[OT] What kind of dog do you have?

[diaglo]

English Bulldog Bitch named Molly.

45lbs of lean muscle.

 

[ced1106]

As far as a breed recommendation, if you are going with a purebred, and there isn't a size limit on dogs in your lease, consider adopting a retired racing greyhound. They are short-haired & clean, and need surprisingly short exercise breaks. They are sprinters, not distance runners, so 10 minutes chasing frisbees and they are pooped! Also, you'll be saving a relatively yound dog (2-3 years is normal retirement age iirc) from euthanasia by the racing industry.

Another possibility is a retired guide dog.

Retired Guide Dog FAQ:
http://www.thepuppyplace.org/page11.html


Cedric.
aka. Washu! ^O^

 

[Kai Lord]

Not that it matters to you, but I don't think you should have a dog in an apartment.

The dog deserves a yard to run in - suck it up, be strong, and wait till you have a better situation to share with a doggie companion.

Many top breeders would disagree with you. For starters, many dogs, particularly of the Toy Group and Bulldogs, are bred for low-key small space living.

As for many active dogs, social exercise is more important than living space. Read up on Vizslas and Australian Shepherds, they will not exercise themselves by simply running laps in a large yard. They need something to do, like hunt, herd, catch frisbees, what have you.

Both my roommate and I exercise a lot, work full time M-F, but I am able to come home for lunch every day, so the dog wouldn't have to be alone for more than four hours at a time.

I also like Staffordshire Bull Terriers, which look like small Pit Bulls, but I'd like to have the option of taking my dog out for a walk in a public park without having it try to tear the face off the cocker spaniel being walked by the cute blond.

In general, I don't really care for prissy or "rat dogs", so no toy poodles, pomeranians, or shi-tzus for me. I might make an exception with the pug, because every one I've seen seemed so boisterous and jolly.

Bulldogs also have a high cool factor without being mean, but I'd like to have the option of playing with it or running out in the park with it.

I'm really going to do some hard thinking/research before ruling out my top three choices; the Boxer, Vizsla, and Australian Shepherd.

Boxers just have such a striking physique and are cool as hell to play with. Vizslas are beautiful hunting dogs and probably the most affectionate toward their masters of all the Sporting Group, and their's nothing like being able to take your one blue-eye, one brown-eye Australian Shepherd out into the park to dazzle onlookers with some high-flying frisbee action.

I'll be in an apartment for maybe another year or two, but my work schedule probably won't change much.

 

[Uzumaki]

I have a strange looking dog. She's small and feisty and likes to do nothing but sleep and look cute all day. THe person I got her from said she was a dog, but I think she may have lied to me...

Do you think so?

 

[Sir Osis of Liver]

My brother has two Pit Bulls, they're great. The rep is really blown out of proprtion, our Pits are big babies. They are smart, have just enough energy that you can play as long as you want, but not so much that they are going nuts all the time. They have short hair which helps as fars as having them in the house.

Really, look beyond the bad sterio type. Pit bulls are excellent pets.

 

[Tarrasque Wrangler]

My GF and I own two: An Alaskan Malamute (absolutely beautiful dog, a big hit at the dog park, but a huuuuuge PITA otherwise) and a rescued Pit Bull mix (Pit/Viszla, we think).

And let me go on record as giving a big thumbs-up to Pit Bulls and especially Pit mixes. Properly brought up and trained, they make fine dogs. We had one at our old apartment and it worked out fine. Once they're more than 1-1 1/2 years old, they become much more mellow and lie around a lot. But they're always up for a walk; my girlfriend and I got in great shape walking her. The live to please and are very affectionate. It's such a shame that some very bad people (drug dealers and assorted scum of the earth) have gone out of their way to turn them into monsters and give the whole breed a bad rap.

 

[HiLiphNY]

Dawg - GREYHOUND

I have a greyhound - a retired racer, and I live in a condo in NYC. I must stress here - THIS IS THE PERFECT APARTMENT DOG.

Most people make the mistake of assuming that greyhounds are jittery and high maintenance. Nothing could be further from the truth. This breed sleeps 18 hours a day and are very mellow!

Love 'em!

 

[diaglo]

Bulldogs also have a high cool factor without being mean, but I'd like to have the option of playing with it or running out in the park with it.

We took our bully on a backpacking trip in the mountains. She did fine for the 13.7 miles. She even had her own pack.


Don't be fooled. Bulldogs love to run and play.

They just can't swim.

Molly sank like a stone when she chased a stick into the lake. I had to dive in and save her.

 

[Uzumaki]

Just chiming in to say what good dogs pitbulls are. Dogs must be trained to be attackers. I used to live next to two pit bulls. My "dog" (see above) used to play with them when she was a puppy, even though she was about one half the size of their heads and would answer their affectionate licks with punches in the eye. They never hurt her.

 

[Darrin Drader]

My old dog Ashly was a mutt, but looked mostly like a chocolate lab although she had some german shepherd blood in her. She was huge, hyper, and very loyal. She saved my wife's life in a housefire about 8 years ago. The place would have burned to the ground if she hadn't woken my wife up from a nap and alerted her to the fire befire it got out of hand. We had to put her down about a year ago because her joints were going out on her. She was the first animal to prove to me beyond a shadow of a doubt that an animal can have a sense of humor.

Ariel is our new dog, and she just turned a year old. When we bought her the pet store told us that she was chocolate lab/Saint Bernard mix. We were looking forward to a large dog, mostly lab-like, but somewhat more relaxed than the last one. It turns out the pet store was wrong. She has black lab in her, but the other part seems to be blue healer. What we ended up with is a dog much smaller than your typical lab who has lots of energy. Fortunately she isn't as hyper as the last dog, but she is a chicken when it comes to anything unusual.