# Are new breeds of dog being developed? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 14, 2009, 8:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453 "2009-05-14T20:47:37Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 11\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![jayjay](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jayjay/32/6765_2.png) [@jayjay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jayjay)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2009, 7:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/41 "2009-05-15T19:43:20Z")
> [@Cagey\_Drifter](#): > > I was thinking of breeding a beagle with a shih tzu to develop something I want to call a ‘shit beagle.’ Breed a shih tzu and a bulldog instead. You could call it a bullshiht. ---
**Author:** ![Cagey\_Drifter](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/b2d939/32.png) [@Cagey\_Drifter](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cagey_Drifter)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2009, 8:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/42 "2009-05-15T20:35:33Z")
> [@jayjay](#): > > Breed a shih tzu and a bulldog instead. You could call it a bullshiht. I don’t type LOL very often, but here goes: LOL!! I should say in defense of my comment that I was going for an “anti-joke” rather than the traditional HAHA. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2009, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/43 "2009-05-15T21:17:43Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > So let’s see. > > The companion dog for the 21st century should be: > > 30-40 pounds. Not a toy, but small enough that you can pick it up. > Labrador-style temperament. > Non-shedding coat. > Not mouthy or chewy. > Absolutely non-aggressive to humans, and low dominance. > Low aggressiveness to other dogs > Low prey drive–won’t eat your cats, or even your gerbil. > Favorite activity? Hanging out. Second favorite? Kicking back. But if you wanna go for a walk, hey, that’s cool too. [Lagotto Romagnolo](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagotto_Romagnolo). They’re the Italian equivalent of miniature Portuguese Water Dogs. They meet all of the criteria except mouthiness (most dogs explore the world through their mouths) and “hanging out” (they’re active and need exercise, but not as much as the PWD). They’re VERY rare in the US, though; I’ve only seen one outside of a show. You’ll get some serious indie cred too, now that PWDs have gone mainstream. ---
**Author:** ![elmwood](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmwood/32/3060_2.png) [@elmwood](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/elmwood)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2009, 9:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/44 "2009-05-15T21:29:06Z")
Too late to edit, my last post, but as the owner of two awesome but aging Portuguese Water Dogs, if I cant get another one when the time comes thanks to their newfound popularity, I’ll be seriously considering the [Lagotto](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lagotto_Romagnolo) or [Barbet](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Barbet_%28dog%29). IMHO, it’s better to find a rare breed with the traits one wants in a dog, than cross two established breeds and hope for the best. ---
**Author:** ![Whack-a-Mole](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whack-a-mole/32/141_2.png) [@Whack-a-Mole](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Whack-a-Mole)\ **Post date:** [May 15, 2009, 10:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/45 "2009-05-15T22:04:04Z")
My dog is a [Shiloh Shepherd](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shiloh_Shepherd_Dog). The breed was developed in the 1970’s but not really established till the 80’s-90’s. Still a fairly rare breed and expensive. The woman who developed the breed want to get back to the “ideal” German Shepherd as the GSD in the United States has suffered badly from unscrupulous breeding and is a shadow of its former self (indeed GSDs the military uses are imported from overseas). Simply a stupendous dog! But be careful, the breed founder was/is fanatical about protecting the bloodline to protect it from unscrupulous breeding. Splinter groups have peeled off to offer Shiloh-like dogs without all the hassle imposed on breeders of the real thing. ACCEPT NO SUBSTITUTES! If you want one be prepared to wait months and pay an arm-and-a-leg for it. Well worth it IMO though. Just cannot say enough of how spectacular these dogs are. I read up on the struggle the woman who developed the Shiloh had. It is NOT easy creating a new breed that breeds true with the features you want and avoids health problems. IIRC it wasn’t until she got her hands on some fancy computer program to track genetic lines and such that it really came together for her. Took her well over a decade. ---
