Breed recommendations

[JamieHalverson]

Well if you live near AZ, AZ Mastiff Rescue just put out word that they have a surrendered litter of St Bernard/Mastiff mixes that they are going to need to home starting next week. I know they have homed as far as OH if the person comes and gets them.

We are in Minnesota. I bet they are rediculously cute! If we rescue it will likely be through a group here that I've gotten very familiar with. If we get a mastiff, it would just be ftom Lillie's breeder because the situation came up, not really because that's what we were looking for. I think if we do get a rescue, it will likely be a little staffy. I just love them and I think it would be a good fit for Simone.

 

[QY10]

I'd be picky and careful if you're looking for a Staffy. They are great dogs, but you have to remember their history. They were a fighting breed. My breeder aims to keep his Staffords as historically accurate as possible, which means his dogs are extremely athletic, tenacious and some are very, very DA in keeping with their history. Thalia is very confident and DA. She's been in a few accidental fights and sent a dog twice her size to the vet. She is always crate rotated with other dogs, except Angus. For whatever reason she developed a strange bond with him. She cannot go to off leash parks, or even some normal walking trails because of other people not respecting the leash rules.

I will probably always have a staffy in my life. They are beyond amazing... I would just keep in mind the potential for DA.


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[QY10]

I would also say performance/working Staffy's are not for the faint of heart. They are go, go, go all the time... At least, Thalia is! Hahahaha. On the other hand, my dad has a more of the show-type of Stafford and she is a bit of a couch potato... not nearly the same level of athleticism and I'd actually say that his dog is a bit of a couch potato. They both have much different looks to each other, too.

 

[JamieHalverson]

Yeah, all the breeds we like have some cautionary aspects to them... Going with a reputable rescue that fosters for at least a month, as well as getting a young adult or older puppy will hopefully mitagate some of that risk. They will have a pretty good handle on the personality and compatability of the dog with our home.I actually was just emailing the foster home of a 1 year old Staffy and when she said the dog will all of a sudden launch herself 10 feet off the couch for no reason, and can be pretty mouthy when excited, I decided probably not a great idea to go meet her. No matter how cute she is!

 

[QY10]

Yeah, all the breeds we like have some cautionary aspects to them... Going with a reputable rescue that fosters for at least a month, as well as getting a young adult or older puppy will hopefully mitagate some of that risk. They will have a pretty good handle on the personality and compatability of the dog with our home.I actually was just emailing the foster home of a 1 year old Staffy and when she said the dog will all of a sudden launch herself 10 feet off the couch for no reason, and can be pretty mouthy when excited, I decided probably not a great idea to go meet her. No matter how cute she is!

Staffy's have the sweetest faces... They'll suck you into giving them everything they want and will weasel their way out of discipline like nobody's business, hahaha. Thalia also has HUGE prey drive... she will kill anything smaller than her... hell, she even attacked a coyote not too long ago that was way bigger than she is. Cleaned her up afterwards and saw that none of the blood on her was actually hers! LOL. Going with a reputable rescue/foster will definitely help you find exactly what you're looking for. A good SBT will excel in anything you do with it. They're super smart and easy to work with and train, too.

 

[BAMCB]

I'm very late to the game but after a quick read through I notice no JRT? They can be a handful at times, I admit, but they are awesome to train, focused and very bonded with their handler. If you plan on her feeding, training and also doing a sport with them it may be a great fit And..... they certainly have "big dog" personality in a pint size body! Lol

 

[cj-sharpy]

I'd say staffy over a JRT all day long around kids.
Staffy dogs are not and have never been a fighting dog.
They are used (and raised) for fighting purely for their tenacity but with proper breeding they are awesome soft loving dogs. You have to work hard to put the fight in to them. I've honestly never met a bad one.
I have however had a JRT and known many others. All of which were very quick to bite anything they thought they could get away with.
Both breeds are have terrior in them but the jacks I've known all seemed to be quicker with the mouth and more inclined to "kill". The staffies I've known (one raised very wrong by a friends family) were all very soft mouthed.

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[cj-sharpy]

As I understand it the staffy was originally produced to run with cows (hence the bull bit) and clamp on to their lips to calm the beast so it could be controlled.

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[BAMCB]

I'd say staffy over a JRT all day long around kids.
Staffy dogs are not and have never been a fighting dog.
They are used (and raised) for fighting purely for their tenacity but with proper breeding they are awesome soft loving dogs. You have to work hard to put the fight in to them. I've honestly never met a bad one.
I have however had a JRT and known many others. All of which were very quick to bite anything they thought they could get away with.
Both breeds are have terrior in them but the jacks I've known all seemed to be quicker with the mouth and more inclined to "kill". The staffies I've known (one raised very wrong by a friends family) were all very soft mouthed.

