Finding a family-friendly dog - UPDATE Pics First Post

[chism]

[QUOTE=LauraKY;5905566]

Chism, it sounds like she want an idiot proof dog, and you have to admit, some breeds can be less idiot proof than others![/QUOTE]

Guess I didn’t get that… I noticed that husband wasn’t going to be hands on, but it doesn’t sound like the OP is clueless.
I’m not saying that they should go out and get a RR, just saying that to dismiss entire breeds out of hand because of stereotypes is not just prejudicial, but it does a great disservice to wonderful dogs sitting in shelters and foster homes waiting for their perfect family.

[sid]

Flashgordon…haven’t read all the replies.

But I know of a wonderful 6 mo. old 3/4 Bernese Mt. Dog/Great Pyrenees to a good and loving home (free). I have her brother who I got at age 11 weeks. The BEST dog I have ever owned. So laid back, great with kids and other animals and farms.

If you are interested PM me. These pups were bred by a hunt kennel/breeder so they are good dog people. They kept 2 pups, but just called and really feel they can only keep one. The pup available is a female. Such sweet (but BIG) dogs.

[JanM]

My standard poodle stories:

1. A lady we knew got a great Standard Poodle puppy from a good local breeder. This was in a cold climate, and there was nothing there like the cold, nasty rains we had. The husband was on temporary duty, and came home. It was one of those nasty days, and he volunteered to take the puppy out. They waltzed around in the rain for a while, and were both getting soaked. Doggy wasn’t ‘producing’, and the wife leaned out the window (this was an apartment building) and asked hubby what was taking so long. He told her the puppy wasn’t done yet, and she yelled at him “tell the dog to go potty or you’ll be there all night”. The husband was so embarrassed that he leaned down, said the magic phrase, and puppy went. Then they could go back in and warm up. The husband was one of those really big, teddy bear types and was totally humiliated by the whole procedure. He and puppy became the best buddies ever.

2. Another man we knew had a standard and was in a rental property with a huge front yard, and virtually no back yard (I think it was all garage or something). During the day they would periodically put the dog out on a long line to exercise, etc in the front yard for short periods. A jerky neighbor who had a really big, and mean GS (I’m sure the owner encouraged this, and apparently got a real kick out of having a mean dog) that had bitten several people, terrorized the neighborhood residents, and had attacked several other dogs. The neighbor thought it was funny when his dog started harassing the poodle on the tie out (the poodle was only out there for short periods between walks and mostly was a house dog). The poodle owner warned the other man that if his GS bothered his dog, or especially harmed anyone on his property (he had a wife and little girl as I recall) that he would take whatever action he needed to stop the GS. The neighbor ignored this, and a few days later the poodle was out on the front lawn when the owner was getting ready to take him somewhere, and the GS came after the poodle, I guess assuming the dog was on a tie out and couldn’t fight back. GS was wrong, and the poodle fought back and won (you don’t want to know the details but the poodle was fine). The other owner tried to make trouble for the poodle owner, but with the history of the dog and owner the police told the neighbor to buzz off. The poodle was totally great with every other dog it met, and all people, but it did defend itself and it’s owner when necessary. They were originally bred for retrieving and hunting, and are not wimpy dogs.

Poodles are very smart and loyal and I think you’ll be surprised how intimidating a large dog that resembles a stuffed toy can be.

[StGermain]

I also recommend standard poodles. Simply wonderful dogs. I’m also a huge fan of dobermans, but your climate may be a little extreme.

And look at this beautiful dog. Swoon!

StG

[Rosie]

Old English Sheepdogs

Best. Dogs. EVER.
Lots of hair, but they don’t shed. Active, but not overly so. And every single one we have had is gentle, sweet and loving with everyone - but especially kids.
They are about the most NON agressive dogs you could ever find - ours literally walk up (non) tails wagging to everyone and everything.
If you don’t want to pay for a puppy, look at OES rescues.

[IFG]

Adding to the Standard Poodle chorus. They are great dogs. We currently have two, one from rescue and one from a breeder. I shave them all over with a 7F blade once a month, and they can play in the mud and not get too full of crud. Also, need no brushing.

Smart, easy to train, seem to read your mind, playful outside, but throttle down in the house (and my two are currently 1.5 and 3 years old). Play well with kids (though like any dog need training. Our rescue came from a family that did not have time to work with a puppy. We got him at 10 months, and he has become awesome and loves agility class.

[lolalola]

Keeshonds. They are hairy and can bark a lot, but they were bred to be companion dogs - not to hunt, herd or fight, but to hang out around the house (or barge, as the original case may be). They are also good with cats and other dogs.

[IFG]

FYI, Standard Poodles are not sissies. Walking the trails in the snow.

[sid]

Flashgordon – I emailed you.

[FlashGordon]

Sid, I got it, thank you! Just sent your friend an email.

IFG love the pics of your poodles! I’m surprised by how many people have and love Standards… I didn’t realize they were so popular.

[Bluey]

Don’t forget many miniatures are larger dogs, not toy sized at all, although not as large as standards.
Miniatures have the same easy going, gentle nature and not toy kind of high strung, but mellow as the standards.
A friend has one and so do two of his family, all from the same breeder and they are absolutely lovely dogs with everyone, dogs, humans and any other critter.
Some friends years ago had two miniatures as ranch dogs, that would help drive cattle just like an ACD, but were a bit taller than the heelers.
They also had ACDs, so maybe the poodles just learned from them.
Those miniature poodles used to jump up and ride in the back of the saddle.

