OT: I like dogs. Do you? What kind?
Hey everyone. I’m bored on this Sunday and missing my dear Weimaraner that I had to have put down last year. This board could use a good discussion about something that is so important to so many of our lives on a daily basis. I would like to get another dog and my top choices are an Irish Setter or a Doberman (gotta have the floppy ears though). Anyone have either? If so I’d love to here about them and how they fit in your family. I love all dogs, as they are better than many humans I know. I prefer to get a bigger type dog because it fits my lifestyle a little better. I guess let’s just talk about dogs for the next 8 hours as I piss this day away without my good boy.
Have a 5-year old boxer/lab mix named Charlie and he rules.
I've lost two dogs, a husky-malamute mix as a kid, and a Golden Retriever last year.
I miss them both terribly. I would love to get. German Shepherd, but my wife refuses, thinking they're too aggressive.
So at the moment I have three cats and a Maltipoo named Winston. He's okay, but I'll always prefer big dogs.
While I’ve been a dog owner since I was 13, I have a sincere dislike for German Shepards.
Grew up next to a family who chained theirs so that they could reach within inches of our yard on the side of the house we typically used to access our backyard as kids. These dogs were left outside, all day, everyday, with minimal shelter (they had a crappy plywood A-frame), and we’re consequently mean and snarly. These neighbors were batshit crazy.
One day my dad was outside practicing his golf swing with a driver and the dog broke his lead and charged my dad. While my dad wasn’t a great scorer, he was a helluva hitter off the tee. That dog never snarled at us again.
These dogs were mean solely because their owner treated them like shit. German Shepherds are fantastic dogs that can be great family animals if they are trained and raised properly. I'll never understand people who will choose to have a dog and then treat the animal like garbage.
Wow, cant put that on the German Shepard breed itself. It was the shitty owners who "raised" this dog to eventually act this way. Basically every breed would act that way after such abuse. I have 2 Rottweilers and have never had a complaint from friends, family or neighbors. Its all about how you raise them. Trust me, Im a mailman and its the little dogs and the lab types that have given me problems.
Yes. Rottweiler’s. Best family dog we ever had. After he past we adopted a chocolate lab mix, and she is batshit crazy
I've never been a huge dog lover, but not a hater either. I raised my boys out in the country though with maybe the best dog ever. She was a German Shepherd named Isabel that we purchased as a pup from some local Amish. She would watch over the boys all over the yard as if she was watching over her own pups. She'd lay 40-50 ft from them and watch them. They'd move to a different part of the yard and she'd do the same, laying and watching. RiP girl.
This is why dogs are the best.
The wife brought two cats with her so my pet limit has been reached for the foreseeable future. They’re nice enough but they’re still... cats.
Sister-in-law just got a semi long-haired dachshund. Small, doesn’t shed much, and by far the chillest, nicest personality I’ve seen in a small dog in a while. Big fan!
Btw— Rewatching the ‘18 Nebraska game right now. Can’t wait for ‘19! Go blue!
I KNEW IT !! Everybody is going along just fine with these great dog stories and WHAMO! A god damn cat story. It was bound to happen. It always does. Cats just have to be involved somehow.
Cats suck.
no /s
How many cat parks are there?
I can go shopping just about anywhere except the chain grocery stores with my dog. Brew pubs, Lowes, the mall (most of the stores in the area have a paw sticker on the door letting you know it's okay to take your dog inside), restaurant, farmer's market, etc.
How many seeing eye cats are there? Or bomb sniffing cats? Or all the other amazing work, therapy, assistance, dogs can do -- what are the cats doing besides providing company to batshit crazy old ladies?
When I get home during after work, my dog loses his freaking mind. My wife's two cats (package deal from when I met her)? They could give a shit about anything. Fuck them... all they do is pee and shit in their litter box and make the house I busted my ass to buy smell bad.
I have a 3 year old Great Dane and a 5 year old mutt (Pit, Rottie, German Shepherd.
usually means 190 lbs on my lap every night. Then I kick the overweight old lady off me and cal the dogs up.
