The "easy dog" and "hard dog" thing

[Fran101]

Has anyone else noticed the kind of easy dog vs. difficult dog thing in the dog world.

Merlin & I just came from agility class (fun!), but we were all talking after class and everyone is comparing horror stories and crazy dog tales and how the average dog owner could NEVER handle their dogs and stupid me when it was my turn mentioned that Merlin has never really done anything naughty...and then the average family could pretty easily care for him.
It wasn't well received, like they thought it was a bad thing and felt bad for me lol but it's true! and I don't think it's a bad thing at all! (they weren't mean about it, it just seemed like they thought he was less cool lol)

He LIKES high energy activities, he LIKES training, he LIKES lots of stuff.. but he certainly doesn't need it.
Merlin would be perfectly happy with 3 walks a day and a family who just wanted to snuggle and play fetch in the yard sometimes and give him bully sticks, and take him to the dog park once in a while (this is what average dog owners do right? lol)

It's so interesting to me because for me, who owns the usually napping, happy with a bully, happy to go for a few brisk walks and laze around the house all day.. I think it's awesome!
But one of the trainers was horrified, she said a dog like that would bore her.

and yet.. her spinning, staring, pacing border collie (who is a great dog and ideal for her)...would drive me nuts. Drive or no (to be fair the dog is really focused and really fast) the dog never stops moving and it gives me anxiety. Plus she has to have one of those industrial strength tiger crates because the dog ALWAYS breaks out!

What are your experiences with the easy dog vs difficult dog thing? I think it's so interesting that in the dog world, the more difficult dog is a high commodity.
and what do you consider easy vs difficult?

 

[krissy]

I like "easy" dogs... that's why I choose to own greyhounds. They are quiet and calm in the house, they are very undemanding in exercise and training needs. They are even tempered. Grooming needs are low to non-existent.

That said I do A LOT more with my easy dogs than most people do with their "hard" breeds. I love border collies but am reluctant to get one because I'm not sure I could live with one in the house. Although some nights I do wonder if Kili is a higher energy breed in a greyhound suit. There are nights when she just. won't. settle.

 

[AdrianneIsabel]

There is usually some glamour in handling a uniquely "hard" dogs, be it temperament (for better or worse) or big/small.

Sloan is a pain in the ass. Sloan is always bringing you a toy, ALWAYS. If she is not she is mushing on you for interaction. She is also a natural guard dog, quick to react, and needs to be introduced to people properly on our property and in the car. She can however be left without a crate and be safe.

Backup never stopped moving. Pacing, panting, that was his thing. He was hyper guardy over the car and lacked clarity. He could however be left without a crate and be safe.

Phelan, IMO is easy but Denis thinks I'm crazy because Phelan is either barking, biting, actively training, or asleep. He's extremely social but yes, he's naughty and needs to be watched because I have never discouraged mouthing.

Shamoo is also "easy" but she has separation anxiety by means of drooling/licking/nibbling barriers and that makes living with her "hard". She also is a happy barker and mouther which worries strangers. She cannot be left in a "weak" crate, she will destroy it.

All three of our dogs will steal food but they won't destroy our property.

They all are "dog friendly" but must be monitored and introduced properly.

I find our dogs easy but I'm well aware that they are far from a good choice for, say, my parents or my coworkers(even if they are dog trainers).

 

[Beanie]

Well, I know Payton is not an "every person" kind of dog. He's not neurotic or high-strung, and I wouldn't exactly say he never stops moving... now that he's two and a half, he has figured out how to settle and sometimes he even takes a nap. He has always been the sort of dog who can lay down with a chew toy, but he's a bit ADD about it. Chew this toy for a few minutes, roll around making wookie noises and throwing the toy around, jump up, grab another toy, lay down with that one and repeat. And whenever he wants to go anywhere, he can't walk, he has to run.
But none of that is why he's a difficult dog. He's a difficult dog because impulse control is, um, a challenge. Thinking before you act is not a skill that Payton has. And once he figures out something - like if he just pushes his big fat stupid head against the screen door, it will open and he can run outside and play in the backyard - it's hard to convince him that no, that is NOT how things are done Payton. EVERYTHING is done with exuberance. He is just full of so much joy and excitement for EVERYTHING IN THE WORLD that it's... well, it can be overwhelming. My parents think he's funny... for about five minutes. Then he's too loud, too obnoxious, too excited, he runs too much.
And of course this much excitement also means he can get frustrated easily.

