Weimaraners Anyone familiar?

[coloradochick]

Lastnight at the Stock Show I overheard a couple talking to a man about "the best house dog". So me being nosy I asked what breed they were talking about. They breed Weimaraners in OK. Well, we go to talking and I mentioned that we have a Special Needs son who loves playing fetch with a friends Aussie Shep. They then said the the Weimaraner is a great dog for people with seizures in fact one of theirs went as a service dog for a woman and is also just an all around good dog. This really got me excited because of Colton's uncontrolled seizures. She said they have the ability to smell chemicals right before a seizure and in this woman's case her dog tugs on her to sit down or lay down before it happens. Just wondering if anyone else has experience with this breed?

 

[SterlingAcres]

I doubt weimies have any different genetics than other dogs, with the being able to tell when someone will seizure, they can all do that. However, they are good dogs. My brother bought one earlier this year, very smart, very lovable. Not so good with housebreaking, but my brother needs to train it right, that's all.

 

[willowcol]

Not sure about being the best house dog. My friend has 1 and so does her mom, she has had nothing but problems with thiers. THey seem to be very energetic dogs. Hers is so hyper she can hardly bring it in the house anymore, it seems to break everything. They get pretty good size not huge but not small by any means. They are pretty though, but after being around hers I will stick with my Chihuahuas as house dogs, lol.

 

[Cara]

Weimaraners don't have any special ability with regard to detecting seizures that any other breed doesn't have, within reason. Brachycephalic breeds such as Boxers, Bulldogs, Pugs etc do not have as good a sense of smell as other breeds, although it is still considerably better than a human's. Trainability is the key; Bloodhounds have an incredible sense of smell, but their noses and ears can't seem to work at the same time! A well-bred Lab or Golden (from Seeing Eye/Service Dog lines) would be a good choice, or dare I say it a Poodle

Maybe an Aussie, or if you can handle the intensity a Border Collie. On the smaller side of things Bichon Frises are typically intelligent trainable dogs.

I'd look for personality rather than breed though. Our local hearing dog facility rescues many of their recruits, visiting the shelter and testing the dogs' trainability, as this gives them many to choose between rather than buying a puppy and finding it doesn't work out when it reaches maturity. They usually use small dogs, as not many people want to be woken by a Mastiff leaping on their bed! An intuitive dog would be your best bet, rather than one that couldn't care less whether your happy or mad at it!

As for Weimaraners being good house dogs, maybe if you've taken them hunting all day! They are bred for stamina and need a great deal of exercise or will become destructive. In terms of temperament and needs, they are similar to the German Shorthair Pointer. They're quite intelligent, but the need for exercise can override that at times!

 

[JaciesCoop]

Weimars are a working breed and do tend to be very active. More so than some other working breeds. Some can be good house dogs and some cannot. I've had both. Depends on the dog.

As to seizures. other dogs are also trained for this. I have a friend who has seizures and she has a lab that alerts her. He went through 6 weeks of training as a pup but the instinct is in a lot of breeds. Some dogs are just more alert to it.

 

[coloradochick]

Hey thanks everyone. This answers my questions and made my mind up on this particular breed. I have to admit I was excited there for awhile. I've looked into a service dog but they seem to be pretty pricey and we just can't swing it.

 

[coffeemama]

I wouldn't recommend any bird dog breed unless you plan to provide it with ALOT of activity-not just running around the yard either. We have a weim and I feel we lucked out with him. He's great, but I know more than one weim owner who has had serperation anxiety/destruction issues with their weims. Do your research for sure!

 

[Pumpkinpup]

I raised GSP German Shorthaired Pointers for years and have been around Weimies. They are both super dogs. Many of my pups went on to be the perfect house pets and my female is the biggest couch potato you ever met. Don't let anyone tell you that ALL bird dogs are hyper, it is NOT true. It will depend on the bloodlines. If you buy from a kennel that has hunting stock, yes, more than likely you will have a hyper dog. If you get it from a breeder who has more focus on disposition then you will most likely get a wonderful calm and well rounded house pet.

 

[ChickenToes]

They are very active dogs and can become bored with being in a house all day. One of my husband's buddies had one and it was a great hunting dog. When it was running around the woods hunting, it was fine. But if it was kept inside the house it became destructive.

 

[coffeemama]

Quote:
That's true, but it's better to expect that they will be hyper, and be happily surprised if they aren't. Our weim turned out to be a couch potato (not from hunting lines) but our GSP (strong hunting lines) is a hyper freak! We love them both