Please recommend a dog to us!

[NeverGotMyPuppy]

DH and I are thinking we may be soon ready to take the plunge and get a dog. I have wanted a dog for about 25 years (no exaggeration) and I want to get this right.

About us:
I work 3 days a week, DH often WFH. I am a private school teacher so I get a lot of holidays. We would get doggy day care or a dog walker as appropriate.
We have a baby and would like a second within the next 15 months or so. We only plan on 2 children
We have a cat.
We have a three storey large house with a reasonable sized garden. There are parks and woodland very close by.
We are an active family.

My only real concern is shedding - I'm afraid I don't like labs because of the sheer amount of hair. I'm asthmatic- not badly but I could do without having to hoover 20 times a day.

So hit me with suggestions please!

I have a cocker spaniel (now 5yo) and he's definitely not as crazy as I thought he'd be when we got him as a puppy!

They obviously all have different personalities, and mine loves his walks, but he's also really chilled in the house. He's very soppy and loves cuddles. He's never been bad for chewing/being destructive at home and he LOVES food which makes him very easy to train he never barks either. He's much, much easier all round than my parents' lab ever was (she was a bit of a diva, and really destructive in the house - she ripped tonnes of plaster off the wall in the kitchen once! Gorgeous though, bless her soul).

A PP mentioned a cavalier and one of my friends has one, he's a lovely little dog and easy to train too. Quite yappy though, although that I presume varies from dog to dog.

I have miniature schnauzers and think they would suit you perfectly. They don't shed and lots of people who are normally allergic to dogs, don't react to them. They are easy to train, they love a big long walk but are also happy with a shorter one. They do hate rain though and I have to drag them outside if the weather's bad. They get on great with my kids and cat. They are known for being barky, but mine only ever bark at the doorbell.

I have a collie and he doesn't shed too much but he's quite short haired for a border collie. Easy to train, easy to leave if you work (seriously, they like their own space) but no idea about the asthma, it's the dander rather than hair. They chew a bit as pups but not as much as many breeds

I came on to say Border Terrier.... Glad someone else suggested it..

Personally, I love working cockers!

I have a working collie and worried about the 'off switch', the excessive exercise, hyperactivity and other horror stories I'd heard but honestly, she is super placid and calm in the house though she is untireable and will literally take as much exercise as you give her.
She's not pushy about it though, you can skip a walk and she doesn't care.

The working cockers I've met have been exactly the same.
Chilled and calm in the house, but wild on a walk racing about everywhere and quite untireable.

I think, that if you train the 'settle' command from puppyhood and enforce it regularly you can't go far wrong with a working bred dog.

I would always go for working over show/pet bred, I think they are more stable dogs.

I saw cavaliers mentioned and although their temperaments are generally really beautiful they are a breed in crisis health wise.
I would never buy one unless it was a pennylane bred one.

border collie. Easy to train, easy to leave if you work (seriously, they like their own space)

I definitely agree with this also.
No separation anxiety here, she spends much of the day in this position

I’d wait too if I were you. Long school holidays with small school age children to entertain - but your days-out options will be severely restricted if you have a dog. You can’t take them most places you’d like to take your kids, and they can be left for only roughly 4 hours after the puppy stage. It’s just so restrictive. (Now I feel bad saying that because I love our dog so much.)

Awe I posted a whole big post about Bearded Collies but it doesn't seem to have worked. They are adorable. Family friendly. Love adventure. Like their own space. Happy to be left alone. Love to be played with. Love long walks, also super lazy. Very similar to boarder collies as they are also working dogs (very good at hearding) but (imo) cuter because of the hair. They're also a bit bigger and they don't shed

Very similar to border collies as they are also working dogs (very good at herding) but (imo) cuter because of the hair

Some people believe they are in fact border collies, just a different coat variant same as you get in Belgians and Pointers

Another vote for standard poodle!

I have a dog and 3 yr old, plus baby on the way. I love it gets us out, but it needs two walks a day even in the rain or to go early late when it's super hot. That is a lot of walking for a small child, plus whatever other things you might want to do.

We take our dog on holiday, but it also affects trips out were you can't take them. People have different attitudes to dogs, many families around here don't seem to walk their dogs daily.

My neighbour got a dog similar to ours and they said it's much more work than they expected. They only walk theirs once if that a day. I understand why due to logistics with their kids, but I feel you have to also prioritise the dog and I don't want poos in my garden.

I would also suggest you wait until at least the eldest is at school and you can see how you’d manage walks etc.

Another one saying wait til your kids are a bit older.