[Swishy-Tails]

[QUOTE=FlashGordon;5906792]
Sid, I got it, thank you! Just sent your friend an email.

IFG love the pics of your poodles! I’m surprised by how many people have and love Standards… I didn’t realize they were so popular.[/QUOTE]

Poodles aren’t really popular, us poodle fans are just a small minority that’s “got it” in knowing what a good dog is.

My best girlfriends mini is good sized. Definately not rule them out. I talked her into getting a poodle instead of a yorkie shitzu or something like that. She LOVES ruby! Its her first dog, and let me tell you Ruby has definitely been “fool proof.” she taught Ruby how to do SO many tricks just by getting ideas from a dog trick book. She now competes in agility and does GREAT!

Not to mention she’s wonderful with kids - she spends the days my friend is at university all day at her cousins house who has 3 small children.

I’ve NEVER heard of anyone that knows poodles going with another breed. They are truly the best dogs.

At the end it’s your choice, but I’d be weary of getting an older dog from a history you know nothing about. We adopted an older dog and it was NOT a happy ending story like the others here. I got bit a few times as a child from this dog and we had to find him another home. MAYBE a dog from a breeder who is now too old to breed, that has been trained and knows about people but I think that’s the smartest place to draw the line.

Re professional grooming poodles - you can learn how to give them haircuts yourself so you don’t have to spend the $$ on a professional groomed. I can give my dog a trim in about 30 minutes and it’s needed about every 2 months but I let her grow out in the winter.

[IFG]

[QUOTE=FlashGordon;5906792]

IFG love the pics of your poodles! I’m surprised by how many people have and love Standards… I didn’t realize they were so popular.[/QUOTE]

Thanks. They are awesome dogs. Lots of fun, and definitely not fru fru. Our Rescue Standard before these two routinely pinned every dog in the neighborhood. He never hurt them, got them on their backs, and once the pecking order was established, proceeded to play with them.

[IFG]

BTW, Flash, I will say that it took a while for my husband to accept the idea of a poodle, but now that we are on our second and third spoos, there is no going back. Stay away from the doodles. Most are poorly bred from backyard breeders.

[FlashGordon]

Just wanted to say… COTHers are the best! I’ve had loads of PMs with many kind offers, advice, and information. Thanks again to everyone who has replied here and msg’d me privately!

[Swishy-Tails]

[QUOTE=FlashGordon;5907407]
Just wanted to say… COTHers are the best! I’ve had loads of PMs with many kind offers, advice, and information. Thanks again to everyone who has replied here and msg’d me privately![/QUOTE]

Please keep us updated with your choosings

[JanM]

Actually, LaurieB on here (Laurien Berenson on Amazon) wrote an entire mystery series about a schoolteacher that had Standard Poodles, and included a lot of information about Poodles and showing. It was an interesting look inside the world of showing, and explained a lot about the different types of events and how great poodles are at them (obedience, agility, etc) as well at regular shows. It also showed what life is like with big poodles, and it was from a real insider (she showed poodles for years, and I think her website still talks about owning a poodle).

Maybe a good option for you and your hubby is to go to a local show (this is a good time of year for that) and wander the benching or backstage area and meet some of the candidates. That might give him a chance to see some of them in action, and you might meet a breeder or show competitor that wants to place an adult dog. I’m still hoping Standard Poodle for your family, but there are many other worthy candidates that might fit the bill also. Just be careful about adopting a dog with hip dysplasia, since that can cause pain when a little kid (or anyone else) hits the hip area, and might trigger snapping or nipping in self defense by the dog.

[RubyLink]

My family lucked out finding the best family friendly dog. We went to the pound and walked up and down every row until we found a dog that was sitting in their kennel quietly. It took several trips to the pound and humane society to find him, but it was worth it.

When we went to a local shelter, Jobi was the only dog in the dog kennel area that wasn’t barking or jumping on the gate. He was sitting at the gate quietly watching people walk by. When we went in the kennel with him to pet him, he backed up quietly so the volunteers could open the gate and then sat back down. He never jumped on anyone, never barked, never tried to push past us to get out, etc. I thought we couldn’t get him because my mom said she wasn’t sure but turns out she called them and asked to come in and fill out the paperwork to adopt him. It was meant to be a surprise for my brother and me. When he came home, we learned he had been trained as a hunting dog so he knew all the usual commands plus lots more. We got him when he was 1 and he passed away at 13.

Anywho, when I look at dogs as a potential keeper, that is what I do.

[threedogpack]

[QUOTE=FlashGordon;5906792]
Sid, I got it, thank you! Just sent your friend an email.

IFG love the pics of your poodles! I’m surprised by how many people have and love Standards… I didn’t realize they were so popular.[/QUOTE]

I love the way Poodles move and their soundness. I have a friend in Ohio that breeds hunting standards. NICE dogs. Laser bright as in smartsmartsmart too. I’ve never met a dumb poodle of any size or color.

[Foxtrot_s]

Well, plenty of ideas here. Regarding poodles, they are such smart dogs they can get bored easily. PADS (Pacific Assistance Dog Soc.) loves to use them and labs, but find that after three times the poodle is bored, the lab will go on forever on the same tasks.

There are some of these PADS dogs that do not ‘graduate’ even though they are bred for the job, have wonderful temperaments, etc., and these are adopted out after having extensive socialization and training by knowledgeable people. The brood bitches are also adopted out after, I think, four litters.

Hey - just a thought - a Labradoodle! The right dog will find you - trust me.