Narrowing down dog breeds (retriever, terrier, or Aussie)

[ShrekDawg]

I eventually want a second dog but I'm having a ridiculously hard time narrowing down breeds. Cause I have sooo many I want to try lol

But I think I have managed to narrow it down to a few. Retriever, terrier, or Aussie. But also love English Shepherds, GSD, and Huskies. But I don't think GSD is gonna happen.

Anyway, I realize retriever and terrier are more categories than breeds but that's because I love lots of breeds within them. For instance, retriever I love Labs and Goldens equally so can't decide. And terriers I'm pretty sure I would want a Rat Terrier, Border Terrier, or Boston Terrier, as they seem the most trainable/biddable and least terrier like of all of them but still plenty of terrier spunk. But then Cairns and Westies also seem like great dogs. Plus terriers would be small enough to be under a weight limit if I ever moved into an apartment.

Anyway, I am having a ridiculously hard time deciding because I think all 3 would be a great fit for me so it's just a matter of deciding which one I would want which is impossible because I want them all haha

Soooo...

Does anyone own any of these breeds and have any thoughts or opinions or anything on them?

And yes I realize I have a lot of dog threads but I'm mostly just researching and comparing at this point. And I didn't want to make separate threads for all three breeds so I'm making one thread for opinions on all of them haha

 

[Golden Brahma 64]

Why don’t you get a cocker spaniel ?

 

[DellaNTuff]

I had a rat terrier years ago. I would get another.
Pip (short for pip squeak) was a very loving dog, I took her everywhere and did a lot of training she was not a yappy little dog very well trained and behaved.
She loved to do chores but from about october to march had to be in my jacket a lot or was too cold, and she would get very upset if left behind.
She was very active and loved farm life. Im not sure she would have enjoyed apartment life, man did she love to hunt gophers. I did have to be careful of her size around live stock, and big machinery but we never had any accidents. My Kelpies kinda remind me of her with those big ears and strong bonding personality.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Why don’t you get a cocker spaniel ?
View attachment 1497433 View attachment 1497434

Spaniels are another breed category I've considered, with a cocker or an English Springer, but then I never really did any research on them for some reason. Yours is adorable!! Are they pretty easy to train? And what is the energy level like?

 

[Shamo Hybrid]

Just go to the animal shelter, and if they have any of the breed you listed then just adopt one.

 

[oldhenlikesdogs]

I'm with rat, or Boston terrier. But that's just my preference. Aussies are higher maintenance for me these days. They are fun dogs, as well as exhausting dogs.

 

[ShrekDawg]

I had a rat terrier years ago. I would get another.
Pip (short for pip squeak) was a very loving dog, I took her everywhere and did a lot of training she was not a yappy little dog very well trained and behaved.
She loved to do chores but from about october to march had to be in my jacket a lot or was too cold, and she would get very upset if left behind.
She was very active and loved farm life. Im not sure she would have enjoyed apartment life, man did she love to hunt gophers. I did have to be careful of her size around live stock, and big machinery but we never had any accidents. My Kelpies kinda remind me of her with those big ears and strong bonding personality.

She sounds like she was a great dog!! I like them because they do seem loving and trainable and I love training. Right now I live at home and we have almost 3 acres and plenty of nice places to walk. So I'm not sure if the transition to an apartment would be easy after that but I'd try to still go on walks and train and stuff to keep busy. Do you think they can hike? My concern is also that all our potential dog friends are big dogs. Our current dog is a Black Lab/Great Pyrenees and like 140 pounds. He's 6 and pretty lazy and gentle but still. Then my brother and his fiancé's dog is a 9 month old Great Pyrenees/Lab/Boxer/something mix and is 62 pounds. She's very sweet and well behaved but still. And we have a lot of Golden friends and idk, just similar sized dogs in the 50, 60, 70 pound range and my monster lol are they easily hurt? And I actually wanted a Kelpie for a while lol and atill do eventually but figured they'd be too energetic for me.

 

[lcwmt]

I eventually want a second dog but I'm having a ridiculously hard time narrowing down breeds. Cause I have sooo many I want to try lol

But I think I have managed to narrow it down to a few. Retriever, terrier, or Aussie. But also love English Shepherds, GSD, and Huskies. But I don't think GSD is gonna happen.

Anyway, I realize retriever and terrier are more categories than breeds but that's because I love lots of breeds within them. For instance, retriever I love Labs and Goldens equally so can't decide. And terriers I'm pretty sure I would want a Rat Terrier, Border Terrier, or Boston Terrier, as they seem the most trainable/biddable and least terrier like of all of them but still plenty of terrier spunk. But then Cairns and Westies also seem like great dogs. Plus terriers would be small enough to be under a weight limit if I ever moved into an apartment.

Anyway, I am having a ridiculously hard time deciding because I think all 3 would be a great fit for me so it's just a matter of deciding which one I would want which is impossible because I want them all haha

Soooo...

Does anyone own any of these breeds and have any thoughts or opinions or anything on them?

