 19:52

We decided we were ready to get a dog , originally DH wanted a westie , I wasn't fussed but like pointy hounds / lurchers / poodles , dd wanted anything quickly before DH could change his mind ! So we went to Battersea ( London) to see what they had and bought home a 15/16 week old patterdale mix who has turned out to be the most fabulous dog .. He is currently sitting next to me in his Union Jack t shirt waiting for Eurovision to start .

DramaAlpaca · 14/05/2016 20:01

DH comes from a family who have always had springer spaniels, so there was absolutely no question that when we got a dog it would be a springer. I'd never had a dog before so had no opinion on the matter, whereas DH does a bit of shooting so wanted a working springer.

Our latest pup is almost a year now. DH & DS went to choose from the litter & I had no idea whether they'd come back with a dog or a bitch, liver & white or black & white. They picked a boy dog, our first after several girls. He has a wonderful temperament, has turned out to be the doggy love of my life & he absolutely adores me too

DixieNormas · 14/05/2016 20:04

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

BombadierFritz · 14/05/2016 20:07

I researched ours for ages to find a dog type that would fit. We had labs but i knew they would be too big and 'doggy' aka hairy smelly dirtmagnets for dh, who was not keen on dogs.

weaselwords · 14/05/2016 20:12

I picked my old boy from the dogs home as I wanted a big, mean looking dog so I felt safe living alone. Rottweiler x gsd, so job done! He was truly the best dog in the world and I was heartbroken wen he died. But I had small kids and was working, so didn't feel I could get another.

Fast forward 11 years and husband was working from home and the kids were teens and I was starting to think about getting another dog. Then a lady at work needed to rehome her two and on the spur of the moment I said we'd have them if she was really stuck. She was, so we did so I now have a Weimaraner and a cross weim. They could not be more different to my old boy and are far too enthusiastic about everything but I would never be parted from them and they are obsessed with me. I may never go anywhere alone again.

BestIsWest · 14/05/2016 20:26

I grew up with dogs and have always had one. We spent ages researching breeds and looking at and meeting dogs. We walked regularly as a family in places where dogs were walked so we could meet different dogs and see how they behaved. Couldn't have a rescue at the time because DS was too young. We wanted something small, having previously had a Golden Retriever who was beautiful but very hard to lift into the car when she was elderly and moulted hugely.

We got down to two breeds, cocker spaniel and miniature schnauzer. We went for the schnauzer because they only need moderate exercise compared to the cocker.
It proved a brilliant choice for us. He was a lovely family dog, always in the middle of things, great fun, intelligent, didn't moult. When we lost him to cancer last year at the age of 10, getting another schnauzer was a no brainer.

This time round we were even more careful when selecting the breeder and found someone who did everything we wanted. He was home bred, in the kitchen of her house, she was on call 24 hours a day to us in the early days, will take him back for holidays, exposed him to lots of different experiences in the early weeks. I really believe this was massively important as he's been a brilliant little pup.

HarrietSchulenberg · 14/05/2016 20:43

I wanted a retired or abandonned greyhound that might be cat friendly (they do exist as I'd had one before). Was told all the current greys were def not cat friendly but they had some lurcher crosses that seemed to be.
Test-walked two, fell in love with one and he came home with us for a trial. Still here 2.5 years on and staying firmly put with us .
Turned out he is definitely not cat friendly, though, so we had to shelve plans for a rescue moggy.

ChairRider4 · 14/05/2016 22:27

Tried rescue dog but my wheelchair and lifts and other strange looking things that beep was to much
Decicded go puppy route as important not pull either

Small dogs ruled out as to tricky with wheels and it came down to lab or GSD both which had growing up

Could not find decent GSD breeder so spoke to couple of lab breeders who second heard I was in wheelchair and be one training was point no

Found one who was least willing meet /discuss and my boy is now 18 months and his breeder commented how good he is and glad she went with her instinct to decicde I make a suitable home

DixieNormas · 14/05/2016 22:49

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Skrewt · 14/05/2016 22:52

I didn't pick ours - I didn't want one but if I did I wanted the opposite of what I got but she is a rescue and she chose me.

fuctifino · 14/05/2016 23:00

We had all sorts of dogs when growing up, from a Great Dane to a Yorkshire Terrier.
For me, I didn't want a dog that needed to be groomed daily or required visits to the the dog groomer for cutting. I also didn't want anything that shed it's hair excessively.
We ended up with 2 German Shorthaired Pointers. Beautiful dogs both to look at and temperament. They were a joy to have around. Sadly we list the last one last week to old age, 15 1/2.
We bought another dog 4 years ago as we were concerned that when we lost one of the GSP's the other one would pine, they were litter mates and had never been apart. As it happens, the remaining GSP coped very well.
So now we are left with an Italian Greyhound. I would like to get another dog as company but dh is resisting.

