dog hunt much harder than expected!

Wow.
My wonderful old grouchy girl dog went to the bridge in May. I have only been dog-less once before in my life, while serving on active duty in the US military.
I am having a horrible time finding another dog that fits. I used to have my grouchy chow mix girl and working bred shepherds and sometimes wolf hybrids or other "high-drive" dogs that other people were not able to handle.
Now I am married, working full time and living in suburbia with a toddler and an infant, the days of tending bar nights and waking up to long days on thousands of acres out the back door on a ranch are long gone.
But I can still fit in a walk once a day, albiet in a double stroller, and i can throw a stick and teach endless mindles tricks and I have five million (er-wait-six-seven-under ten) bengal cats waiting for a canine victim to arrive.
I have contacted rescues, breeders, and called countless ads.
The only response i have gotten is from a standard poodle ad-very expensive or I'd be on him in a minute-and a mini dachschund breeder-just not sure-never had one. Any ideas on what breed or where to go? My single local shelter is chock full of adult pits at all times-I just cannot afford exposing my sweet babies, human or feline, to that!

I've had dogs and cats together for many years. The most challenging breeds that I've had with cats have been site hounds (greyhounds), and the most entertaining have been border collie (mixes). They like to herd over the cats and its interesting to see their reaction.

I always get rescue dogs from either individual rescue groups or shelters. Have you looked on http://petfinder.com/ yet? You can put in your zip code, some general characteristics and the dogs in your area will be listed. You will find smaller rescue groups that way.

If you ask my opinion, I will say a black dog (lab or border collie mix could fit your cat gang). Black dogs are the least adopted and have the highest euthanasia rates in shelters.

That's so sad and stupid about the black dogs being less adopted.
I agree that going with a breed rescue is a great idea.
I've got a soft spot for Miniture Dachshunds, and I know a couple that get on well with their cats.
You sound like someone with a lot of experience with dogs and very realistic expectations. Any dog would be lucky to be adopted by you! Good luck in your search.

Hi mom of many!
I have contacted a rescue shepherd group-due to my outdated computer equipment I cannot print out their app and I guess due to their understaff sit, they haven't offered any help in getting the paperwork done. It's intersting that onee I go back to work in Aug, I have access to sweet hight ech printers but less time at home to help a new pooch settle.
Also I hate to say it, BUT I did volunteer work for a shelter once. The time there has made me very, very leery of accepting an adult dog from a rescue or shelter. I will not go into details, but trust me, now that I have small people completey relying on me to protect them, I am much more intense about researching a dog's personality - and most shelters either don't know or fudge to help a dog get adopted.

I guess what I am asking is - do any of you on this forum have personal knowledge of an available dog or pup appropriate for my situation? I aaaam willing to buy the right dog/pup but am open to rescue/adoption as well. Please be honest about the dog's exposure to children!

I have a lab, and she is wonderful with kids and cats. We don't have kids, but do have a 5 yr old nephew and 10 yr old neice that come over frequently, and Snickers just adores them! She is very protective of them, and she realizes they are children. She plays much "nicer", doesn't jump, and watch out for them when they are outside.

In fact, she just had puppies a few days ago if you would be interested. I don't know where in the US you are, but if you're near West Virginia/Maryland area and are interested let me know. No, this is not a ploy to find a home for my puppies, but I do think labs are great with kids. You can check out pics of the puppies in the Cats and other Animals forum.

I can't really help on other breeds, since Snickers is the first dog I've had since I was a child.

I may be biased but I recommend getting a Golden Retriever or a Golden mix!
There are tons of them in rescues and animal shelters looking for homes, many of them are very good with kids/cats... If you get a dog from a rescue they usually test them to see how they are with cats and children and other dogs. Many adult Goldens are content with a nice walk and fetching games, not high-drive although some can be pretty active... I know my Golden doesn't NEED tons of exercise, she loves doing active things but she does not get out of control or hyper or anything if she doesn't get it (even when she was a young dog.)

I don't know where you're located but most states/areas have a Golden rescue group, here's a list:
http://landofpuregold.com/rescuea.htm

Also you can try Petfinder to check your local shelters/rescue groups.

