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A number of things come to mind here. First of all get any dog you have fixed. If you get a dog from the pound it will likely already be fixed. You do not want to have every dog in the neighborhood tearing down your fence to get your your female in heat and creating more puppies in this world that need homes. Nor do you want a male that spends its life trying to get out of your backyard to mate with the females he smells. It is not only the right thing to do to fix the dog, but it makes for a better dog, especially if you want a watchdog. There are some breeds that do not shed much, most do. These are dogs that shed less than most:
Affenpinscher
Airedale Terrier
American Hairless Terrier
American Water Spaniel
Australian Terrier
Basenji
Bedlington Terrier
Bergamasco
Bichon Frise
Bichon Yorkie
Black Russian Terrier
Bolognese
Border Terrier
Bouvier des Flandres
Brussels Griffon
Cairn Terrier
Cesky Terrier
Chacy Ranior
Chi-Poo
Chinese Crested
Cockapoo
Coton de Tulear
Dandie Dinmont Terrier
Doodleman Pinscher
Giant Schnauzer
Glen of Imaal Terrier
Hairless Khala
Havanese
Irish Terrier
Irish Water Spaniel
Italian Greyhound
Kerry Blue Terrier
Komondor
Labradoodle
Lagotto Romagnolo
Lakeland Terrier
Lhasa Apso
Löwchen (Little Lion Dog)
Maltese
Malti-Poo
Manchester Terrier
Mi-Ki
Miniature Poodle
Miniature Schnauzer
Norfolk Terrier
Norwich Terrier
Peruvian Inca Orchid
Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen
Polish Owczarek Nizinny
Poos
Portuguese Water Dog
Puli
Schnoodle
Scottish Terrier (Scottie)
Sealyham Terrier
Shepadoodle
Shichon
Shih-Tzu
Silky Terrier
Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier
Spanish Water Dog
Standard Poodle
Standard Schnauzer
Tibetan Terrier
Toy Poodle
Welsh Terrier
West Highland White Terrier
Wirehaired Fox Terrier
Wirehaired Pointing Griffon
Xoloitzcuintle
Yorkshire Terrier
These are also all purebred dogs and will cost you quite a bit to buy. You might really consider getting a dog from your local shelter. It will be already fixed, will be a dog that really needs a home, and you can visit the dogs and spend time with them and choose the one that suits you.
The other thing that concerns me is you keep saying you want an "affordable" dog. I am not sure what that means, but does if cared for properly are not generally real cheap. They have dog supplies, food, vet visits and shots, possible grooming costs, and hopefully you will not have a dog that has any longterm medical issues or becomes injured.
The other thing that concerns me is you keep saying you want an "affordable" dog. I am not sure what that means, but does if cared for properly are not generally real cheap. They have dog supplies, food, vet visits and shots, possible grooming costs, and hopefully you will not have a dog that has any longterm medical issues or becomes injured.
I only said "affordable" once, in the title. What i mean is i don't want an expensive dog, such as a high quality pure breed that needs constant affection.
Posting this thread and trying to prove i will take care of the dog has been counterproductive. I know you guys love dogs and hate to see people mistreat their dogs, but that does mean i have to prove to you guys that i am not a bad dog handler. My question was straight forward
I bet those people who mistreat their dogs don't go to a online forum asking. They just ask their cousin jimmy for one of his dogs and leash the dog up in his backyard.
I only said "affordable" once, in the title. What i mean is i don't want an expensive dog, such as a high quality pure breed that needs constant affection.
Posting this thread and trying to prove i will take care of the dog has been counterproductive. I know you guys love dogs and hate to see people mistreat their dogs, but that does mean i have to prove to you guys that i am not a bad dog handler. My question was straight forward
I bet those people who mistreat their dogs don't go to a online forum asking. They just ask their cousin jimmy for one of his dogs and leash the dog up in his backyard.
The thing is, you seem to be looking at a dog clinically.....like you are buying a car.....like a dog is an inanimate object.
Quote:
such as a high quality pure breed that needs constant affection.
Statements like this ^^^.
I dare you to go anywhere......to a shelter or a breeder.....and ask them if they have a dog that doesn't require much affection.
