Selecting The Right Puppy For Your Family

IT IS THE HOLIDAY SEASON!!
and that means many families will decide to get a puppy. There are so many things to look for in search for the right puppy and to often time is not taken in doing research to determine what puppy would be the best. It is more then just looking for one that cute or the perfect size. You need to keep in mind what breed and what type of personality will fit into the family life style. Throughout history of our relationship with dogs, we have selectively bred dogs to perform certain functions. Unwittingly at first and then intentionally afterwards, for a thousand generations, we have been tampering with the dog’s mind.

Throughout the world, there are at least 400 different breeds of dogs and about 30,000 to 50,000 genes that govern and monitor the individual features and characteristics of each one of them. Dogs have been bred for a range of activities including:

Hunting
Attacking other dogs or animals for sport
Attacking people
Farmyard work
Guarding and watchdog activity
Herding
Racing
Sled and cart pulling
Scent following
Acting as comforters

For instance the Chihuahua was bred to act as a hot water bottle. The German shepherd is the classic example of being a guard dog and to protect. Other breeds were bred solely as guards, for heightened independent aggression. Great Danes, Mastiffs and Irish Wolfhounds all originally fell into this category and none are as trainable as the German shepherds. Fortunately they are now bred for docility but in both Danes and Mastiffs, throwbacks do easily occur.

Scientific observations on breed differences in behavior have been conducted to study the emotional reactivity, trainability and problem solving ability in Basenjis, Beagles, Cocker spaniels, Shetland sheepdogs and Fox terriers. Emotional reactivity was measured by the amount of distress barking carried out by the dog, tail wagging, heart rate and respiratory rate. In emotional reactivity it was concluded that the Fox terriers, Basenjis and Beagles were more reactive than the Shelties and Cocker spaniels.

I don’t have the space to discuss each breed in detail but here are some things to think about when looking for a puppy for your family.
How active are you, if you enjoy walking, running, going on hikes; then you may want a high energy dog or a working dog that needs to do different activities. Something that would enjoy fly ball, agility, or sporting activities would work for you. If you just want to come home from work and relax and to tired to walk or exercise a dog, stay away from terriers, working dogs and sporting dogs. Do your homework; look for a breed that meets your lifestyle and everyone will be happier. A dog that requires a lot of running, exercise and/or “A job” will not be mentally or physically happy and it may be destructive in the home.
Have a great holiday season and stay safe. Keep your pets safe and happy too by allowing them to be a part of the pack.