Dogs. Big f'n dogs...

[kratz]

So my wife's birthday is on the 23rd, and marks the death of our german shepherd, who was the bees knees... my wife wants to have a better birthday this year, and one of the things that would really make it great is if we finally got another dog.

I've been dragging my feet about getting one... partially just not over the last one, who I had for a few years before we got married, and partially honestly enjoying not picking up dog shit and picking hair off of everything and dealing with what to do with her on trips and stuff...

But it might be about time... so we've been looking at petfinder for dogs that need a home.  I'm really drawn to the big dogs... obviously our shepherd wasn't small... but these ones could be slightly enormous:

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188845

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188840

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188842

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188847

Same litter...I'm guessing the girls would be 90ish pounds, and that guy... well... he could be like 120.

They are about the age I want... far enough that we could drive down, and all together, it seems, so we could see them all in one trip (since the rescues disperse dogs to foster families, they can be pretty spread out sometimes w/in a given rescue).

Anyone ever had an Anatolian or Great Pyrenees?  I've met a few Pyrenees... they were great.

[McNutt]

Sweet dogs, but HUGE!  However I'm a big dog fan too, so I say rock on.

[Jaddison]

not personally but I am fairly sure Pyrenees have one of the shortest expected life spans of dogs ~8 years

[SkyLander]

I was spoiled with my Timberwolf/German Shepherd hybrid so I don't think I could get any other type of dog. I think it is really good to get a dog and raise it with Otto, just make sure Otto doesn't nuke the training since I kind of did that with my dog, being a kid and not really responsible and all that. Having Blu around when I was growing up taught me a lot of things. She was the best dog ever in my eyes.

Anyway big dogs are the best dogs and these look like beautiful dogs I like Annie and Clara the most guess I like the different colors.

[Booner]

Puppies!!!

Mac or Molly are both awesome looking pups. Mac in all white will be handsome, and Molly's black face is adorable.

I believe a slightly shorter lifespan is typical of larger breeds...that said, I do love big pups.

I had an English Mastiff with me for over three years (went with the ex-gf, it was hers), so my 65lb Dutch seems like a pocket dog now. I took him to his first group obedience class last night so he can learn some socialization skills, and the girl next to me was maybe 5'6" and all of 110 lbs with a Rotti that was at least 90lbs. When it would get rambunctious she would apologize and say he's only a puppy, so I finally asked her how old he was......6 months!  It's going to be huge.

[kratz]

It seems from what I gathered that both of these breeds have longer life expectancy than other large breeds, at 10 - 12 for GPs and 10 - 15 for Anatolians... but who knows.

I'm still not sure I want to deal with that much dog... and that much shedding...

[Arclight]

Love our Airedale Terrier. Although he topped out smaller than we thought. About 65lbs. Oorang Airedales can go over 100lbs. Non shedding, smart and loyal. Best breed we've owned. German's still use them on their police forces. This one is 117lbs......

Life expectancy 12-14years. Very few genetic problems with the breed.

Ours is my profile picture. The wife humiliated him with Halloween ears...........

[Booner]

That's a good long life for a big dog then...the shedding, pooping, and all that is a pain, but they sure are worth it.

Man...this thread made me go back and look at my puppy photos and get a big grin on my face.

My goofy little fella...


Has grown into a handsome boy.


Damn if I don't love the pup to death.  

[kratz]

Your dog really is cool, Booner.  Glad you kept him.

I've been doing a bunch of reading on the Anatolians today... I'm thinking maybe that's not the best fit in terms of temperment... dunno... some things that sound great, others... not so great.

'Dog I want' is waging war with 'dog that needs a home' in my head...  I actually think that a Labradoodle is like THE breed for us in terms of what we are looking for, but we'd have to buy one instead of rescuing one, really.

I could always get another shepherd... loved the last one!

I want largish, exceptionally smart, likes people and isn't aggressive to people, and is mostly non-aggressive to other dogs (but they all are sometimes)... low shedding is good... loyal, sweet, low on barking...

[kratz]

Is a dog educational enough to spend money from a kid's college fund so he can have one?

I think a dog is pretty important... I didn't have one growing up, so I had to wait until I was in my 20s to become a well adjusted adult.  And I'm pretty sure that didn't take either...

