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I agree with the "Heinz 57" approach, but will add that I have a German Short-hair Pointer (how pure I do not know, and she refuses to tell family secrets...) that is just incredible !
She came from the pound as that's just how I roll...
My friend Norma just goes into the pound and asks "Who's on death row ?"
Good Luck !
Zomby woof wrote:unless I missed it, I'm surprised nobody has said black lab. Docile, quiet, and excellent watch dogs, if needed.
We've had a lot of dogs between us, and since we've been totgether, and the black lab crosses have always been perfect family pets. We always get our dogs from the pound, and the last two were lab/border collie crosses.
I will whole heartedly agree to Lab mixes. The best dog I've ever had was a black lab/brittany spaniel/possibly something else mix. As for purebred labs, every one I've been around were just like Marley of the movie. Rambunctious and will get into everything and sometimes destructive. Good dogs if you run them though. Something about mixing labs seem to settle them down and turn them into mans best friend. Maybe that's why they are so popular to mix into designer dogs, ie: labradoodles.
To Chebbie: My next rescue dog will be a german short-hair pointer. Have always wanted one. But will be a while. The rescue toy poodle I have now that was 5-years old when we got her isn't very social and tries to be dominate over any other animal. Doesn't work out well since she's maybe 6 lbs soaking wet and is otherwise a coward.
, whippet, Italian greyhound, or greyhound sound about perfect. I wouldn't choose any of the terriers for him.
We made the mistake of thinking that a Whippet would just be a smaller Greyhound. True, however the Whippet breed was created through the mixing of greyhounds and terriers. So you essentially get a very fast dog, with a strong prey drive, that never loses energy. And, Iggies (Italian Greys) are smaller still, have greater energy, and are quite neurotic.
We now have a greyhound (Dingo), a saluki (Heidi), and a whippet (Vishna). I think my wife intends to go through every sight hound breed!
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Heidi is from Kuwait (on the left). She is a rescue. Dingo is on the right. He is a rescue from Fast Friends of New Hampshire.
+1 on the Schnauzer rec. We absolutely love ours. No shedding, friendly, generally not as yappy as some of the smaller dogs I've had in the past. I raised puppies when I was in high school and college and curtis' advice is spot on. If you want a rule of thumb on picking a puppy (if you chose not to go the rescue dog route), get there early and, with the owner's permission, open up the cage. Generally, you don't want the first pup out of the cage (that's usually your alfa - pushy, demanding, high energy and sometimes a little neurotic). You also don't want the one that doesn't come out of the cage at all. (Generally overly submissive, disinterested, crabby/snappy and often not the best physical specimines - read: Vet bills). Like all "rules of thumb" (notice all the "usually" and "generally" qualifiers) there are exceptions.
I vote lab mix as well. Although bordering on large dog territory, they barely shed at all and are about the most friendly and loyal dog you will ever meet. My pit/lab mix is a little over 70lbs, has a giant pit bull head, and the floppy ears and big webbed feet of a lab. She really doesn't understand aggression at all. She once had another dog attack her, latching onto her neck, and she was smiling and wagging her tail, trying to play the entire time. Good thing she has a giant neck or she could have been seriously injured. They do have a lot of energy, but it's usually an off or on thing. My dog has two modes, flip the hell out and lounge around. As long as you let them run and get their energy out they are big time lap dogs. My only complaint is she can be a bit too protective. If someone knocks on the door or if she's hanging out with a group outside and someone outside of the group approaches us, she puts on her best tough dog act (which is actually pretty scary) until I tell her it's OK. If I lived in a bad neighborhood I'd really enjoy this feature, but as it stands it's annoying.
In reply to vwcorvette:
That is a great photo. 
While I'm not an owner (I have a couple of cats) a good friend of mine has had a few greyhounds and they top the list of dogs I'd want. Chill, funny, pleasant, quirky, friendly, loving and LAZY. Just beautiful dogs overall. Plus you get the good karma of the rescue thing.
Just be prepared to be sociable, because everyone will have questions when you walk yours. They attract quite a bit of attention. 
Seeing those greyhounds reminds me of a Tshirt I saw. It said: Yes, its a Greyhound, yes its fast, no its not hungry.
I find it so amusing the specific attention that certain breeds get. When I have my Chihuahua I always get "oh are you cold... you're shivering." When I walk my Staffie I don't get anything but people crossing the street to avoid her. When I walk my Frenchie I usually get "oh I love pugs."
There should be a Tshirt for every breed.
Let's make it happen... make up a Tshirt for every breed. This may actually help the OP more than it seems. If we can narrow down each breed to a Tshirt slogan it might give the OP a condensed version of some breeds.