My sister has Henri, the GSD mix, and she says he has to go to the dog park every day and run around and get tired or he'll drive them crazy. Apparently running around at the dog park actually works on Henri. Payton would go to the dog park, run around for a few hours, then jump in the car and go OKAY THAT WAS SUPER DUPER FUN NOW WHAT ARE WE DOING NEXT ARE WE GOING TO THE LAKE?? I'll take P to the woods here, and he'll swim and splash around in the lake for an hour, then we'll go for a hike for an hour, then he'll be like OKAY THAT WAS AWESOME CAN WE GO PLAY IN THE LAKE SOME MORE OR MAYBE I CAN CHASE THOSE GEESE?? He just doesn't work that way. But - I don't take him to the dog park to run for hours at a time. I don't go hiking with him or let him swim in the lake for a few hours all the time. We play in the house a LOT. And if he's not playing with me, he's playing with Auggie, or maybe Georgie, or trying to get Pepper to play, or playing by himself. We do training for short spurts but frequently throughout the day. And that's plenty. I don't think of Payton as a needy dog, but if it annoyed somebody to throw a sheep four hundred times while they're working on a website at the computer, or to hear Payton thumpa-thumpa-thumpa running up and down the hall throwing a tug toy around, et cetera, they probably would.


But I certainly don't take Payton being a PITA as a badge of honor. I knew what I was getting into and I certainly enjoy it though. He is a drivey dog and that's what he's supposed to be. If he WEREN'T, I would probably be a little disappointed, because what I went looking for was a drivey dog and I already have a Pepper.

And of course, Pepper is really probably the most difficult of all our dogs and it's for a completely different reason. That is no badge of honor either.

Auggie is a nice easy dog and of course he is my favorite. Not because I prefer him being easy to Payton being a challenge, just because he's Auggie and Auggie is the bestest Auggie ever. Though being easy in terms of rather laid back and happy to just hang out and have you throw the tennis ball doesn't mean he's not naughty, of course. Auggie invented new ways to be naughty and then told Payton a few ideas too.


I don't think either is better than the other, even in the dog world. There's a reason there's so many different breeds (and a reason why there's a split in working breeds too.) People want different things out of dogs and that's cool, so long as they go looking for the right match and get what they're looking for.

 

[Laurelin]

I wouldn't call three walks a day anywhere near average personally.

 

[Fran101]

I wouldn't call three walks a day anywhere near average personally.

He has to go to the bathroom three times a day. Is that not normal? lol maybe he has an overactive bladder he does drink a lot
Once in the morning, late afternoon, and then last walk before bed.

I don't mean like WALKS like long strolls, he just needs like 5-10 minutes to do his business.
I've ever had a yard but in the times we've housesat in homes letting him out to go works as well. Although he does like a walk after dinner

 

[StillandSilent]

Shaman is an extremely easy dog. Even thoigh he's only 6 months old, he's already pretty much perfect. Even his trainer has commented on what an old soul he is. He's out of the crate already, totally housebroken, quiet, and easygoing.

I consider Gambit to be quite easy as well. He's a good energy level, nondestructive, quiet, easy to train, loving without being needy, good with other animals, and well suited for apartment life. That said, he also hates strangers, so he wouldn't fit in in busy household. Day to day though, he's great.