[SkyLander]

What about a collie of some sort? Or are those too small. I mean saying you have a labradoodle is kind of gay...

[Booner]

Your dog really is cool, Booner.  Glad you kept him.

Me too. Granted, he can be a royal pain in the ass sometimes, because he's sooo high-strung/active, but he's super sweet to everyone. He just loves to meet new people, dogs, and cats...but hates squirrels. 

'Dog I want' is waging war with 'dog that needs a home' in my head...

Hear that. I really wish I had a full sized yard for mine, so that he'd have more opportunity to work off energy through the day. I really don't have an ideal environment for a really active dog. He get's about 2 hours a day of hard play or long walks and I still have to head out to my folks place with a couple of fenced acres about twice a week to let him go completely berserk for a few hours. 

Good luck on the search though.

[Jaddison]

I would think those pups will find homes....but there are way too many great dogs sitting in shelters that probably meet your needs.

Life expectancy I saw online for them was 9-11 years...I ma just sensitive to that right now since I lost my 15 year old mutt a couple months ago....and Great Danes at 8 years, yikes and no thank you

[Punisher]

Anyway big dogs are the best only real dogs...

fixed your typo...

[kratz]

Things fell into place tonight, and we jumped on an opportunity... we're getting a Goldendoodle, sired by the dad of my co-worker's dog that they are so apeshit about.

Right now the dogs are 1 1/2 weeks old, so we don't get to meet it for another month, and then don't get to take it home until the end of September... just in time for Otto's birthday!

They sent us pictures of the litter, and the mom.

The mom is 1/2 poodle, 1/2 golden retriever, and the dad is 100% poodle, so the pups are what they call an F1B, and I guess that's what you want...

Pretty excited around our house!

Otto keeps saying 'Puppies having milk!'  Of course, before that he was running around saying 'That's what she said', so... yeah.

[Booner]

PUPPIES!

It's great that something kinda fell into your lap like that. You decide if you'll be getting a male or female yet? Mom has a gorgeous face..intelligent and noble looking.

Right now the dogs are 1 1/2 weeks old, so we don't get to meet it for another month, and then don't get to take it home until the end of September... just in time for Otto's birthday!

It's good that you're waiting to take 'em home. I've heard that they get a lot of their social skills interacting with their siblings in that 2nd month of life and that taking them anything before 8 weeks could create issues that are harder to break them from.

Early congrats on the new family member.

[SkyLander]

The mom is a very pretty dog and congrats on the new dog.

I still think breeds with "doodle" on the end sound kind of silly though.

[cheeba]

I still think breeds with "doodle" on the end sound kind of silly though.

+1

Your dog is gonna be so gay.

Congrats on the dog! Make sure to post plenty of pictures when you get it!

[kratz]

Our preference is female... BUT...

Our criteria, in order, are: temperament, intelligence, sex, looks, I guess.  I think the breed will be a really great fit for us.

I guess in Colorado, where the dog is coming from, it's illegal to sell a dog before 8 weeks.

And yes, the name is totally ridiculous... but that's okay as long as the dog isn't.

[kratz]

The parents (mom pre-current haircut... I guess they need haircuts). Dad is a curly sumbitch.

[Booner]

Dad is a curly sumbitch.

Dad is part dog, part throw rug. 

[Isgrimnur]

Isn't that a screenshot from a Disney movie?

[Eduardo X]

Isn't that a screenshot from a Disney movie?

Haha, no kidding. The Shaggy Detective?

[lildrgn]

Things fell into place tonight, and we jumped on an opportunity... we're getting a Goldendoodle, sired by the dad of my co-worker's dog that they are so apeshit about.

Right now the dogs are 1 1/2 weeks old, so we don't get to meet it for another month, and then don't get to take it home until the end of September... just in time for Otto's birthday!

They sent us pictures of the litter, and the mom.

The mom is 1/2 poodle, 1/2 golden retriever, and the dad is 100% poodle, so the pups are what they call an F1B, and I guess that's what you want...

Pretty excited around our house!

Otto keeps saying 'Puppies having milk!'  Of course, before that he was running around saying 'That's what she said', so... yeah.

Hard rock dude I'd expect to have a mastiff or boxer or pit bull or something.

