Small dog folks....help please!

ACooper

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#1
We are going to get real serious about finding a new family member, probably by December....possibly the new year. HUZZAH!

So as I mentioned in the other thread, we are downsizing. Our household is changing, Kevin and I are slowing down, and likely traveling more often especially since we have a boy in the military now. Plus we are running out of kids who can take the dog out in the backyard and play for a few hours till they are both exhausted! LOL

We think it's best to go with a much smaller breed.......problem is, I have about ZERO experience with small breeds.

What we're pretty sure we need:

1. We'd like about 10lbs or less (that's a loose number)
2. Only needs a short daily walk (a mile or less) and a bit of play for exercise needs to be met
3. Reasonably easy to potty train (I've heard certain small breeds can be difficult in this area?)
4. No excessive grooming needs
5. No breeds known for excessive barking

A few breeds I find aesthetically pleasing are Yorkies, Papillons, toy poodles, and Bichons. I don't know much (if anything) beyond how adorable they are, LOL....If you have reasons WHY they would or wouldn't work for us, please speak up and explain. I really do want to get this figured out before starting a search.

Also, if you have another breed you think would be PERFECT toss that in and include some info! TIA!
 

JessLough

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#3
Can you define excessive grooming? Because of those 4 breeds, at least 3 of them have what I think most people mean by excessive grooming needs. :p
 

milos_mommy

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#4
It depends if you're willing to get the dog professionally groomed regularly. If you are, papillons would have the most excessive grooming needs there. A yorkie or poodle could be clipped short and only need to go in every 6-8 weeks, possibly slightly longer if you got them cut short and let it grow out a bit.

If you don't want a barker, rule out pomeranians. Also be wary of miniature dachshunds and maltese (although I know a few quiet ones).

You might want to consider a havanese, actually. They'd be pretty spot on your requirements. A shih tzu is also a good option, but they have a few health issues to watch for.

Is a chihuahua out? They can be higher energy, but I doubt it's anything you can't handle. Yorkies are also a higher energy small dog, as are paps (I'm sure you know).

The small breeds seem IME to have more of a range of energy levels, too. Here we have yorkies that are JRT/border collie/etc. go-go-go, and some that are pretty keen on chilling out 99% of the time.

Yorkies/poodles/paps/chihuahuas are more biddable than the shih tzu/havanese, so that's another consideration.
 

Cali Mae

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#5
Papillons may or may not be a good fit, because it would depend on the individual dog. There's a fair bit of variety in the breed, from what I've gathered.

Cali can manage with a short/moderate walk and some play time, but is she completely content? No. She much prefers doing some trick training and going out for a nice, long hike and a game of fetch. I know some papillons would be content to laze around all day though, and you might be able to find that if you went with an older rescue, but even older papillons seem to be a bit energetic at times.

Cali is a little bit over five pounds, and although she is not an excessive barker, she does bark. A lot of it is training though, because to be honest, I don't mind barking when we're in the midst of fetch or playing a game. She's picked up on alert barking from the family dog but quiets down quickly. I think most papillons have a vocal side though.

Grooming requirements aren't too bad, but I find Cali looks a bit disgusting if I wait too long between trimming up her paws and hind legs. I try to give her a quick brushing, of no more than five minutes, every other day. Her fur doesn't easily mat unless we've been swimming in the pool, but that's just the pH. Her coat isn't nearly as high maintenance as people think, but then again, she doesn't have an excessive amount of coat. Her ear fringe is quite crazy at times though.

Some other things that I've picked up on with Cali are that she's extremely biddable and smart, and that she's very people/handler-oriented as she tends to pick up on my body language. She's a velcro dog in a sense but loves everyone.
 

crazedACD

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#6
Kay's post about the Japanese Chin at her school kind of has me on a Chin kick. I worked with a woman that started breeding them...I think they would fit your requirements. Such nice little dogs, biddable and perpetually happy, but they don't need tons of exercise. They don't tend to have the fear issues other small breeds can have (like chis and bichons). They are quiet, described as more cat like.

Maybe the Papillon owners will smack me for this, but I find Papillons to be VERY loud. And most small terriers too...my Toy Fox Terrier alert barks constantly, and chases and barks at the big dogs when they run. :rolleyes:
 

Laurelin

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#7
You need a Rose or Nard. Mia or Summer or Beau would be too much. Mia would be wayyyyy too much, I think.

The breed can be difficult to house train and many are very barky. Energy level is medium to very high. My two really do need to be hiked with or worked, even Summer at 9 gets antsy after a couple days. Mia is not a calm dog in the house most the time. It's not like I have to run her 24/7 but she needs 3-4 GOOD outings a week to be happy. Skipping 1-2 days is doable but she's very busy. Mia and Summer are both extremely vocal. Mia is more vocal than my shelties.

Rose however is content to sleep on her pillow all day but is more than capable of walking several miles. I swear she never ever barks either. I don't know how you find a Rose though, she's not quite typical for the breed. But if you could find a laid back adult (rescue or breeder rehome) it might work.

I think a bichon or a havanese would suit you well EXCEPT for the grooming. Unless you lucked into a 'silky' haired havanese. I have seen a couple but it's not something they breed for. I really love havanese a lot. The ones I've met are friendly and happy dogs but pretty low key.
 

Cali Mae

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#8
Kay's post about the Japanese Chin at her school kind of has me on a Chin kick. I worked with a woman that started breeding them...I think they would fit your requirements. Such nice little dogs, biddable and perpetually happy, but they don't need tons of exercise. They don't tend to have the fear issues other small breeds can have (like chis and bichons). They are quiet, described as more cat like.