 

[Linds]

I think it really does become a badge of honor. You are such a hardcore dog owner you have THIS kind of dog and you LIKE it! Which I get, people like different things in different dogs and sometimes it's fun to swap stories.

That being said, I think a lot of times that crazy/neurotic/busy/poor impulse control gets marketed as drive and that seems to result in a game of one upping.

I personally do like a little crazy in my dogs, I like the "go! go! go!" but at the same time, I need my off switch. I love when my dogs are easy in the house, cuddling up with me and snoozing the day away. As long as they are ready to go as soon as I get up!

I think easy vs difficult is going to be so personal it's hard to say. Kaylee is a lower key dog but also awful in terms of being in the house. She barked at everything that thought about existing, she had to be constantly managed so that she didn't get onto the table and counters or raid the garbage can. She also slept almost all day when not getting into things.

Hannah is probably overall exactly what most easy pet dogs would be. Happy to sleep all day, everyday. She just likes to hang out and be there, happy to go on a walk, happy to go for a car ride, happy to just be with you. Never counter surfed, has an innate sense of manners and is just a good dog.

She's not my type though, but that has way more to do with training and drive than her being a good dog.

The Koolies are perfect to me BECAUSE they have fun! crazy! energy! but come home and settle down and sleep. Or if they don't get exercise in they still cuddle with me during the day and are able to just be. I'm proud of that. I like that and I don't find anything to be ashamed of that can turn their on switch off.

Now, just give them some manners that I don't actually have to teach and they would be golden. But, those aren't the stories I share with pride :rofl1:

 

[Laurelin]

Ah ok. Walks for us are usually at the least an hour or more. I like having a yard.

For me it is hard to explain and part of it is just me thinking everyone should be as enamored with Mia as I am. I don't find 'easy' dogs dull. Summer is easy as can be but also a fun dog.

Mia is hard in a lot of ways and I've personally never had a dog like her before. She is just busy and also not friendly in ways that could make her hard for a lot of people. I know from real life she's just not going to jive with a lot of people. She's not better than Summer but a lot of her difficulty is what makes her my favorite dog.

 

[Aleron]

I think a lot of dog people tend to think their dogs "would never do well in pet homes". And their breed, no matter what it is "isn't for everyone" but then no breed is. Still I think they'd be surprised with what some pet owner's dogs are actually like. I've seen pet owners with nice, expensive houses who'd retrievers totally destroyed their living room. DESTROYED. And it wasn't like it happened once. It was an ongoing deconstruction of their living room whenever the dogs were left home. Another pet owner had 3 Weims who gutted the interior of her van. We have more than one grooming client who occasionally cancel because their dog got under the bed or behind the couch and now they can't get them out without getting bitten (which they know after being bitten several times). Other client dogs who I have watched bite their owners face when the owner tried to kiss them or who can't be brushed because they bite, who will attack the husband for getting near the wife on the couch, etc, etc. No doubt, some pet people give up dogs who are too much trouble. But there's a lot of pet owners out there with really quirky or ummm...very bad dogs too LOL.

Whim is an extremely good dog. She's not really boring because she loves to do stuff but she's just not a busy dog around the house. She is very easy, except I think her prey drive could be problematic had she not had a lot of and continuing training. Savvy more than makes up for it LOL. He's a good dog but extremely busy. The other dogs are somewhere in between. They all have their quirks that some people would be ok with and some wouldn't be.

 

[Laurelin]

The old soul thing reminds me... One of the best descriptors for Mia I've found is that she's just a brand spanking new soul. Everything is new and shiny and exciting and should be investigated. She really does try to be a good dog. She IS a good dog. But she is so smart and so curious about everything.

I also have seen dogs like Mia end up in not great situations and then the poor dog gets blamed. I think that causes people to over-warn when you see a dog you find fantastic and then you see the dog being unappreciated for what it is.

Mia is easy for me to live with especially now that she's 4 and can sleep a lot of the day. She's still not a dog any of my family would want to own. But I wouldn't want some of the dogs they've had.