But a goldendoodle? Looks like a dog with a psuedo-perm!

Seriously, though, good luck! We "accidentally" adopted a dog 2 months ago (today, actually!!) and I can't imagine not having her around. But I do feel wrt the negatives you mentioned (poop, hair, what to do in case of leaving town, etc).

Keep us posted!

[Graham]

Here are our current dogs.


Tallon is in the green bandana.  Fritz (Fraiser) is in the yellow one.

Fritz is a foster dog that we are watching over right now.  He is still a puppy and loves to get attention.  We originally thought Tallon and Fritz might be related when we saw his original picture, but once we got him we doubted it.  He is a really sweet dog, he just needs a lot of attention.

[kratz]

Aside from having an owner that dresses them up like background players from Cruisin', they look pretty fun.

[Dante Rising]

So my wife's birthday is on the 23rd, and marks the death of our german shepherd, who was the bees knees... my wife wants to have a better birthday this year, and one of the things that would really make it great is if we finally got another dog.

I've been dragging my feet about getting one... partially just not over the last one, who I had for a few years before we got married, and partially honestly enjoying not picking up dog shit and picking hair off of everything and dealing with what to do with her on trips and stuff...

But it might be about time... so we've been looking at petfinder for dogs that need a home.  I'm really drawn to the big dogs... obviously our shepherd wasn't small... but these ones could be slightly enormous:

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188845

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188840

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188842

http://www.petfinder.com/petnote/displaypet.cgi?petid=14188847

Same litter...I'm guessing the girls would be 90ish pounds, and that guy... well... he could be like 120.

They are about the age I want... far enough that we could drive down, and all together, it seems, so we could see them all in one trip (since the rescues disperse dogs to foster families, they can be pretty spread out sometimes w/in a given rescue).

Anyone ever had an Anatolian or Great Pyrenees?  I've met a few Pyrenees... they were great.

Whoops...just noticed you got a dog. Congrates! Anyway, here was my post....

I just purchased a pure-bred Pyrenees that was born on May 3rd. The breeder wanted $1200, but I simply could not afford her. Two weeks later he calls me. His wife is divorcing him and he needs $$$$.  I got her for $99. I thought something might be shady, but the Vet assured me she is in perfect health.

She is an absolutely wonderful puppy, and too intelligent for her own good. I bought her a training crate with a clamp-and-pin lock. In one week she figured out how to pull open the clamp with her paw, and knock the pin out of its holder. I had to change the lock to keep her from escaping.  She is very quiet and playful, but she also has an independent streak which is apparently natural to the breed. I'll post pictures soon. I've been speaking to alot of Pyrenees owners lately, and once people buy the a Pyrenees, they seem to fall in love with it.


There dogs are extremely loyal and wonderful with children. They have a "herding" instinct, so I've read lots of blogs about Pyrenees trying to herd groups of small children in their local neighborhood. They have an independent nature so you need to be prepared for that. On walks she'll simply plop herself down or try to go off in her own direction. I'm breaking her of this, but I can tell I'll never be jogging with her. They have a wandering tendency, much like a husky. You need to keep them leashed or fenced from what I've read. I've owned both a German Shepherd and now a Pyrenees. I have a feeling that I'm going to prefer the Pyrenees, and that is quite surprising since I adored my Shepherd.

BTW, get a female Pyrenees if possible. They will usually be noticeably smaller (~80-90 lbs) and less independent.


<edit>  Here is Sasha....

http://img27.imageshack.us/gal.php?g=picture003aw.jpg

[Kurt Stevens]

Our preference is female... BUT...

Our criteria, in order, are: temperament, intelligence, sex, looks, I guess.  I think the breed will be a really great fit for us.

I guess in Colorado, where the dog is coming from, it's illegal to sell a dog before 8 weeks.

And yes, the name is totally ridiculous... but that's okay as long as the dog isn't.

We have friends who have a golden doodle and just got a second one.  We dog sit for them on occasion.  They are a great dog.  She is really good with our two dogs and our cat.  She is also excellant with our two children.  I think you will be happy with the breed.

[kratz]

Yeah, we are seriously excited about it... we were watching videos of them on youtube, and they look like a great match... and smart as hell.

Dante, your dog is just too friggin' cute.

