Some of you may remember this thread in which I asked for advice about my dog’s health problems. Well, it turns out those of you who said my leaving home was coincidence was right; the problem was kidney failure. She was euthanized on September 10 - which may have been a good thing in an odd way, since I had other things to take my mind off it soon enough. I’m doing just fine now, thanks for asking.
Now, my mother has already started talking about getting a new puppy. Dad hasn’t come around quite yet, but I’m pretty confident he will; he misses Sandy a lot too. What we’re not sure of, though, is what breed - so, once again, I turn to the SDMB for help.
The old dog was a toy poodle, so that’s out - I think they’d prefer something different.
But it needs to be a fairly small breed that can stay indoors, as our yard isn’t fenced.
Also, ideally, it should not be prone to messing up the house or shedding a lot (my dad’s a tiny bit of a neat freak).
Both my parents are retired, so there’s no need to worry about it being lonely; one of them will be home most of the time.
We’ve got a cat too - he’s strictly an outdoor cat, so it’s not absolutely vital that they become friends, but it’d be nice if they didn’t hate each other.
They should get a Scottie dog. They don’t need a lot of space, they don’t shed much at all, and they are unbeleivably cute. As for whether or not they get along withcats, well that really depends on the cat. My Scottie is terrified of my brothers cat (I think she scratched him once) but loves too “play” with our other cat. This "play"has resulted in our cat not coming inside until nightime, but you said that wasn’t really an issue anyways. They Do bark a lot, but you parents had a toy poodle, they should be used to that, plus their bark is really a bark, not a yap.
Isay go for a Pug. They are about as good natured as a small dog can get. They have short hair, plus they are so ugly their cute. They are extremely diffrent in appearence compared to your parent’s former dog. Or you may go to a terrier…like a boston terrier would be the best for what you want.
I would highly suggest a Maltese if you wouldn’t mind the competition… it’ll be their new child. They’re incredibly smart and affectionate; born to be spoiled with a talent of wrapping you around their little paw.
If they liked having a poodle, they’ll love the Maltese.
King Charles Spaniel. Very playful and cute as pups - very lazy and happy to stay at home once they hit middle-age. They’ll need at least a short walk daily, of course, but all dogs do, and they do tire pretty easily. The main thing is that they get to be with their masters, so they’ll happily do whatever your parents do. They’re very smart, too. My mum’s has gone stone deaf but obeys hand signals and even lipreads (or face-reads, or guesses, or something) to the point where she’ll go and get the specific toy we’ve requested.
Plus they are just pure chocolate-box dogs. They have the face of a baby seal, and the ears of a Springer. No-one is able to resist them for long. Lastly, if you’re choosing from a litter, always get the runt. As long as it’s healthy it’ll just be a miniature version of the breed.
Oh, plus, our own King Charles has always believed she’s a cat anyway. She was raised with a kitten. It does mean they insist on climbing everywhere cats can go, only without quite such grace, but it is pretty cute. If you can get your parents to buy a kitten at the same time it’ll be even better. They’ll wrestle. That is the cutest thing on earth times a million, no comebacks.
I don’t much care for small dogs, but I do like miniature schnauzers. A dog should be able to roughhouse to an extent, and every mini-schnauzer I’ve known was built like a very dense, organic brick. If people had like density, they’d be bullet-proof.
Getting along with cats seems to be more of an individually variable thing. My parents’ has no problem doing so. And if they’ve got gophers or similar critters ripping up the lawn, just the ticket–the one time I witnessed Zeke go into burrowing-critter-killing-mode is impressed firmly in my memory. He did so very effectively. Darted ahead, stopped, sniffed excitedly at the ground, and then his muzzle instantly displaced an equivalent volume of loose dirt, there was a crunch, a violent shaking of head, and one very dead small furry ground-destroying critter in the time it took to say “goodness, Ezekiel.”
Your parents would have to fence their yard but…
whippets are NOT notorious shedders: they have low maintenance coats, requiring only a brief going over with a hound’s glove (basically a rubber slab) every once in a while, a bath MAYBE once a month if you’re fussy. Whippets are wonderfully affectionate and sensitive to one’s moods, but they are not little yappy things constantly harrassing you for this or that. My whippet (Tahoe) is happy sleeping 23 hours a day if that’s what I’m inclined to do as well. He keeps himself entertained–as I write this, he has tucked himself into bed, Were I to be writing this in the morning, he’d be laying in the sun, worshiping.(sp?)
Get a dog from a reputable breeder (not like whippets are overrun with unscrupulous backyard breeders like SOME breeds we could mention) socialise it as a puppy–or try a rescue, at any rate they bond very well if you can understand that you are the alpha dog and have to take care of your pack sensitively.
Good luck and wet noses, whichever you pick!
And if you like Whippets, but they’re just too big, there’s always the Italian Greyhound.
Or the Tibetan Spaniel. I like Tibbies.
Or Pomeranians. A concentrated little dog.
Of course, what do your parents like in a dog? What are they looking for?
Lots and lots of little dogs. Many shed surprisingly little. But (as we all know) every breed has their own package of plusses and minusses. It’s a personal choice with long term consequences.
But you can’t go wrong with a nice Beagle.
-Rue.
Oh! And Wiener Dogs! Wirehaired Mini Dachshunds are nice too.
I had an unnecessarily sarcastic reply to that. I thought it was best to go with this…
Probably not the best choice for a retired couple. Jacks are very high energy. They need lots of exercise. It’ll be a bit of a shock after an older (well behaved) toy Poodle.
Size-wise and general tidiness is a good match though.
-Rue.
As small dogs go, I like the Shiba Inu. They’re unearthly cute, but pretty active and not pushovers. They’ve been known to get along with cats; some people say they’re a lot like cats themselves.
Oh, and I second Papillons. I have a friend who has 10 of them. :eek: Also really cute. Long hair though; might be a bit of a shedding problem.
Personally, I’ve never understood the whole “so ugly they’re cute” mindset. Why not just get a dog that’s “so cute it’s cute”?
If protection from burglers is important, I think this is a good choice also. We had one in the family growing up, and anyone who had never seen him was terrified the first time. Of course, they are very sweet and loving, but will bark like hell at a stranger.
~ Can’t get ANY respect for Chihuahuas??? …the only TRUE
toy dog… All they ask is that someone love them and put
cotton in their ears when you give them a bath… 2 things.
I’ve never owned a dog, but if I were in your parents’ situation I would consider a Boston Terrier or a Jack Russell. Both are loving and affectionate and shed very little, although both can easily get a little overexcited (but I think that’s cute). I believe the Boston sometimes has problems with hip displacement, but the Jack Russell is very healthy, as the breed isn’t standardized, so there’s lots of individual variation.
If they’re willing to go a little bigger, I would also suggest rescuing a former racing greyhound/ whippet. What a wonderful way to save a life and welcome a new member of the family!
tsarina, who can’t wait until she has a real house so she can get her first dog.
I wouldn’t trade my Italian Greyhound for all the gold in Fort Knox and everlasting world peace! Smaller than a whippet, very loyal, smart and loving. In fact, mine is curled up in my lap sleeping as I type. And he wouldn’t want to be anywhere else.
IGs are very low maintenance, don’t shed much if at all. The only drawback is that he can sometimes have sudden bursts of energy that cause him to run amok like someone just fed him a case of Jolt cola. But that usually only lasts about five or ten minutes a couple of times a day.
