Basset Hounds
Beagles
Whippets
Kerry Blue Terrier
Poodle (mini and standard)
American Cocker Spaniel

I have been wanting to get a dog for show for a couple of years now and I am finally in a position to start thinking about which breed I would like. This is a list of a few dogs I like (there are so many others but they are just too big or they are from the gundog group and I would end up using them for work instead of show :D ) I know the cocker is a gundog but in show coat I couldn't take it in a muddy field one day and the show ring the next!!!  :)

I am now starting to do the research into the above breeds to see which one would best suit me, but what I would like is for anyone who owns any of these breeds just to give me some of their personal advice or experiences with their choosen breed. What health checks do I need to make sure parent animals have had done, is there any percific faults that I need to be aware of? What are the breeds specific needs? Obviously I will only buy a puppy from a reputable breeder through a breed club, and will be visiting shows and seeing them in action and speaking to handlers, but any tips and advice from champdogs members would be fantastic.

Thankyou

Kerry

Hi Kerry,

You have quite a mixture of Breeds to chose from, I am a Beagle owner and can give you info and my experiences owning Beagles.

First thing is if you have never owned a dog before a Beagle is not and ideal first dog. You sound like you have owned dogs before so Dog experience with a Beagle in my opinion is a must.

They are a fantastic breed such happy little hounds who love been out and about doing things, not a breed to left at home all day alone with nothing to do.

I do alot with mine we do a little showing, lots of agility ( he loves it ), obedience, flyball and drag hunting. So they are very versitile and can turn there little paws to anything. I am a very doggie person and go to Ringcraft, Obedience & Agility Classes every week and various shows and events on the weekend, you don't have to do all of what I have listed. But you must take your Puppy to Puppy Classes and follow on to Obedience classes as your puppy develops it is very important to socialise and Obedience train any dog.

My boy is lovely and I have had very few problems with him but I have heard alot of nightmare stories from other Beagle owners. Just so your aware below I have listed a few common ones I not trying to put you off I'm just been honest.

1. Running away after a scent and not coming back for hours. ( important to teach a good recall )
2. Food! Raiding the Rubbish Bin, opening the fridge, cupboards to steal food, jumping on tables to get food. BEAGLES LOVE FOOD
3. Digging, Chewing, Howling. ( a bored Beagle will do all of those things )

Alot a people say that Beagles can be hard to train but I disagree as all you is patience some take a little bit more time than some other breeds but once they have got something they are great and if you reward base train with treats or toys you can't go wrong. Beagle's are very intelligent dogs and have such characters they can always make you simle and laugh with there antics! They are also super super CUTE!!!

Goodluck, I hope this advice has helped. Below I have listed the contact details for the breed clubs.

www.thebeagleclub.co.uk/

www.beagleassociation.btinternet.co.uk

Hi, we breed and show Poodles (mini and standard) and American Cocker Spaniels, all three are wonderful breeds that give you so much back in and out of the ring, the crave your atention and seem to chear you up when you are down.They are a wonderful dog to show the feel on the lead is amazing when they move well, but they are fairly hard to present, im not sure how much grooming you do? although a few people get others to do it for them, and if you want to learn how to there are people willing to help out there.They are wonderful at agility,obediance and showing etc as they love to please you!
I no of some good kennels with good stock in all three breeds so if you want any help please PM me, with any breed please be careful where you go.
I will find the websites for both breed clubs later for you, maby tomorrow.
Fiona

Thankyou Fiona, I would have to get someone else to do the grooming for me at first if I was to choose one of these breeds but I would like to learn in time to do it myself.  With labs its a quick brush and your done!

I think I would be more inclined to go for a mini rather than a standard because I would be too tempted to try and train a standard for work as you know this is what they were oridginally bred for and I have always wanted one for this reason but I think I have got enough working dogs to keep me going for a good few years!!

Thank you for your reply.

Hi i would be more than happy to help with the poodle, the best trainer is Richard Barker well i think anyway,and mikes nideo for americans, im not the best at yank feet though, take a look on my profile for my website ;) a min is i think better for a first timer in the breed but its up to you.
Anything you need to no just PM me :)
Fiona

Wow you're only 16 and done so much, well done to you and good luck for the future. I only started training labs to the gun when I was 16, 7 yrs later and I'm hooked for life!

The mini on your website is gorgeous and I liked the black standard very much too. Like you say I think I would have a mini first if I was to get a poodle.