Our current challenge is to get the kid prepped for the dog, as he seems to be terrified of any dog smaller than a pony... I think due to an unfortunate run-in with a dachshund that was just too up in his face and scared the shit out of him.

We're trying to get him around a bunch of puppies (the first two he saw on Saturday he started crying hysterically when he got close to them), and talk the dog up, and watch videos of them on youtube, and we got him a stuffed dog that looks like a golden retriever puppy, and he's taken to that... so hopefully we'll be good to go once puppy time comes.  We'll just take it really slow and not force him into close proximity until he's ready.

[Graham]

Aside from having an owner that dresses them up like background players from Cruisin', they look pretty fun.

That's my wife's doing, not mine.

[kratz]

One time I came back to my in-laws from a fishing trip to find that my mother in law and my wife had put my shepherd in a nugget's jersey.

[Dante Rising]

One time I came back to my in-laws from a fishing trip to find that my mother in law and my wife had put my shepherd in a nugget's jersey.

Nuggets?! BOOOO!!!!!!!  


Are you going to crate train your new puppy? Or are you going to apply a different technique?

[kratz]

I think we are leaning towards the crate.

In other news, apparently we have our shit together way better than everyone else, because we paid our deposit so quickly that we are now number TWO in line to pick a puppy, which is totally awesome... I was worried about only having a couple to pick from, but now we will have 5!

[kratz]

They sent us new pictures as the puppies' eyes have started to open.  Pretty ridiculously cute.

[mytocles]

Congrats on the addition to your family, and I'm hoping for your sake your choice looks more like the mom than the dad, yikes, what a fuzzball!   

I'm in the group that likes big dogs, even if they are more tall than massive.  I always wanted an Irish Wolfhound or a Scottish Deerhound, but life interrupted and I ended up with a semi-rescue German Shepherd Dog.  People with no dog experience got her at 8 weeks and by 12 weeks, this was her list of skills:  yip, nip, jump on you, pee on the carpet, chew shoes, and growl if her food or toy was approached.  In one week, those skills disappeared (though we did keep the shoes out of range until about a year later.)  Btw, she cost $200, with crate, food, and leash!  One thing I didn't know about G-Sheps at the time is absolutely true, though - they shed like mad, possibly worst-shedder-ever quality, but they are incredible dogs.   

PS - my line I always used when people asked why I didn't like small, poofy, foo-foo dogs, was: "I don't like a dog you can't pet without giving it a concussion."  I can pound on Ms. Bugaboo and the only thing that gets hurt is me!   

[Arclight]

Oh, you want a shedding breed(s)

Not many can top these two.

Alaskan Malamute
Husky.

They do this thing twice a year, I think. Owners call it "blowing the coat" Along with the day to day hair rain that these breeds produce.
Basically the whole friggin coat sheds in the same day.

[mytocles]

Oh, you want a shedding breed(s)

Not many can top these two.

Alaskan Malamute
Husky.

They do this thing twice a year, I think. Owners call it "blowing the coat" Along with the day to day hair rain that these breeds produce.
Basically the whole friggin coat sheds in the same day.

Lol, yeah - my sister raises Sibes - and the only "good" thing about their shedding behavior is that they blow coat fairly quickly, so the really big-time shedding doesn't go on forever.  With our G-Shep, the twice a year super-shedding bonanza seems to go on forever. We call the "normal," everyday, little bunches of dog hair that pile up everywhere - tumbleweeds. 

I guess it's a good thing they are such great dogs, or I can see the ad now:  "Free to good home, preferably without allergy sufferers or neat-freaks!"   

[Graham]

Oh, you want a shedding breed(s)

While Tallon isn't a shedding breed, he's a weird mix of breeds:

Springer spaniel
Cocker spaniel
Yorkie
Pomeranian

Yeah, who would have imagined that.

[kratz]

An old roommate had a husky... between that dog and my german shepherd, shedding time at our house SUCKED.

[mytocles]

An old roommate had a husky... between that dog and my german shepherd, shedding time at our house SUCKED.

OMG - I can't even imagine that, lol!  Are you sure you didn't kill a dog in a former life?  That scenario could  be your personal (depending on faith or not-faith) Purgatory, karma, penance, fate, random punishment - or just plain old "payback," perhaps. All I can add is: yikes!!!