I am interested in adopting my first dog. I had dogs as a child but only one as
an adult. In my mid 20's we adopted a puppy. I could not stop it from digging
under the fence, getting out of the yard and running in the street. We'd had it
for about 5 months when it was killed by a car. I had grown so attached to the
pup and was so torn up by the experience I have never been willing to do it
again, but I've decided I need a small companion. Because it's my first time to
do this in over 40 years I have a criteria list that is probably too demanding,
but I hope to start with this and relax it later as necessary.

My situation:
I'm 70
I'm not very active, but I'm not handicapped in any way
Both my wife and I are retired
I have plenty of time to care for a dog
There is someone at home most of the day every day

I want a dog:
To live in the house
That's small but not tiny -- 12 inches and 15 pounds (plus or minus a few)
That doesn't require a lot of activity/exercise
That comes from a caring home (given up reluctantly -- unforeseen circumstances)
That's confidently house broken
That doesn't bite and is not aggressive
That has no significant behavior problems
That has no medical problems
That's no longer a puppy
That's about 1-4 years old (I want to outlive the dog)
Low activity level preferable

My breed choices: (purebred doesn't matter, but the choices were made based on
size, behavior and appearance of these breeds, so a cross with a breed that
alters these may be a problem)

o Miniature Pinscher
o Schnoodle
o Glen of Imaal Terrier
o Cavalier King Charles
o Manchester Terrier
o Beagle -- small type

I was able to get the perfect wife, so why not expect to find the perfect dog.

Jim

In rec.pets.dogs.behavior jim wrote:
To live in the house
That's small but not tiny -- 12 inches and 15 pounds (plus or minus a few)

That doesn't require a lot of activity/exercise

Depends on your definition of "a lot"

That comes from a caring home (given up reluctantly -- unforeseen
circumstances)

Oh so if it is a great dog but had a sucky owner you don't want it? Why?

That's confidently house broken

It is very common for a completely housebroken dog to need some retraining
on rehoming. It often happens even when dogs stay with their families but
move to a new home.

That doesn't bite and is not aggressive

That has no significant behavior problems

You can do a good job of tilting the odds in your favor, but I've seen
plenty of times where a dog is good at a home where someone knows how to
set rules and limits, and a big pain in the arse in another home. A lot
will have to do with how you actually handle the dog.

That has no medical problems

That excludes all dogs. You can tilt the odds in your favor depending
upon the amount of money you want to spend on pre-sceening for health
issues. But rescues can't typically afford to do x-rays, full blood
panels, thyrod screening, CERF, BAER testing. And even the most careful
breeder can't promise that a condition won't show up next month. The best
they can do is offer you a dog that is currently apparently healthy. If
you choose a well bred adult dog the odds may be a little more favorable.

That's no longer a puppy
That's about 1-4 years old (I want to outlive the dog)
Low activity level preferable

My breed choices: (purebred doesn't matter, but the choices were made based on
size, behavior and appearance of these breeds, so a cross with a breed that
alters these may be a problem)

o Miniature Pinscher - frequently require a significant amount of
manners training to prevent territorial aggression.


o Schnoodle - not a breed, lousy health testing back ground, often
barkers.

o Glen of Imaal Terrier - frequently require a significant amount of
manners training to prevent territorial aggression.


o Cavalier King Charles - more than 50% of dogs suffer from serious
heart condition. They are the only dog in your list that could truly be
considered low activity.

o Manchester Terrier - frequently require a significant amount of
manners training to prevent territorial aggression.

o Beagle -- small type - not low activity, frequent barkers. and even
the small type isn't particularly small.

I was able to get the perfect wife, so why not expect to find the perfect dog.

Depends on your ability to meet perfection half-way.

--
Diane Blackman
http://dog-play.com/
http://dogplay.com/Shop/

Why not add a poodle to your list? We are in your exact situation and have
gotten (rescued) a toy poodle, 20 months old with all the attributes you
mention and we couldn't be happier. I take him to nursing homes for people
to cuddle. Currently he is lying on my desk in front of the monitor
watching me type.