Hiya, Ok now you make me feel old LOL, so much in so little time, yes but i love it grooming and showings its my life, thanks for the good luck :) . Let us no what you decide :) , like working to the gun showing is extremly adictive!!.
Oh if rox (ice_queen) tryed to tell you foster the black standard is hers ignore her lol shes batty and loves him.
best wishes

Fiona

Thankyou so much for your reply, bertbeagle. I have had dogs all my life as pets and have now got 4 adults and keeping a pup from my litter to train, so I am an experinced dog owner and with having working labs I know the meaning of exercise :D

All my dogs live out so to have a companion dog for when I'm indoors will be fantastic, but I also want a dog (when its fully grown) that I can take for long walks with my labs so that it will not be left at home as I spend a lot of time out with them. Beagles sound so much fun and they are so adorable but I will keep reserching before I make a decision. Thanyou again for your reply :)

You have Kerrys on your list, so what about a soft coated wheaten? Will take as much or as little excersise as you want and have a wicked sense of humour. Dont expect to be able to go to the toilet without company though! More combing but less trimming than a kerry, and generally good with other dogs.

Yes another nice breed, this is getting harder by the minute, by the time I have reserched all the breeds I like I will be too old to run round the ring :D :D :D.

You'll have to get a Peke, then, you can teach your labs to flush it out when it gets lost in the undergrowth - no running needed in the ring. :D

LOL@ Fillis :D

Have you not thought of one of the HPR breeds? They are regularly out in the field working one day, then out in the show ring the next. Winning CC's, too ;) We don't want them separated into 'show' and 'working' types. The same dog does it all :)

The one HPR that I really love is the Spinone, they are gorgeous dogs. I have thought about this breed (a lot!!)  but also thought of some reasons as to why it may not be suitable for me. I have never trained any other breed other than labs for shooting so that would be a whole other challenge! Also I don't know if it would be suitable for what I do (picking up, lots of woods and water) please correct me if I am wrong. I have got a pup to train for next year as well, and I also have to keep on top of the others. And finally I personally like to keep my working dog in kennels rather than in the house with all the central heating, I don't think its fair to keep them in the warm then take them out in the cold for a whole day where they will be going swimming in cold water and when picking up they can be sat for a long while before they are required to work and if they are kept outside they grow a much thicker coat, this is just my personal opinion, but I would like my show dog to be in with me as a companion as well.

Thankyou for your reply though :)

I don't know a lot about the Spinone, but my Large Munsterlanders just love the water, woods, fields and ditches! They love retrieving things too. Especially things you would rather they didn't HPR's love being a part of the family, want to please you ALL the time ;) though each breed has different traits. The working instinct is still very strong in all breeds so you should have a good start with them. Our first LM was trained alongside Spaniels. Though they worked similar in some ways they worked very different in others. If you have the time to train a working dog it could work out very well for you :) A working gundog, a family pet AND a very nice showdog in one :D

The more I think about it the more it makes sense to go for a gundog breed so when we go shooting it can come to rather than being left at home. I just worry about keeping it indoors and then taking out for a day in the freezing cold (maybe I'm just being silly) And also we have just been let down with a dog pup we bred and we are looking at keeping him (he is a special dog so I didn't mind being let down ;) ) So that will be Two pups to train so I will have my hands full in the training department :p And no more room in the kennels!!

Why does this have to be so hard, most people just say I've decided to have....... and then do their research and than get one. Me I just like so many breeds and can't make the decision, I'll have to pick one out of a hat I think :D :D :D

Why would you not want a dog that you could work and show?

My own breed is an independant hunting breed and their true work is redundant here (we don't have any Elk), but there are those who Deer stalk and do Gundog work with them, There is a champion bitch that regularly works on ehr breedrs husbands shoot.

Some brave souls compete in Obedience (usually getting in the top 10 of the class even if not often placing), and they are pretty good at Agility, though very few have ever competed in the UK.

My freind that dos the Obedience is having a go at training ehr new pup and the two older boys in Workign Trials for which their natural abilities and mindset are far better suited.  One of these dogs has 2CCs and the other younger one is not doing badly in Post Graduate classes

In the USA when Agility was first formalised the top Agility dog was an Elkhound bitch.

If you choose a nice wash and wear dog then you won't ahve to restrict yourself to just show.

