A schipperke might be a good fit and it might not. You should meet a few, and make sure you click. It is easy to fall in love with the look of a breed, but it really comes down to the type of dog you get along with. Like, I LOVE the look of the arctic breeds. They are GORGEOUS. They irritate the heck out of me. I will never have the sympatico with them that will make one be the dog for me that it could be. Some people have that, and win obedience titles with them.
Scent hounds I don't find anywhere near as attractive. But by golly can I work a hound! A hound is as obedient for me as most people find a Golden. They have (and deserve!) an awful reputation for obedience overall. It's all about if you click.
As far as training, @black_cat , your puppy will be an infant, and like all infants, is learning every moment it is awake. So yes, of course you can, and should teach it. But we must remember that this is a baby, and adjust our expectations accordingly. If you have younger kids in the family, try to relate the pup to that. That 8 week old pup is like your 3 yo cousin. That sassy 9 month old pup is like your sassy 11yo sibling. That grown-looking 12 month old pup is as mentally grown as a 16yo kid - they may be big and strong and smart, but we don't expect them to have a career and run a household, because they're still just not ready, they are still at a stage where they will try their limits, test authority, be total brainless goofs sometimes, and need time to just be young. Make sense?
Scent hounds I don't find anywhere near as attractive. But by golly can I work a hound! A hound is as obedient for me as most people find a Golden. They have (and deserve!) an awful reputation for obedience overall. It's all about if you click.
As far as training, @black_cat , your puppy will be an infant, and like all infants, is learning every moment it is awake. So yes, of course you can, and should teach it. But we must remember that this is a baby, and adjust our expectations accordingly. If you have younger kids in the family, try to relate the pup to that. That 8 week old pup is like your 3 yo cousin. That sassy 9 month old pup is like your sassy 11yo sibling. That grown-looking 12 month old pup is as mentally grown as a 16yo kid - they may be big and strong and smart, but we don't expect them to have a career and run a household, because they're still just not ready, they are still at a stage where they will try their limits, test authority, be total brainless goofs sometimes, and need time to just be young. Make sense?
