First time family dog, what breed might we be missing?

[IesuGrist1975]

We are finally in a position to get a dog within the next year due to my father-in-law moving into our granny(dad) annexe meaning a pet dog will be a companion for him on my 2 work days. Our youngest children are 6 years old and 10 years old and we have a medium sized garden and live in an urban area but have access to a good few large parks and spend the weekends at kids sports, usually in muddy fields with loads of other dogs so a dog being happy around other dogs is important.

It will be our first family dog, we have a 9 year old cat and while my parents occasionally bred my father’s working springer spaniels when I was growing up, they lived in kennels rather than indoors so this is a first indoor pet dog. Another thing to mention is that this dog is going to be a bit of emotional support me (my mum is terminally ill) so a dog that is happy to be loved by me would be excellent.

Having done quite a lot of research on here and other online resources I’v got a shortlist of,

• Miniature (or standard) poodle,
• Rough collie
• Border terrier.

These have made it onto the list for being either side of medium. Intelligent, happy with a couple of 30- 60 min walks a day, being good family dogs, happy to relax after a good walk. I’m wondering if we’ve missed any other obvious breeds off the list? Or if any of those don’t really fit the bill? We’ve been in contact with a couple smooth collie breeders and they’re currently what we’re leaning towards but happy to be swayed.

I am Team Rescue all the way so have never had a puppy, so can’t advise on that phase but i used to be a dog walker and have owned dogs, here’s my thoughts;
Had a parsons JRT, full of energy, never a dull moment, very funny and clever but do need a significant amount of training and some patience. And lots of games and toys. Recall can be an issue re prey drive. They are the best though!
Borders, a more muted version of the above.
very loyal, quite well behaved, seem to love women!
collies, don’t go there, intense and clingy, would need tasks, agility etc
labs, nice but a bit boring. Good for a first dog.
I quite like corgies but have never owned one.
Cairn terriers are fun and not as full on as others terriers.
I have to say small female staffies are not a bad choice if you get from a puppy. Very loyal and loving and very few health issues.
please avoid the poo mixes out of principle/ethics if nothing else!

Our Greyhound gets on very well with our cat (lived with 3 of them at one time). See pic up thread.

Labrador - bomb proof. Excellent family dog. Years of love and devotion. Perfect with cats and kids.
Or
If you want years of total chaos, unconditional love and to laugh every day of their lives then a Boxer dog is 100% the perfect soul mate.

Labradoodle they love everyone and other dogs, can be a little excitable when young though so need firm training to not jump up people/other dogs

I’ve had several labs and currently have two, they are absolutely fantastic dogs although my two are totally different in temperament, one is rescued and one we had from a pup. Could be a good option, need a lot of work as puppies but trainable and really great family friends. Can be strong though which may be worth considering if older family members are walking them.
Also had border collie, as a child. Absolutely amazing dog but we had a horses and she had loads of exercise and LONG walks, two big walks a day during the week plus pottering around the stables and great big hikes at the weekend, she also was quite sensitive, very scared of loud noises, storms, fireworks and got very anxious when left if we went on holiday (always left with people she knew well but hated it). As much as they are wonderful dogs I wouldn’t recommend as a family pet if you can’t offer an enriching life where they use their brains every day.

Labrador, whippet.

No -poo type, unless you can consider the worst aspects of both breeds behaviourally and healthwise and imagine coping with both.

My Labrador has always been fantastic with the cats - and we had 4 when we got her. Labs are known for being good with cats. If anything, she prevents them fighting with each other. When they start, she gets in between them to break them up.

Miniature schnauzer are wonderful dogs!

Another vote for cockapoo - I know people on here seem to hate them, but our boy is the gentlest soul, a big snuggle bug, wonderfully patient with small children, intelligent enough to train easily but not so much that he outsmarts us, and although we don't have a cat I'm confident he'd be absolutely fine with one.

You do have to do a bit of training to avoid separation anxiety early on, but it's literally just getting them used to being alone for short periods at a time from a pup. Ours just chills in his bed when we're out.

Walks - he's a bit of a lazy so and so, he loves a walk but he starts lagging behind if it's any longer than an hour, and generally seems happiest with 30-45mins. Will not go out in the rain, even if you bribe him 😂

A cocker spaniel may also be a good option (show type, not working cocker). Our family dog growing up was a cocker, and I loved her to bits though she was a bit grumpy at times. In my experience of family dogs, male dogs tend to be easier going on the whole.

I'd personally avoid terriers. I'm sure most are lovely, but my MILs dog is terrible with our kids, despite being seemingly lovely otherwise. Not sure if it's the prey drive but any crying or high pitched noises seem to send him over the edge. My aunts miniature schnauzer was the same - weirdly aggressive particularly towards babies, toddlers and dolls, despite otherwise being the most docile friendly little thing the rest of the time.

Miniature Schnauzer hands down.
Very affectionate, love cuddles, don't shed and need as much or as little walking as you want them to have.
Very easy first dogs and not prone to running up large vet bills.
I work at a vets and would not have certain breeds due to health issues.
Such as:
Frenchies, sausage dogs, pugs, cockerpoos and beagles.

OP I'm sorry to hear that you are going through such a difficult time. My family & I found great distraction and comfort from our own dogs & cats when a family member was terminally ill.

Re dog breeds, I'm a firm believer that it doesnt matter what the breed or cross is as much as whether the dog's personality & characteristics fit you and your household. Dog breed characteristics give you a guide but they are not always set in stone. One of our current dogs is an English Springer Spaniel is the 1st dog we've evet had who wont swim, & spaniels are supposed to love mud & water! Similiarly there are plenty of dogs that are supposed to have high prey drive that happily live with cats. Likewise there are plenty of dog breeds that are supposed to be easy going but have individuals that would go after a cat.