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I have no idea what your talking about CJ Lol
My Jacks were awesome! Especially with kids! My daughter had such a bond with the male. He would lay with her for hours when she was upset. They tolerated anything, though I always supervised the younger ones. Now their behavior towards cats when left alone with one was less than ideal. Around me you'd never have known. I have heard JRTs not being good with kids but every single one I've known, a boss bred them and friends also owned many(horse world) I've not seen it for myself. But then again there are always the bad ones in every breed.

 

[QY10]

I'd say staffy over a JRT all day long around kids. Staffy dogs are not and have never been a fighting dog. They are used (and raised) for fighting purely for their tenacity but with proper breeding they are awesome soft loving dogs. You have to work hard to put the fight in to them. I've honestly never met a bad one. I have however had a JRT and known many others. All of which were very quick to bite anything they thought they could get away with. Both breeds are have terrior in them but the jacks I've known all seemed to be quicker with the mouth and more inclined to "kill". The staffies I've known (one raised very wrong by a friends family) were all very soft mouthed.Sent from my SM-A300FU using Tapatalk

Staffords have never been fighting dogs? Staffordshire Bull Terriers were the miners' fighting dogs way back when. This has been well documented. Fanciers of the breed were struggling due to the dogs bad reputation to have the breed recognized by the kennel club, so they started putting on dog shows. These dogs went from being top fighters to top dogs in the show ring. The Staffordshire Bull Terrier was a dog that you could take to the bar on Saturday and the show on Sunday. Ricky B's Ch. PsychoSpringview's GR CH. JimCh. SamRussell's CH Red JoeGR CH. DukeGR CH. RockyCH. StormerCH. MollyCH. Game Laddieetc etc etc.... The list seriously goes on. All of these dogs were winners in the pit. Some of them even winning against APBT. http://game-bred.com/indigenous%20fighting%20dogs%20of%20the%20British%20Isles.pdfAn Article on the Staffordshire Bull Terrier as a game dog.Also, a proper Staffordshire Bull Terrier should attack without making a sound. These dogs were put through tests of gameness, which were Badger Trials. The dogs were sent into underground tunnels, in the dark where they were faced with a badger. The dog could not back out, or bark/make a noise otherwise it was disqualified and broken off it's game. The dog had to hold onto the badger for a certain time length and then it passed the test and received its "dead game certificate". Dogs that did not perform were either culled or sold. So, to say that Staffords should have a soft mouth is incorrect. The one question that has not yet been answered is whether or not the badger trials, or the pit were a harder test of gameness. Some say that badger trials were because in the pit, the dog can maneuver its way from the other dog, where in a badger trial, the dog cannot maneuver as well.It has nothing to do with how they were raised. This is what these dogs were historically bred for. They were bred very specifically and carefully to bring out these traits. If someone cannot be prepared to deal with what will happen if they get a well-bred working dog from old game stock, then maybe they should steer clear of the Stafford.Granted, as with most breeds... they are becoming very watered down. That being said, my Stafford, Thalia, is a true working dog with some incredible dogs in her lineage. ...And no, I'm not promoting dog fighting. This is my dog's history and I embrace, appreciate and respect that. I'm not going to pretend that dog fighting wasn't part of her history and then feign ignorance when she accidentally gets into a fight with another dog. These characteristics are what makes my dog great. The fact that she hasn't been watered down allows me to proudly say that she is a TRUE Staffordshire Bull Terrier.

 

[karennj]

All my family is from the England and springers or JRT is pretty much what everyone owns, hehe. I grew up with the JRT's who were true farm working dogs and they generally were friendly but some of them were more snappy than others. I could see children being a concern with some of them that I have met. They are a no nonsense type of dog so it could go either way. I would think a dog raised from a pup with kids and trained by kids would be fine though.

 

[BAMCB]

All my family is from the England and springers or JRT is pretty much what everyone owns, hehe. I grew up with the JRT's who were true farm working dogs and they generally were friendly but some of them were more snappy than others. I could see children being a concern with some of them that I have met. They are a no nonsense type of dog so it could go either way. I would think a dog raised from a pup with kids and trained by kids would be fine though.

That could be the reason for my jacks to have been really good around kids. They "grew up" with my children. The kids were only 4 and 5 yrs old when they came home.

I do believe this family wants to adopt an older pup or mature rescue though.

