Before you get a....

[Laurelin]

Originally Posted by StephyMei1112

Laurelin,

A professor of a friend of mine at the University of British Columbia owns a pair of pap girls with his wife. They are the Phalene variety with the dropped/"sunken" ears. Now the professor and his wife are both well into their 60's so I'm just assuming these Pap's aren't/haven't been to training classes/agility/sports activities. But they are apparently REALLY well behaved, cuddly, and very...well, laid back. Perhaps it's to do with the Phalene type? and they aren't old either - 3 and 4 only.

I haven't met alot of Papillion's - but most have been very hyper/bouncy, extremely driven, and just really energetic all in all.

I have heard that phalenes can tend to be softer/more mild and more spaniely than paps just because of bloodlines being a little separate. Don't know if that's true, a friend of mine has a very intense phalene boy, lol.

A lot depends on the lines. Mia is very intense but it's to be expected as her lines have a lot of agility and sports dogs coming off of them. Multiple MACH winners, a 2x world's team member (an uncle), and some other agility and even a flyball dog. But just to say Mia comes off extremely well behaved and mellow in public (unless you see her at class, then she's a mess). She's just well trained and well socialized. I get so many compliments and comments on how calm she is.

Rose, Beau, and Bernard don't do any sports/training and are okay. Rose is very very mellow and super easy. Always has been. Beau is 8 now and still hyper but he and Bernard spent their life wrestling 24/7. Beau at 8 would still play all day long. My sister has Nard now and they hike and walk daily and he's adapted well to being an only dog.

Mia and Rose types are about the opposite ends of the spectrum and both not uncommon. I think most paps are the Summer, Bernard, Beau, Harry, Hiro types. More middle of the road. That said, Beau and Summer are especially a little more hyper than most people want a 'lapdog' to be. Summer is 8 and still obnoxious if you don't exercise her good. She's also 8 years old and still is the most hyper dog in her agility class. She's 6 years older than the next oldest dog too.

[SaraB]

Before you get a koolie: remove all valuable/breakable items from every shelf in the house, especially the really high shelves.

[BlackPuppy]

Before you get a Malinois, come and meet mine.

[AdrianneIsabel]

Or take mine.

[RD]

Before you get a border collie, spend a day with mine during a thunderstorm or hunting season. -_-

[ihartgonzo]

Lol I second that RD!

Before you get a Corgi... get a really good sense of humor, and don't expect your dog to worship you. UNLESS you have cheese.

[Emily]

Before you get a Cardi, be sure you can live with what basically amounts to a loud, drunken Welshman with a control complex, who's also raring for a fight. LOL. (Isn't somebody on here married to a Welsh guy??? )

[SizzleDog]

Before you get a Doberman....



1. Be prepared for health problems. Dobes aren't a healthy breed, and owning them for any decent amount of time means you will run into heart problems, thyroid problems, cancer, bloat and more. It sucks.

2. Be sure you can handle owning a dog that is extremely territorial and does NOT like everybody they meet. If you can't handle a protective/aggressive response from your dog, do not get a Doberman.

3. Don't get a male if you have another male dog. They don't get along. Don't even try to make it work, because 99 times out of 100 you'll have a very serious situation on your hands. Also, the bitches are bitches. Snarky.

4. Young male dobes eat a lot - especially when they're intact - so be prepared. It's not unheard of for a young male dobe to need 8-14 cups of food per day.

5. Be prepared to buy jammies and coats if you live in a place that gets cold winters.

6. Dobes are like tumors... you practically have to surgically remove them from your body.

7. Be prepared to get very inventive with your training. Dobermans are incredibly smart, but they aren't a breed that does well without consequences for inappropriate behavior. At the same time, they are sensitive and so heavy handedness and unfair punishment is the fastest way to make a Dobe refuse to work for you.

There's more, but I'll come back to this thread later if I have time.

[DenoLo]

Before you get a munchkin,




Pick up all your pen caps.

[Aleron]

Originally Posted by Emily

Before you get a Cardi, be sure you can live with what basically amounts to a loud, drunken Welshman with a control complex, who's also raring for a fight. LOL. (Isn't somebody on here married to a Welsh guy??? )

LOL Perfect!