First family dog

[AnnoyedByAlfieBear]

I’m considering a puppy in spring/summer 2026 for a first family pet and I’m trying to research before then. There are so so many breeds! How do I work out what’s best for our circumstances??? DC are 12 and 10 and I’m out of the house for only 2 hours a day term time.

Definitely don't go to Battersea. I got my last dog who was described as sweet and affectionate. Which he was. Except when he was biting someone. It turned out that he had a history of biting and shouldn't have been rehomed.

If you’re considering getting a certain breed, my advice would be to do thorough research. Speak to the breed club, find an owners group maybe on social media, some may do group walks where you can meet dogs and discuss the reality of the breed etc.

I’m a Basset hound owner, I grew up with them, know them inside out and also volunteer with the breed rescue charity. Personally I’d only ever have Bassets, but for others it’s their idea of a doggy nightmare. Our rescues can sometimes come in because people have got one for their looks, but without understanding their traits, it’s probably the same for most other breeds. Breeds are so different as are owners and their lifestyles.

With regard to rescues, there can be challenges which could be hard to spot if you don’t have previous doggy experience or they come from a kennel environment. Our rescue only fosters in foster homes rather than kennels so they are properly assessed in a home environment and by breed experienced families, therefore a dog’s quirks and problems can be found so a suitable forever home is found.

Good luck!

For a first dog I'd be wary of rescues tbh, I tried fostering a dog from a rescue and it was awful (wasn't toilet trained, extremely nervous etc) and I didn't have the time or experience to manage it.

I decided after that that I would buy a puppy and went with a terrier as my criteria was small, clever, medium energy, loyal and friendly.

My lovely terrier boy (he's a Jack Russell cross) ticks all these boxes.

If you want small I'd look at terriers, bichon frise, small poodles, Maltese dogs. Mumsnet is very anti poodle crosses due to concerns around puppy farms but it's worth considering if you can find a reputable breeder.

I managed to time getting our puppy with the summer hols and it worked out well. He was used to spending a couple of hours in the crate if I needed to pop out and I used a puppy sitter if it was any longer.

I'd recommend the book Easy Peasey puppy squeezy as this covers all the basics of puppy ownership.

I’m anti poodle crosses because most of them, especially cockapoos are very high energy and a bit crazy. With any cross you have no idea what you are getting health and personality wise. People think cockapoos look cute but poodles, with a sensible cut also look cute.

How do you judge whether a breeder is reputable, if they breed crosses? I would argue that they are in it for the money, rather than a love of the breed.

Regarding breeders, personally I would only use a breeder listed on the Kennel Club puppy website. It’s not perfect but lists any genetic tests, family tree and inbreeding percentage. You can click on dogs in that family tree to check their inbreeding etc. Also sometimes worth googling the breeder for more information. Some breeders will again have their own webpage so you can see how often they are breeding (generally less the better) and some even have private FB groups for people that have got their puppies so you can maintain a link and hear of any hereditary issues. The breeder of our last Basset was excellent, he thoroughly vetted us on our visit wanting to know details about us, plus had a clause in the contract that should we need to rehome at whatever age, the dog had to go back to him to prevent it being sold online etc. we lost our old boy last year at the age of 14 and will ourselves be looking to get another this year.

I do agree with some posters on rescues, our boy was a rescue and only a puppy too, 6 months old, but he’d had an awful 6 months and had such horrific separation anxiety that genuinely took 4 years to slowly grow out of.

That said, they can also be wonderful and no dog is immune from behavioural issues whatsoever. He responded well to puppy and dog training (we did agility too) and he’s a lovely dopey old thing now.
But I do agree it’s worth factoring in, rescues can need a bit of extra love and TLC at first.

Have a look at whippets @AnnoyedByAlfieBear , initially you will likely need someone to sit with the pup for your stints out of the house but once toilet trained etc 2 hours is no issue . If you aren’t into the whippet look a cairn terrier / Norfolk terrier or border terrier may be a good fit .

We have a gorgeous Maltipoo and a sweet Cavachon in our extended family, so we ended up getting a Cavapoo. He's awesome.

Mumsnet is very anti poodle crosses but I wouldn't change a thing about ours.

Cockapoos are very high energy though (but so are cocker spaniels...)