Looking for a low shedding dog, any suggestions? Questions?

In the last year in a half both of my boxers have passed and im looking into what our next breed will be. My wife and I currently do not have kids but we plan to in the future so we want a breed that is good around kids (i know this comes with socializing when they are young) and a med-larger size dog we can run with and play with.

We loved the boxers and honestly if it wasn't for all the shedding and all the drool that would be the only dog i would ever get but both of mine just shed way too much.

At the moment were looking into mabye a poddle but not sure also a standard or giant schnauzer.

I know ive read the minis are yappers, are standards also really yappy?

My wife likes what shes read about the spanish water dogs but there is only one breeder we can find online in our state and im not sure if i want to get a breed of dogs that my vet isn't familiar with.

Any other suggestions would be great.

Thanks

Spanish Water dogs are low shedding, but VERY high coat maintenance, higher than a poodle, I think. I don't know too much about their personalities.

What about a soft-coated wheaten terrier? They've got a different personality than boxers, but they're high-energy, very smart, and generally good with kids. They also don't usually shed at all.

Standard poodle?

No shedding.. but the grooming maintenance is high (they need to be prof groomed about every 3 weeks I think)

You can keep their coat in a low maintenance puppy cut like this..


They are sweet, very smart, active dogs. Good with kids, other dogs etc..

and they're totally goofy like boxers.

What about a Bouvier. They are very goofy, low shedding dogs. Although you would have to brush them often and they can have DR issues to strange dogs.

I'd think a Standard or Mini Poodle could be ideal for you. They tend to be good with kids and friendly to people and other dogs with very silly, playful personalities. They are also very smart and pretty willing to form a working relationship with people. Poodles will need professional grooming every 4-8 weeks or so, depending on the clip you decide on. The shorter and more utilitarian the clip is, the longer you can go between grooms and the less you have to do at home. The more hair you want, the more maintenance you need to do at home and/or the more grooming trips you'll need to be making. This is the case with most low-shedders though, unless they're hairless. Poodles, Schnauzers, Bouvs, Soft Coated Wheatens, Spanish Water Dogs, Portuguese Water Dogs, Airedales, Kerry Blues, etc all need professional grooming...or an owner willing to learn to groom at home and buy the necessary equipment. I don't see where a SWD would be higher maintenance than a Poodle, probably about the same - you could choose to keep them very short for low maintenance or more traditionally groomed which is higher maintenance. Call around to grooming shops in your area to get an idea of how much this will cost before getting a non-shedding breed.

When considering Giant Schnauzers and Bouvs know that they can be guardy, iffy with other dogs and kind of..."hard headed". Make sure you are prepared for that if you get one. They are very different from the two breeds you mentioned in your first post. If you keep them in a traditional trim, their beards can be kinda gross too.

I think you would have better luck finding a Poodle puppy than a SWD. As you said they are pretty uncommon and that can mean a very long wait for puppies. Their temperaments should be similar (can technically come out of the same litter). Get a puppy from a good breeder who does health testing and breeds for proper temperament. Be sure that you like the temperament of the parents. Otherwise, much of their personality will depend on your willingness to socialize your dog from puppyhood on and start training at an early age.

Most wirecoated dogs are low shedding. We had a wirehaired pointing griffon. He made a great all around family/farm dog. The only animals he couldn't be trusted around was birds. They are very high energy as puppies, and need to have activity as adults, but if you're used to boxers and their energy level I think you'd probably do well with one.

They're also extremely good with kids, having an incredible pain tolerance for things like being tripped over and accidentally stepped on.

We have been told by many griff breeders there is zero dog aggression within the breed. It's one of the main reasons we went with them. That was very true of Charlie. Whenever a dog started posturing with him, or even attacked him (it happened once) he'd instantly start appeasement posturing and if it didn't work, do everything to avoid being bitten and escape rather than fight back.

They are a bit guardy with strangers coming on the property, but not nearly as intense as a giant schnauzer or bouv. They're more likely to bark and charge the fence and save biting for someone that attacks them or a family member. Charlie never warmed up to strange men on sight, but some women he'd instantly adore. Part of that was early socialization, as he was 4 months old and came from a little old lady breeder with limited contact with men. A week before he died a prowler was trying to get in our neighbor's window so I sent him out the door and he chased the guy back to their car and they left. He could have easily bit, but didn't because it wasn't necessary.

As far as shedding, I can't remember ever finding his hair in the house. We'd use a mars coat king rake thingy to rake out dead undercoat once every couple of weeks, but that was it. No trimming, nothing. I stripped his tail stub but that was mostly because it had fringe and looked weird (they're not supposed to have tail fringe).

I think a standard poodle would be a great fit. Very smart, great with people,children and other animals. Always ready, willing & able to join in any activity from playing, swimming, hiking, etc. Out of all the different dogs I have had over the years they have been by far the easiest to train. They excel at obedience. I keep my 2 in an all over short clip, ears included, and they go for clipping about every 8 weeks. It's funny that you have had boxers - many times I have been told that my spoos play just like boxers do. I don't find them to be yappy at all. They will bark to alert but they do stop when told to. In fact by their bark I can tell without looking why they are barking - there is a stranger outside, a neighborhood cat is taking a stroll through the yard, there is a squirrel in the tree out in front or a friend or family has arrived. They are a water retriever and are generally very in tune with their people. I find them to be quite the comics - they definitely keep me laughing. I can't imagine every being without at least one of these characters living in my home.

Many of the boxers I know have a flat single coat and don't shed very much (compared to a lab, or rottie, or dog like that). Your boxers may shed more because of their diet....bathing dogs regularly and a good diet REALLY cuts down on shedding in any breed.

Also, I've never met a boxer that drooled when it wasn't nervous or eating. Many wire-haired/curly haired breeds (like poodles, schnauzers, terriers, PWDs) get so much food/water stuck in their beards and drip all over the house, I can't imagine drooling would be worse. The only way to stop that is to get their beard/face trimmed short or shaved regularly.

Sometimes I wish I bought dogs to match the carpet, wardrobe and furniture, either that or thought again and bought stock in those hair rollers.

A couple different thoughts for you. First off all dogs do shed to some extent but I can understand the boxer thing because a combo of light and dark hair will show up... on everything.

I would suggest to you looking at breeds that need to be regularly groomed. Portuguese water spaniels I find to be goofy much in the way a boxer is. You will have to deal with hair, but just in a different way. You will also have to regularly brush and comb your dog as a trade off to consider.

Wirehaired dogs do still shed to an extent but less than short haired dogs imo, but also have hair that tends to break off, especially on things that they wish to rub against like the front portion of the couch. It's a sort of self stripping lol.

The flip side of this are hairless or nearly hairless dogs like the xolo. I'm not sure these dogs would be temperament wise what you're looking for but they may be the answer. You will need sun screen.

Do you mean Portuguese Water Dogs? Or Irish Water Spaniels?

Doh... thank you.. I ment water dogs. I should go back to bed. lol

APBTs are low shedding Spend some time with some rescues and see if they're a good fit for you.

LOL it happens! I was just curious, as I am very familiar with water dogs (PWDs). They're cool dogs for the right people but Poodles are definitely an "easier" breed in many ways.