What kind of dog do you have and why did you choose him/or her?

Question

Unfoutanely I don't have a dog because I recently relocated, I want to get a french bulldog or an english bulldog. I think they are cute and the right size for where I live now.

I have always adopted my daogs/ or cats from shelters or animal rescue places. With the one exception of a chinchilla I owned. I plan to keep adopting. I don't mind mixed dogs either.

Answer 1

i have 4 dogs
a Catahoula Hog dog
a Shepard mix
a chihuahua dachshund mix
and a mini dachshund

the Catahoula (Patch) came to us as a foster dog through the SPCA, he was tied to a tree at a golf course...no food, no water, and the rope was short, and was tied so high on the tree that he couldn't lay down. he stood in the pouring rain for days before he was found. he was sick, (obviously from the cold rain), and dehydrated. we fell in love with him and couldnt give him up after that. we have had him since 2002, he was 1 1/2 when he came to us.

the Shepard mix (Angel) was also a foster dog. she came to us in 2002 also, as a 4 month old puppy. Angel was throw out of a moving car going 60 mph. she suffered road rash up the middle of her back. she's very lucky she didn't hurt her spine since she landed on her back, (witnesses saw her being thrown out...stopped and tried to catch her but she ran off.) A farmer found her laying in one of his wheat fields. he scooped her up and brought her to the SPCA. her wounds where awful! they were 14 inches long along her spine, and 4 inches wide. she finally healed but the scar tissue drew up into a ball between her shoulder blades, and caused massive pain. we adopted her, and had surgery done to remove the scar tissue. she is fine now, and we call her scar her cowlick. dispite the cruelty she indured she is a wonderfully happy go lucky girl!

our Chihuahua mix (Peggy Sue) was picked up by the local pound. she was wondering along the highway...obviously she was dumped out in the country! i hate people! anyways...she was once a loved pet, she had been spayed and even had a microchip. we conntacted the "owners" through the microchip, who lived clear accross town. they had "no idea" she was even missing, and said it couldnt be their dog. even thouhg the micro chip was IN HER SKIN! duh!! they abandoned her and sent her to doggie death row. i stopped in to see if they had any "new arrivals" i could get out of there and into the foster system throught he SPCA, 5 days after she was brought in. on her LAST day before she was to be uthanized, i found her in a corner cage. she was quiet and scared but very sweet and super friendly. i bonded instantly and knew she was meant to be MY dog. my husband and i adopted her, and brought her home. the other dogs loved her. and to this day she is just the sweetest dog in the world. every guest i have at my house tells me that they want to take her with them when they leave. had her since 2003.

our mini Dachshund, (Dodger), who is prurebreed....was the last of a litter from a breeding "Kennel" aka Puppy Mill. his "breeder" decided that since they couldnt get a full price out of him because he was an older puppy, she would just take him to be uthanized at the vets office. she said he was waisting her money by having to feed him, and she couldn't sell him. EVIL WITCH! the vet took the puppy, but did not uthanize him. he instead gave him his vaccs. and then called me. i agreed to pay for his shots, etc. i went to pick him up and fell in LOVE instantly! he is such a stinker! i cant imagen WHY anyone would think of him as a burden. he completes the family!

all of our dogs have come to us from places that are ugly and scary, from people that are cruel and heartless. and dispite all that they are still loving and loyal! animals are a much more superior species as far as im concerned. they love us no matter how awful we humans are to them, and THAT amazes me to this DAY!

Answer 2

I have 4 dogs - 2 purebred cocker spaniels and 2 cocker mixes. I chose the original cocker (she's 15 now) because she was cute and small - right for the apartment I had at the time. I didn't really choose the second cocker.... he desperately needed a "temportary" home - so I am fostering him (6 months now) for a friend. I chose the last 2 because I am a nut and they were shelter puppies who needed a home and shouldn't be too big:) Just remember this is a long term commitment - so research the breeds and compare to your long term plans:) Good luck and enjoy - nothing better than a dog for a best friend!