Maybe the Papillon owners will smack me for this, but I find Papillons to be VERY loud. And most small terriers too...my Toy Fox Terrier alert barks constantly, and chases and barks at the big dogs when they run. :rolleyes:
That is completely true... at least for Cali. She's not the type of dog to bark for absolutely no reason, but when she gets excited... she's very, very loud. Or she'll get so excited that she's completely silent. She is relatively good at quieting down though.
 

Laurelin

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#9
Well they are called yapillons for a reason. :rofl1:

Paps are typically alert/excitement barkers (and paps tend to excite pretty easily). Mia is also a screamer when she's excited/over aroused.
 

Sit Stay

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#10
Havanese!

Incredibly lovely, happy little dogs. Very easy going, happy in a lap but still up for fun. I know one who is pretty barky, but I think that is lack of quality training - the other ones I know will bark if someone comes to the door and that's it.

Their full coat requires grooming, but the breeder I know keeps them clipped once they're done in the show ring.
 
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#12
My shih tzu, Bristol, is about 10-11lbs, never barks and doesn't even want to touch grass. Her brother, mother are both huge barkers, her mother is 17-18lbs and her brother is the same size as Bristol. My mother in laws was like 25lbs and barked her head off. But they are all very people orientated and easy to exercise. Bristol is great to travel with as well. And with a clipping every few weeks easy to care for grooming wise.

Have you looked at Brussles Griffons?
 

ACooper

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#14
Can you define excessive grooming? Because of those 4 breeds, at least 3 of them have what I think most people mean by excessive grooming needs. :p
I'm not afraid to learn to trim fur or I can have them professionally done, I defintely don't want a dog who only looks 'right' with a long coat. IMO, most of the breeds I listed look fine (cute even) being clipped reasonably short. Except papillon ear fur of course, LOL

Shih tzus are not out of the question, and no....have not even thought of a Brussels! *noted.

Havanese look awesome as well!

And ya, if Paps are excited barkers I don't think they'd be a good fit for us. That's sort of why we ruled out Chihuahuas (his parents, grand parents and sister all have them and whether typical or not, theirs are ALL obnoxious barkers! probably a lot due to poor training though) We go camping and there's lots of nature noise at night around our camper, we also have neighbors here at home that come and go night/day and I don't want a breed that can't be (easily) persuaded to ignore irrelevant noises.

I have not read or seen much of anything concerning Chins.....I'll get on that.

I'll admit that Yorkies are right up there. Very cute, they seem to be smart and compliant. Grooming seems reasonable if they are kept trimmed as well.

I do want to check out the brussels, chin, and havanese some more as well. I tell you, I'm getting all tickled and butterfly stomach just thinking of a new dog! :D WEEEEEE! LOL
 

ACooper

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#15
Given your Doberman experiance:

Mini Bull
Boston
German Pinscher
I think the mini bull and german pinscher might be a bit more than I'm looking for.........they are both terriers yes?

The boston though, Hmmmm a terrier yes but a bit more mild, at least what I've seen of them in person
 

Laurelin

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#17
I think my bark-o-meter is broken. I didn't think my shelties barked too much at all and don't even hardly notice my current dogs. They're very good out in public (unless it's exciting like agility then they're barkbarkbark) Then I was thinking.... they barked when I got home, Mia screamed when I let her outside, then she barked when she got bored outside, she barked at where she thinks the mouse is, she barked at me to play tennis ball, she whined the entire way to the park (and Summer woofed), and then whined the way back home, barked when we pulled into the neighborhood, then went racing through the house barking at Beau and Rose in the kennel when we got inside....

You mean there are dogs that don't do that!? :rofl1: I honestly rarely even notice it anymore.

I will say my two are a lot barkier than the other three.

My vote is Havanese. Someone needs a havanese on here. Cavalier would work too but the health problems make them hard for me to recommend.

Min pins are in my experience very high strung and barkers. Yorkies in my experience are also fairly barky. Bostons are fun but also pretty high energy. Very much like a small boxer.
 

Laurelin

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#18
It depends if you're willing to get the dog professionally groomed regularly. If you are, papillons would have the most excessive grooming needs there. A yorkie or poodle could be clipped short and only need to go in every 6-8 weeks, possibly slightly longer if you got them cut short and let it grow out a bit.
I don't think papillons have NEAR the grooming needs of those breeds. My two dogs are lucky if they see a brush once a month.
 

JacksonsMom

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#20
First thing that came to my mind was definitely Havanese. I also thought of Chihuahua's for sure. Chi's seem to be pretty capable of doing stuff, but also very capable of burrowing in the couch for days with you too if necessary. :) Also pretty much no grooming.

I do think the right yorkie could be a good fit too! They ARE terriers, but honestly most yorkies I meet are pretty un-terrier like. Some are, but most are very happy as house pets. Jackson is very much not a typical yorkie at all, and he needs a LOT to remain happy or not annoying. But my friends 2 yorkies are pretty chill - one needs more than the other, but both happily lounge around all day, and love to sit on your lap and cuddle. So yeah I think if you found the right Yorkie, they would definitely fit your criteria. They are known to be hard to housebreak but I honestly just think it's a lack of consistency with most people. Also some can definitely be barky.

Jackson is super easy grooming-wise, but I do have to pay to get him professionally groomed every 8 weeks or so. That's what keeps him easy though. Bathe weekly in the summer, give his tail a little 2 second brush, facial hair a little comb, and wa-laa! He's actually pretty low maintenance. I practically never brush him.

But I'm thinking Chihuahua the more I think about it.

Oh what about Bichon or Bolognese or a Coton? Don't know if you like the looks of them or not, but I hear these are all pretty easy going go with the flow type dogs. Maltese? Llasho Apso?
 

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