doggies! Best breeds, expenses, and rewards of having them

I have two shih Tzu. I love them. They don't have a doggie smell and DO NOT shed. They are the best in my opinion

Beagles are definitely espace artists - my mother breeds and shows them.

And I LOVE pitbulls.

Any spaniel but particularly a Springer

or try a Sprocker, springer cocker cross, they totally rock for losing weight, they will go anywhere with ya

We have a chocolate lab. She is the BEST dog I have ever owned. She is a little hyper put she's only a year old so I know she will settle down. When we are not home, she is kept in an outdoor kennel (a large one). She does dig but hasn't gotten out, so I don't classify her as much of a digger. She is great with the children and she is very smart - trained very easy.

I worry about dogs that come from the shelters - not knowing exactly what they may be. I have gotten two dogs from a shelter and both have been terrible with my children - had to find them new homes.

We don't spend much on vet bills - had all the normal puppy stuff done when we got her and now its just a yearly checkup. We do spend money on flea/tick collars and heartworm medication. We buy it online - much cheaper than getting the medicine from the vet. Online they still require a written prescription be sent to them, so I am comfortable with what we are getting.

I have a St. Bernard/Boxer mix. One drawback is his tail. It was not docked (I didn't own him first, but wouldn't have done it anyway) and it is a WHIP! Can't keep anything on the coffee table unless being knocked to the floor by a wagging appendage won't hurt it much.
Also, Boxers are notorious for separation anxiety and my dog inherited this for sure. I have an invisible fence so I let him outside when I am not home. Otherwise, he would tear the door down trying to get out to where he last saw me. If he sees me driving away, he settles nicely and lies on the porch until I come home.
Good to take for a run and he even runs alongside the bicycle as long as I am not moving too quickly for him. He trained well to the treadmill too and on days when he is feeling more frisky and we are unable to take him out for exercise, he will happily trot along on the treadmill at about 2 mph for a few miles.
Also, I think because he is mixed breed, he doesn't drool like either of his parents' breeds generally do.
As far as cost, he is fairly easy keeper. Annual check-ups and shots run about 200 per year and food is 2 cups per day of Iams Large breed ($40.00 per 40 pounds).

I'm not really keen on small dogs. They're cute, but not for me. I had a lab for many years, rest is soul (7-31-2011). I adopted him when he was 3-4 yrs old. I took him everywhere! They are great runners and companions. People shouldn't bash other breeds, its how the owners train their dogs to be. Good luck with your pet.

I paid $1800 for a havanese a couple of years ago. Great breed (hypo allergenic, non-shedding), but they are velcro dogs. He had serious separation anxiety and would make himself sick when we weren't home. Grooming is pricey and they recommend expensive dog food. He was very easy to train and so loving and great with kids, though. I would only recommend the havanese if you are home most of the day.

We now have a shih-poo (shih tzu/poodle). She cost us $250. She's only 7 lbs, so she doesn't eat much. Food probably only costs us $40 a month. Grooming is about $50 every other month. She's low energy, low maintenance and is fine being home alone.

Good luck finding the right one for you! Let us know what you decide on.

Beagles are definitely espace artists - my mother breeds and shows them.

And I LOVE pitbulls.

i love pits too

My advice is to visit and play with a lot of dogs at the shelter and then go home to research and think about the good and maybe bad qualities of each one you are interested in before deciding. They can all be so cute you'll want to take them home with you right then and there. But it's a decision you should sleep on. I adopted a lab mix about 6 months ago and she's great, although she is having knee problems and has had surgery on one leg already, so my vet bills are much higher than normal. My advice here is to spring for pet insurance that will only run you about +/-30 bucks/month but is worht it for the unexpected.

We don't spend much on food a month, I'd say about $20-30. The toys and other accessories are where you can spend a lot, but its up to you how much you want to spoil him/her!

We picked the lab because they are energetic and love to be active, yet are loyal and will also want to snuggle up with you. I had a golden retreiver growing up and she was the same way.

oh- and any rescue dog is the GREATEST

I actually found my dog in a barn when i was hunting... he was tiny and starving... so i took him home. 10 years later he is a 70lb mush that sleeps on my pillows. Best we can tell he is part pointer and part lab or maybe some pit in him. The vet tried to sell me a service for like $100 to find out what he is... I told him I don't care about his parents too much!

