I know it's easy to fall in love with a look, a quirky personality trait, or fur type. For me, I was quite enamored with the Olde English Sheepdog. There was one following the kids in the neighborhood in every child's book. How happy, slobbery, and puffy they are. And now, I'm quite in love with the Afghan Hound. Their sleek long and luxurious coat just flowing in the wind. But let's get real, I mean I hardly brush my hair, yes I wash, but brushing, it's for the birds. I can't even keep my daughter Aurora's hair from tangling. Who am I to think I'd EVER been able to keep up with an ACTUAL coated breed! One where grooming partakes numerous hours daily or even weekly! Nope, I'm not your girl. I don't spend hours in front of the mirror and can probably count the number of times I've curled my own hair. So when you're googling 'Breeds' and there are 5 stars checked off next to grooming, and you've got hours and end to fill, and yes although brushing and blowing through the mane of a well-behaved creature sounds therapeutic, not doing it can be quite daunting. Think to have to shave such a magnificent coat and keep him shaved, Ewww. It'll dismantle the lore of the breed you fell in love with, and chances are once he's shaved, it's ruined. The coat will never be the same.

Now let's talk Temperament real quick. Now, this is a big one but just for a little foreshadowing here, you can not love the wrong attitude out of the dog. I say wrong because it just might not be right for you, your home, and your family. It might be perfect for someone else. The magnificent Cane Corso, almost jet black but for the near-invisible brindling. How tall dark and handsome right, right! But you can't "No Sir" a very powerful animal into submission, it's an aura he'll submit to, the Alpha if you will. And no matter how powerful we may feel, the stare down of a giant breed is quite intimidating. And once you've broken that stare down, you've lost. The Corso is the boss. Or let's say The Chow Chow, in recent years I danced with the idea of having a small breeding program of them here. Remember my obsession with fur. After numerous respected breeders discouraged me raising them along with children and finally our customer coming to buy his first dog since childhood from fear of his own pet Chow Chow that attacked him. That was it, I can't raise them to be the happy go lucky goofballs that Olde English Bulldogges are with their families, with my family.

Let's talk Activity Level. This one's huge too. Now sure, they vary with OEB's. Your breeder should be able to say, 'Oh yes, you want to hike in the Colorado mountains, this is the one for you.' Or ' You want a couch potato, take this one.' For the most part, Olde English wants to do, or try to do whatever you're doing. If you're fishing or walking or reading a book. They'd just love to be right there with ya. They're companions. But let's say you fell in love with The Dalmation or The Jack Russel Terrier. Most dogs were bred for generations, for centuries to perform a certain job or task. The best bred to the bred. The best hunters to the best hunters. The herders to herders. The mousers to mousers. And what to mousers do? They dig. And bark. Herders like the Australian Shepard expend a tremendous amount of energy corralling livestock. They are going to have that energy Every Single Day. Even when you want to sleep in on a Sunday. All that energy and barking and destructive behavior no doubt when that energy isn't put to work will never make him a bad dog. A dog can not be bad for doing what it was bred to do. Maybe it was a bad choice. A choice that your friends and neighbors may not love, no matter how much you love him. And taking that bad dog to training to fix what he was bred for centuries to do, is only unfair to him. Hopefully, your trainer will discuss that with you, or worse, just take your money, or even worse, scare him into submission. Anyway, if 5 stars are checked new to Activity Level when googling your breed, take that very seriously.

Trainability, sure, some dogs are the sharpest tools in the shed. Some dogs, especially smaller breeds just never fully potty train. Smarts can be bred into and out of a dog. Seasoned breeders know the difference. Seasoned breeders just don't tolerate dumb in their program. Those guys will be adopted out to pet homes. You can't fix stupid, now I didn't say that but its a saying. It's kinda true. But more than that some dogs do not just aim to please like their cousin The Golden Retriever. She is so intelligent she can be trained with a glance, with a kiss. The Olde English Bulldogge is neither of these for the most part. They're gonna need some consistency, some routine, some clear lines. If you tell them no, but let them jump on the couch anyway, whelp, you're gonna be fighting for couch space. If you want them to go on a walk but they don't want to, that's gonna take some coaxing. Treats are amazing for that. All you've got to do is make it fun. They'll know you're upset if you are but if you talk to them in your super cute super playful voice, they're fools for happiness.

Health, health is everything and often taken for granted. Unless you have an unhealthy dog, you have no idea just how bad things can get. Medical expenses or just plain suffering of the animal. Some breeds are more prone to bad hips or congestive heart failure. The Bernese Mountain Dog is prone to Von Willebrand Disease, a hereditary blood clotting disorder. But that doesn't mean these beautiful animals don't have their place in this world. There are those who dedicate their lives to preserving them, to irradicating the disease but not to sacrifice type (or the look and temperament). Simply pulling all the carriers of the disease from breeding programs would be a great disservice to the breed. You'd be sacrificing so much more than the chance a puppy is affected by the disorder. Genetics is a whole nother chapter.

All in all, do your homework, and then do it again. Beyond a google search, and way beyond asking the well to do Facebook Group patrons their opinions, reach out to an established breeder. One who isn't trying to sell you but truly just in love with their breed. They'll be honest. They'll let you know if you're a right fit for the breed, you have to be honest to them too. Tell them how much you want to exercise with the breed, how much you want to pay the groomers every month, or even the vet bills. And sure no dog is perfect, but being educated before diving in will be very helpful to you, your breeder, and especially your new mongrel.

Choosing the Right Breed

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