"jim" wrote in message
...
I am interested in adopting my first dog. I had dogs as a child but only
one as
an adult. In my mid 20's we adopted a puppy. I could not stop it from
digging
under the fence, getting out of the yard and running in the street. We'd
had it
for about 5 months when it was killed by a car. I had grown so attached
to the
pup and was so torn up by the experience I have never been willing to do
it
again, but I've decided I need a small companion. Because it's my first
time to
do this in over 40 years I have a criteria list that is probably too
demanding,
but I hope to start with this and relax it later as necessary.

My situation:
I'm 70
I'm not very active, but I'm not handicapped in any way
Both my wife and I are retired
I have plenty of time to care for a dog
There is someone at home most of the day every day

I want a dog:
To live in the house
That's small but not tiny -- 12 inches and 15 pounds (plus or minus a
few)
That doesn't require a lot of activity/exercise
That comes from a caring home (given up reluctantly -- unforeseen
circumstances)
That's confidently house broken
That doesn't bite and is not aggressive
That has no significant behavior problems
That has no medical problems
That's no longer a puppy
That's about 1-4 years old (I want to outlive the dog)
Low activity level preferable

My breed choices: (purebred doesn't matter, but the choices were made
based on
size, behavior and appearance of these breeds, so a cross with a breed
that
alters these may be a problem)

o Miniature Pinscher
o Schnoodle
o Glen of Imaal Terrier
o Cavalier King Charles
o Manchester Terrier
o Beagle -- small type

I was able to get the perfect wife, so why not expect to find the perfect
dog.

Jim

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005 13:11:29 -0600, jim
wrote:

o Miniature Pinscher
o Schnoodle
o Glen of Imaal Terrier
o Cavalier King Charles
o Manchester Terrier
o Beagle -- small type

A lot of the problem I see with all of these dogs is that the problem
you had with your previous dog was its digging under the fence and
getting out into the street. The smaller the dog, the more ways it
can find to get out of fencing, IME. In addition, terriers tend to be
diggers and beagles are escape artists extraordinaire, from what I
have heard (though I've never had one). This doesn't have to be a
problem. The dog should not be left outside without supervision. If
you are willing to keep the dog inside the house and only outside when
you are there with it, you don't have to worry about escape factors.

I was surprised to see the Cavalier King Charles on your list for a
different reason. They are notorious for having serious health
problems. If you do a search on the breed, you will find out just how
pervasive heart problems are in that breed. I think that before you
choose any dog, one on your list or otherwise, it would help you to
research each of the breeds a bit more. I am not sure what research
you have done to come up with that list, but they don't seem to meet
your stated criteria very well, so I am wondering if it is a size and
cuteness factor that you are looking at. There is nothing wrong with
getting a dog whose looks you like, but you want to know enough about
the breed in other ways that you get a dog you can love living with as
well as love looking at.

I was able to get the perfect wife, so why not expect to find the perfect dog.

Maybe you used up all your points getting that wife!

--
Paula
"Anyway, other people are weird, but sometimes they have candy, so it's best to try to get along with them." Joe Bay

On Tue, 22 Feb 2005 22:22:54 GMT, "John Bennett"
wrote:

Why not add a poodle to your list? We are in your exact situation and have
gotten (rescued) a toy poodle, 20 months old with all the attributes you
mention and we couldn't be happier. I take him to nursing homes for people
to cuddle. Currently he is lying on my desk in front of the monitor
watching me type.

Low activity??? :}

It really depends on the individual dog more than the breed. My
advice would be to find breed rescue organizations with the breeds you
like, and shop the available dogs.

Though I'd be cautious of some of the dogs on that list. I've rarely
met a min pin or a manchester terrier *without* some kind of
significant behavioral issue. Usually territorial guarding or
fear-aggression.


