What is the right dog for me!

HummingBird171

hi,

I live in a huge apartment with a big yard. i have 2 cats both love dogs. i am wondering what kind of dog would be good for me. i am at home all the time and am classified as a disabled person in the governments eyes. i am wondering what kind of dog would be good for me i have a chance to get a Border Collie/Spaniel (mom) and lab (dad) mixed puppy for 300.00 dollars. is this an okay dog for me?

all your input is welcome.

Whispered

Hey hummingbird, first off I would say that there is really no need to pay for a dog and I would run a mile from anyone who is trying to sell you a mongrel. If you don't have your heart set on a particular breed, you can save yourself money and save a life by going through a rescue.

Why not tell us what you would like from your dog and we can make suggestions of breeds which might suit.

EDIT: I just noticed you are in canada, I assume that there are rescues in canada and they work in the same way as here in Ireland?

belongtojazz

Hi, the dog you have mentioned sounds like it would need a huge amount of exercise, all 3 of those breeds are high energy dogs. Would your disability allow you that?
There is nothing worse than a dog with a huge amount of energy to burn. If your disabilty means you aren't able to spend a lot of time and energy training a dog there are breeds out there who require a lot less.
300 dollars does seem like a lot of money to pay, would it be possible for you to look in shelters or pounds for a dog looking for a second chance of a loving home?

EDIT: i've just noticed i kind of copied what whispered said about rescue

Dublinstiofán

belongtojazz

think he might get lost in the yard

So wanted to say 'yum' dinner but restrained myself lol

HummingBird171

hey whispered,

well i have always wanted a mixed breed dog. seeing as all the pure breed dogs around here have problems and i cant deal with a high vet bill. and yes the rescues and SPCA around here do work the same as they would any wheres else. here in nova scotia (where i live) to pay 300 for a dog of that mix is a little pricey but not to bad. pure breed dogs here can go from 400.00 to 2000.00 depending on the breed. also shelters around here do background checks and want to see what kind of home you have before letting you take in a dog from them. i have dealt with shelters before and they seem to not want to let someone that does not have a dog get one through them. i don't know if that is just the people that are running it or if that is how its spouse to go.

thank you,

HummingBird171

Sigma Force

Do check out your local rescues first.
Collies and collie crosses need a lot of excercise and are a bit nutty, not saying they don't do well in apartments but they need a lot of space to run off their excess energy unless perhaps you adopt on older collie..mind you my collie is 11 and has the energy of a puppy still.

Another breed to consider, and they do come in to rescue very rarely but they do. Is a Papillon, now they do have no undercoat so can feel the cold and are indoor dogs but have no problem going for walks in any weather but Canada is a lot colder so in the depths of winter wouldn't be able to cope with the cold outside for long and would need to wear something to keep them warm on short walks.

They do however make fantastic apartment pets, they need a walk and love to play but will happily snuggle up on your lap afterwards and are really sweet natured. If you are disabled then you might find a smaller lighter breed easier to handle and excercise. They are very cat like as well and generally get on well with other household pets once introduced although as puppies they can look like prey to cats being so small.

A properly bred Papillon is expensive though but as I said they do come in to rescue once in a blue moon and no doubt the same goes for Canada.
There are lots of websites with info. about the breed.

Most rescues have websites now so if you google rescues and your local area then you should come up with something or if there's no good rescues in your area check out some slightly outside of where you live. I guess it's the same as over here that if a good home is found rescues will try to home the dog even if it's outside their area.

HummingBird171

hi belongtojazz,

no my disability does not enable me to give a big dog a lot of exercise. i walk 3 times a day so would be great to have a walking companion as well. if you read what i wrote to whispered then i guess you know about my problems with rescues around here as well as shelters that people run out of there own homes. it seems that most people around here take the dogs or cats in and when it comes to getting them new homes with loving families they don't want to. so i am sticking to breeders or people that have dogs that are having puppies.

Whispered

I am the same hummingbird, I have a soft spot for the mongrels.

I've never heard of rescues not allowing a dog go to a home which does not already have a dog there. It might just be the rescu you have dealt with? You could try another maybe?

What about the pound? Could you get a dog there?

