Is your dog normal for it's type?

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#1
So, wasn't sure where to post it and I know we have some really interesting dogs here.

If you've got a dog that has a type, do you think your dog is normal?

My girls are what I'd consider energetic for a corgi. Miz Naughty is on the higher-drive end of the scale and is shepherd like in temperament. She's intense lol My pup, Lil Sis, is much softer and much more of a lap dog. She has some intensity, but for sure not like her mom.

I'd say mine are friendlier then most Cardigans, though. They never meet a stranger and immediately roll over for belly rubs when meeting new people. Honestly, it's a bit shameful lol

I feel that both of mine are pretty bright, too. I think that's average for Cardigans, because almost every one I've met looks like they're possibly scheming. Crazy like a fox is how I'd describe them <3

As far as watch dogs go, both of mine have ears like satelites and will not hesitate to let you know when someone is at the door. They may not be BIG dogs, but I'd probably think twice about entering a home with two dogs that sounded that pissed off.

Then of course, they meet the person, and it's belly rub time.

I'd like to say that my dogs would never bite anybody. But, I don't know how they'd react if they were startled.

Surprises; all dogs get startled sometimes. I'd say my dogs are...weird. Like Miz Naughty FLIPS OUT when she encounters fire hydrants. I have no idea why. Yet, have crazy baby toys going off all the time and a toddler scooting around and all the craziness of my house and she doesn't bat an eye. Same with my puppy.


Other pets- I think it would be a real problem to try to introduce a cat into the house. Same for bunnies, birds, or anything like that. I think if a pup were raised with them, you would probably be fine. But once they realize that rodents can be prey, it's all over. Cardigans can be kinda feral when it comes to catching poor little animals. :-(

Kids- If raised carefully with kids, Cardigans can be really awesome family dogs. But, I think that maybe compared with a spaniel you'd see a difference. Sometimes, they're just not as tolerant.

Mine are really good with kids. I'm pretty proud of that, actually. Both just really patient and more then that, they enjoy the baby. Especially the puppy. I have a feeling that Lil Sis and Little Buddy are going to be inseperable.

One person dogs- Cardigans tend to bond strongly to one person, and that's their person pretty much for life. I think that because of that, it takes them longer to acclimate to changes in their owner. Miz Naughty and I have been through alot together. For sure. We've moved all over the place; we're nomads! But, we're also best friends and she never had a problem changing environments.

She's *clearly* my dog. Lil Sis belongs to the baby, heart and soul. She is open and sweet and cuddly and tolerant of him in the way that she's not for me and my husband.

So, I've rambled enough lol what about your dogs? Or even if they don't have a type, what are they like in different situations? What do you like? What would you change?

I have to say that if I could change anything, it would be to tone down their reactivity. I don't mean reactivity really, but THEY NOTICE EVERYTHING. I like them to be alert, but they're almost hyper about it. Soooo if you don't like /omgwhatisthatbarkbarkbark then maybe a corgi is not for you

I love 'em. I do. lol
 

*blackrose

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#2
Well, Abrams is a retriever. He doesn't retrieve and also doesn't love food.

I think he's broken. LOL
 

JacksonsMom

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#3
Completely no.

I feel like when people think 'yorkie' they either automatically assume yappy ankle biter, or purse puppy.

Jackson has a high pitched bark, and he's an alerter for sure, but he's not 'yappy' if that makes sense.

He would never stand for being placed into a stroller or a purse.

He is obsessed with water and diving and retrieving. I call him my Yorkshire Retriever.

He's really easy to train, and was with everything (potty training, obedience, agility, tricks, etc).

He's also good with kids. He's not a Golden Retriever, but he will let kids approach and pet him, and he enjoys doing tricks for them, etc.

He is very active and not a lap dog whatsoever.
 

MericoX

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#5
Kiba is what I believe a Miniature Schnauzer should be.
Stryder has somebehaviors/tendencies that should get his Schnauzer card revoked, but for the most part he's spot on.

Lincoln is a typical Miniature Poodle, though I have not heard of any that are as naughty as he.

And Charlie is 100% Colliewog!!!!
 

