Woof! Bark! And also Whiiiiiiiiiine.

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Red Squirrel Aug 2014 4:43pm, 29 Aug 2014 16,524 posts	0 Red Squirrel 57 definitely! Small to medium and quite slim. Too long with short legs but a fast runner. Face of a Doberman - long nose and some brown on face, v shiny black coat with a white tummy. Tail that went round and round like a helicopter blade, which gave him a joyful look and prompted strangers to say to me in the street "He looks like a cheerful chap" as he trotted along beside me. Pavement/road trained. Legendary describes him perfectly.
Red Squirrel Aug 2014 4:46pm, 29 Aug 2014 16,525 posts	0 Red Squirrel As a result of him, I've got a huge soft spot for too-long mixture dogs with short legs. Saw a black one the other day called Liquorice. I'm also fond of daschunds now because of the similar face. (Daschunds are only dobermans with shorter legs anyway.)
Sharkie Aug 2014 4:48pm, 29 Aug 2014 5,681 posts	0 Sharkie You're safe. He wasn't a Cairns. And no Cairns genes or traits have been mentioned. You're sailing close to the wind round these parts with your apparent love of JRs. Note judicious use of wink.
Red Squirrel Aug 2014 4:59pm, 29 Aug 2014 16,526 posts	0 Red Squirrel I don't have a particular love of JRs, although I know 2 who are fantastic and grew up with one. It's all about the personality for me and I do also like the look of some breeds in particular but I'll be open-minded about what dog I end up with in the course of my new business.
Sharkie Aug 2014 5:11pm, 29 Aug 2014 5,682 posts	0 Sharkie You would have loved Rio the dachshund who terrorised huge bewildered Jess at the puppy parties. He was DEFINITELY a Dobie with short legs. Or most people's idea of a Dobie anyway. Eventually Jess had enough and when he launched himself at her neck one too many times she started picking him up by the neck and gently shaking him. He STILL came back for more. Insanely 'feisty' creature. I can only recall meeting a couple of full sized Dobie and both were clowns rather than 'Arry 'Ardmens.
Sharkie Aug 2014 5:23pm, 29 Aug 2014 5,683 posts	0 Sharkie And of course you need to be open minded and unprejudiced about your future clientele. And their dogs. As I can see you will be. I couldn't do it!
Rosehip Aug 2014 5:39pm, 29 Aug 2014 3,759 posts	0 Rosehip FIL had a GSD/Basset cross, head of a GSD on the body and short legs of a Basset. Paddy was a fabulous dog, loyal but calm, doted on the children but would have attacked anyone or anything to defend kids or FIL despite being short of leg.
Helegant Aug 2014 6:15pm, 29 Aug 2014 2,363 posts	0 Helegant Yes this is the daughter that Jet has th bond with, and as you say, it seems to be loosening. The traumatised GSD/mamaluk(ish) , Kiever, that is my daughter's dog is now OK with me, loves attention and is obedient, makes good eye contact and seems very affectionate. As long as they don't make eye contact on first meeting she's fine with most humans after she gets over the initial panic barking. She is also OK in a large space with more dominant dogs - seems happy to keep clear of them. With Jet it's more complicated as she firstly thinks he's a threat and panic barks. Then she calms down and walks happily in tandem. Then for reasons that are opaque to me she sniffs at him, he lies down submissivley and after a few seconds of normal dog behaviour- sniffing - just as everything looks normal, Kiever attacks him. This behaviour is repeated. Luckily she is now muzzled whenever she's out of the house, and we've been keeping the dogs in separate spaces in the house. I am developing a theory that isn't fiully formed yet - that my daughter's relationship with me, and also Jet is confusing to her idea of pack position? Or even, that she doesn't like me talking to Jet. Any ideas? The odd thing is that I stand between her and Jet, and then Jet comes out from behind me to say hello - so he obviously doesn't feel threatened all the time. I wondered what would happen if we were to swap dogs on a walk? Or if we were to lock them in a large space without leads? (Risky) Anyway, Kiever is now booked into a specialist GSD behaviour class to address some of her issues, most of which seem to be fear-based. Watch this space.
Red Squirrel Aug 2014 11:02pm, 29 Aug 2014 16,532 posts	0 Red Squirrel Paddy sounds funny but lovely. I am generally a lover of sturdy dogs - proper dogs, not balls of fluff. However, I have met some nice balls of fluff which have been good companions for other dogs and great around small children. My friend had a rescue JR who growled at most people outside his immediate human family and didn't really like men. Not good. He had other issues too. However, when my friend was offered a young female shih tzu by an old lady in her street she took it as a companion for growler. As a result, the JR is now more calm and even-tempered. The shih tzu is actually more adventurous out and about and jumps straight into streams while the JR hesitates and often comes home with a muddy undercarriage from rummaging through undergrowth.
Helegant Aug 2014 12:29am, 30 Aug 2014 2,365 posts	0 Helegant One of Jet's frends is a Basset Hound. Short legs but very fast. And a barker - won the prize for noisiest dog at the novelty dog show. Someone I met at the weekend said that it's always better to have two dogs than one because they are pack animals. Thoughts?