Believe me.....they will both show you the door.
Translation: "I want a cheap dog that I won't have to bother with." Really?
Seriously, just buy a Rex Electronic Watchdog......it is exactly what you are looking for.....it is cheap, it won't take up any of your time and doesn't require and any love and affection at all.
I think any dog is going to be expensive and they can all be high maintenance. My border collie has a ton of energy, and hair. He listens well when I have a treat, yet someone comes to the door and he goes into attack mode. He is starting to calm down a bit now that he's over 5, though. My yorkie is small & cute, but boy is she stubborn. She also thinks she is a 'watch dog,' which is funny since she's 10 pounds.
I'm not convinced that you are a good home for a dog, OP,
However, "cheap" means the dog pound, where you can get an adult dog, past the chewing stage that is already neutered and vaccinated for a pretty reasonable price.
You are looking for an "alert dog". That's a dog that will let you know when someone is around. That means you don't want a dog that is too laid back, but you also do not want a dog that is reactive and barks at every leaf that falls.
You are going to get whatever the pound has available, but for what you want one of the traditional guarding breeds will do the alert with good judgment, except that they are breeds that want a lot of attention.
Toy breeds are too reactive to be good guard dogs, unless you want to know every time a car drives down the street or a leaf falls off the tree.
Hounds don't guard, so might not let you know if someone is there. Hunting breeds also aren't much into guarding. Maybe a spaniel will bark. Oh wait, no, they need to be brushed.
Herding breeds need too much exercise for your needs.
Working breeds or guarding breeds might do it. But they need training and exercise.
No dog is inexpensive. One serious visit to the vet can be over a thousand dollars. Even a routine visit to the vet can cost hundreds.
My "free" short haired Australian shepherd has already cost me hundreds and hundreds in routine vet, food, and chewies. He doesn't require grooming (hard coat) and he has very good judgment about when to bark. But, holy cow, is he high energy. I have to pay constant attention to him, constant training, and lots of exercise to keep him from walking on the ceiling. He also sheds enough to knit a carpet.
OP it's good to hear you aren't going to get a dog and treat it like a piece of furniture.
We've had many dogs, a few were pedigree - with one exception all were either re-homed to us or from a shelter even the pedigreed dogs and I found that the purebreeds were the most costly as far as vet bills were concerned. I don't know if it is because they were the result of poor breeding, i.e. backyard breeders who inbred the dogs but our mixed breed dogs have always been healthier. I have always fed them the best I could afford and was knowledgeable enough to purchase.
Dogs are pack animals and if they feel like part of the pack/family they'll be protective. I often joke that my GSD mix thinks she owns the universe, if she can see it, she owns it. Female dogs in my experience are more protective than males but almost any dog will alert if something new approaches its environment.
Being half GSD she does shed but other than that she's very low maintenance. She sees the vet annually or if she has a problem. I don't know what other 'maintenance,' one needs to do for a dog. I don't bathe her often because she H-A-T-E-S water, she'll refuse to go out if it's raining too hard. It's funny, she'll walk to door, look out, lift her front paw and look at me as if I'm crazy then turn around and go back inside, LOL It's as if she thinks I'm somehow to blame. Her ears are not erect so I do check them once a month but that takes a minute. Her nails wear down on the pavement so no worries there. Flea meds are oral and that's done with her ears. All dogs need those types of things so I'm kind of lost what else one would need to do for a dog in so far as maintenance unless it had a long or thick coat that required combing? One must vacuum or sweep regardless of pet ownership, and there's a robot that does a decent job for about $300. I'm unsure if it'd work with a lot of pet hair but it'd be worth checking if that's a n issue.
you have to train a dog if you actually want him to yap at strangers or people on the property. just a loud dog will bark at anything and everything and be annoying
Don't get a dog. Get some motion detecting spotlights, surveillance cameras, and maybe a gun if your eligible to legally own one.
Agreed.
I have never heard anyone talk about a dog like they'd never met one or knew anything about them before...not like this op.
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99% of all dogs needs affection; some more than others and that fact has absolutely nothing, zip-zero-zilch-nada to do with breeding.