Golden (or a mix of), Lab (or mix of).
Dachshunds are great family dogs, there is a lot of dog packed in that little body, though I'm more partial to the less popular standard doxie as well as to the wire coated variety.

I'd love a wire doxie, but no one close by breeds them. I think they are supposed to be a bit more 'sporty' then the other types, and so I'd probably relate to them better. There is a lady with one 'soft wire' in a two hour drive, but I haven't heard of this type and am not sure...that's a long way to look at one pup.

I'm pretty sure the soft wire is not breed standard, but they generally have the wire hair appearance, but the hair itself is not coarse like the actual wired coated.

It may even have come about by crossing the wire with the long coat, I honestly don't know, but they are cute buggers.

I would recommend a shepard ( aussie , german or belgian) mix .. they are all easily trained and normally excellent with little one s

I love Border collies but they are alot of work since they NEED a job

I wouldnt recommend a doxie to someone with young children. They have to many back problems. Can get hurt easily by being held wrong.

Personally I would go the rescue route. Do alot of research on the rescue and get a dog that has been in foster care for at least a month is best. That way the dog is relaxed enough in the foster home to show their true personality.
Im sorry you had a bad time with the shelter you volunteered at. There are good and bad ones just like everything else in this world. You just have to investigate.

Where about do you live? If its in the midwest I might be able to recommend some rescues.

IMO you should sit down and make a written list of the qualities you want in a dog - LH/SH, small, medium, large - M/F - maybe even a few breeds. Then when you have your list (try to come up with at least 10 different qualities) you can start narrowing your search to the dog you want.

If you don't know what you want, how will you find it?

BTW that's what we did with Keno - we had a written list of our "ideal" dog. The only thing that didn't fit was the fact she was not spayed (we had her done) - otherwise she fit our list almost 100%

Originally Posted by GoldenKitty45

IMO you should sit down and make a written list of the qualities you want in a dog - LH/SH, small, medium, large - M/F - maybe even a few breeds. Then when you have your list (try to come up with at least 10 different qualities) you can start narrowing your search to the dog you want.

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I absolutely agree. My sister wanted to adopt her first dog and asked me for an opinion. Based on her family and their lifestyle, I recommended a lab or golden. She got stuck on having a Beagle and I warned her it wouldn't fit her lifestyle. She went out and adopted 2 and has nothing but trouble for the last 8 years.

I don't recommend a doxie with young children for the reasons stated earlier. Being hounds they are also very prey driven. I know there are thousands of people with doxies, cats and kids, but be aware there is a lot of work for them.

Labs and goldens usually mix in best with kids and I've never had problems with them and cats. They are the all American family dog for a reason.

Just my opinion.

Updating all on the dog search-I have seen pics of calico's puppies-very cute! I may be open to adopting one of them if the perfect pooch doesn't materialize by the time they're ready.
I have also completed an application for a golden rescue group, and I did tell a working shepherd breeder i know that if she knew of any older GSD's ready to retire from work or sport, that my house is open.
I guess my fav dogs run to working shepherds, and chows and poodles-how different are those three breeds? But I have had super dogs from all of those breeds that I would trust completely with my kids and my cats. I know chows get a bad rap quite often, and I have met snappy poodles too. The shepherds would be my number one pic except they do tend to need a job, like a border collie, and my kids would be covered with hair from crawling through all the shedding fur.
It was a big step for me to fill out the golden app-the one dog that bit me regularly when I was a child was the neighborhood golden. he wasn't kidding either-he'd seek me out in a group to come me. He was the one beast that absolutely terrified me-and my family had big GSDs!

Okay-here's something unexpected and totally random-anyone know anything about west highland white terriers?

Originally Posted by rugthugs

It was a big step for me to fill out the golden app-the one dog that bit me regularly when I was a child was the neighborhood golden. he wasn't kidding either-he'd seek me out in a group to come me. He was the one beast that absolutely terrified me-and my family had big GSDs!