 

[JamieHalverson]

We had a JRT a couple years ago, shortly before we got Yogi. He was 12 or 13 when we got him, took him from a friend's parents who were going to take him to the shelter due to allergies, a change in family circumstance, etc. etc. He was a fine dog and had been raised with kids. He had been left for 10- 12 hours a day in a laundry room, so wasn't housetrained and had a 10 foot tie out out the back door. Wasn't walked, wasn't let off the tie out. Watching him acclimate to a fenced in yard was pretty amazing. He'd go just a little bit further off the deck everytime he went outside. I think it took him about 3 or 4 days before he was using the entire yard, then he just let loose and was practically a new dog! Unfortunately, after about a year he started going blind and deaf and getting very snappy with everyone. Our intent was to give him a nice and comfortable old age, not prolong his life or try to work through the issues of aging. The day he chased our then 5 year old kiddo through the kitchen to bite her foot was the day we decided he'd had enough. He was about 14. He was NOT snappy prior to blindness and deafness.

 

[Iulicris88]

I get so angry when i read stories like this. Why the hell would someone get a dog if he wasn't capable of taking care of it? I think it says alot about a person the way they treat their pets.

 

[BAMCB]

We had a JRT a couple years ago, shortly before we got Yogi. He was 12 or 13 when we got him, took him from a friend's parents who were going to take him to the shelter due to allergies, a change in family circumstance, etc. etc. He was a fine dog and had been raised with kids. He had been left for 10- 12 hours a day in a laundry room, so wasn't housetrained and had a 10 foot tie out out the back door. Wasn't walked, wasn't let off the tie out. Watching him acclimate to a fenced in yard was pretty amazing. He'd go just a little bit further off the deck everytime he went outside. I think it took him about 3 or 4 days before he was using the entire yard, then he just let loose and was practically a new dog! Unfortunately, after about a year he started going blind and deaf and getting very snappy with everyone. Our intent was to give him a nice and comfortable old age, not prolong his life or try to work through the issues of aging. The day he chased our then 5 year old kiddo through the kitchen to bite her foot was the day we decided he'd had enough. He was about 14. He was NOT snappy prior to blindness and deafness.

Though it was not a good first 12 yrs for the this poor pup, I'm sure he enjoyed every single bit of his last yrs! Really awesome of you! I'm certain his upbringing had to do with his nipping. Both mine were pretty much deaf and and one was going blind. We even brought home a new baby when they were 10 yrs and they were very good to him. Of course, supervised, but never had to discipline the dogs(baby, yes) but not the dogs lol

Side note: I do miss them terribly, for many reasons. But I've never understood why people in the country complained about mice. I had never seen or had an issue with any, until this last year. Our yard is torn up! The terrier mix they raised is trying like hell but I'm afraid she is out numbered. Hahahaha So they are beneficial for the home too!

 

[JamieHalverson]

So, we are meeting a 7 month old APBT this coming week that sounds like a really nice dog... owner is rehoming. He is intact and so is Lillie... I'm just wondering if the age recommendations for neutering smaller dogs is the same as our big dogs? I'd prefer to have him neutered, but would of course look at health and development before convenience.

Also, Yogi is showing significant interest in Lillie right now, in a very inappropriate, lol, manner. I think he just tried to hump her 5 times in as many minutes... so I'm thinking she's about to have her first heat. Not exactly the time I want to get a new, intact, male dog accustomed to our home.

 

[JamieHalverson]

So this little guy is pretty irresistible to me... he's probably not what we set out to find, but I can't stand how cute he is! The rescue says he's a Shepherd mix. I've asked for more detail from the rescue, but I'm wondering what you guys think he might be? 23 pounds at 12 weeks and brindle. I think the only shepherd that's brindle is the Dutch Shepherd, but I'm not sure about that either.

 

[JamieHalverson]

I did a google image search and there's some GSD/Golden mix puppies that look very much like this...

 

[Smokeycat]

Very cute. Brindle can show up even when neither parent breed has brindle as a colour. He does look like a Shepard mix and likely will be a big boy once grown up.

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[JamieHalverson]

Very cute. Brindle can show up even when neither parent breed has brindle as a colour. He does look like a Shepard mix and likely will be a big boy once grown up.Sent from my SM-G920W8 using Tapatalk

I didn't know that. I don't know much about coloring and genetics, so that's really interesting. Yeah, I don't think he's quite what we are looking for, we are not big shepherd fans, but depending on what his mix is (if they know) and his personality, you never know. I'm not ruling much out, at this point. He already has an application ahead of ours with a scheduled meet and greet, so I'm not holding my breath.

We are having a really hard time finding a dog, I don't know why but it seems like the rescues we hear back from don't have a dog that suits us, or I find a dog I like and it's been adopted, or they won't adopt to us because Lillie's not spayed yet, sigh... I keep checking shelters, too, and nothing yet.