Toller_08

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#6
Honestly, I don't know if my Dobermans are or not. They seem to be for the most part, and they're definitely very typical of my breeder's dogs. But I feel like my dogs are less sharp and way more dog tolerant than other peoples' Dobermans, and also not very focused for a working breed. Focus is something that I've battled with both of them since forever, and I feel like for the type of dog they are there just should be naturally more and more biddability. I don't know if this is a Doberman thing or just a thing of my Dobermans though. In any regard, I wasn't really expecting it and I thought it was just a Keira thing until we got Ripley, who is pretty much the same in that aspect. But there are so many different lines and 'types' of Dobes out there too, so it's hard to say whether mine are typical or not of the entire breed... and most of my Dobe experience has been with dogs related to mine too, whom are all pretty similar.

Dance is not typical of a good Toller in some ways, but she's still not what I'd call A-typical unfortunately either as I've met and heard about others very similar to her. She's very people insecure/reactive (surprise barks - is not aggressive), which is not how a Toller should be, but some are. In all other regards though, I'd say she's fairly typical of a Toller. She's happy, she's playful, she's goofy, pretty easy to train, willing to try anything, focused, etc. She seems more laid back than many and doesn't have nearly as much endurance as I'd like, though. She enjoys activity and gives it her personal best, but I thought she'd be much more on the go and driven prior to getting her. I watch other Tollers do things and Dance just... lacks, somehow. My Flyball team mates commented at our last tournament that Dance just kind of happily prances and tap dances her way through life where as the other Toller that was there was way more about the job and focused on the task at hand in a more serious (but still playful) way. But, I love her anyway and wouldn't trade her for the world!

Journey I think is fairly typical for a show/performance bred Aussie. The only thing that's surprised me about her is just how friendly she is, but otherwise she's pretty spot on for all of the good traits I've ever read or been told about. She's very high energy with a fabulous off switch, eager to learn, willing to please, super quick learner, playful, happy, very driven, etc. Oh, and I guess the other thing that surprises me is that while I knew Aussies were velcro dogs and liked to be with you, I had no idea that they were so cuddly and affectionate. I don't even know if that's an Aussie thing or not though, or just a family trait. But yeah, all in all I'd say that yes, she's typical. But she's my first and only so far, and I've only been around a handful of others for long enough to get to know them decently. In all honestly, if I took her breed and looks out of the equation, she also pretty well matches the description of the other breed I was going to get. So while I think she's growing into a very typical Aussie, I think she's also maybe just a very typical herding breed puppy, breed aside. I don't know. I just know she's awesome and I haven't really been surprised about any of her traits so far, except the cuddly part and the super friendly part.
 
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Southpaw

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#7
For the most part yes, Juno is a very typical boxer. 'Tis why I love her. :p I think the only part of her that is super atypical is her stranger phobia. Most boxers are best friends with everyone they meet. Juno will be best friends with you.... if she gets to know you first and you convince her you're safe. Then you can be biffles with her.

She's goofy and smart and stubborn, loyal and protective, bursting at the seams with energy, an excellent bomb-proof family dog.
 

Zoom

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#8
Sawyer is spot on, I feel. Ready to go all day long if that's what the occasion calls for, totally cool to just hang out all day too. Great patio dog. Super happy with his people, loves to control movement and is reserved with new people. If he takes to someone quickly, he'll go lean up against their legs, but he's not the "OMG RUN SAY HI BOUNCE BOUNCE BOUNCE" that I've seen out of a lot of show/pet-bred Aussies. He's never very far away from me if he can help it. Very protective of me as well. He's nearly nailed my bf a few times when my bf thinks it's funny to pounce on me while I'm laying down and Nolu had to physically hold him back from jumping off our 3rd story balcony one day when a neighborbitch decided to pick a fight with me after I pulled a stray dog away from her horrid little chi.

I'm really rather nervous about getting another Aussie, because he's set such a high bar of expectation.
 

noludoru

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#9
Sawyer is spot on, I feel.

[snip]

Nolu had to physically hold him back from jumping off our 3rd story balcony one day when a neighborbitch decided to pick a fight with me after I pulled a stray dog away from her horrid little chi.

I'm really rather nervous about getting another Aussie, because he's set such a high bar of expectation.
Agreed, and completely true. He's got a good protective streak. I was torn between figuring out a way to kill the neighbor and keeping him from killing himself. But if you go with the right breeder I wouldn't worry. Next Aussie is unlikely to be as perfectly well-rounded as Sawyer, but will still be awesome.
 