I love Danes. I can’t get one cause the short life span would crush me.
Yes that is certainly the downfall of owning a Dane. I’ve had 4 in my life and the oldest lived to 12.
Portuguese Water Dog - Hypoallergenic, Mid size dog (40-60 lbs male), and a great family dog. They need consistent exercise, but it’s a great excuse to take them with you and people always want to know the breed.
The biggest downside is the grooming. They lose hair like a human does with long hair, we call them tumble weeds in the house, but they need to be brushed twice a week or they get some bad matting in their body.
I have a 4 year old named Bane and he’s exactly what we were looking for. No matter what type you get, do some research so you have an understanding about the more predictable qualities in the breed you are looking at.
Golden retrievers are my breed of choice, have had five over the last 40 years - as far as I’m concerned there is no breed more handsome, loyal or family-oriented.
Agreed. Goldens are the best dogs for families with small children. And yes, they're very regal looking, especially the darker coats.
I've had Black Labrador Retrievers for 30+ years now.
This is Jake, our three year old lab, waiting for permission to go into the kitchen:
He's currently sleeping on my feet as I type this.
Great dogs and that one is beautiful. Thanks for sharing.
Agreed.
But 6 out of 10 goldens will die of cancer. I lost all of mine to that. All by 10... 4, 9, & 10. 2 were pure hell. 1 was lymphoma and the other was he suffocated to death (well, putting him down) and was otherwise an active dog by an inoperable tumor blocking his airways.
https://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/golden-retriever-lifetime-study
Fuck cancer. It's just as miserable seeing your best friend go through it as is another person.
So, I got an Irish setter instead hoping it would be the next best thing to a golden that wasn't a golden. It worked. An Irish setter is just a ridiculously goofy golden. Just as amazing with kids too.
I'm ok with dogs. Some dog owners are pretty terrible and get on my nerves. I don't know how many times I've heard "oh, don't worry, she's a friendly dog" as their dog claws my legs. Or dogs without leash that jumps on a kid at a playground. Just be respectful out there.
Some dog owners suck, just as some parents suck. My dog was more well behaved in public than 75% of kids. Pissed me off when I couldn’t bring my dog in somewhere because I knew he would cause NO issues and leave zero mess.
I totally respect your opinion. But, I feel the same way about kids. I'm having fun with my dogs and they are very respectful and then a bunch of families come over and their kids start screaming their heads off and being obnoxious. Some parents don't like to parent and let their kids act terribly. My point is there are people that should never have either. It's a people thing, not a dog thing.
Dog lover here, but this comment irritated me some. I agree people 100% are responsible for their dogs/children's upbringing, and their own personal emotions/calm really feeds into that as well.
However, kids running around and screaming at a park is just what you want as a parent. You want your kids to be quiet in the house. After a day at school or whatnot, you take them to the park where they are allowed to run around and scream and let off steam and energy, same as when you take your dog to the dog park and let her run around and tire out.
Letting children "scream their heads off and being obnoxious"... at a park, is just children being allowed to be children, at a park. That said I'd venture to guess I'm of the more hippie variety than you are, and to each their own.
I think it's to each his own. I love dogs and get irritated by the sound of screaming children. Dogs are also doing what dogs do. IMO they also need an opportunity to run free off leash and there are limited places to do that without the worry of kids. I understand both sides.
I like the kind that go "Wuff Wuff", and that have cute wittle faces.
I have a three year old Australian Kelpie, a herding dog that runs across the backs of sheep to herd them. He’s a great dog.
I have two rescue pitts that are starting to get up there in age. Before that I had a rescue pitt. When I lose my two dogs I expect I'll get... You guessed it... a rescue pitt.
We have two terriers. A Scottish Terrier and a Norwich Terrier. This is Scottie #2 for us. They are very good natured dogs, like kids, like to play, and have a bit of a goofy demeanor. My wife has been able to train both as pet therapy dogs and work at our local hospital.