**Author:** ![BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/bcef8e/32.png) [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2009, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/46 "2009-05-16T03:26:16Z")
> [@Lynn\_Bodoni](#): > > The Maltese is almost what you want, here. > > [snip] > > Generally, they aren’t yappy, like some toys. [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maltese_(dog)#Temperament) says they tend to be yappy, even saying > [@](#): > > An Australia-wide research project (but not in Tasmania) in conjunction with RSPCA found owners likely to dump their Maltese terriers,[30] citing their tendency to bark constantly.[30] This breed is Australia’s most dumped dog. Maybe you just got lucky with the ones you knew. ---
**Author:** ![palacheck](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a88e57/32.png) [@palacheck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/palacheck)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2009, 3:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/47 "2009-05-16T03:40:30Z")
Brussels Griffon. Small dog that isn’t a terrier. Look them up. ---
**Author:** ![Alex\_Dubinsky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/dbc845/32.png) [@Alex\_Dubinsky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alex_Dubinsky)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2009, 7:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/48 "2009-05-16T07:31:40Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Toy breeds aren’t bred for companionship; they’re bred to fit into a purse. They’re living ornaments, not pets. You’re thinking of teacups. Toy breeds don’t fit into purses. I have a Shihtzu. Yes, they’re the “asian royalty” breed but they literally _were_ bred for companionship. His face isn’t susceptible to disease, you just have to pick the boogers out of his eyes and feed them back to him. ---
**Author:** ![Lynn\_Bodoni](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e47c2d/32.png) [@Lynn\_Bodoni](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lynn_Bodoni)\ **Post date:** [May 16, 2009, 8:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/49 "2009-05-16T08:53:08Z")
> [@BellRungBookShut-CandleSnuffed](#): > > [Wiki](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Maltese_(dog)#Temperament) says they tend to be yappy, even saying > > Maybe you just got lucky with the ones you knew. I’ve known several, and only one of them was inclined to be yappy. This was my father’s dog, and my father taught him to speak on command, and praised the dog for yapping. So I don’t think it was the dog’s fault, really. This dog, Sinbad, was quite intelligent…or at least, good at learning tricks. He’d learn a trick because he knew he’d be praised and/or given a treat if he did it properly. He would have been a fine performance dog. Maltese are very good companion dogs, as long as they aren’t spoiled too much. The biggest drawback they have, as far as I’m concerned, is their coat maintenance. The owner has to either clip it at home, get it clipped, or let it grow out and keep it wrapped in paper (sort of like the old stereotype of a housewife with her hair perpetually in rollers) unless the dog is actually being shown. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/50 "2009-05-17T03:19:36Z")
> [@Lemur866](#): > > So let’s see. > > The companion dog for the 21st century should be: > > 30-40 pounds. Not a toy, but small enough that you can pick it up. > Labrador-style temperament. > Non-shedding coat. > Not mouthy or chewy. > Absolutely non-aggressive to humans, and low dominance. > Low aggressiveness to other dogs > Low prey drive–won’t eat your cats, or even your gerbil. > Favorite activity? Hanging out. Second favorite? Kicking back. But if you wanna go for a walk, hey, that’s cool too. [Whippet](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whippet). Well, almost–they do have a prey drive, but that can be conditioned out (for the most part) if you get one as a puppy. And, their favorite activity is sleeping, but hanging out and kicking back are high up there. These are great little dogs, I would not pass up an opportunity to recommend them. ---
**Author:** ![JKilez](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/e5b9ba/32.png) [@JKilez](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JKilez)\ **Post date:** [May 17, 2009, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453/51 "2009-05-17T03:32:48Z")
> [@PatriotGrrrl](#): > > There are people breeding mini-huskies, with the aim of keeping the personality of a working dog rather than making them into yappy little toys. Do you have any evidence that this is happening in reality? From what I have seen on the web, mini-huskies appear to be about as real as bonsai kittens. I have a feeling that we will see [domesticated Siberian Foxes](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tame_Silver_Fox) hit the market before toy-sized Soviet sled dogs. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/are-new-breeds-of-dog-being-developed/496453.md?page=2)