 

[AdrianneIsabel]

I work with pet owners, a lot of them, like... an exhausting number.

My pet owners want their dog to not destroy their home. I think smiling and milling along while their money is wasted isn't a common act.

I wouldn't want another dog aggressive dog. For those who own dog aggressive dogs and tolerate it I consider your dogs to be "hard" and I applaud you. The same goes for shrieking and frantic dogs that have difficulty managing a clear mind for training. The same further goes for lower drive, dogs that look at food and go "meh", especially if they do the same for toys. Even more so shredders drive me insane, I can handle pacing, I can handle harassment, but shredders? No, I work way too hard for my money and I have too few hours a day to spend with my dogs to spend micromanaging my dog in an effort to preserve my stuff (our toys included).

I am so happy there are dogs for every home, I definitely am not suited to own every dog with a shrug.

 

[Flyinsbt]

I don't think my first Stafford, Elmo, was suitable for the average pet home, which I base on the fact that he went through 3 of those before I got him. He was a good dog, and not really that difficult, but he really did need something to do. As long as he got regular work, he was no problem. If he didn't, he would start with stereotypy sort of behaviors.

Tully, my next Stafford, probably would have made a fine pet for someone. She had a lot of prey drive, which some people would find challenging, but plenty of people live with terriers, so I think someone could have handled it. She had a reasonable amount of energy, but didn't have that strong need to work.

Now Tess, who is her daughter, is another dog who isn't really suited for a pet home. Again, she has a lot of drive to work, and doesn't settle well if she doesn't get a task to perform. In her case, preferably something fast and very active. She's a nice, fairly easy pet (with a lot of prey drive, again), but she needs that outlet for her drives.

And her son, Pirate, would be a lovely pet. He's got plenty of energy and drive, but I don't think he has the need to work that his dam does. He is also not as prey driven, though he does have a reasonable amount.

So that's 50/50 on my dogs for easy vs difficult, and the divider in my mind is whether the dog needs to work or not. All of them are capable of settling in the house, all need a reasonable amount of exercise, all sweet tempered, all very trainable. But the dogs that get progressively crazier if they aren't offered a task are harder for a pet home to live with.

I'm happy with either, but I have to admit to enjoying the crazy ones.

 

[PWCorgi]

Frodo would be a "hard dog" for people who are active, have people over, and generally want to do things with their dogs. He would be perfect for people who just wanted a dog that sat on the couch, pooped in the backyard, and they didn't have people over on a regular basis.

Siri, heh. She would be fine for joe schmo as long as she was exercised hard on a regular basis and they didn't care about the relatively occasional crap on their floor.

I know people think it's awesome to have "hard" dogs, dogs that need constant management and who are tough to deal with. I admire people who can successfully have these dogs (though mal/koolie/herding breed people, you are all insane, and I mean that in the nicest possible way), but I have no interest in owning them.

If Ryan continues to be adamant about this "no more terriers" thing, we will probably end up with greyhounds or something big and dumb like my coveted OES.

 

[k9krazee]

I can deal with crazy, energetic dog and I love dogs who WANT to interact with you all the time. Crossbone wants to be on top of you and when he's not in your face he's bringing you every toy from his box. He drives a lot of people crazy! But I wouldn't call him hard, by any means. He's a monster in the house when we're home and not paying attention but an angel in public. He's alone all day and doesn't get into anything but if K & I show the slightest bit of affection he tears up the bathroom trash. He's hilarious but will drive you crazy with pacing or playing if he hasn't had anything to do in days.

I don't find dogs who nap all day and don't want to go for a four mile run every day enjoyable.

I do not want an aggressive dog of any kind again. To me, that is a hard dog. A dog that you can't ever have someone else watch, can't take it into public or can't leave it home because it'll destroy something or potty in the house is not the type of dog I enjoy anymore. I used to think it'd be sweet to rehab or care for dogs that have issues --- but now I want a friendly, easy dog who has a lot of energy or thinks the world revolves around him...but isn't a hard dog to live with or care for.

