What small breed of puppy do you recommend?

[KaylorFarms]

Here are my experiences with various Dog Breeds, since you now said you may get a larger breed:
Siberian Husky - trained her to walk on leash without pulling, but used her for skijoring also. She was quiet, most of the time, and loved to kill small fuzzy animals. Shedding is a constant. My best friend for 9 years. She would bark if needed, but was fine with stopping when I told her to. Smart as a whip - we had to build a special latch for the yard gate that she couldn't figure out how to open herself - then she discovered that she could break the welds in the fence and let herself out that way.

Irish Setter - bought from a breeder who raises them for hunting. Very energetic, needed to RUN every day. We could put him on a leash and walk for hours and he would still be ready to run. He was a clown, very sweet personality, non-aggressive (I heard that dog growl once in 9 years). We trained him well enough for us, but if he got a scent - he would forget to listen... He was still a puppy at 2 years old.

English Setter - lover boy, high energy, not a mean bone in his body. Loves to bark, will bark at a scent on the wind. This one is a traveler, he will stick around until he gets far enough away to sneak off - I believe that is how he ended up in the local dog pound. Wants to be on your lap being loved, but at 65 pounds is too big for my lap. Smart dogs and trainable. Needs regular grooming.

Basset Hound - the one I knew was hard headed, independent, and a couch potato. He was friendly to people and liked attention. Not a mean dog, not a stupid dog, but was not a very trainable dog - he like to make up his own mind, thank you very much. He liked to escape the fenced yard to walk himself around town. They are surprisingly large, and heavy.

King Charles Cavalier Spaniel - a friend had 3, loved those dogs. Hers liked to bark when ever anyone stopped by, but they were nice, friendly dogs. Hers liked to jump up on people. One was a rescue, one was from a pet store (puppy mill) and one was from a backyard breeder. Big personalities in a small package.

Pug - I love Pugs. I personally am a big dog person, but, if I ever had to live in an apartment or house in town with small yard, I would get me a Pug. My favorite poster was a picture of a Pug and said "Proof that GOD has a sense of humor". The ones I have met were all small black dogs but with great big personality. Love bugs every one. Trainable and always looking to please - or looking for treats.

Thank you so much for this helpful info! I've thought about Huskies, did yours dig a lot? Because I've heard they do so I wasn't sure about getting one...

 

[Parront]

Hello. I have read all these posts. Sounds like the young person who is the OP wants her own dog, to train and love. That is a good thing, to me. I have owned "show" Cocker Spaniels, Poodles, Labs. But, my favorite was a Brittany Spaniel pup found on the want ads (before Craig's List). Best dog we ever owned. Yes, a little bigger than a cocker. Overweight @ ~40-50 lbs. They should be 30-40 lbs. They are bird hunters. She killed 2 parrot chicks before she was trained. Then, she would sit with a parrot on her nose for as long as I made her. Very trainable and smart, but need attention every day, just like my parrots. I have potty trained parrots, so I do have some patience. All training takes time.

 

[Parront]

Thank you so much for this helpful info! I've thought about Huskies, did yours dig a lot? Because I've heard they do so I wasn't sure about getting one...

They do run a lot, love to run! My sister has one.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Huskies seem like great dogs but I’ve heard they’re pretty independent. That may or may not be a problem depending if you want to do a lot of obedience training or tricks or something with them and need a dog who will definitely a listen. I’ve heard they howl and talk a lot but I don’t know. Maybe not all of them are vocal. The vocalizations, independence, and exercise needs are the biggest reasons I’ve never gotten one, cause I’ve considered them too. But I lived with a stubborn dog for years and am sick of stubborn dogs haha you may not want a stubborn dog either since you may be used to a super willing to please, sweet dog like your Goldens. Funny thing is I’m considering a Golden for my next dog ha want an obedient easy to train dog after the last. Have you considered getting yourself another Golden? I am sure you probably want something different since you already have two but they really are great dogs and it could still be your own.

 

[ShrekDawg]

Also sorry if I’ve hijacked at all here or at other points in the thread or done it a lot or whatever. That was never my intention at all. I was just following the conversations mostly and other people went off topic too or first even. And some questions like the recent sheltie one were to help you cause I figured if shelties were yappy you may not want one. But yeah. Sorry.

 

[ShrekDawg]

They do run a lot, love to run! My sister has one.

True. They love running!! And they’re bred for it and for endurance so they can go and go and go lol some breeds are more sprinters and bred for speed but huskies have that endurance and are bred for distance/mileage so I imagine not much tires them out lol maybe mental exercise. But even then takes a lot I’m sure. I would say maybe the act of pulling while running, like bikejor, skijor, sledding, etc., would tire them out more but they are literally bred for that so no luck there haha that might work for other breeds that weren’t bred to pull though.

 

[KaylorFarms]

Also sorry if I’ve hijacked at all here or at other points in the thread or done it a lot or whatever. That was never my intention at all. I was just following the conversations mostly and other people went off topic too or first even. And some questions like the recent sheltie one were to help you cause I figured if shelties were yappy you may not want one. But yeah. Sorry.

No don't be sorry, you didn't hijack the thread at all! I really appreciate all of your posts here and your inputs on this thread about all the breeds I asked about! Thank you, I really appreciate you taking the time to do that! I didn't know any of that about the huskies. I think I'll look into something else. I honestly wouldn't mind having a mutt or crossbreed puppy. I've heard mutts can actually make the best dogs

 

[Parront]

True. They love running!! And they’re bred for it and for endurance so they can go and go and go lol some breeds are more sprinters and bred for speed but huskies have that endurance and are bred for distance/mileage so I imagine not much tires them out lol maybe mental exercise. But even then takes a lot I’m sure. I would say maybe the act of pulling while running, like bikejor, skijor, sledding, etc., would tire them out more but they are literally bred for that so no luck there haha that might work for other breeds that weren’t bred to pull though.

Let's just say, there is a Husky road around the whole yard. I would get one, if I had as much property as the OP! But, kids grow up and us parents sometimes deal with these dogs, as my mom has with said sister's dog! Large dogs that need a large space might not be the best for a young person who wants to keep her dog. I love dogs, but have only had my Grey, since we did not have a yard. Might I suggest, that a nice parrot, well trained, is very easy to keep. We take Dylan, the African Grey in my avitar, everywhere we go. She is easy to house, poops in the toilet every morning, and says, "Hello" when the phone rings. Not great for going on walks, but a lot of company as a pet.

 

[rosemarythyme]

Huskies are vocal, independant and also have high prey drives, which is why you often see on here people recommending against trying to train a husky to be with chickens.

 

[Parront]

Huskies are vocal, independant and also have high prey drives, which is why you often see on here people recommending against trying to train a husky to be with chickens.

Yes, I had an easier time training a "Bird Dog" Brittany, than that Husky, but, it depends on the age of the dog, and the persistence of the owner.