long future help

[FoxyWench]

long long in the future (i have to move out of my parents house and become a little more stable first) im adding a "large" dog to my little family...
however ive now decided that id like a large dog that could...if all goes well and personality is right...become my service dog.
right now ruby is my acting sercive dog but theres many things shes just not big enough to do lol.

so ive got a list of breeds i love...
along with some pros and cons, and would love some imput.

Great dane:
pro: im experienced with the breed, great size
con: very slow maturing, short lifespan

Doberman:
pro: very inteligent, working breed, smart enough to make desicions
con: ive heard they can be same sex dog agressive

Boxer:
pro: good size, eager to learn, plenty of energy
con: lots of energy, the boxers ive been around have all seemed a little hard to focus

Standard Poodle:
pro: low shedding, extreemly inteligent, very connected to thier people
con: can be shy with strangers, lots of grooming upkeep (though i could handle it)

APBT:
pro: LOVE their people, can be very intuitive, human agression not typically an isue
con: potential for dog agression.

other breeds i love would be wolfhounds, borzoi, boerboels.

some of the services the dog would need to preform would be as simple as retreiving meds and keeping schedual...to more complex tasks like nudging during a freeze/panic, disrupting repetative behaviours and responding to seizures.

alerting would be a nice bonus but of course something a dog does on its own so...

any input?

 

[SizzleDog]

l


Doberman:
pro: very inteligent, working breed, smart enough to make desicions
con: ive heard they can be same sex dog agressive

some of the services the dog would need to preform would be as simple as retreiving meds and keeping schedual...to more complex tasks like nudging during a freeze/panic, disrupting repetative behaviours and responding to seizures.

alerting would be a nice bonus but of course something a dog does on its own so...

any input?

I bolded some parts....

1. YES, Dobes can be (and the males usually are) same sex dog aggressive. I've had pretty good luck with the females though, I think getting a bitch in your situation would be a safe bet.

2. Poking? Nudging? If there was ever a breed predisposed to doing these things natually... it's the dobe. Poking and nudging is practically a breed trait. Dobes are very tactile dogs, they have to touch everything. Kind of annoying at times, but I'd imagine it would work out very well for them to actually have a job of it.

Dobermans are extremely intuitive, and loyalty is a hallmark of the breed - they become very attached to their owners - the breed was created for personal protection, so a very strong dobe/owner bond is quite common. This is a breed that will want to be near you (if not touching you) at all times.

 

[bubbatd]

You left out Retrievers .

 

[Laurelin]

For danes, boxers, and dobes, my biggest concern would be health and lifespan of your service dog. I have never trained a service dog but to me I think I'd especially want to go with something longer lived.

 

[Fran101]

I think the poodle or dobe would be a great choice, both incredibly smart and capable. I would lean more towards the poodle lifespan wise, and away from the dane. It takes a LONG time to teach all these behaviors and a dane lifespan is typically heartbreakingly short

But, why dismiss retrievers? I know they are kind of typical/common service dogs but thats for a reason, I think retrievers (labs and goldens alike) make fabulous service dogs

out of those breeds, I suggest a standard poodle lovely dogs, smart, and dog aggression usually isn't an issue. long lifespan, and low shedding

 

[babymomma]

Some people just dont like most retrievers..

I personally would never own a golden or a lab.. (other retrivers, maybe but unlikely.)

If it were me, I would personally go with the standard poodle.

(OK, if it were me, I would go with a GSD of course, but out of your choices of breed I'd go with the Standard poodle and socialize the h*ll out of it )

 

[filarotten]

I think the poodle would be a very good choice for you. I grew up with a standard Poodle. He was a great dog. Loved us kids, very smart, patient, protective, playful, but he also had a serious side. Not the shedding mess either. The only problem I remember him having was an occasionall ear infection.

 

[Saeleofu]

If you want the dog to be your service dog, there are a LOT of things to take into consideration. Everyone else can give you better ideas of most of these breeds as far as personality and how it is to actually live with a dog of that breed is, but I'm going to point out my main concerns/preferences from an SD standpoint.

