What kind of temperament do you like in a dog?

[-bogart-]

Originally Posted by Saeleofu

I like Logan's temperament a lot. He's outgoing and gets along swimmingly with people, dogs, and other animals. He's got a desire to please, but also a mind of his own. He's a bit (okay, a lot) dorky. Even though he's independent and likes to keep himself busy, he still makes time for cuddles and sleeps in med with me every night. He's pretty much bombproof and very confident. He's smart (when he's not being dorky) and is a breeze to train, though he does have a small stubborn streak. The only thing I might change is that I wish he had just a bit more drive. He does have a good amount of drive, but I'd like just a tiny bit more - the way he was when he was younger would be ideal. I worked so hard on getting him to ignore food and not take me hand of with a treat that it sort of squashed his drive a bit. He's just a very, very balanced dog and I love that about him. His scores on the ATTS test were all very near the middle.

Is this typical of the breed ? Sounds perfect. And smoothies are what I would consider. How are they typically with kids. I know dogs each differ , but generally?

[Hillside]

Originally Posted by AdrianneIsabel

Drive

Cuddle ability

Off switch

Agreeable with strange dogs

Playful with housemates

Fetch & Tug, play and toy drive.

Honesty, I enjoy a dog that is innovative but I would prefer a dog who's rule abiding.

Smart, interested in learning.

Safe obsession.

Ever forgiving.

Quiet unless asked otherwise.

Natural guard, civil dog.

Tentative with strangers but not unsafe.

Food drive.

I think that's it...

My list is virtually identical, except minus the civil part. (Civil means exactly the opposite of what some of you are thinking. )

I do prefer a dog that is more aloof with strangers, but ALL of my breeds are breeds have that trait in their description and ALL of MY dogs have loved everyone they met. All three of my family Dalmatians, Django the Aussie, Saga the Doberman and last, but not least Nico the Malinois who has yet to meet a stranger...

[Whitewave]

Originally Posted by Renee750il

All of this, along with initiative, self-confidence, intelligent fearlessness -- the ability to see when a situation is potentially dangerous and figure out how to take care of business and minimize personal risk.

And an intense bond.

Poise, and grace.

Not big on dogs that are focused in on waiting for me to tell them what to do, and I love a dog with attitude. And backtalks sometimes, lol.

In other words, the Fila temperament is perfect for me A Terrier also fits -- except for the intelligent fearlessness

I do love Tallulah's temperament and character, especially the smacktalk and how she figures out ways to tell me what she wants and what a freaking clever little monster she is.

Oh, and how she rolls her eyes at my mom sometimes

That pretty much describes what I like, better than I could say it. Why I love my Dogos! I do think I would like a Fila one day.

Sighthounds and small hunting type terriers also fit my personality well. But not really into any type of herding or sporting breed dogs. I clash with most of them.

[Saeleofu]

Originally Posted by -bogart-

Is this typical of the breed ? Sounds perfect. And smoothies are what I would consider. How are they typically with kids. I know dogs each differ , but generally?

Fairly typical from what I know. Logan's dam isn't quite as confident and outgoing as Logan, but I think that's more due to a lack of socialization. Logan's breeder socialized the crap out of him, and I value that very, very much. Logan is fantastic with kids, though he can be a bit too exuberant at times (that can easily be fixed, and probably would never happen if they're raised with kids, but I don't have kids).

You do need to be careful about where you get a collie though. BYB collies are often nervy and reactive (and giant fluffballs with a completely out of standard, over-the-to fluffy coat). You may be able to find a nice, even-tempered collie in rescue, but i do recommend going to a breeder that breeds for the temperament you like.

Logan is a fantastic all-around dog and that's really my ideal. When I first got him I took him to work and I was having him do off-leash stays as I cleaned his cage, and my boss said "I didn't know conformation dogs can do obedience." I'm very proud of the Total Dog award Logan got, and hope to get more in the future.

[PWCorgi]

Above everything, a mentally stable dog. Everything else is icing on the cake!

I want a dog that deals with change, one that is up for anything, and is abundantly HAPPY and JOYFUL about life. Frodo is none of these things, whenever his nubbin' is waggin' I make note, because it's not something I can take for granted like people who have normal dog can.


I never thought I'd say this, buuuut: I've learned to love Frodo's biddability level. It used to frustrate me when he'd just look at me and go "eh, I'll just do this instead." Now it makes me work harder, train *better* and it makes the accomplishments that much sweeter. He loves to work, but he's also full of "why should I?"s. He doesn't work for the joy of working, he doesn't work for me, he works absolutely for himself 100% of the time, and I have to make it worth it. There are still days where I want golden or lab biddability, but not as much as I used to! I put a decent recall on Frodo over the past couple months, for most people that wouldn't be a big deal, for Frodo (mr sniffs-a-lot) to leave something yummy smelling to come back to me? BIG MOFO DEAL And I'm pretty darn proud of that!