The Norwich is our first one of those. Small dog, big personality is how I would describe her. Very fearless....the Terrier runs strong in her. She’s cleared all the chipmunks out of our yard and some birds, too. She also caught a mouse. She’s working on pet therapy certification, but it’s taking longer than Scotties have.
The two dogs are a few years apart and are totally attached to each other. We’ve always tried to have two dogs at a time because they do like to have a dog buddy with them. We travel during summer and football season and it’s easy to get our stuff and two small dogs in the SUV.
Refer to mgoblog for tips on expressing their anal glands.
working dogs - hunt, herd, guard.
now for controversy:
no small/tiny dogs. especially for men, i just don't get it. and whatever you do, don't put the thing on your shoulder or dash board while you drive. shaking head...
no pitts. of course generalizing, the last people in the world who should own them are the ones that do. and even 'nice' pitts end up on the front page eating their owner/neighbor/neighbor's kid. i scan the headlines looking for the same things from, say, collies, corgies, or maybe a bassett hound, but have yet to find one.
German shepherds attack more people than pitbulls. At least in the US.
haven't heard of GS's going 'off' when they weren't supposed to, at least not in any mass way. meanwhile, a quick google turned up this about pit bulls:
It is estimated that there are 3-5 million Pit Bulls in the U.S. Pit bull attacks in the U.S. have risen 773% between 2007-2014. In the 10-year period from 2005 to 2014, pit bulls killed 203 Americans and accounted for 62% of the 326 total recorded deaths.
They bite more people. They generally don’t maul someone unless it’s an intruder who is definitely not supposed to be there.
Still waiting to hear a story about a German Shepherd that turned on its owner and killed him/her
Dr Brutus says she's more afraid of getting bitten and injured by a Chihuahua than the police canine Belgian Malinois she treats who are trained to bring down humans.
you can't trust those little dogs. real barky usually, too. and not smart.
(yes, small dog owners reading this, i know yours were/are the exception)
You might want to Google "What breed of dog bites the most". Although pitt is on there, you'd be surprised at what breed is #1 and the whole top 10 list in whole. Im a mailman and its always the little vreeds and labs that have given me problems. The biggest pitt I've ever seen was on my route and he was super friendly, waiting at the fence everyday. Btw, owner of 2 1/2 Rotts, Mom, Dad and 1 of their sons who is 3 months.
no pitts
Nonsense. Pitts are wonderful dogs.
i'm sure there are wonderful exceptions, but reading the stats today because others have mentioned them, tough to say they are 'wonderful' when they are ~3% of all dogs, but 66% of all fatal dog attacks. for general 'attacks', here is what something called the 'canine journal' says:
- Chihuahua
- Bulldog
- Pit Bull
- German Shepherd
- Australian Shepherd
- Lhasa Apso
- Jack Russell Terrier
- Cocker Spaniel
- Bull Terrier
- Pekingese
- Papillion
small dogs and pit bulls = most bites and pits, by an order of magnitude, most deaths. \
and from another source, this list:
DOG BITE FACTS
Based on data regarding dog attacks in the U.S. and Canada between 1982 and 2014, the dogs most likely to bite humans are:
- Pit bulls
- Rottweilers
- Pit bull mixes
- German shepherds
- Bullmastiffs
- Wolf hybrids
- Huskies
- Akitas
- Boxers
- Chows
- German shepherd mixes
- Dobermans
And who owns these pits that bite people? Anything like this dude from my google image search of "pitbull owner". It's no coincidence if you drive through a bad neighborhood there are lots of pits. It's a people thing, not a pit thing. 
not only do i agree, but see my earlier post: the last people in the world who should own pit bulls are the ones that own them.
there is an identical corollary that goes with jet skis.
i should add that i got bit by one a few years ago, and no, i didn't provoke it. no big injury but i was ticked about it. only time i've ever been bit and i've been around hundreds of dogs at one time or another.