Great dane: They're HUGE. Public access can be hard enough as it is, it can be REALLY difficult to use a Great Dane in public just because they're so huge. They can't curl up as small as other dogs, and a lot of people will question a larger dog more than a "normal" sized dog. Yes, there are people who have great danes as SDs, but personally I'd avoid it unless you specifically need a dog that large (for example, a mobility dog for a large person). Think of how hard it might be to squish a great dane into a public bathroom stall with you :yikes:

Doberman: My only concern here as far as public access is concerned is potential BSL. Temperament testing goes without saying regardless of breed.

Boxer: health issues out the butt, it will be really hard to find a bower that is physically healthy/sound enough to be an SD for several years. Hard to focus is right, in my experience. Gavroche CAN focus very well, but it takes effort for me to get his attention at times. But, if you need something like guide work, that can be a good thing, because the dog has to focus on the environment more when they are doing guidework. I have trained Gavroche for a little bit of guide work just for my own practice, and he has learned it VERY fast and done an awesome job. But sometime at the pet store he'll run into a display or a low rack and then look like "WTF where did that come from?" so...high distractibility? He doesn't do that in harness, this is just on leash, and only in the public, so I figure it's distractions.

Standard Poodle: Grooming, but if you keep them cut short, that shouldn't be much of an issue. Learn to clip them yourself. I do still want a standard poodle at some point. I have seen them working in person and they are wonderful dogs. If you go with a poople, you may want to contact American Poodles at Work and be placed on a list for a puppy. They do not have room to train every puppy they breed, and they do have puppies available at times that would be good service dog candidates. I was on their puppy wait list until I decided on getting Logan.

APBT: Again, BSL. Also, depending on what you need the dog to do, height. If you need balance/mobility/guide work, it's just not going to work out unless the dog is uncharacteristically tall or you are very short. I have seen APBTs make great service dogs, though.

I know some places SDs are exempt form BSL, but in some places they're not. And even in the places where they are exempt, it's often shoot first ask questions later. What good will legal immunity from BSL do if they've already confiscated and killed your service dog? Remember to consider not just where you are living or where you would like to live, but also anywhere that you may travel, even surrounding towns.

If you really want a dog that alerts, your best bet is to find a dog from a line of natural alerters. This is by no means a guarantee that the dog will alert, but it increases the chances.

 

[lizzybeth727]

I agree about the BSL with dobes and APBT. And I agree that boxers don't make GREAT service dogs. Great danes are also really too big, unless you have to have a dog that big for balance work or something.

I think borzoi could be great SDs, and being sighthounds aren't they similar (temperment wise) to the cresteds? Might be a good fit for you, you should talk to Romy.

Of course retrievers make awesome SDs. One thing to remember about them is that there are HUGE temperment differences between retrievers. In my organization we use about 75% labs, but some do complete opposite tasks from each other. Some are balance dogs (extremely calm, non reactive, stoic, just lay there until called) and some are hearing dogs (sound reactive, independent thinkers, focused on environment, quick reactions). IMO, to say "I don't like labs" (unless you just really don't like the look of labs) means that you just haven't found one YET that you like.

I'd also suggest collies, I've trained a few collie SDs and I just LOVE them.

As for the others on your list, I do think wolfhounds would be good SDs but I have no experience with them (difficult to find in central TX shelters); they look good on paper. They do also have a short lifespan, though. I've never considered a boerboel, I don't think there are a lot of mastiffs in general that would make good SDs.

 

[FoxyWench]

im not too concerned with BSL with dobes, pitties mabe but im already in the bsl fight ive no plans to live in or travel anywhere with bsl so it would have to come to me...but i definatly see the point there.

i agree on the size of the dane, i dont need much in terms of stability, i just love danes lol, i do think the lifespan would be an issue...

im currnelty leaning to dobes and st.poodles.
grooming isnt an issue, ive groomed poodles before and while im no master at show cuts i LOVE doing shorter clips lol

in terms of retrivers, one of the only breeds i seem to be allergic to is the lab and while i like playing with goldens, there just not for me, they are beautiful, and very sweet, just not my breeds though.

ive got plenty of time but i realy do apreciate all the input.

 

[Fran101]

Get a doberdoodle!!