For the stuff that doesn't matter *quite* so much, I love dogs that love swimming and retrieving <3
Food motivation is important to me, toy motivation is a huge plus!
A dog that can STFU. x1000

[Flyinsbt]

I like dogs that are affectionate with me
Preferably outgoing with strangers, but at least tolerant of them
Intelligent
Independent thinkers, but interested in my opinion
Bold
Kind of pushy
Have an off switch

[AdrianneIsabel]

Originally Posted by Hillside

My list is virtually identical, except minus the civil part. (Civil means exactly the opposite of what some of you are thinking. )

I do prefer a dog that is more aloof with strangers, but ALL of my breeds are breeds have that trait in their description and ALL of MY dogs have loved everyone they met. All three of my family Dalmatians, Django the Aussie, Saga the Doberman and last, but not least Nico the Malinois who has yet to meet a stranger...

lol Yup, I like a dog with some edge, lack of trust, strong propensity for civil work (personal protection). That said I still expect a dog to be stable, trustworthy, and safe to interact with strangers.

Even Arnold, my pit bull, who's never disliked anyone is a quiet and calm hello-er. I'm not sure if this was natural or I created it through my behaviors. I've had some love everyone dogs but for the most part I gravitate to dogs that can take or leave (safely unless provoked) strangers.

[PlottMom]

Honestly I don't know what I like. I prefer a gentler dog... if Keena launches herself off my foot or slams her fat head into mine one more time I don't know what I'll do. Rage is also excessively irritating when it comes to being gentle.

I love that the Plotts don't care about you unless you're me. As a general rule, if I am home, they're polite but they don't care for direct attention from guests. I like trainability... Daisy was a breeze to train & so much fun. I love Rage's athleticism - I've lost like 20lbs having to find ways to keep her easier to live with.

I don't know... I like most of the Plott personality traits. I don't really know what else I'd want in a dog...

[Equinox]

- Driven, but with medium to high thresholds.

- Biddable and eager to learn/carry out a task.

- Enough handler softness for a correction to be recognized and accepted, but not so much that it would shut the dog down.

- "Honest", to quote other Chazzers. A trait I never thought about before but now agree is incredibly important to me.

- Strong nerves.

- Serious. I am okay with a dog that possesses some sense of humor, but perpetual "hai I'm in your faaaace~~" happiness is overwhelming for me. Same rule applies to the humans around me

- "Thinking" dog.

- Able to accept new people and environments.

- Intuitive but able to settle/back off if acting on that intuition. I do not want a dog that is too sharp.

- Confident.

- Self-preservation instincts. I am okay with a dog that is reasonably cautious. No, I do not want a dog that will fling himself over a cliff for a ball. I have terrible aim and constantly throw balls into blackberry bushes, and I can't afford to have a dog that would dive into the thorny bushes.

- Handler/one person oriented, but still independent as an individual. Gravitates without clinging.

- Trusting people in dangerous situations. This is one of Trent's traits that I really appreciate. If he is injured or his paw is snagged on something or he's in a potentially dangerous situation, he will trust me, or any person, to resolve the situation or at least help him.

- Aloof with strangers and dogs.

- Cuddly, without a constant need/desire to invade space. Trent is neither

Originally Posted by Sit Stay

I'm beginning to realize that one of my favorite things in a dog is kindness and gentleness. I don't want a dog that will run at me and bowl me over, shove me, or demand bark at me. I'm definitely a fan of a quiet temperament and a naturally polite disposition.

You...liked German Shepherds at one point?

Trent's aware and respectful of space and hasn't ever knocked me around, but "kindness", "gentleness", "polite", and "quiet temperament" are not words I'd use to describe him LOL

He's good and boring and follows the rules but he can also be inconsiderate, even if it's unintentional. The majority of his "good" (or more accurately, "satisfactory") behavior was learned rather than inherent... learned quickly and stuck to well, whether it was conditioned, trained, self taught, out of observation, etc., but just not quite innate. Not to say he's a terrible dog at the core (at least not today while he's been behaving ) but in many ways his saving grace seems to be his eagerness to please and natural inclination to be my good dog, as opposed to the kindly dispositioned, considerate dog I imagine many English Shepherds tend to be - all at the risk of anthropomorphizing.

And as far as disposition goes, I am okay either way.

[staffanatic]

I've been told i gravitate towards the jerks. And that wouldn't be a lie. If given a litter of puppies i'll immediately want the independent, pushy handful.

A dog has to be:
intelligent
honest worker
handler focused (once i had my BC i was set on this trait)
affectionate, not barnacle clingy
strong nerves, resilient. Able to roll with the punches and self soothe.
able to think on their feet and make independent choices, while considering the task at hand.
adaptable
sense of humor, not too serious
a bit of a jerk (hahaha)

i like having a challenge (obviously, since i got an amstaf for obedience lol) and i like doing things that most people would say is difficult or impossible. If it's not challenging, it's kinda boring, and what's the point then?

i've been trying to find just the right working/herder, but all the ones i get or meet are a bit too anxious for my ideal. Or, they don't have that blind faith biddablity that i would get a herder/working dog for. Perhaps it goes hand in hand...