Cali Mae

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#10
Based on my understanding, Cali is pretty typical of her breed; although she may take the friendliness to an extreme. She will always roll over on people's feet if they start petting her... she just really, really loves attention, probably too much.
 

Laurelin

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#11
Summer is pretty classic for a papillon. She is very friendly with people, loudmouthed, very stable and confident, loves to train, super biddable, intelligent, fast, athletic, happy, easily excited, cuddly and affectionate, quirky, and very handler oriented. Beau and Nard are also in this spectrum, although Nard is MUCH calmer than the other two and a little more hard headed. Beau is hyper but not in the same way as Summer. Summer's a little bit more excited-hyper and is very springy whereas Beau (especially younger) was just all over the place hyper. His grandpa was the same way, just darting everywhere all the time.

Mia is not unusual but she's on the reactive and sharp end of the spectrum. She's still capable of working through fears but she's much more concerned about things and is a not-stranger friendly dog at all. She does not like being touched by strangers. Environmental things also bother her more than other paps. Her energy level is pretty high but I think it's more that Mia lacks an off switch (or at least a good one). She is very busy and demanding and needs a lot more consistency to get her to settle down in the house. She will not be lazy all day, still at 4 years old. She needs some decent exercise every single day. She also has a lot more edge.... I'm not sure how to describe it but a level of intensity most paps don't have. She is no faster on the course than Summer but Mia's one of those dogs that tenses and shakes when she's raring to go whereas most paps seem to just be all 'oh yay this is fun!' But she's still very affectionate, very happy, trainable, biddable, exiciteable, etc. I think she and Summer overlap quite a bit even though they are very different in their tolerance for strangers. I have met other papillons much like Mia so she's not a complete anomaly by any means.

Rose is the far opposite of Mia. She is very low drive, and exceptionally low energy for the breed. She's just a lot quiet than most paps are. She could go forever without exercising, just wants to be lying on her pillow. She's also a lot more aloof than the others and is the only one that doesn't spend her day following a human around 24/7. She's also very meek, kind of timid, finicky, gentle... I don't meet many paps like her. She was cut from the breeder's program for temperament. She is a GREAT dog and the easiest one to keep as a pet. She's most peoples' favorite when they meet them all. But not normal for the breed.
 

~Dixie's_Mom~

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#12
Violet? Nope. I always say she's broken. She doesn't howl or talk like a normal husky. She doesn't really have the energy most huskies have (though she has her days). She doesn't even really have a tendency to run off like most huskies. She has slipped out the door a few times, but each time she comes running back as soon as we open a car door and she thinks she's going for a ride. She was a bit of a trouble maker when she was younger, but now we let her free roam the house at night and she doesn't cause trouble except if the bathroom door is open she will shred toilet paper. (We crate her when we are gone because she will get into things if no one is home.) She does have a high prey drive, and she looks like a husky, but that's about it.

Chloe is a pretty typical dachshund/chihuahua mix. She has traits of both, but mostly dachshund I'd say.
 

Assamiea

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#13
Both of mine are fairly typical for their breeds.

Bichons are supposed to be merry, cheerful, gentle mannered, sensitive, playful and affectionate". That's Baxter to a tee.

Yorkies are terriers by nature and are brave, determined, investigative and energetic. This decribes Rocky pretty well except that since he's older now he's not so energetic. I think most people who think of Yorkies as purse puppies would think that Rocky is far from what their idea of a Yorkie is.
 
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#14
Samwise was a Craigslist puppy, though I did get his breeder's info from his previous owner. Let's just say that if I was looking to buy directly from a breeder? His would be on the 'not in a million years' list. No titles, no health testing, lots of litters, and a whole mess of different breeds/designer mixes.

I do have to give them credit, though. For a family dog? His temperament is fabulous. But not... necessarily typical poodle, I don't think. We hear that he's too friendly a lot, when I've heard it's more typical for poodles to be a bit reserved or aloof with strangers. And he doesn't have great focus, though we're working on it. It's worked out for us so far, but we want to try him out in agility someday down the line, and it'll be a shame if he doesn't have the drive for it. Though maybe I could use that to justify another dog :rofl1:
 

stafinois

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#15
Grant? Yes. Stan? He's not incorrect, but you don't see a lot of Malinois with the bubbly, outgoing personally of a golden.
 