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You're not the only one. My husband was attacked by a Golden when he was younger as well. I do agree with what Fostermomm said about Dachsies. They have so many back problems that it is a risk to have one around small children. I have an 11-month old (well, on the 30th) and I wouldn't get a Dachshund, even though I have a lot of experience with dogs, like you. Personally, I was always a huge GSD fan. I grew up with a number of GSDs and GSD mixes, but, in my area, the GSDs have been so horribly bred that a number of them have aggressional tendencies, so after we lost our 15yr old Schnauzer and started looking for another dog, we chose the Sheltie. The reason for that is that they are fantastic with children. Also, they're a herding dog, like the GSD, and they're extremely versatile in what they can do. Also, not all Shelties are tiny yappy dogs. Our male is a large Sheltie at 18" at the withers and 41lbs vs our little girl who is 14.5" at the withers and 20lbs. Both of them are hard workers when needed, but can be calm when necessary. Also, they do not require as much grooming as one would think. I brush my babies out thoroughly once a week and I never have a problem with mats or a lot of shedding. They actually shed a lot less than GSDs and Labs. I would recommend at least checking into them. Keep us posted on what you decide!

I am leery of Chows with kids. That said, I have never met a nice Chow or Chow mix. Chows tend to have "short fuses" & that concerns me.

Your concerns about kids + dog are valid. I'd look around to see if there are any foster based rescues near you. They often have dogs long enough to know them in a home environment. Or perhaps look into a surrender adult dog that they know some history of.

There have been stray dogs, one a Pit/Am staff X, that I would trust 100% alone with kids, yet there have been small Poodles I wouldn't even let a kid in the room with. It depends 100% on the dog.

I think before you start searching big time.....are you looking for:
indoors? outdoors?
fenced yard?
grooming?
size?
age?
do you like retriever types?
Finances...a St Bernard will cost more to feed than a Chi?

I will say again, many many many Pits out there are wonderful dogs. I have fostered some. I'm not by any means pushing you to adopt one, & they may not be the breed for you, but I suggest you do not make generalizations....you may miss "your" dog. I didn't want a "hunting dog" type like a pointer & I now have a German Shorthaired Pointer...she is a wonderful dog!

Originally Posted by white cat lover

I am leery of Chows with kids. That said, I have never met a nice Chow or Chow mix. Chows tend to have "short fuses" & that concerns me.

Your concerns about kids + dog are valid. I'd look around to see if there are any foster based rescues near you. They often have dogs long enough to know them in a home environment. Or perhaps look into a surrender adult dog that they know some history of.

There have been stray dogs, one a Pit/Am staff X, that I would trust 100% alone with kids, yet there have been small Poodles I wouldn't even let a kid in the room with. It depends 100% on the dog.

I think before you start searching big time.....are you looking for:
indoors? outdoors?
fenced yard?
grooming?
size?
age?
do you like retriever types?
Finances...a St Bernard will cost more to feed than a Chi?

I will say again, many many many Pits out there are wonderful dogs. I have fostered some. I'm not by any means pushing you to adopt one, & they may not be the breed for you, but I suggest you do not make generalizations....you may miss "your" dog. I didn't want a "hunting dog" type like a pointer & I now have a German Shorthaired Pointer...she is a wonderful dog!

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I say a pit, or pit mix...or a golden ret!!! I own both-and trust 'em both 110%!!!

Ok, I have to chime in here

My boy is a bully mix (we think pit, but could be Am. Bulldog).
He's a completely different dog around small kids.

With us he's hyper and "on" he plays rough (he was taught that "ow" means he's being too rough), he snarls, barks, growls, paws at us and chews on us in play.

With small kids, they rough house with him and he keeps all 4 paws on the ground and the only contact his mouth ever makes is giving loads of slobbery kisses. He doesn't even play-growl with kids. He also learned that if he follows a toddler long enough, they always end up dropping food
He's so afraid of hurting the cats that he avoids them

Now, I do trust him 100% with even the smallest kids, but I would never leave any dog and small child unsupervised together.

Originally Posted by Arlyn

but I would never leave any dog and small child unsupervised together.

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Yup!! Thats a very good point.....I am the same way!!!

And my pit, loves to rough house with bigger people, but she knows when my little girl is around, its not allowed.