Answer 3

I have a pitbull terrier who was dumped at our farm. She's fantastic and a great embassador for the breed. They are NOT guard dogs. They are small (everything out there over 50 lb. is NOT a pitubll but rather someting mixed w/ a mastiff or something else). They are extremely loyal and the best dog w/ children. According to the AKC they are the LEAST likely dog breed to bite a human! They have gotten a very bad reputation in the media, and unfortunately, 75% of the dogs the media says are "pitbulls" are not infact a pitbull, but some other breed of dog. You couldn't ask for a better breed (that is unless you live where it's cold, but my pitbull b/c a coat on is a very funny sight)

Answer 4

I have 2 dogs. One is spaniel/sheltie/border collie cross (Hallie). I saw a sign in pet store for a free dog and that was 9 years ago and we still have her. The owners were going to have to put down as she bit the children when they pulled her tail. She hated kids (I wonder why) for a few years but is so much better now.
The other dog is a Yorkshire Terror (lol) pup named Yoda. A friend was going on vacation and her puppy sitter canceled at the last minute so I volunteered to keep the 2 pups for the week. Well, I fell in love with Yoda and now have just one of the two. I don't think my sanity would still be with me if I'd taken both. Dogs are wonderful...so full of love and wanting to please. When the whole world seems against you they're always there so glad to see you no matter what.

Answer 5

When I was choosing my first dog as an adult, I knew I wanted something bigger -- to use as a body pillow. I had always wanted a saint -- a big couch potato dog. Unfortunately, we live in Texas and I didn't want to deal with all that hair so I looked for something with a similar temperment and came across a mastiff. They were a little big for me but I loved everything about the breed taht I had read and the dogs i had met.

I decided to adopt my first mastiff from a rescue group -- they had a small (117lb) mastiff female that was almost 7 years old that I totally fell in love with. She was soo tiny for a mastiff which was good for me because I didn't know if I could deal with a 170-200lb dog and so I was really looking for a smaller big dog. She was just perfect for me. Since then, I've completely fallen for the breed. She has since passed away but I now share my home with two... :-)

Answer 6

I feel that I have to represent for the large breeds, so...

I have a bloodhound mix that was rescued from the pound the day before he was going to be put down. We chose him because he seemed to have a sweet, easygoing temperment. He has been a wonderful dog: happy, mellow, a little bit shy, and very affectionate but not overly demonstrative.

We also have a Black & Tan Coonhound. He's pure-bred but was a stray that was brought into the animal shelter where I adopted him. We chose him because we already knew that we loved the hound breeds and already had experience in the care and training of hounds, and he's an excellent example of his kind: very sweet, even-tempered, laid-back and excellent with other dogs and people.

Please don't just choose a dog breed for looks. Pay attention to temperment and how that dog's temper is going to fit in with your life and your own temperment. There are lots of mixed breed dogs with lovely personalities that go homeless because people get fixated on one kind of "cute" dog.

Answer 7

I have a pure white boxer.

I originally wanted an English Bull Terrier (the ones with the flat heads) but could not find any puppies in the area. There were some boxer puppies for sale at the time so I went along "just for a look". My husband was handed a lovely, squashy little pure white puppy with massive, round black eyes. He looked up at my husband, put his paws around his neck and licked his chin. From then on it was love! Although he still loves his "Daddy" very much, he is a "Mummy's" boy and follows me everywhere. He knows Daddy is for fighting (just messing around!) and Mummy is for cuddling.

I would strongly advise getting a dog. They are always there for you and give you unconditional love. Even if you are wearing scabby underwear and have gained 10lbs!!

Answer 8

Our family had an English Bulldog while I was growing up. For the mostpart she was a good dog but she ended up killing a couple litters of kittens, which we later found out is a genetic predisposition for this breed. They literally hate cats. Our family pet now is our Cockapoo, Casey. He's half Cocker Spaniel, half Poodle and is mildly hyper but otherwise a great family dog. We have four children and he's pretty good with them.

Answer 9

we went to the local animal welfare and adopted a dog. we researched different breeds to get a loose idea what would work best as far (as temperament for our family), and the time that we would spend with our pet. we took the kids along to the shelter and our pup chose us.

now a year and a half later, our silly pup has a happy family and all is well!

keep in mind with the breed you are considering the slobber effect. it doesn't bother some owners, but my brother has one~ and now that the puppy stage has passed, the lower jaw is protruding and the drooling has begun in earnest!!! again, it doesn't bother some people, but make sure you talk to people who own the breed you are considering so you know the type of skin diseases they are prone to as well. good luck!

Answer 10

I got a Toy Poodle almost 7 years ago. I wanted a small dog because my daughter was very young and poodles are great with kids. I still have him, but I recently got a Boxer puppy. Boxers are loyal, playful, and full of energy. I love it when I get home from work and they are just so excited to see me! They are both easy to train dogs and remain indoors most of the time.

Answer 11

I used to have a beagle/dachshund mix, but now that I moved I don't have him anymore. : ( Anyway, but I really wanted a purebred dachshund or a mini dachshund. I also like Huskies but they are bigger than bulldogs and they shed much more. I like most kinds of dogs but those are my favorite. Good luck finding a new pet! Or you could check out your local SPCA and give a needy dog a home. That's always nice and you never know what they have.