Before you add a dog to the family, the single most important decision you can make as a dog owner is what breed you're selecting. If people honestly looked at breeds that matched their lifestyle and personality, most dog trainers would be out of work. A large majority (at least two thirds) of issues that dog owners are facing today are due to mismatched personalities, energy levels, or skill levels. There is nothing wrong with admitting a dog is "too much dog" for you - or even that its "not enough dog". I cannot tell you the number of times a client or family has had the completely wrong dog for their lifestyle; usually, it's because of pity, or humanitarian gains such as "They were going to put him down" or "She was just too cute to leave!". These kinds of desires are normal and okay, as long as the dog matches up with you. We had one elderly client who had rescued a high-energy, poorly trained, mildly defensive breed that needed a stern, active, guiding human, and they continually have a hard time managing this dog. This is a prime example of what I'm talking about. Another example is a family who has adopted a shih tsu - a breed designed to attach to and protect ONE human and not tolerate the rest. We've even seen cases of young, hard-working and never home humans that picked very active, out-all-day breeds. Today's blog is all about how to select the right dog for your home - and what to avoid in certain circumstances.
Consider Space Restrictions
While this might sound like a "don't buy big dogs for small apartments", its actually not! Even in 600 square feet, a large dog can fit. Lazier breeds are great for this scenario, because they are not incredibly active and tend to only take as much space as they need. Great Danes for instance are excellent at curling up into surprisingly small spaces, and bullmastiffs tend to prefer laying where humans don't walk anyway. What I mean is, in 600 square feet, a dog like a blue heeler or a jack russel is absolutely out of the question, unless you're incredibly active. Active dogs need space to run, play, and feel happy. When they are stuck in a small area all day, they get stir crazy, just like humans do if they're cooped up inside for too long. Rather than avoid large breeds for small spaces. Avoid higher energy dogs in small spaces, unless you're prepared to be really active.
Consider Dog Energy Level vs Your Own
If you work a nine to five, then have study group or women's group or time with friends, then you're not going to want a a dog that needs 4-6 hours of exercise and training every day, and most certainly not a dog that needs that amount of mental stimulation on top of that. Dogs like border collies, sheperds, or poodles are not reasonable for your lifestyle. You're going to want a lazy, reclusive dog breed that is fine by itself for a while, such as a dane or mastiff. However, if you're the kind to work a bit and then spend most of your free time outdoors doing things, a medium energy dog like a lab or retriever is perfect. Most people think "I get out a few hours every day; I can handle a higher energy dog! They won't need more exercise." when that's usually vastly underestimated. Even a lab needs 4 hours of exercise plus mental stimulation on top of that. Astounding, isn't it? However, if you work outside and can bring your dog, and need a dog that can adapt to high energy demands, absolutely get that high energy dog! This is one of the most important considerations for getting a dog. I often cringe when I see new moms or young families adopting medium energy dogs like labs, or shepherds. They just simply cannot properly exercise the dogs, and often wind up with very frustrating symptoms of underexercising, like destruction, aggression, or dominance. If you're a naturally inactive person, that lab is going to drive you insane.
Consider Breed Personality
After you have a list of appropriately sized and energy-matched dogs, you need have to to consider personality, or breed-need. You might have a great, active family, and can handle the energy needs of a heeler - but the catch is, can you handle a breed that constantly needs to control, organize, chase, and is smarter on average than your five year old? Doesn't sound so nice anymore, huh? What if we consider the fact that heelers can get obsessive and destructive if they're bored? Herding your cats or kids until they attack or cry? Or, you're a little on the inactive side, and picked a bulldog because you have a really small home. Are you prepared for more stubbornness than a hormonal teenage boy? A dog that will look at you with an expression that says "No way, lady! YOU DO IT."? A dog that will hoover your food if you blink too long, no matter how good you teach impulse control? A dog that will literally stop walking if they've had enough, whether you're in the middle of a crosswalk or not? Doesn't sound so easy anymore does it? Or, you're a well adjusted, active family, with diverse personalities, and you've selected a beautiful, medium energy, gentle staffordshire terrier. It's great with your kids as a puppy, listens with little sternness, and is food, toy, and praise motivated. Super easy to train and maintain. Perfect, right? When that staffy gets older though, you notice she's taking more and more exception to people buy the fence. People and friends come over, and she barks at them. Then, once these people are inside and part of your home, this excited, psycho-jumpy dog emerges, and knocks over your friend's toddler. She bounces all over the furniture, and you just went for a walk. She'll obey a sit, but break it right away and knock over a purse, vase, and coffee mug. Children come over? Oh god, she'll never stop. This dog doesn't sound so great anymore, does she? Take her for a walk, and the first dog she sees, she really doesn't like. The human has a hat, and it's game over. She doesn't attack, but she growls and looks big. She get frustrated and scared, and she doesn't listen any more. The second dog, they are best friends! Bouncing, yipping, nipping! You can't call her off. You stopped existing. Narry a ball or a treat works any more. You need to get going, but your dog isn't done playing. Sound frustrating? These are all examples (while a little dramatic) are prime examples of when everything but personality is matching up. Without considering how your dog needs to live, you're in for a hard time.
Consider Training Needs
Finally, after all the above, you need to consider how easy, or hard, a dog is to train. Everything else might line up perfectly, but if you need a dog that listens and doesn't challenge you every day, then one breed might need to come off your list. Often, the smarter the dog, the easier they are to teach new skills, but the HARDER it is to maintain that training - the reason being is smarter dogs need to do more with their minds to be happy, and they stop listening to you if they're not being fulfilled. Smarter dogs also know exactly what they can and cannot get away with - and will run with it. Dimmer dogs take a lot longer to learn a new skill, but its a lot easier to maintain those behaviours, because they don't need to be as fulfilled mentally. They do however have a hard time learning and remembering new behaviours, and are difficult to inspire. All dogs also have a level of "pack drive", or the desire to listen and make you happy. Dogs like German Shepherds have a very high pack drive and are really easy to inspire; however, dogs like poodles or bulldogs could really care less what you want or how to make you happy. These considerations are important in selecting a dog as well. If you don't like to be challenged by a dog, don't select a dimmer breed with low pack drive (like a bulldog). If you don't like a dog deciding a behaviour is boring and not wanting to do it anymore, don't select an intelligent breed (like an Australian shepherd). If you get frustrated with a dog that sees right through you and seems to laugh when you're not invested in a training session, don't select an intelligent dog with a low pack drive (like a poodle). If you can't handle a dog that does clearly know behaviours and does thirty other things instead, don't select a breed with high pack drive but low intelligence (like a rottweiler or pit bull).
Hopefully this has given you some insights on selecting your Ideal Companion!