We've also always had rescues which are crosses, bar our current ESS rescue. Untill our current 2 rescue dogs all of our others have lived with cats & chickens. We've usually been surprised at the type of dog we've ended up with but they've always been the right fit with our family's current needs.

I guess what I'm trying to say is be open minded about the type of dog & choose an individual who fits with you.

A Staffie. They're in the kennel club's top 10 breeds for families. They're extremely loving dogs they love being with people. We've had a cross and a pure Staffie, both rescue. We had the cross before having kids and he was fantastic with them. You could take anything out of his mouth and he put up with my son, when he was a toddler, stamping on his tail.
The pure Staffie was the best behaved dog we've ever had.

I got him because I wanted a cockapoo, I went to breeder who was recommended and I did check them before buying.They also checked me out by asking a lot of questions before allowing me to see the puppies. I got a puppy because I wanted a puppy, if anything happened to my boy, it would take me a long time to get over him but I would go and get a rescue dog but I would get another cockapoo as I think they are lovely, I had mine before all this designer stuff and fully accept that he is a mutt but he is my mutt

Missed the bit about the cat, I'd probably avoid sighthounds (unless a cat-tested rescue from the likes of lurcher link) , brachycephalics (their corneas don't always survive contact with the enemy) driven work-y type terriers like Patterdales, gripping dogs like Staffs (for obvious reasons) or huskies/husky crosses (I spent part of an afternoon last week pulling a husky x off a neighbour's store lamb and treating the puncture wounds on the lamb, I've had husky patients that have killed chickens too).

How self righteous are you? All ALDs are at least seven generations in so the characteristics are very well defined. Why stick to breeds developed 100+ years ago for hunting etc when we have very different lives now. Do you have a real reason against this breed or are you just an all around juddgy type?

Why not stick to breeds developed hundreds (or thousands, as mine is) of years ago, if that is our preference? Or are you just an all round judgy type?

Getting a dog at when the youngest was 8 really was the youngest I could do it. I don’t know how anyone could manage with a pup and a toddler. No dog deserves to be pulled around for sure.

Ours is only allowed downstairs so she has space away from the kids. It’s where I work so she has company for more than half the day but also enough space to walk away if she needs her space and that happens daily.

Youngest is now 12 almost 13 and it’s only this last year or so I haven’t been in the room when she is with the dog. The risk is too great.

She is the happiest smiley dog who greets everyone with enthusiasm and her tummy to stroke but she HAS to get out the house for an hour a day and we do give her brain work too.

One of her assistance dog tasks is to pick up things I drop and I think this plays into the retriever drive. It also meant we did ALOT of item exchange and drop/leave training which probably helps with resource guarding drive.

I think it probably depends on your family set up. All my dogs, either during my childhood or with my own children sleep on our beds (or in it) and the children absolutely love that. Being around dogs as very small children taught them boundaries and kindness. The dogs got no end of cuddles and walks. Our whippet who passed away a few months ago was very nurturing and liked being part of a pack. We could not split up on walks are she would get distressed.

The only issue was when other children came around as I could not trust any child other than mine to behave. I would then put the dogs away for the duration of the visit. Better safe than sorry.

Was it hard to have a dog and babies? Not really, that was the easy bit and if anything it forced me to go out during what was at times bleak periods. Breastfeeding and stupid phonics was much harder.

She is beautiful 😍

were you to read the quote history you may notice that I said nothing derogatory about anyone else's choice, just defended mine and suggested the person who quoted me was a bit more open. You are free to tell the OP why a dinosaur is suitable as a pet dog and I won't question it, they can then weigh them up themselves.

I don't think it's self righteous to be appalled (and to speak out about it) by the conditions in which I've seen these designer 'breeds' being raised. Poor bitches being bred constantly, their feet never touch grass, they spend their lives in a wire cage. I'm sure there are exceptions, but for the most part, people breeding mutts are not concerned with the welfare of the dogs. Their number one concern is to make a buck. To be fair, I know there are unscrupulous purebred breeders as well. But I cannot understand paying someone for a mutt when there are homeless dogs euthanized by the millions every year in shelters. Purebreds, mutts, puppies, oldsters and everything in between. That's just my opinion. You are, of course, free to buy whatever you choose.

Labradoodle!! Doesn't malt, lovely temperament, brilliant with kids, intelligent and absolutely gorgeous.

Best dog I've ever had.

I did read the quote history, and I wasn't referring to that. I was specifically responding to your comment about not sticking to older breeds because we have very different lives now. Some of us have a preference for ancient, primitive breeds with an interesting history and which have a working heritage that is still very relevant.

I think implying that "for the most part" mixed breeds are essentially coming from puppy farms is a touch dramatic. Also not exclusive to "designer" dogs as you put it. Our next door neighbours pure bred lab was a rescue from a puppy farm after being forced to have litter after litter. It's why if buying a puppy, regardless of the breed, you always visit the breeder to check the conditions and make sure everything is above board.

So do some research into Australian labradoodles, there is a worldwide Australian labradoodle registry, to be sold as an ald you need 7 gens since a non ald was put into the breeding lines. It’s hard to get a pedigree unspade. They are very different to someone letting their friends poodle cover their lab. Mine came with a full pedigree, but go ahead and spout your prejudice without knowing what you’re talking about. I think its very unlikely you find an ald from the places you suggest. Also much less likely to harm my kids, I wouldn’t touch a rescue with small kids, whatever they say you don’t know for sure why it was given up. Instead i have a ridiculously well trained dog, they were developed by guide dogs Australia to make the most trainable hypoaydog they could. Not a mutt. (But cheaper than most to insure as the insurance industry hasn’t caught on yet.