Everybody make up what they would put on Tshirts as answers to the moron questions you get when you walk your dogs. If you have a Shar Pei, maybe it would be something like "yes, he's soft. No, its not extra skin, its just skin." Or if you have a Lab it might say "yes he's a retriever. No, he can't find your lost remote."
There are four bullmastiff/pit pups at a local(ish) rescue that I'm currently failing to convince the wife we have enough room for.
We added this guy to the family today. His name is Gus:
After lots of research, meeting the parents and him picking us, we decided that this was the dog for us.
He's a Bernese Mountain Dog and he's 14lbs at only 8 weeks old. He's gonna be a big boy.
He's sleeping under my chair right now.
Shawn
integraguy wrote:I'm looking for a dog that would be medium sized, doesn't shed a lot, and is a bit of a laid back couch potato.
Gertrude is a rescued hound....probably mostly foxhound, as you can tell from her appearance
She probably has a trace of beagle. (she has an underbite, and is only about 35 lbs.) She sheds a lot, is a moron, and enjoys howling/barking at inappropriate times.
I'd say that almost, but not quite, entirely unlike what you're looking for.
curtis73 wrote:Everybody make up what they would put on Tshirts as answers to the moron questions you get when you walk your dogs. If you have a Shar Pei, maybe it would be something like "yes, he's soft. No, its not extra skin, its just skin." Or if you have a Lab it might say "yes he's a retriever. No, he can't find your lost remote."
I actually have this t-shirt:
Saw a bumper sticker that would be cool on a shirt:
"My greyhound makes your honor student look slow and awkward."
I would also make a shirt that says, "No, it's not a great dane."
I've only owned cocker spaniels since I was a kid....great dogs, just watch for ear infections.Our latest (Maddie) is a parti-colored, mostly white with black spots and freckles.
Ive been around 2 bichon's since they were puppies. They really are great dogs. Its true that their coat is hypoallergenic and more like hair. My mom is allergic to dogs and a bichon was one she could get and not have a reaction to. They certainly are "cute" looking, and EVERYONE assumes they are girls.
I like pugs too they are a good small dog, They are definately a chill couch potato dog. They do shed, but its not too bad.
I may be biased because we currently have a pure bred husky and a husky mix and they shed so much its insane.
Chebbie_SB wrote:I agree with the "Heinz 57" approach, but will add that I have a German Short-hair Pointer (how pure I do not know, and she refuses to tell family secrets...) that is just incredible !
A neighbor just went to the pound and got a mutt with a large German Short-hair Pointer component. Awesome dog.
There mut sounds like a good plan. Go to the shelter, see what they have, walk and play with them. They will know all about the breeds to help you choose. My dog is a rescue. She is a German Australian shepherd and the smartest dog I have ever had. Maybe too smart. A chow (sp?) comes to mind with the description of what you are looking for, but I don't know a whole lot about that breed.
We've had nothing but used dogs in my home. There was a really good Corgie from death row at the pound, a small collie that a friend of my wife had to leave behind, and Sable, the current lab mix we got from the Humane Society. All have fit right into the family.
It's a bit of a gamble rescuing a dog, but there's a time in life to roll the dice.
pinchvalve wrote:Good point, that can happen. For me, more often than not people's perceptions of pits are changed when they meet mine and I obviously enjoy spreading the gospel. But knowing what will bother you and avoiding it is very important.
I also recommend to people the BBD or Big Black Dog. They are found at every shelter because they are hard to adopt. Not because they have any problems, just because they are in indiscriminate mixed breed. People generally want to know what kind of dog they have, but honestly, they are the best dogs. Loyal as loyal gets. Kinda look like this:
+1 on the BBD. Our pound hound.
clearly the answer is 'american bulldog'
Thanks, shiny happy people. Now I have a lovable, stubborn greyhound following me around the house.
Awesome! My buddy Chris had two rescued greyhounds. Great critters.
I haven't read through the thread yet, and I hate to be one of those "OMG my breed is the best" people, but from what you describe, a Greyhound could be right up your alley.
We adopted ours 2 years ago, and she's been awesome. Loves to walk and run, but when she's indoors, she a cat. Always curled up on the couch or the bed, and she loves to spoon. Super friendly, loves car rides (ours does anyway), and generally laid back and chill. Very quiet, and while they do shed a little, its nothing like the shaggy breeds. I'd recommend heading to a greyhound shelter, and at least meeting them. I knew nothing about the breed until we stopped in to visit them, and they were so awesome.
Cheers to you for adopting, though. No matter what breed or mix you end up with, you're giving a dog a home, and that's the most important part.
Rufus.
sorry, needed to post a pic of my bitch
