I’d second the Golden, if you weren’t so worried about shedding. All threeof ours shed.
However, rescue dogs can be excellent. We recently adopted Grace, a Dane/Goat mix (she’ll eat and climb on anything!). She’s fitting into the pack quite nicely considering she was completely untrained when we got her. A 14-month old 66 pound puppy can be quite the training challenge but I’m sure it will be worth it. And she’s great with our 4 year old grandson.
I like the idea of a rescue dog but I’d be a little nervous about getting one that hasn’t been trained well or at all, and therefore untrainable given their age. As I mentioned, we have two young kids and I’d want to train the dog at the outset to not be overly aggressive or rough. I’d assume that if it started out joining our family as a puppy, it would gradually become accustomed to the kids versus not knowing how to treat a small child. Other training/bad habit issues would also concern me.
With a rescue dog in the post-puppy stage, is it ‘you’re stuck with the habits the dog has’, or are they retrainable?
Most dogs can be re-trained…old dogs can learn new tricks. But not all dogs can be re-trained by all people.
We’ve had dogs for years, so adding a rescue was not a big deal.
However, pretty much anyone can train a Golden…they live for making their people happy.
The advantage to an adult rescue dog is that you can screen for adult temperament, and - with patience - probably find one that is pretty well trained to begin with. Puppies - while not ‘aggressive’ with small children - find it irresistible to play with small children - which will include puppy biting, puppy jumping, puppy chasing. You can train the dog out of it, but you might be better off with a dog that has already outgrown much of that nonsense.
My well tempered, fairly well behaved dog CANNOT resist chasing kids if they run through the house - he’s not yet two.
Puppies are also a lot of work - housebreaking isn’t a quick and easy thing for many dogs and a young puppy will need to be taken out every few hours - even if you work during the day or are sleeping at night. Just a few more months and you get past at least THAT hassle.
Another couple of thoughts - be sure the decision is made by the adults, not the kids. Consider leaving them at home when you start looking. Do a lot of thinking/research before you start looking. And be sure you realize that just because you are looking at a particular dog, you don’t need to take one home. Just about any puppy is so cute that it can be incredibly hard to say no.
How about a Boston Terrier? I wanted a dog two months ago and my qualifications where very similar to yours so I settled on a Boston and I couldn’t be happier.
Oh yes. If you take the kids you are likely to add significantly to the amount of “crapshoot” in your decision making.
Bostons are definitely cool dogs in the “small dog that doesn’t know it” mold similar to pugs.
Don’t know anything about the breed other than some neat individuals I have met.
There was actually a fascinating bit on this on “Mythbusters,” of all places - they got some absolutely gorgeous older dogs from a rescue shelter who were almost completely untrained. The professional trainers working with the dogs had them trained in days. I’m fairly sure that most of dog training failures can be blamed squarely on the people, not the dogs.
x 10^100
I have Australian shepherds and a Maremma sheepdog. I am involved with the Australian Shepperd Rescue group. I second and third the opinions to stay away from shepherds and collies for the simple reason they are high maintenance working dogs. They need to have jobs or they will drive you nuts.
I can also agree with some experience featherlou’s post regarding training older rescues. All reputable rescue groups will have vetted the dogs to ensure they are sociable and have a very good potential to make family pets. No rescue group is in business just to place dogs and then hope everything turns out.
My advice to you have been said and said in this thread, get a shelter/rescue dog. Take it to obedience classes, DO THE HOMEWORK!!! You will then have a great family pet.
Good luck, and don’t forget to post pictures!
