Tell me your experience of your 'small breed' please

[Whitney168]

Having had a large coated breed for 30+ years, I am fancying adding a small dog to the house. with the big'uns.

I would love a Cavalier, but the more I read about the health issues, the more I am concerned.

My inclination is towards something more 'toy' than 'terrier' for temperament and outlook. There are some small terriers I like, but I have no wish to own a dog that isn't amenable to other dogs and makes walks difficult, although as I'm typing this I think that i.e. Westies I don't particularly see as an issue when out, so maybe that's unfair.

Would prefer a stable confident outgoing temperament, without being bolshy - am not keen on 'flighty' breeds.

Would happily have a wire coated Jack Russell if I could guarantee I got a nice one, but they seem to be saints or devils.

I don't really want anything that needs major grooming, have enough of that with the big dogs, but obviously clipping is an option.

I wouldn't be automatically averse to a crossbreed, but the chances of getting a responsibly bred one are so vanishingly small that I think that's probably off the table.

Breeds I've seriously considered:

• Cavalier King Charles (health concerns)
• Tibetan Spaniel (noise?)
• Lhasa Apso/Shih Tzu (would keep clipped) - no experience of them to know temperament.

Ermmmm ... what else am I missing? Tell me about your small breeds please ...

I love Coton de tulears but they need grooming.

you create a litter of puppies destined to go blind...
You create a litter in which each puppy has a 25% chance of going blind. That's rubbish, but not as bad as you've claimed.

In a popular breed with a large gene pool I cannot see any reasonable reason for including a carrier.
Um... to a point. The poodle gene pool isn't all that big - in fact, the gene pools of most breeds are not all that big. The breed average COI in the UK is 7.3, which isn't great. Even with a large gene pool, you want to preserve dam lines and sire lines so as not to lose whole chunks of DNA. So I can absolutely see a situation where it's important to breed a carrier of PRA.

I have a pom very yappy but lovely. What do you mean by twirly? 😂

I have a pom very yappy but lovely. What do you mean by twirly? 😂

You create a litter in which each puppy has a 25% chance of going blind. That's rubbish, but not as bad as you've claimed
Even so, 25% is more than enough reason not to do it!

We aren’t going to agree on this one I’m afraid.

My vote is for the Tibetan Terrier too. A bit big for you maybe (mine is 11kg), but there is no such thing as a 'robust lapdog' in my opinion.

Pros: really sweet temperament (was a bit of as psycho as a puppy, but all fine now); non-shedding (yay!); the perfect size family dog; mine loves kids, though is aloof with strangers.

Cons: grooming (mine is clipped every 3 months); only moderately trainable and mine starts fights with bigger dogs. Also, I have never known a dog as bad for rolling as mine is, but I appreciate that might be just him.

If you must get a Cavalier (and I wouldn't due to Syringomyalgia), consider a cross eg CavalierXBichon to hopefully minimise health problems. They are lovely little dogs but are high maintenance health wise, so you would need to budget for this!

I've seen a number of really nice Yorkie crosses over the years, if you come across one it might fit the bill?

I have to say my small working cockers (9 and 10kg respectively) are lazy as hell. I'd say they're lower energy if anything that next doors cavs.

Obviously happy to yomp for miles given the opportunity but also happy with a couple of half hour walks (it less is it's raining, the older one doesn't like getting wet!) and the rest of the day napping.

Our I joke is to say 'they never stop' when they're being especially lazy, because that's what everyone said when we planned on a cocker. Never stop lazing about maybe?

The other thread has just made me remember I should come back and update this ...

Collected my puppy in December - final result was ... a Lowchen. (Anyone who Googles it, note that my baby will not have the haircut!)

Settling in beautifully, making me laugh constantly - what a character.

Gorgeous doggy, OP!

Oh cool, I used to know someone who had a Lowchen (years ago when I was in high school, very rare breed!)

@Whitney168 hi! Don’t know if you’ll see this but also after my Goldilocks dog having sadly lost our mini schnauzer. Lowchen is on the list! How is he / she settling in? Any tips / thoughts / anything really? So hard to find things on this breed

@Whitney168 thank you!!

I have a small robust lapdog. He’s Jack Russell x pug x chihuahua. Amazing temperament. Doesn’t bark much. Good health. Easy maintenance. Will run around all day with the big ones and cuddle up on the sofa for hours. Can’t vouch for all of them though, I am very lucky to have him.

When I am too decrepit to have Labradors I am going to have a papillon. All the ones I have ever met have had lovely personalities and being a type of spaniel are easy to train.

I had a jack chi but she suddenly died today she was the most loving loyal dog and I'm absolutely devastated today she was only 2 years old😭💔