mistlethrush · 14/05/2016 23:01

When we knew we were losing our last to bone cancer, we wanted to make sure that the gap wasn't too great as our child was only 7 at the time. Thinking realistically we decide a lurcher would be ideal for us. We contacted several rescues, and one showed us two that they thought might be suitable - we took one of them on foster and adopted her a few months later. We had to work through a few issues to start with due to her past (she was 2.5 when we got her) but she has been a fantastic dog, the perfect one for us.

gobbymare · 14/05/2016 23:05

I didn't choose my dog I was asked by my uncle if I wanted him and if I didn't he was going to have to snap his neck because they had the mother of the dog and they were not getting along......12 years later he is he best dog I could of ever wished for.

tabulahrasa · 15/05/2016 00:09

DP was being fussy, he's not really a dog person, he'd agreed to me getting a new one, but kept vetoing ones I found...I just look at what is in rescue when I'm looking for a dog and see what they have that would fit in, he however was ruling out by breed.

So I got him to write a list, most of which were ludicrous choices for us TBH, but in there was a couple that could work...

So we ended up with this dog.

MozzieRocks · 15/05/2016 16:05

I wanted a dog for a long time, grew up with an awesome family dog which was like another sibling but I was conscious of making sure it was the right one.

I was browsing RSPCA rescue dogs online and there he was staring at me thru cyberspace; his huge personality really came out in the photos.

He was great distance away but we went to meet him (and reserve him) the very next day.

Notthecarwashagain · 15/05/2016 16:13

Our girl dog I saw on a rescue site, and couldn't stop thinking about her afterwards. She's so pretty, but such a noisy girl. Very patient and gentle though!

Our boy dog was going to be a cavalier King Charles, but DS has some additional needs, and I thought he might be too loud and scary for a cav.
We decided on a golden retriever, and it was definitely the right choice. Although DS doesn't like him as much as I hoped, he's perfect.
I filmed him the other day, fast asleep on the floor, while DS made very loud and strange noises in the next room. Completely unbothered!

Notthecarwashagain · 15/05/2016 16:15

Meant to add, have no idea what our girl is. A long haired chihuahua crossed with a spaniel is our most recent theory!

Greyhorses · 15/05/2016 16:30

I only like GSD and wouldn't consider anything else (except maybe a belgian shepherd!)

Loads of things put me off other dogs...mainly I only like intelligent large breed dogs with long noses and pointy ears that don't drool and that scare away people from the front door

I also like how aloof they are, I don't like dogs that look like they couldn't understand a basic command if I begged them or those ones bouncing around wildly with a tounge hanging out the side of the mouth (Labradors )

Both of my dogs have chosen me though, both rescues that seemed to just find the way here rather than me actually searching them out!

Princesspeach1980 · 15/05/2016 17:13

I've always had big dogs but my son has asd and really doesn't like dogs, any dogs. Luckily he really likes chihuahuas (please no one tell him that chihuahuas are dogs ) so that's what we got. He's possibly not what I would have chosen but he's a little gem, and fits in perfectly with our busy family as he's so portable and comes everywhere with us.

groovejet · 15/05/2016 18:58

We went from thinking golden retriever to cocker spaniel and then ended up with a cavalier, I think won over by my brother in laws dogs.

He is fab, very calm in the house, but love his walks, the muddier and wetter the better hence his nickname of bog dog.

DontDeadOpenInside · 15/05/2016 19:08

I was adamant for years that I didn't want a dog. Full stop. DH wanted a Staffordshire Bull Terrier. I saw the sweetest little staffy puppy for sale and he persuaded me to go see it. We went. They were small, disgusting, they stank and we're covered in their own poop... and the owner was feeding them adult dry food. They were 6 weeks old. I picked one up and didn't put it down until we got home. We had nothing for it at all as we were only looking so had to take this little smelly thing with us to the shop. This was 18m ago now. I wouldn't change her for the world. I guess we rescued her. I couldn't leave her there. Dh knew I'd fall in love if he took me but was taken aback at the state they were in. The kids faces when they got home from school was priceless.

Lilmisskittykat · 15/05/2016 19:13

I wanted a little dog and not mad about dog hair.. So was thinking caines terrier (I think) I didn't want a white dog as I've seen the way their mush gets messy and stained...

I bought a bichon ...

HoneyDragon · 15/05/2016 19:16

I've always, always wanted a Whippet. I've ended up with many years of Labradors, .

#I didn't choose Lab life, lab life chose me

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