Getting a dog advice

[crappyday2018]

I've been desperate to buy a dog for a long time now and hope to get one next year. I'm already trying to do as much research as possible so I'm prepared.
My working hours would mean I would be home by 3.30 (Mon-Wed), home by 6pm on a Thurs and my oldest would be home by 2.30pm on a Friday.
I intend to get a dog walker to come in around lunchtime every day (even on my short days).
Do you think getting a walker to do a 30 minute walk at lunchtime will be enough if I take it out in the morning and then straight after work too?
I'm looking to get a Labradoodle.

If you are going for a first dog then do consider, as adaline says, the size and, more importantly, the strength of any given breed. Labs can be very hard work for quite a long time and most of the labradoodles I know are enormous with the strength to go with it.

Likewise, some small breeds can be little sods so size isn't the only factor to consider. I love JRTs but I wouldn't recommend them to the inexperienced or faint of heart. A friend of mine always said that if a Jack Russell was a stick of seaside rock, it'd have 'Fuck You' written all the way through it.

I now have a lurcher. He's fab. And there's a lot of them in rescue too.

What are you after in a dog?
For instance I don’t work and wanted a companion. I didn’t mind grooming daily but didn’t want the hassle of taking a dog to the groomers. I live surrounded by amazing countryside where the dog can run free but can’t manage hours and hours and hours of exercise daily! I wanted a dog that would be calm in the house. I couldn’t be doing with anything that was constantly wired and buzzing.
It’s worth considering how you imagine your life would change with a dog. How much walking would you really do? How much hair can you cope with?

A friend of mine always said that if a Jack Russell was a stick of seaside rock, it'd have 'Fuck You' written all the way through it.

We have 2 JRTs here. That made me guffaw!

We have three dogs, all rescues, and they are absolutely fine with being left alone. My husband and I both work full time and sometimes we are out of the house from 8am-6pm and absolutely no problem at all.

We generally walk them first thing around 6am, again before I leave for work, we then have dog walker to does an hour walk and they have 2 more walks when we get home / before bed.

wolfie makes great points. Thinking about what you actively want from a dog and what you just cannot cope with can really help.

For example, I chose a springer because I wanted a curious (nosey), involved (interfering), friendly breed that was clever and playful. I actively like muddy walks and wanted a dog that would be robust enough to join me in all cold weathers but still cope with warmer days. However, I also needed a dog that could be relaxed when I wasn't around as I work from an office 2-3 days a week, during which time my rather frail mum (who lives with me) would need the dog to be relatively calm as she would have to deal with it plus her 2 JRTs. Plus the days I work from home I need the dog not to try and butt in on a conference call. The fact that someone is here all the time means it was less important that the dog was able to be left for longer periods of time. I don't mind brushing the dog every other day to stay on top of tangles and am pretty relaxed about mud in the house - plus had moved into a new house so was happy to repaint the walls with something washable. Fine with hoovering most days to get rid of the hair plus replacing the hoover more often than normal because of excess use.

Things I didn't want:

• very barky (the JRTs are, and I love them dearly and think there are a LOT of brilliant aspects to a JRT, but they are noisy as hell and this just doesn't suit me; I jump every time one of the little buggers barks)
• didn't like the cold or mud
• requiring more than about 2 hours exercise a day
• a dog that didn't enjoy longer walks or wasn't capable of doing a longer hike every now and again
• needing brushing every day, or brushing for a long time
• too big for a large-ish car
• a dog that was too aloof, in fact part of choosing a gun breed was because of their tendency to like touch/contact

Things I could have handled, if needed:

• digging
• chewing
• larger, stronger breeds
• smaller breeds
• breeds that have a bad reputation as funny looks in the street wouldn't phase me
• emotional sensitivity
• strong on the lead

Anyway, you get the idea...