Are you looking for a large dog, small dog, high energy, sedentary, a clowny dog, calm dog, a dog which would put potential threats off, or a cute little lap dog? My dog is a mix, we think a labXstaff - he's medium size, excitable, clowny attntion seeking boy and wouldn't harm a fly. You could nearly predict most of his personality in his breeding. So you don't necessarily need to get a purebreed dog to be able to have an idea of how it will turn out.

Like belongtojazz said, that breed you are looking at would likely be very high energy as all 3 breeds are working dogs, it could be pretty highly strung, would likely be very very intelligent. Basically, a hard work dog (all dogs are though).

Another thing to consider, I don't know how your dog population is in NovaScotia but here, we put thousands of dogs to sleep every year. In my opinion, paying money for a mongrel is only encouraging more people to breed just for money which is not ideal and leads to more and more unwanted puppies.

chatjunkie

JUSt to say that we have two golden retrievers at home and they arethe most loving dogs
Theyre also wonderful company for my parents, very sensitive. Well-worth considering.

HummingBird171

well i must say i got a better response then i thought i would.:D i am really interested in the border collie mixed puppy. i have always wanted one and what a better why then to get a mixed seeing as most people dont want them around here.also not a lot of dogs are in the rescues and pounds around here either. is there anything i should know about the breeds that are in this puppy before getting it? i did look up some stuff about them but nothing i have read give a lot of information on this mixed breed. so if you would name a few sites for me to look on or even tell me some stuff you know would be great

Zapperzy

From my experience of all three breeds in this puppy they are all very high energy breeds that go stir crazy without proper exercise and stimulation. Be prepared for lots of walks (when the pup is old enough of course) and look into giving him a job to do such as agility or flyball lessons as those breeds would excel at such sports, especially collies.
Best thing is to research all three breeds separetely as most likely the pup will be a mixture of all three, it's impossible to say it will turn out like x, y or z breed with such a mix of breeds in its breeding.

I wouldn't reccommend such a mix for living in an apartment unless you are willing to give the dog 100%. Unless your on the ground floor it will mean regular long walks downstairs/lifts for pee breaks. Also is the yard yours or is it shared between a few apartments?

I don't know what it's like in canada but Id say about 75% (roughly as I have no figures) of dogs that come into shelters and pounds here are collie/spaniel/lab mixes and to me paying 300 dollars for one sounds crazy when there are hundreds of them waiting in shelters. Can I ask was this puppy an accidential breeding or on purpose? Did they say why they were charging so much, is the pup from working lines or something?

How Soon Is Now

chatjunkie wrote: »

JUSt to say that we have two golden retrievers at home and they arethe most loving dogs
Theyre also wonderful company for my parents, very sensitive. Well-worth considering.

I 2nd this amazing dog i have had a few of them now since i was a kid *24 now*

Have a Golden since May beautiful smart loving dog and as gentle as they come i mean i remember back having one as a child and me brother used to pull out the dog nearly dropped him few times not even a snap out of him they dont have any sort of violence in them great with kids known for being very good guide dogs and such.

There also very easy to train all they need is a bit of time and plenty love and care and are a great companion.

morganafay

Collies/spaniels/labs all need loads of exercise and I'd imagine the puppy would be really hyper and misbehave if he didn't have lots of exercise, but with walks and training it should be a nice dog. You'll have loads of time for training the dog, but if you've never had a dog before, then I'd suggest either taking it to puppy training classes or getting a training book or something and really training it well, so it won't be hyper or bored. It'll probably be a very intelligent dog so will love it

I also like golden retrievers, but if you like mixed breeds and don't want to pay loads of money for a dog, then go for the mixed one

It's different here, that mongrels are usually free because there are so many of them around, but I guess dogs are more expensive over there.

HummingBird171

The yard is shared between 4 houses in the building i am in there's 3 apartments and in the other apartment building has 2 so its not that many people and i know all the ones that live here so its all good and they have all said i can use the huge yard anytime. i am vary experienced with big dogs i had 3 as i was growing up (they all lived there life spans) and i had one 4 years ago(will be 5 in may) he was husky/lab/rottie mix i had to give him away because he tryed to kill one of the cats and it was one of the hardest things i had to do. so i figure i am ready for a dog after almost 5 years. as for training i am sure i could handle it. i will be getting the puppy in sept. on the 29th.

thank you everyone.