He is very athletic and especially when he was younger it made it rough because we had him in an apartment. It was great on nice days when we could go to the park and play frisbee and the such but on rainy days that was a handful.

Hi...

Well the type of dog you decide to get should really depend on your lifestyle and the type of home environment you can give it. I love labs and goldens, but they are full of energy.. So if you are looking for active dogs then go for them, but remember they do take longer to mature than say a small breed dog.

I have had mostly mix breeds, such as german shepherd, cocker spaniel, collie etc but also have had a golden retriever, german spitz and maltese in the past... We currently have a golden retriever, belgian malinois and norwegian elkhound mix... All are great dogs, they are all adopted from the shelter and range from 1-1/2 year to 3 years old.

As for bills, my first golden had a lot of allergies, so monthly bills were high because she needs high quality food, allergy pills and shots, but it was worth it ...anything to make her feel better! As for our three dogs now, none have any health issues, so the monthly expenses are just food, heatworm prevention and flea prevention.

Note... my cocker spaniel mix was a climber, but only did that when she was scared... My current golden is a climber, but we have managed to stop that, so now he doesn't get out. I love dogs and have had them all my life.. Hope some of this helps!

We (I) did a lot of research on dog breeds when we got married 5 years ago. My husband just wouldn't feel complete without a dog, but I really wanted to make sure we tried to find a dog that would suit our lifestyle. Too many dogs are quickly adopted with no thought to the family lifestyle vs the dog's habits...and the dog is the one to suffer.

First, we looked at greyhounds. We fostered one. The breed was just too large for our liking. Not enough room on our loveseat. BIG poops to clean up. Beautiful dogs, tho...except it can get tough when they see something for the first time, like stairs, and they fa-reak!

Then I found italian greyhounds. I thought...just like a greyhound but smaller. They tend to have health issues and require reqular dentals, I read. Sounded like a lot more work than we were hoping for.

Then I remembered a friend who used to breed dachshunds. I found the Dachshund Rescue of North America. We fostered our first dachshund and fell in love with her. She's now our Missy! We continued to foster dachshunds, crying every time we parted, but knowing we'd done a good deed in helping them find a good home. When Wilson came along, we were NOT looking for a second dog. But I couldn't bear to part with him, so now we have two dogs.

Really...look into fostering first. If you "fail," that's OK! ("Fail" is the joke among fostering; it just means you adopted the foster.) But if that dog turns out to not be a good fit for your family, you've still done an incredibly good thing for that animal. Best of luck in your search!

I will always recommend a German Shepherd. I love mine! He's about a year and a half old and is the sweetest dog. My sister has a pit/lab rescue who is just a sweetheart. But with all shelter dogs you never know what you're going to get. Shepherds are fine to live wherever as long as they are well exercised. Shepherds do shed A LOT but, they are great dogs

The price is going to depend on the dog. My shepherd eats 6 cups of food a day (when he chooses to) and he eats pretty pricey food (Royal Canin) so that costs be about $60 a month.

The vet bill is the same deal, it depends if your dog is prone to sickness (or eating things!). My shepherd really only goes once or twice a year for vaccinations and an annual check up so it's only a few hundred dollars tops. Heartworm meds and flea and tick meds (depending on where you live depends on if you will keep up flea and tick year round, I take my shepherd to the park a lot so I do flea and tick year round) are going to cost somewhere around $200 for the year. I order mine from Drs. Foster and Smith because they'll give you a discount for ordering in bulk.

I have a rat terrier....and she is a super escape artist. I've watched her climb a 6 foot fence just to get out of the 1/2 acre back yard!!! She's also super high energy....like she has springs in her paws or something!!! I also have a Bernese Mountain Dog and he's the best dog I've ever had. He's lazy when I want to be lazy and he's full of energy when I want to play or jog. He's great w/ the baby and the cats. He's super smart and super loyal. Loves a car ride too!!!

Good Luck w/ your search!