Winter you have three dogs keeping each other company. I'm not sure if you have children, who have to go on the early walk with you, or older children who don't mind being left, or whether your partner helps take it in turns with you to mind left children in the evening/dog walk. If you are single and also looking after children, who have their own habits/needs, it is a different situation in terms of the day to day commitment balance. I have three children, a husband that doesn't "do" the dog, but one of my children is grownup/away, and one is very helpful. All my children are over 17, and I am at home most of the day or out and about in dog friendly manner. So being single wouldn't have affected my dog available time, in fact I would probably have more time for the dog if I didn't have a husband.. at any rate the dog would definitely be sleeping on my bed...

a single friend who took on a dog (cocker spaniel), and didn't work but had a four year old son said it was absolutely gruellling for the first year because there was no adult [in house] to help. However, one of the most obvious reasons why it was gruelling was that she had to drive to any proper park as her local recreation area was dog free. I think people don't realise how quickly dogs get bored of the same small to medium sized park which is in "walking distance". I found this out quickly enough when I was looking after a springer puppy of five months old a few years ago. Very quickly I had to factor in driving somewhere to walk dog properly and vary his walks..

missbattenburg it is very interesting what you say about springers. Admittedly I only looked after a young and adolescent one (till 10 months old) but he was really very chilled when he was springing around on his walks. More so than perhaps a more people oriented/task orientated poodle cross/poodle, or even a JRT (my brother has two) and they want to be "with you" on your shoulder, up your sleeve investigating, chatting most of the time...no trouble but just "there". Labradors of my experience of minding one, are again so much more chilled when they have had their compulsory walks, than perhaps a poodle might be, even if the poodle needed less walking in form of "exercise". A poodle is so interactive and cheery and vivaceous, but that wouldn't suit a situation who needs to be left longer and then you get demanding and irritating instead of vivaceous and chatty.

chilled when he wasn't springing around on his walks..sorry. He was super engaged when on walks!! And brilliant recall.

Nettleskeins Yes, he is super enthusiastic and energetic on walks and does need at least one good doggy walk across fields, woodland etc. Plus a second outing of some description - this might be another walk or might accompanying me somewhere else, such as into town. He also benefits from a couple of other dedicated sessions a day, such as training or play.

Without this he is Trouble.

But with it, he is mostly a snoozer... now. As a youngster he would fight sleep and get himself overtired and into mischief. Since about 16 months he suddenly started to figure out it was better to sleep when nothing was happening.

His recall is pretty good also but only if you remain focused on him and are exciting to keep his focus on you. Though he has tended to get very distracted by other dogs (the downside of 'friendly'), we have been working on this daily with a trailing lead and he is improving massively. He's also distracted by pheasants but I accept that as part of the territory...

SPringers are the best. I did have to walk mine over the woods every day for over an hour. But I loved every min of it. So much energy. Watching him run with that happy smile on his face was everything to me. It was sadly a not so happy ending with him. But I still remember those walks. Best was in the winter when it was so cold. Just perfect.

I've done a million quizes and they all come out with different bloody answers.

Yes I found that. What I ended up doing was picking breeds that I liked and then going through the internet finding their typical pros and cons and narrowing it down that way. Mostly looking at the downsides of the breed and trying to work out whether I was prepared to put up with that.

My final short list involved three breeds one was discounted for typically being stubborn and hard to train and the other was grooming requirements, noise and size.

But be careful. Springers are said to be friendly and great with people. ( that’s what I found on the internet ). Mine didn’t turn out like that. He was nervous and anxious that turned to nervous aggressive. And even after help from a behaviourist and a vet. And me reading and watching you tube videos. I could help him.

I loved the puppy stage so much. I could have done that part all over again. But I wouldn’t buy another puppy ever again as I never know what u will get. I couldn’t go through that heart break again.

Should have said. I couldn’t help him

I also considered what they were bred for. I was never going to be able to give enough exercise to a dog bred to work all day.
Also consider the negatives of a breed carefully.