CharlieDog

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#16
Enzo is not typical of her breed in that she doesn't fetch. :p She will in water! But on land? No fetching. Otherwise, her personality is pretty typical of what a Labrador is supposed to be. She's very happy to meet people, loves almost everyone, I think I can remember two people EVER that she's not liked, and they were creepy to me as well.

She's very loving, affectionate, and willing to please. She definitely loves water, and I think her only atypical trait is she's not a barker. She's barked like, maybe five times in her life.



Indy, I'm not sure if she is or not. If we're going with "Dutch Shepherds are just Malinois with stripes" but then based off the Mals I've known, and I've only known a handful, about half of them were "no touch" dogs that did police work, so I never got a sense of them when they weren't "on duty" and the other half were bred for French Ring, and were pretty similar to Indy. I only met them once a a FR club meeting. They didn't mind being touched by strangers, but they all had their tugs in their mouths, and were very happy because they'd all gotten done being worked in Ring. They were social in that, they'd run by with the tug if called over and brush up against you and then do the "herder circle" back around to their owners.

She's a focused dog, but most of that had to be trained in, she was very much an airhead when I got her. She's serious when she's working, but she likes to know she's doing a good job, or the right thing. It's not hard for me to shut her down if I do the wrong thing when we're doing obedience stuff. She hasn't ever been worked in IPO, so I don't know what she'd be like with a decoy.

She's not a "no touch" dog, but she doesn't like strangers. She pretty much ignores them completely. No aggression, and no acknowledgement that they exist basically, which is exactly what you want out of a dog that does the work she does. Once she knows someone she's very friendly with them, but never the type of dog to climb in their lap like Enzo, more like, she'll lay at their feet, or come up for a drive by petting.

With me though, she barkscreams when I come home from somewhere, which is the only time she barks, she likes to wrap my leg with her front legs and hold on for pettings. She likes to cuddle with me, but if I don't pet her how she likes she'll kick me :p My husband she likes in passing, I guess, but she's not really bonded to him.

She's very prey driven, especially with cats and squirrels. She loves to play fetch of any kind, and tug her most favorite game.

Um, I think that's it. Sorry for the novel.
 

Emily

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#17
My two purebred dogs are, yes. Keeva I suspect is higher intensity/energy than many Cardis, and maybe higher prey drive as well, but she's definitely a Corgi.

Same with Blossom, she is a pretty typical Mal, though she seems to be extra dorky/goofy/clumsy, according to other Mal owners. LOL. Lucky me, I got the doofus.
 

Flyinsbt

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#18
Yes, my dogs are very typical Staffords. Pirate is more of the outgoing love everyone type which is most typical, where Tess is a little more reserved with strangers (she likes people who make a little effort, mostly defined as crouching down to pet her), but that falls within the normal spectrum of behavior.

Mine are pretty high energy/high drive, which not all seem to be, but again, well within the spectrum of normal.
 

DJEtzel

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#19
Yes and no for all of mine, I think!

Frag is a very aloof dog, he does not enjoy pettings beyond the initial meet, does not seek out people and has one or two "people" that are his. He sheds like no one's business. He's whiney/vocal. Prone to S/A. Loyal. Versatile

But, he's all bark/no bite (to some that's abnormal and some that's desired, depends on who you ask) and is more of a couch potato. Not guardy whatsoever and absolutely fantastic with any and all dogs.

Sir is a very friendly dog, extremely energetic, a little stubborn, and easily motion distracted/focused. Lots of prey drive.

But, he loves water, doesn't smile, won't pull a bike, and isn't dog aggressive! :p

Recon is fast, quirky, driven. He's very eager to please and barky.

But, he is absolutely drawn to people and is afraid of sheep, with a fantastic off switch and no need for strenuous activity/mental stimulation most days.

All in all, I like that my dogs have the best traits for their breeds and lack the worst ones (for the most part)! :)
 

Shai

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#20
Mira is an water-loving orally-fixated happy dog who likes people, adores her person above all else, and wants to be involved in everything. She loves to work, any work, is bird-obsessed, will retrieve until she passes out, and is serious while working and light-hearted and a bit silly when off duty. She generalizes quickly and isn't bothered by loud sharp sounds. She can be extremely intense depending on the circumstances, and when in drive sees nothing but the task at hand.

I'd say she's well within the range for what a Flatcoat should be. On the serious, work-oriented side of things but not beyond reason.
 

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