I did a little research and wanted to know any opinions on any of the breeds. I plan on rescuing one and don't mind if its not purebred. But I was wanting one with these bloodlines.

Top 5:
Border Terrier
Portugese Water Dog
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
Australion Terrier
Dachsund/Pug hybrid

Others I'm looking into:
Welsh Corgi
Basset Hound
Beagle
Boxer
Cairn Terrier
Dachsund (I know they can be hard to potty train)
Pug


My biggest concerns are GREAT with small children, little to no shedding, and relatively easy to potty train. If you have any others that you think are great, I'd love that!!

PS. Piper is great with animals and does not pull on them and is never rough with them. But I don't want to constantly have to watch the dog around her to make sure it doesn't nip her because it wants the ball she is playing with.

No dog lovers online today?

i (L) beagles. i've got one right now and they are so smart, and so loyal.

We have a boxer. I also wanted a dog that would be great with my kids and had little to no shedding. I couldn't be more happier with the dog we chose. He is so great with my kids! Another thing I also love is that he is active when we want to be active and he is lazy when we are being lazy. He potty trained super easy (but I think that doesn't really have much to do with the breed of a dog...maybe more each individual dog)...He peed in the house twice...but honestly that was our fault and not his. He is so sweet, funny, and extremely obedient....all he wants is to please us. He sleeps in a crate/cage at night. I highly reccomend crate training when you get your dog. It helped us tremendously with potty training and he actually really loves it...it is his own private space that he can go to when ever he choses. If I ever got another dog I would absolutely want another boxer.

ETA: about the ball thing....our dog knows that if someone else is reaching for a ball that he backs off....I think that is something you just need to train them to do though.

I absolutely adore my beagle and would get a dozen in a heart beat! She is smart, maybe a little sneaky lol I had her crate trained in 2 weeks (woot!) she sits on command, comes on command, stays on command, comes when called by her name, stops when told "no". She snuggles very well and is very healthy :) She has a little bit of like allergies where she does this inverted sneeze but the vet said its from when she had kennel cough untreated before we bought her. You gotta admit, shes pretty damn adorable!

only a few breeds don't shed and they aren't on your list.. two off the top of my head is schnauzer ( terrier group) and poodles. all other dogs shed. even doxies. i have had two and they shed, their hair is just shorter and a tad less noticable than say a lab or golden.

a breed won't determine if a dog will nip at you or not. that is the dogs own personality. and how they are trained. example when i was growing up we had a mini doxie and my gma had one from the same litter as ours (they were sisters) ginger, ours never nipped at anyone even me when i was little and would be mean to her. my gma's dog was food aggressive and would nip if you petted her the wrong way. same breed same bloodline two different dogs. Best thing to do is throw your list out the window, if you are planning on rescuing. go to the local shelter and spend some time with all the dogs that catch your eye. that is the best way to find the "perfect dog".

btw i (L) mini doxies they are my kind of dog.

oh i also wanted to add i had a mini doxie and she turned MEAN like constantly trying to bite and whatnot, i couldn't even go in the same room as her without her charging me. some dogs shed less than others. beagles only shed seasonally (when it's hot) as do other dogs.

I absolutely adore my beagle and would get a dozen in a heart beat! She is smart, maybe a little sneaky lol I had her crate trained in 2 weeks (woot!) she sits on command, comes on command, stays on command, comes when called by her name, stops when told "no". She snuggles very well and is very healthy :) She has a little bit of like allergies where she does this inverted sneeze but the vet said its from when she had kennel cough untreated before we bought her. You gotta admit, shes pretty damn adorable!

cosby has an inverted sneeze too. the vet said it was allergies

Welch Corgies shed a bunch! My folks have had two of them and it's horrible.

We have a Doxie... she was an exception to the 'hard to potty train" rule. She is very loving with my kids and seems to rotate her loyalties between the dh and I. ;)

We had a Basset Hound. He was a very sweet dog, good with the kids, always wanted to be on my lap. He hated being outside alone and would bark until he was hoarse. He was constantly in the garbage and would eat anything that smelled like food, even if it wasn't. We had a hard time keeping his toenails trimmed and his ears would get infected and smell a lot. It wasn't easy treating his ears either. He had a terrible allergy to fleas so keeping them off of him was crucial. It was great for him when we moved the Central Oregon where there we didn't have fleas. His strong sense of smell would send off wherever it lead him so he was always taking off. He didn't she much as I recall. He was already house trained when we got him. He insisted on staying in the house when we were gone but never pottied in the house. He didn't chew up things either.

guess i should mention that I have currently a mix breed, and mini schnauzer. our mixed breed is great aside from the constant shedding and the mini is perfect for us. very family oriented and loves to be with the kids.

Welch Corgies shed a bunch! My folks have had two of them and it's horrible.

We have a Doxie... she was an exception to the 'hard to potty train" rule. She is very loving with my kids and seems to rotate her loyalties between the dh and I. ;)

same here, our doxie was easy to potty train. she only tolerated dh because he was so much warmer than me. :P

I love Corgis!! I grew up with 3 of them!