*RUNS AWAY* lol

 

[FoxyWench]

oh my goodness fran lol

but wait it looks like another breed...gah what breed am i thinking??

 

[Catsi]

I can't offer any advice, having zilch experience with service dogs. But I do have a question.

If Labs/retrievers are commonly used as SDs, will other gundogs not potentially fit the bill?

My impression of labs are that you have to put a lot of training and work into the vast majority to get a happy, adjusted dog that is a pleasure to live with (most of the time ). Obviously a lot of dog breeds (if not all to some varying degree IMHO) are the same as this. So would another breed from the gundog group be suitable at all?

Good luck with your research FoxyWench.

Edit - that dog reminds me (vaguely?) of a very slightly built Italian Spinone.

 

[SizzleDog]

Quick question - will this SD ever have to support your weight? (either for balance or to hold onto if you had to crawl/drag yourself anywhere) If yes, that would be something I'd worry about with a Standard Poodle.

 

[FoxyWench]

not likely any weight bearing no matter what breed i whent with, i freeze seizure so go ridged rather than drop, and i would NEVER subject a dog to any of my weight lol.

 

[Baxter'smybaby]

Get a doberdoodle!!

*RUNS AWAY* lol

I think he looks like a wire haired Pointer.

 

[lizzybeth727]

If Labs/retrievers are commonly used as SDs, will other gundogs not potentially fit the bill?

My organization uses a lot of labs because they're extremely common in shelters. If you're looking for a 60-pound dog in a shelter, about 80% will be labs and pits. We don't find goldens very often at all, though there's a very active golden rescue (and goldens aren't nearly as common, labs are still used around here as gun dogs and goldens aren't). We do find a lot of GSPs in shelters, but pointers in general are probably going to be way too independent to want to be service dogs.

My impression of labs are that you have to put a lot of training and work into the vast majority to get a happy, adjusted dog that is a pleasure to live with (most of the time ). Obviously a lot of dog breeds (if not all to some varying degree IMHO) are the same as this. So would another breed from the gundog group be suitable at all?

It takes an incredibly special dog to be a service dog. SDs must show a great amount of self control in public - don't sniff, jump around, vocalize, or really do anything except just lay there and heel when we walk - AND have to be confident enough that nothing phases them, but not too confident to not listen to their partner. Basically, we want them to not be a dog. How few dogs can handle this kind of life? So yeah, it takes a lot of training - and a lucky breeding - to produce a good SD, no matter what the breed.

AND, again, we find a large percentage of labs in shelters, but only accept a small percentage of those dogs into our program.

 

[Catsi]

Ok, thanks Lizzybeth. That clears a lot up. I think I can imagine how it must be difficult to find that special dog. It's more about the individual dog than about breed, but a dog that has all the qualities needed in an SD would be hard to find. I mean I can think of a number of dogs I know that have those individual traits, maybe even a few together. But all of those traits... that gets a little bit tricky. It's actually a fascinating subject.

Sorry for the hijack FoxyWench!

 

[colliewog]

Get a doberdoodle!!

*RUNS AWAY* lol

I thought they were called Doodleman Pinschers ...

I agree with the Standard Poodle .... a good stable one is a great dog, of a 'non-threatening' size. You do want to take public perception in mind if this is a PSD (I don't know what you want the dog for exactly) because people's reactions can cause panic attacks, causing the dog to work overtime.

 

[FoxyWench]

no problem, i think there needs to be alot more education about service and medical dogs.

bax, thats exactly the breed i was thinking off, cute, not exactly my kind of dog, but love their shaggy faces

and i agree, its definatly less about the breed and more about the dog, but getting a breed whos going to be more likely to do well is always a nice starting point lol.

ruby does VERY well as my service dog currently, its just theres some tasks that she cant do fully due to her size, shes under 10lbs and has a hard time with some tasks, for example its hard for her to retrive a bottle of water as shes got a little mouth, she tends to have to drag it by the bottles top. my purse is as big as her making things difficult, its not heavy but she has to drag it ect if i need my emergency meds. she has adapted that she will go into my purse and pull out what she thinks i need (and has a very large sucess rate doing it that way, but still a little arkward.