Definatley thought of having a dog that can do both but if you read my post above yours (we must have been writing them at the same time!) you will see why that could be a bit difficult at the moment. :p

I can remember seeing an artical in the shooting times about someone who uses their Elkhounds on the local shoot, they are gorgeous dogs to, I can remember the first dog I grew up with, Shelly,  looked a bit like an Elkhound, don't really know what she was just a heinze 57 I think but she had the colouring of the EH.

For more info on whippets there's a great whippet message board (I hope it's ok to put it here - if not then labs please PM me for the info) at http://groups.msn.com/whippetworld.  You don't have to be a member to read, though you do to post.

Wendy

Thanks Wendy I will have a look :)

If you decide to join make sure you put a note to the managers about why you want to join (or tell them I sent you) and you'll get approved no problems.  If you forget the message applications are denied.

Wendy

Wheatens and Kerrys were originally bred to do everything - herding, hunting, guarding, companion - the lot. It is a bit difficult to take them out in the "rough" the day before a show, though.

I like big dogs , go for a bull mastiff in the show ring. Now thats a show dog!

I like the american cocker spaniel over all the others. If you get a whippet name him sticks!

Yes, but as a house pet...no time to train the labs because of slobber mopping the house!

LOL. As I said the list was some of the breeds I like and I like so many others but they were to big. The bull mastiff is one of the breeds I love, Let me list all the dogs I like and you will see just why I had to shortlist them.
In group order

Basenji, Basset, Beagle, Greyhound, Ibizan hound, Pharaoh Hound, Whippet.

Wire haired pointer, wire haired Vizla, Spinone, Large Munsterlander, American Cocker, Clumber, Welsh springer.

Wire fox Terrier, Irish terrier, Kerry Blue, Lakeland Terrier, Soft Wheaten, Welsh Terrier.

Bulldog, chow chow, Akita, Shiba inu, poodles,

Bullmastiff, Giant schnauzer, mastiff, neapolitan mastiff, Newfoundland.

Now can you see my problem? (I'm a true dog lover :D ) But My house isn't huge so a lot of the big breeds were off the list and my OH doen't like some of them and seeings that he has to live with the dog as well (oh and it is his house :D ) I thought I better take his opinions into consideration!!!! Also with the gundog breeds its the two years of training to think about and I thought I have got enough dogs for working and wanted something different and this is how I came to my list. What the betting I get another labrador :p

Get a beagle.  They are adorable, have the lovliest natures and are a perfect size not too big or too small.  They can be stubborn and bloody minded but then I live with 4 dalmatians so its not something I find that difficult to cope with.  They dont need grooming and have relatively few health problems and are very sociable.  I am quite lucky I have only had a missing beagle once but most of the people I know dont let them off leads but I do.  Mine seems pretty adaptable excercise wise and if I am honest can be quite bone idol but I think she might be the exception rather than the rule.  :)

Ps why arent dalmatians down they are the best!

Ah, dalmations, well I don't dislike them as a breed but I do have a personal grudge with theTwo next door :p
They bark and howl all day and bang against the kitchen door (they have the run of the garden and consevortory (sorry bad spelling!) And if the owner goes out at night they do this till she gets home sometimes about midnight. Its not the poor dogs fault, she goes out at work all day and they only go out for two walks aday and these are less that 10 minutes each. And when she has her daughters staffy stay its like a pack of wolves are living next door and then its my dogs who get the blame

No offence I'm sure yours are lovely and well behaved but the two next door put me off a bit :D

Trust me mine are the biggest pests in britain but I do sympathise I have got a pack of shelties who constantly set mine of and while I try and shut them up she leaves them get on with it I :(

Yep, that's what they'll do if they're left 'home alone' too long. :( Which is why many breeders will only sell them to people with someone home most of every day. The wrong breed in a totally unsuitable home. :(

It would be the same with many breeds, well any breed really, why people think we can spend millenium breeding and adapting a species to live along side us with such a love and need for us that they make themselves useful in whatever way we ask from work to companionship and them expect them to change into something else in the 40 years or so that living patterns have been changing in this country seems such a tall order to me :(

Oh, Labs, you will spend at least the next two years visiting every show on every day and at the end of it still want one of each!

Dalmations are always the ones to ruin and bully and bug other dogs at the park followed by pitbulls and boxers! I have nothing against them though!

With very eclectic tastes.  You of course left off Elkhounds entirely by mistake :D :D :D

Oh dear oh dear.  Maybe the other half shoudl do the choosing as you are bound to like it whatever it is.  that way if it is naughty it is his dog!!!!