--
Leah Roberts, Family Dog Trainer
It's A Dog's World
http://hometown.aol.com/dfrntdrums/m...age/index.html
Get Healthy, Build Your Immune System, Lose Weight
http://re-vita.net/dfrntdrums

Paula wrote:

I am not sure what research
you have done to come up with that list, but they don't seem to meet
your stated criteria very well, so I am wondering if it is a size and
cuteness factor that you are looking at. There is nothing wrong with
getting a dog whose looks you like, but you want to know enough about
the breed in other ways that you get a dog you can love living with as
well as love looking at.

All these dogs were chosen based on the results of "Choosing a dog" webpages,
such as purina's http://tinyurl.com/3uwcm. I used three different choosers like
this one. No chooser listed more than four dogs that met my criteria, but since
they yielded different lists I was about to find a total of about 10. I
starting with these 10. I then (and only then) chose the ones I liked looks of.
I want a dog that looks like a dog, a small dog but a dog -- not a stuffed toy,
kitten, rat, etc. I review all their characteristics in this list
http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/abc.htm. Somehow I didn't find the Cavalier King
Charles on the list. It was the only one I couldn't find, but based on your
comments I went again and found it this time. I see the health problems. I've
removed it from my candidate list.

The replies I've gotten are confusing. Many seem to be people shouting at one
another instead of addressing my questions. I think someone said even small
Beagles are not really small -- that's why they are listed last.

Your response and the little I could decipher of the other replies seemed to be
saying small dogs are inconsistent with my other criteria, period. From other
things I've read large dogs require more activity, which I can't give, and we
can't (are unwilling to) keep a large dog in the house. So, that makes large
and small dogs inconsistent with my criteria.

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 10:59:24 -0600, jim
wrote:

Many seem to be people shouting at one
another instead of addressing my questions.

There are several people here who are killfiled by the majority of us
because all they do is shout at one another. :}

--
Leah Roberts, Family Dog Trainer
It's A Dog's World
http://hometown.aol.com/dfrntdrums/m...age/index.html
Get Healthy, Build Your Immune System, Lose Weight
http://re-vita.net/dfrntdrums

jim wrote:

All these dogs were chosen based on the results of "Choosing a dog" webpages,
such as purina's http://tinyurl.com/3uwcm.

Now it makes better sense. These breed selectors are notoriously
inaccurate. One of the better ones (I think so anyway) is at
http://animal.discovery.com/guides/d.../selector1.jsp

You would do better to look through breed books - you can probably find
them in the library, or look through one at a book store.

The replies I've gotten are confusing. Many seem to be people shouting at one
another instead of addressing my questions.

That's the resident loon. Just ignore or killfile him.

I think someone said even small
Beagles are not really small -- that's why they are listed last.

We have no way of knowing that. The information we have is what you've
given us, and there is no way for any of us to tell whether you knew
already that the 13" and under Beagles generally weigh in the 20 lbs. range.

Your response and the little I could decipher of the other replies seemed to be
saying small dogs are inconsistent with my other criteria, period.

Not necessarily. What they're saying is that some of the breeds you've
chosen don't seem to be appropriate for you for one reason or the other.

From other
things I've read large dogs require more activity, which I can't give,

That's not necessarily true. I have very large dogs (90 and 120 lbs)
and they're mellower than most of the smaller dogs I've met.

and we
can't (are unwilling to) keep a large dog in the house.

That would make large dogs inappropriate for you then. Maybe something
like an English Toy Spaniel or Pekingese?

Suja

On Wed, 23 Feb 2005 13:39:00 -0500, Suja wrote:

That would make large dogs inappropriate for you then. Maybe something
like an English Toy Spaniel or Pekingese?

Other ideas: shih tzu, lhasa apso, pug, Japanese chin

--
Leah Roberts, Family Dog Trainer
It's A Dog's World
http://hometown.aol.com/dfrntdrums/m...age/index.html
Get Healthy, Build Your Immune System, Lose Weight
http://re-vita.net/dfrntdrums

jim said in rec.pets.dogs.behavior:

From other
things I've read large dogs require more activity, which I
can't give, and we can't (are unwilling to) keep a large
dog in the house.

I'm curious - why can't you keep a large dog in your house?

--
--Matt. Rocky's a Dog.