Could you foster a dog for a month or two to see how the experience is? Personally I couldn't have coped with two babies and a dog, and I work part time and husband works from home.

@fucksandflowers but they are a different shape? The whole face is different and beardies are bigger.
Ours is clipped due to an unfortunate incident involving a bush and some horse poop so the hair is about an inch or so long at present. It grows in like wool, incredibly thick and bouncy at the moment.

im obsessed with spanish bodegueras. I rescued a slightly older one and she is just the best dog ever. Calm, can be left. I recommend them. She does shed a little as most dogs do, but shes short haired

I think you're bonkers to get a dog and I say this as someone with a rough collie puppy (like lassie) arriving on Saturday.

If you do get one we did lots of research on the best family dogs before landing on a rough collie. They're very good with children and animals (we have cats and free range chickens), easy to train and whilst they like exercise and playing, they are also happy to chill.

They obviously have a fair amount of hair and so that could be a negative factor.

I seem to be recommending this a lot but I think borrow my doggy would suit you well. We have a lovely couple who take DDog off for weekend walks and look after him when we're on holiday. Would give you the experience without the commitment.

I don't think you can beat a lab for temperment with children, get a show one and pick a quieter one from the litter.
Also king Charles cavaliers have lovely temperments but you have to be careful choosing a breeder as they have lots of health issues.
I wouldn't recommend a working cocker as they seem generally a bit mad and have no recall from what I see of them in my local park but they do seem very friendly and don't jump up, at me anyway.
From my experience I've known a lot of growly schnauzers, weimaraners, vizlas, border collies, I must stress not all but it would put me off buying with young children.
Cockapoos have never been aggressive with me but 90% seem a bit mental they seem very jumpy, bitey as puppies and in my local park seem to have no recall. They seem to have nice temperments perhaps their general disobedience is down to bad owners but I've had a lot randomly jumping up at me.

whilst you're an active family, I wonder if at your stage of life a greyhound would be a better choice for you. They are very lazy and don't need a lot of exercise, so if it became tricky to get out for big long walks with a baby it would be less of an issue. They will manage quite happily on two twenty minute walks a day althoughmany enjoy longer walks if available. They're also happier to be left than many dogs, the rehoming charities will usually rehome them to people that work full time provided there are arrangements for them to be taken out. Many are excellent with kids.

Lots more info here.
They might not deliver your vision of striding through the countryside for three hours at a weeekend, but I think they would fit around a young family much better than a more active working dog and you would be offering a home to one of the thousands of greyhounds needing one.

I'm ashamed to say that I've spent most of my MN life on AIBU. I realise know it's very different to the rest of it!!

rookiemere great suggestion, we will certainly have a look.

squee123 I really like greyhounds and I had the same thoughts as you. I'd love to rescue tho dont know if we would be considered given the kid/s.

Maybe we dont bother with DC2... semi joking, obviously...

dapplegrey I was thinking whippet too until she said she wanted easy to train. They are pretty independent thinkers and mine certainly isn’t the brightest dog around ...

but they are a different shape? The whole face is different and beardies are bigger

Ah, but border collies actually vary hugely in shape and size and coat when bred for working.
'Show' border collies are bred to a specific look, but in workers, working ability is priority so there is a lot of variation.

Take my collie, she is working bred and 100% has ample natural instinct and ability.
She is tall for a collie, around the size of a Labrador, long but pretty fine coat and petite 'racy' body and pricked ears.

Nothing like the 'show' border collie, but I have seen working collies who do look closer to the 'show' type collie with stockier bodies and thick, heavy coats and drop ears.

There are thought to be four main border collies behind the breed and all four vary in appearance.

So, it is perhaps possible that the beardie is indeed simply a coat variant.

I also would say wait until the baby #2 is about 2 or older. We have a cavalier King Charles and she’s a perfect family dog and is great with young and older kids, but she does shed LOTS. I also can’t imagine having the time and energy for her when the kids were really little.

Don't rush into getting a dog whilst your child/plus potential baby are/will be so so young. We just got a rescue - he's a lurcher, and fantastic. So gentle, so good natured, doesn't need long walks and sleeps most of the time. But even with that it's still hard something sorting the kids out PLUS making sure the dog is well walked and looked after (husband works away a lot so it's down to me to ensure dog is ok). Only my oldest is currently in school - the other two are still too young. I wish I had waited. But can't change things now. I definitelt wouldn't get a dog now though with such young kids.

www.bordercolliemuseum.org/BCCousins/BeardedCollie/Beardie.html