Thanks for that Wendy, have just joined myself with pics added!!

Cool - catch you there - I'm Chelsea76 on that board.

Wendy

If i were to get ANY small dog it would be a westie , they are SOo cute.

Well after all this it may have to be put on hold for a while anyway. I got a phonecall from a friend of ours tonight who had a pup from us last year and has asked us to have her back due to a family break up, poor might is staying with his uncle and we are hoping to pick her up tomorrow. I am always being asked for an older lab and I hope to settle her into a loving new home soon, if not she will be another addition to the household. Poor thing I won't sleep tonight now worrying about her. :(

Family breakups are the main reason for re-home. Dont break yourself up about it - at least they contacted you first which means you found a good home for your baby and it didnt end up in a rescue centre. No-one can anticipate this happening. You can find another good home, or keep it - which means you are a good breeder and to be respected.

Thankyou for the kind words, makes me feel a little better. His uncle wants to keep her but his neighbours complains that she barks, she must be very confused at the moment, poor thing :(

I'm sure she will be fine once settled in a permanent home.

Hows it all going?
Fiona

Hi fiona,

Well we got milly back last weekend and she is such a lovely dog, very friendly. We have luckily already got her a new home. She has untill now just been a pet but I have done a little work with her and she picks things up so quickly she had never seen a dummy but she watched her mum work and she just copied, picking dummies from her left and right, I was so pleased. She is going to go to a home with four other labs and to be trained for picking up, the lady who is having her has kept labs for years, never breeds and spoils her dogs rotten, they even have their own living room and their kennels are carpeted :D

As for choosing a breed, still deciding but have shortened the list a bit more, its now between beagle, basset and kerry blue. My OH would like a breed that does not moult so it could be the kerry blue, but I like all three and just can't decide, I think I will have to move and get a bigger house :D

Kerry

Go for a Beagle they are so much fun! They also have the cutest little faces one look and you melt...............

I don't see many beagles, but just lately I keep meeting people with them, I think it must be fate, that I should get a beagle, OH like them as well so thats a bonus :)

I have just had a thought!! The Beagle Club are having a Flag & Match day on Saturday 3rd September in Watlington, Oxford.

If you are not too far away you should come along as visitors are welcome and you will see the dogs in action ( Working & Showing ).

You'll really enjoy it and there will be loads of Beagles to look at and everyone is really friendly so you will be able to get loads of info on the breed as we all love to talk Beagles.

If you would like more details just email me h.peach@talk21.com and I will forward the details onto you.

Hope you can come along.

Hi, I have an American cocker, he never grew a full show coat, just a natural puppy trim, so even if he gets filthy I can brush him off quite easily. Having said that, I also have 2 Cavs, one of whom has a full and particularly long show coat, and he gets just as filthy. Possibly the texture is different with a show Yankee, but I find that with both breeds I can use a slicker brush and comb and the mud just comes off. As far as temperament of the Yankee they are very loving - almost too enthuasiastic about cuddles at time, he likes to jump on my lap and stick his tongue down my ear. He is a walking rubbish bin and will eat ANYTHING, and he's a bit of a fidget and a bin-raider. But he has the most adorable teddy bear face, and all my non-showing friends love him better than my show winning Cavalier!! He is full of character and makes lots of funny noises to comment on what's going on. I can definitely recommend either a Yankee or a Cav!

Sorry took so long to reply but my computer has been playing up, it keep switching itself on and off, blooming thing. Anyway thankyou for letting me know about the show, I would have loved to have come along but the OH has got a family commitment on that day :( I was really excited when I saw your post until I looked on the calender. But thankyou for letting me know.

Kerry

I noticed you had Kerry Blue as one of your choices. Now I don't know the breed, but we have one at our ringcraft. All we hear, all night long is 'KEEP YOUR DOGS AWAY FROM THE KERRY' Apparently the lady who runs the class is of the opinion that the Kerry is allowed to 'stand up' to other dogs in the ring, making it very stroppy with other dogs. I've heard this from a few people. I don't know if it's true, it just something I've heard. Another old wives tale, perhaps Just something to be aware of.

Hi LindyLou

I must admit that I have been told lots of times that kerry's can be dog aggressive so maybe there is some truth in it.

Any Kerry owners who can let us know if this is true, please do.

I'll be there with Merlin, Beagles rule!