And yes I realize I have a lot of dog threads but I'm mostly just researching and comparing at this point. And I didn't want to make separate threads for all three breeds so I'm making one thread for opinions on all of them haha

*****
What do you want in a dog????
The breeds you list have wildly different characteristics.
I have lived with and loved various retriever breeds and herding breeds>
There is a world of difference between a Lab and a Golden, between a Border Collie and an Aussie.
As for Spaniels, oh my! Springers are incredibly different from Cockers.

I have minimal experience with the Terriers but know that Jack Russels and Westies are like night and day.
My best advice: Figure out what you want and why, and go from there.
As another poster mentioned, there are a lot of dogs in shelters who would welcome being adopted!

 

[ShrekDawg]

Aussies range from 45 to 85 pounds. So not all are smaller. Breeding is all over the place as far as coats and sizes. There is no standard weight for Australian shepherds. My one is 50 pounds and my other is around 80 pounds, my last show bred Aussie also was around 80 pounds.

Most are smart but without enough exercise some can be a pain. I follow a few Facebook groups and lots of complaints about them barking, biting, and generally being trouble. They can be frustrating to housebreak too for some reason.

It pays to know the worse as well as the good. They are definitely a challenging breed sometimes, but they are also good dogs.

From your list of breeds the retrievers will be the most biddable, they are bred to work with humans. Aussies are the most clownish, they are bred to think for themselves which sometimes can be challenging, and terriers can be the most stubborn, and are more prey driven, but there are different degrees of terriers. All 3 choice can be big barkers, and destructive when young if not exercised well.

Either choice will keep you busy for a year or two as they mature and settle when gotten as puppies.

I had a rat terrier years ago. I would get another.
Pip (short for pip squeak) was a very loving dog, I took her everywhere and did a lot of training she was not a yappy little dog very well trained and behaved.
She loved to do chores but from about october to march had to be in my jacket a lot or was too cold, and she would get very upset if left behind.
She was very active and loved farm life. Im not sure she would have enjoyed apartment life, man did she love to hunt gophers. I did have to be careful of her size around live stock, and big machinery but we never had any accidents. My Kelpies kinda remind me of her with those big ears and strong bonding personality.

Just go to the animal shelter, and if they have any of the breed you listed then just adopt one.

That's another great idea and I could probably find a dog that was a good size.

I'm with rat, or Boston terrier. But that's just my preference. Aussies are higher maintenance for me these days. They are fun dogs, as well as exhausting dogs.

It's tough because I want to try all the breeds lol like rats or Bostons seem perfect too. And yeah, Aussies definitely seem like a lot of work but I love training/working with dogs so it'd probably be with me and/or doing something constantly, whether playing or training or just hanging, so hopefully that'd be enough. Might possibly do agility, dock diving, or nose work too. I've always thought nosework sounded like fun. Idk if Aussies like water? If not then dock diving might be out lol and my brother and his fiancé love hiking and mountain biking and my friends go trail running all the time so I'd likely be hiking a lot since I don't mountain bike or run lol but we'd go with Libby (brother's dog) or my friend's 2 Goldens.

All that said, if I get a job eventually or move out and have to leave the dog here (I don't anticipate that happening but you never know), then I don't want it to become bored or destructive going from constantly doing something to doing nothing because my parent's aren't really as into doing stuff with the dog like that, like all the training and sports and stuff. Although I guess my brother could take it, they're very active and would keep up at least some of the training as opposed to no rules here. But again, don't anticipate on having to get rid of it ever, but just thinking I guess. FSIL loves Aussies cause they had one.

 

[DellaNTuff]

She sounds like she was a great dog!! I like them because they do seem loving and trainable and I love training. Right now I live at home and we have almost 3 acres and plenty of nice places to walk. So I'm not sure if the transition to an apartment would be easy after that but I'd try to still go on walks and train and stuff to keep busy. Do you think they can hike? My concern is also that all our potential dog friends are big dogs. Our current dog is a Black Lab/Great Pyrenees and like 140 pounds. He's 6 and pretty lazy and gentle but still. Then my brother and his fiancé's dog is a 9 month old Great Pyrenees/Lab/Boxer/something mix and is 62 pounds. She's very sweet and well behaved but still. And we have a lot of Golden friends and idk, just similar sized dogs in the 50, 60, 70 pound range and my monster lol are they easily hurt? And I actually wanted a Kelpie for a while lol and atill do eventually but figured they'd be too energetic for me.

My husband was my boyfriend back then lol and pip got a long fine with his greyhound / Russian wolf hound cross. With proper introduction and care it should be fine. She was a bold little dog though.
I honestly found her to be my most e energetic dog I've had bit she was so little she could rip around the house without any issues or damage where the kelpies and colies could not.
I have know no other rat terriers other than her so she may not be the breed standard just my experince.

You could for sure hike with her, and she was small if you needed to back pack her up a steep part it would be like nothing LoL

My one kelpie has always been chill and half lazy the other, she's wired and very electric she's been a tough dog to get control on cattle, she likes to go full out the whole time, she is learning its ok to let the mama cows walk finally lol