Wow - what a great thread, with a lot of good information! Love it!
I just wanted to respond, since I saw interest in the cocker spaniel. And naturally I had to respond to the "good breeders" vs "bad breeders" and cockers being girly dogs with pee problems
Hi there,
I'm looking to finally get a family dog and would really appreciate some suggestions regarding what breed I should be looking for.
I've got two small active kids (2 and 5 years old). I work 8 hours/day my wife works 5 hours/day. We have a fenced back yard and live near Toronto - cold winter and the odd hot/humid streak during the summer.
Some of my priorities:
- Good with kids
- Quiet-ish ("hello" when someone's at the door is ok)
- Not too much grooming
- Plays fetch with a frisbee and tennis ball
- Good with mixed outdoor/indoor environment
- Trainable but not smarter than me
- Can let off the leash safely
- Not going to kill the neighbor's cat
- Not going to bark all day at the neighbor's cat
- Prefer fur that is soft, short(er), and consistent length
- Ok with snow (Canadian winters)
- Ok with sleeping by itself (indoors)
- Low odor
- Prefer consistent fur color
- Don't want to have my clothes covered in fur after getting off the couch
- Will go for a jog with me
Any input/suggestions would be greatly appreciated!
-Peter
Cockers can be great family dogs. My suggestion would be to either find a good breeder (would take longer, take lots of research and talking to a breeder) or going through a breed specific rescue if you were seriously interested in the breed. The "problem" with the bad breeders (and really, this applies to any breed popularized by the media; labs, goldens, dalmations, chihuahuas, etc) is that they were so popular that everyone wanted one, and so anyone would get a male and a female and sell the puppies without any concerns with genetics or temperament. It was quantity over quality, and now breeders are doing just to opposite to help restore the breed.
The benefits of going to a rescue would be your best bet - everything on your list; barking, being good with cats, etc would be known about a dog in a good rescue. The one thing I noticed on your list is the grooming aspect. Cockers need groomed about every 6wks or so - depending on how long or short their hair is. There are also good grooming videos and forums you could go to if you wanted to learn to do it yourself. Me, personally, I find grooming very relaxing and therapeutic
If you go through a rescue, however, you
may find one with a 'field coat' which is not as thick, and doesn't grow as long. My last foster, Reba, had a beautiful red field coat that required no trimming at all. My current foster has a full show coat that requires a bit of maintenance.
In my personal experience, cockers do not shed as bad as some. The cavaliers I've met definitely shed worse, as do labs, pugs, german shedders(shepherds) etc. The do require the brushing, though, some mat easier than others, and if that's not something your into I would pick another breed.
As for the peeing - submissive urinating, some of puppies from "bad breeders" have it, and most grow out of it. None of the dogs in the rescue currently submissively urinate, to the best of my knowledge. And we have quite a few dogs - more than which on currently on the website (still evaluating and getting into foster homes). It can be worsened from towering people, training with harsh methods and/or punishment. I've known quite a few labs who submissively urinate - and there bigger so it seems worse when they do
Again, if you go to a rescue (whatever the breed) they will be able to tell you if the dog submissively urinates or not.
With any breeds there will be variations - dogs are after all individuals and some do not like certain things, or have learned to react differently to different situations. If you don't see a dog you're interested in right now you could fill out an application and be approved so when I dog does come into the rescue that you're interested in you won't have to worry about being approved before someone else. I believe most rescues do this as well (but not 100% certain). Visiting shelters is a great start, just to see what you like, and what you don't like to narrow down you preferences. Don't be detered by a dogs age, either. Sometimes the dogs that are "older" 6+ are the best ones! And they still have a lot of life left in them
Our 3 that perminatly live here love to hike, would love to jog if I wasn't so lazy (lol we have done it in the past), are reliable offleash (with training), non-yappy, good with cats, kids, are very soft
loves to play in the snow (sometimes have to watch for ice balls attaching to the fur if its kept longer), love to be inside or outside; really wherever you are. Very trainable, catch on to tricks quickly, espeicially if you use food and/or a clicker!
I have only had my current foster 3wks today and the commands he's learned staggers me!
I encourage you to check out petfinder, rescues or shelters in your area, and also to check out the Cherished Cockers website; we have adopted to a family in Canada before. Transport is an issue, but the family came down through Michigan I believe and met transport up there to adopt the dogs. Sometimes we have mixes with poodle or cavalier. Oreo looks like he's possibly mixed with golden or something a little bit bigger. He's a big puppy. Actually if Wally wasn't adoption pending he sounds like a match for you - he LOVES kids
Cherished Cockers
There is a lot of good info on this thread! I wish everyone would take the time to research like you are! And this may be random, but if you were okay with not letting a dog offleash (fence is okay) beagles make great family pets. They're pretty food motivated when it comes to training