I always said my parents aggressive JRTs couldn't have been in a pet home --- but they were! And did just fine because my parents (who aren't "dog people") adjusted their lives to live with the dogs they acquired. As I think most pet owners do. You either find the dog a new home or you buck up and manage the issues you have, even if you created them or someone else could easily fix.

 

[SoCrafty]

As a prospective dog owner in the near future, its so hard to see past the 'this breed is not for everyone' because EVERY breed enthusiast says that. We have flip flopped between at least 4 (albeit very different) breeds. Mostly because of me doing all this reading. Which is good. But on the other hand its so intimidating because what is the truth? I mean there could be a great dog owner with a really difficult dog, and a not so great owner with a really great dog. Or vice versa. And then you have your show breeders with maybe more mellow dogs and then you have your sport breeder with maybe a little more hyped dogs.

I wish it were easier and not so many 'scare' tactics.

We settled on a breed and its not one that I've ever talked about as 'nextdog'. It's a pretty good split right down the middle for what we both wanted. We decided on a Sheltie. I'm just hoping all that literature has led us in the right direction.

 

[Red Chrome]

My dogs are all hard for different reasons. LoLa would not do well in a normal pet home, she steals food, raids cupboards and she's smarter than most people. Seriously, she is a brat. But with the completely right people, she could live in a pet home.

The GSDs are each difficult for their own reasons and neither could ever live in a pet home no matter how dedicated. Hell, most sport people wouldn't want Judge. Rasta could go live with a sport person with a fairly easy transition.

I won't own certain dogs because to me they're hard. Everyone is different and they're level of hard varies.

 

[BostonBanker]

I am so happy there are dogs for every home, I definitely am not suited to own every dog with a shrug.

Perfectly said.

Meg is a dog who could live in a pet home happily. She's one of the easiest dogs on the planet, in spite of her mild-to-moderate dog reactivity. She doesn't get into stuff, she's sleep all day while they were at work/school, she's nice to everyone. I think she'd be fat and as pleased as punch.

Gusto was a really hard puppy, and is quirky enough that I think he'd frustrate a lot of pet homes, but I think that a slightly more dedicated pet home could own him. Interestingly enough, his littermate that I met, who was SO high drive, intense, and toy focused even then that I said "hell no", wound up in a pet home with a bunch of kids and is doing great.

 

[Torch]

Henry is easy and would do well in many homes. I feel that we keep him busy and more fulfilled than most, but he would do well in simpler environments too.

Rhys is still a puppy so it's hard to say. I got an Amstaff because I wanted that terrier drive and work ethic, paired with the cuddly people loving part of his personality. So far, he is equal parts and very typical for his breed. He has a lot of drive and is a little hotter in temperament (excitement barker, prey driven, excited by other dogs, and a little attention *****). I can keep him worn out and channeled, but I do feel he would be a bit challenging for someone unexperienced with bull breeds or terriers.

 

[Saeleofu]

Gavroche is a dog I wouldn't trust with other people - not because he's high maintenance, but because he has a crappy temperament. I wouldn't trust most people could keep him out of situations he could potentially bite in. He's never bitten, but I don't doubt that he would. Other than that, he's lazy and is happy to lay on the couch all day with maybe 2 potty breaks (he gets more, but he really wouldn't care if he got less).

Logan is more high-maintenance. For the most part I don't trust that other people wouldn't screw up his training, but if he was just a pet, that wouldn't really matter. He does need something to keep him occupied or he will keep himself occupied with things he probably shouldn't, but he doesn't need to walk 10 miles a day or anything like that. He'd bark more in a pet home, no doubt.

When I worked at the clinic I always LOVED the dogs that nobody else wanted. Hyper pointers/terriers in particular. LOVED THEM. If I could get them to jump into my arms, even better!