I've got a ridgeback/greyhound type mix (Sophie) and a lab sharpei mix( Maycie)

They both took a little time to housebreak (Still house breaking Maycie)
I just recently started crate training BOTH of them again. Sophie was a freeroamer in the house. I haven't had problems with either one of them jumping or nipping at something they want if I take it or someone else wants it. From what I've seen with them around the few children they've been around they are just curiuos and want to play and haven't been aggressive or overactive with them.

They are very loyal and loving and are pretty easy to discipline and train. Just takes work!

But like one of the other girls said... I would just go play with a bunch of dogs/puppies na dsee which ones sparks your interest and fits with your family!!! :goodluck

I think health & personality is way more important than breed-- my Mom ends up with really cute but not nice dogs-- or cute but really dumb. One is ugly and mean- she'll never get rid of him, tho- no one else would ever take him! :lol

Thanks for all the help ladies. I do plan on playing with the different dogs at the shelter to find the perfect one. I just wanted to do some research before I went. I don't want to go and fall in love with a dog, only to find out when we get home that he doesn't fit our needs. And I wanted a little feedback on any breeds.

I do want to say that the shedding is the "least" important of the characteristics I am looking for.

I had read that schnauzers were a prone to nipping children and that most poodle mixes were non-shedders.

DH wants a small dog and I love the big ones. I guess when we find the dog of our dreams, we will know it!! Ha Ha!! I can't wait!!!

I love beagles the most out of that list!! Boxers too but that have problems with cancer ( NOT ALL OF COURSE BUT IT'S IN THEIR GENETIC'S TO DO SO OR AT LEST THAT'S WHAT THE VET I WORKED FOR ALWAYS TOLD ME!!), Basset Hounds tend to have ear problem & sometimes skin & cherry eye problems! Can't remember about the rest....other than most terriers are hyper as hell....I KNOW I HAVE ONE!!! Oh & Daschunds can have major back problems & very easily...I had one & will never again....HE JUST RUNT ME ON THEM!!! HE WAS A FREAKING ASS!!! LOL!!!

I love beagles the most out of that list!! Boxers too but that have problems with cancer ( NOT ALL OF COURSE BUT IT'S IN THEIR GENETIC'S TO DO SO OR AT LEST THAT'S WHAT THE VET I WORKED FOR ALWAYS TOLD ME!!), Basset Hounds tend to have ear problem & sometimes skin & cherry eye problems! Can't remember about the rest....other than most terriers are hyper as hell....I KNOW I HAVE ONE!!! Oh & Daschunds can have major back problems & very easily...I had one & will never again....HE JUST RUNT ME ON THEM!!! HE WAS A FREAKING ASS!!! LOL!!!

basset hounds and doxies also get back problems from being so long and relatively heavy for their legs.

we have a boxer and he is the best dog ever!!! They are so easy to train he is so good about not going in the house and he sheds very little and awesome with our kids!!! If someone comes over he is next to the kids at all times till he sees that we are okay.

My Aunt & Unlce had a bunch of really sweet Boston terriers- very smart & loving!

Top 5:
Border Terrier If it's like the Border Collie, lots of exercise, training will be required. They are hearders and will heard the kids.

Portugese Water Dog Had a friend with one, nice dogs require LOTS of exercise unless worked. Can be quite stubborn and stupid.

Wirehaired Pointing Griffon STAY AWAY from this dog unless you have HOURS of time to devote to exercise. We had a German Wirehaired Pointer (cousin of the Griffon, even look alike) and man was she HIGH maintenance. LOTS of brushing, LOTS of exercise when she got bored...watch out...busted 5 cages in one year.

Australion Terrier Is this like the shepard. If so..great dogs with kids, great for agility, very smart and again a hearding breed so they will try to heard the kids. My sister has these dogs and they are always hearding the twins.

Dachsund/Pug hybrid I don't believe a dog is a "hybrid" they are mutts.

Others I'm looking into:
Welsh Corgi Don't know

Basset HoundHad one when single, once DD#1 came around she got very posessive and jealous of me and was kinda nasty to the baby.

Beagle Don't know much other than they bark alot. Neighbor in Key West had one..my gosh the lungs on that dog!

Boxer MY personal favorite. Great with kids, easy to train, very short hair, very little shedding, don't bark alot, very loving, clowns. Can be bell trained to go outside, mine did that and it was cool. Only issue is they love to sit on people that are on the floor. But I am bias.

Cairn Terrier Don't know

Dachsund (I know they can be hard to potty train)But Doxie can be nippy and are very hard to potty train. My moms dog was 15 when she died, and still peed in the house sometimes. They can have issues with their backs and I would not recommend them for houses with small kids.

Pug Don't know



As far as not watching the dog when it's around your baby...that should be done with any breed, it really does not matter. Nips WILL happen even when they are playing. Just because your dog has never bitten, does not mean it won't if provoked the wrong way even innocently by a child. ANYTHING with a mouth can bite.