I don't blame you for being upset you were bit. But, I don't think it's fair to say don't get a pit when the bite facts are because of the people that own them. Any dog could bite. Pits are strong willed athletic dogs that could hurt if provoked, but that applies to many dog breeds. A responsible owner shouldn't have any issues.
it was a responsible owner, a friend of mine. good guy. its the breed. not all are bad but look at the stats. if i told you 3% of college football fans were sparties or buckeyes, but they commit 66% of the [fill in some bad stuff here like murder, arson, couch burning or cooler pooping], you would say, 'see those fans are jerks! i knew it!. be objective about really tilted statistical evidence. pits are a bad breed. many are fine, but when 2/3 rds of the deaths are by the breed it would seem rational thought would hopefully prevail.
and its worth noting that every time an attacking/killing pit owner makes a statement its always the same thing, 'little muffy was so nice, i had no idea she would rip the face off the mail man'.
I won't judge the situation without knowing more, but I have a hard time believing a well trained dog that gets sufficient exercise would attack someone without warning, regardless of breed. That being said I wouldn't put too much stock in one isolated incident nor the statistics that my hunch is based on bad owners.
Or the Girl Scout selling cookies.
This happened in Chicago suburbs a few years back, a girl was going door to door selling cookies and rang the bell of a house with three pit bulls. They exploded through the door and killed her. The owner, who weighed 300 lbs, threw himself on the last PB flying through the door, and the thing carried him on its back.
Too many stories about PBs turning on owners, like that story out of VA recently where a young woman was mauled and eaten by her two PBs while walking them in a forest near her house.
You just don’t hear these stories, ever, from other breeds
There is a lot to unpack there. Let's take a look of some of your comments.
You just don’t hear these stories, ever, from other breeds
What is a breed?
Are they American Pit Bull Terriers, American Staffordshire Terriers, Staffordshire Terriers, Bull Terriers, etc? Do people even know the difference? Or all dogs that have similar physical characteristics lumped together and equally bad?
Why do your hear about it with pits more?
Pits have a negative stigma, people don't know what the breed actually is and many times it's not a pit, and it often happens in neighborhoods that prevent a high risk to children who are the most common victims of dog bites.
Do pits bite more than other breeds?
Statistics support that smaller dog breeds are more likely to bite, they just don't have the size to inflict the damage. It's a common theme among small dog owners that training, exercise, and discipline are lacking so their poor behavior goes unchecked...again a people thing not a dog thing.
Or the Girl Scout selling cookies.
Kids and dogs
This is one reason why I'm not a fan of kids around dogs that don't have experience with them. The majority of dog bits happen to kids. Kids are loud and boisterous doing what kids do. Dogs are protective of their territory, doing what dogs do. If a stranger comes to the door many dogs will naturally protect their owner and house unless trained not to. Neither kid for being loud nor dog for being protective are wrong for doing such things. The problem is when the kids don't understand dogs and the dog owner has not taken the time to train and socialize the dog properly.
Here is a quote from a peer reviewed article on the role of breeds in dog bites:
Owners of pit bull-type dogs deal with a strong breed stigma, however controlled studies have not identified this breed group as disproportionately dangerous. The pit bull type is particularly ambiguous as a "breed" encompassing a range of pedigree breeds, informal types and appearances that cannot be reliably identified. Visual determination of dog breed is known to not always be reliable. And witnesses may be predisposed to assume that a vicious dog is of this type.
It should also be considered that the incidence of pit bull-type dogs' involvement in severe and fatal attacks may represent high prevalence in neighborhoods that present high risk to the young children who are the most common victim of severe or fatal attacks. And as owners of stigmatized breeds are more likely to have involvement in criminal and/or violent acts breed correlations may have the owner's behavior as the underlying causal factor.
*double post*
I don’t see anyone saying driving is safer than flying just because you’re more likely to die in a place crash than a car crash.
Sure if you are attacked by a pit the end result isn’t likely to be good, but 3% of attacks, with how many pits there are out there, is pretty damn low.
Still one of the safer dogs to own as a whole, and loyal as hell.
i think you read that wrong. 3% of dogs. 66% of the fatal attacks. that is extreme, and couldn't be more directly refuting to your comment about 'one of the safer dogs to own'.