Gotta get a new dog
 

Ok, the family had a sad event over the weekend as we had to put down our 7 year old lab mix. Dexter had contracted an extremely aggressive cancer in his mouth. The tumor in his jaw was noticed around the 10th of January and by the 20th, it had already advanced past the point where treatment of any kind would have saved him while providing a good quality of life. So, on Saturday ... well, it was a really tough day.

The good thing is that my 5 and 3 year old have taken it well. A hell of a lot better than my wife, I'll say that.

So, we're on the look for a new family dog and I'm looking for one that is kid friendly, very light on the shedding with the max of being about 40 pounds. Outside of that, I'm pretty open to suggestions... well, I don't want a pit bull or anything of that nature. It's not that I don't like them, but that type of a dog won't be an option for various reasons.

We loved our black lab mix, but he was a shedder and about 75 pounds. I have a 5 year old, 3 year old and 7 month old - so the dog has to be kid friendly. I'm not looking for a guard or watch dog, so that's not important.

I definitely DO NOT want a yip yip pain in the ass type of dog, if you know what I mean. I've done some research on types of dogs, but thought I would ask the masses about your thoughts.

Lemme know and thanks in advance.

Theres a guy here who can get you a "great" fighting dog that doesnt kill anything but other dogs.

Well, if that were one of the things I was looking for... ummm, yeah.

I guess a wirehair pointer is too heavy for you. They run about 50 pounds, but they don't shed.

Go to the pound. There are gems there and you can save a life. I got my Corgi-Sheperd there and she is the best dog I've ever had. She's about 30lbs.

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Hmmm, the wirehire pointer just doesn't look right to me...

Pudel Pointers are nice, too.

58-4ever, that's a nice looking dog and I'm definitely a fan of going to the pound, SPCA or through one of these shelters that are around town. That's how we got our last dog.

I just want to narrow down the search before we make a trip somewhere, b/c it's really easy to fall for these dogs when you see them in the shelters.

We have a maltese and at first glace he looks like a "yip-yip" dog. But he's not.

They have only one layer of fur so there is no shedding and no dander. Essentially they are a hypo-allergenic. Plus he's fun and easy to train.

I've always been a "lab" guy but this little dog has been a lot of fun.

I'd guess he goes about 8 lbs. I've never had to pooper-scoop and never had it tracked into the house either. It's like he goes and the stuff is gone.

The two drawbacks are eyes and teeth. They have bad teeth so you have to have them cleaned frequently and they have seeping eyes - the brown crap in the corner of their eyes.

Other than that, awesome dog.

I've always liked Huskies but they shed like crazy so you probably wouldn't want one. They're pretty active too.

I couldn't stand that dog.

I have a 40lb Brittney. She is very friendly, doesn't bark, and doesn't shed excessively.

I saw one of those in Alabama at a friends house. It was really nice.

Yeah, he has something against fat people. He won't even hump a fat guy's leg.

Yeah, I love labs... had a husky when I was a kid, great dogs. My wife found a site that showed different 'mixes' of breeds, and there were some pretty cool options. The trick is finding them at the shelter. I like Boxers, but the wife isn't a fan as much.

I like Beagles, but they can be heavy barkers.