Posted on 12/02/2014 9:27:12 AM PST by TNoldman
My wife and I have had Goldens Retreivers for the last 20 years. We are in our late 70's and recently had to euthanize our 11yo Lady Golden. We still have a 12 yo male Golden and two adopted older cats. All of our pets are rescued or adopted.
We live in Indiana and RV travel about 4 months of the year. We are looking to downsize our Pet Family in physical size not quantity. What can our FReeper Friends suggest for our next small sized Dog (10 lbs or so).
“I have an nine month old Australian Shepherd. The original poster should NOT get one! We sure do love her, but man, talk about high energy!”
You lucky person! I would not recommend them for many people, but I can’t imagine having anything else. I loved my first Aussie so much that I bought two more when he passed on. They aren’t as hyper as Border Collies and they do have an “off switch”. I like the mentality of herding dogs in general. If I had to choose a smaller dog, I might consider a Corgi.
It hurts huh? I have 2. One wouldn’t bite for anything. The other shall not be bothered by anyone not family. He nipped a kiddo the other day. Kiddo was told to leave him alone.
The hound breed is a pack animal. Too many people want a hound as a single pet. Just won’t work. They need “companionship.” Beagles are kept alone far too much. Same with our favorite breed, basset hounds. And you are absolutely right, they need to be very close to their family pack.
I imeediately thought "Great Pyrenees". However they can be huge. There is a solution, though: A Pyrenees/lab mix. They are called Pyradors. Pyrenees are the most mellow big dog I know. My child accidentally steps on his feet and tail of our Pyr mix, and the dog is simply glad for the human interaction.
Plus, the dog lays around all day and has low caloric requirements. He weighs 85 lbs but eats the same amount as his 45 lb sister!
We like our chihuahuas for that small animal fix. One of them is a total couch potato. He can stay in all day/night without needing to be let out. But once out, he has been holding that bladder.
The other one bounces off of the walls, very very active. He doesn’t like to be too long without being able to go outside to relieve the bladder. We have a dog door, so he has access to the outside all he needs.
They do tend to mark territory a lot more than other dogs, but pee pads might help with that if you will be away for extended periods.
When we are home, they are attached at the hip, never out of site.
“wire-haired fox terrier”
A truly fine suggestion. :)
Jack Russells, and any similar rat terrier make great pets, are smart, loyal, clean for the most part, and make good company.
I had one and I loved that little guy. He NEVER barked, except for the night I forgot to lock the front door...His name was Jocko!
I have an older sister who is house-bound. She is very happy with her rescue Bichon. Best of luck to you, FRiend.
Pug or Boston Terrier would be the perfect small dog.
I was lucky. I pulled back, and it didn’t break the skin. I felt bad, it was the owner’s Mom, having a cigarette break, on the patio, and let “Ollie” out. He is so small, that he went through the fence rails. Two previous times, he came after me, as I was simply walking down the street, but his owner was able to call him back, at the last second. Mom wasn’t aware of that, took no action, and he tried to sink his teeth into me.
I get along with all of the other dogs on the street, and pet them, if the owner allows. Of course, Ollie’s owner is a psycho (as all the neighbors will attest), so that is probably why the poor fellow acts that way.
We have a little rescue female Shih-Tzu/Bichon cross. I call her Shih-Tzu for brains because at age two she is still having “accidents” in the house. She’s very loving and has daily rasslin’ matches with our Maine coon cat. We also have a pure bred male Bichon (also a rescue) who is wonderfully smart but he cocks his leg on everything. Neither of these guys shed but they do need professional grooming about every 6-8 weeks.
In addition to those two we have a 12 year old male black lab and a 9 year old female yellow lab (also rescues). They are pretty low maintenance but they shed like crazy. Next big dog will be a Labra- or Golden Doodle. All of the personality w/o the shedding.
Most “doodles” I’ve encountered are a big disappointment. Lots of poodle undesireabile stuff and not many golden or lab traits.
Choose carefully.
This is going to be difficult, once you have owned a Golden other dogs do not measure up. Understand the concerns of raising a Golden puppy, but there are rescue adult Goldens out there who’s temperament maybe a better match then a puppy.
I would suggest a miniature schnauzer. Small enough for an rv (or your lap), but big enough defender personality to scare away any intruder (or give you time to get the shotgun)!! LOL They’re great dogs... I have 2 and both would defend me to their death :-) Good luck with your search.
Of course, generally I would agree. A good Shepherd really is the best dog, period.
And there ARE Shepherds who are genetically defective with dwarfism. So, it could happen....
Oh hmm I did not know this.
I was, ah um, just generally perhaps fudging the average weight so that I could push my most beloved dog on anyone who will listen :D
All kidding aside, I would stick with the cats.
As far as small dogs, there seem to be many nice ones. But I would definitely look for smooth-haired types. Poodles may not shed, but they need to be groomed. Too much effort if you are traveling.
Hard to think, though. So many. Generally I would avoid small terriers because they can be a handful, but they may be the widest choices given more smooth-haired varieties.
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