I was just wondering, what is the reason for getting your dog? Companion? Family Pet? Protection? Sport? Shows? Service Dog? Work dog? Breeding? Guard dog?

(being new, just thought it would be a way to get to know a little about each other)

My dogs are all pets. I adopted the second for my first dog, to help model confidence and dog-like behaviours, and the third I adopted b/c after watching him interact with his litter (I was gathering donations for the rescue) I felt he would interact well with the existing two.

I've posted this story before,
My oldest son who was 4 at the time was terrified and I mean terrified of dogs due to my nieghbors loose little yap yap shepherd mix. It was totaly over the top. anytime he would see a dog he would go into a screaming panic. So I went to the SPCA and asked for a large GSD or GSD mix housebroke and lazy. So they gave me Maggie. My son ran upstairs and wouldn't come down for supper.....for about a half hour. He's 15 now and still not thrilled about dogs but he doesn't freak anymore.

I got Max because I wanted to get a "real GSD" for sport and personal protection. bought him from a newspaper ad, that was a mistake. poor dog is a nerve bag and low drive. we didn't go to training, we went to counseling and therapy. still got to watch him for stress anytime I take him anywhere.

after that I went to a local SchutzHund club and bought Erika as a puppy from one of the club members. She is totaly fearless, learns fast, has fun and will play/work until she collapses.

Erika's breeder wanted to take his breeding program in another direction so I got Erika's mom "Roxie" who was a kennel dog who turned into a house dog nearly overnight and wants to be petted and snuggled like she is making up for lost time.
I wanted to start breeding but just don't have the time for the titleling and work needed to produce healthy pups that would command any sort of price.

My one and only reason for getting my jack russell terrier, Turbo, was to have a dog that wanted to play.

Never had any dogs growing up that were nuts about play, and that is what I wanted. A maniac.

Lets just say I got my money's worth.:wink:

Enoch is a house pet but I became interested in "proper" dog training before I got him and he's well...my guinea pig. I've made a lot of mistakes with him but he seems not to mind or notice. Lucky me.

I have six dogs. They all work in their own way.

Princess is a seat warmer. At her age she sleeps about 20 hrs a day if not more which gets her spot on the couch up to a great 80 degrees. She also can do a unique take down move by standing in peoples way while they carry things.

Willow brings me things like dead animals that have had a coincidental run in with a chunk of lead or steel. She also on occasion will lumberjack down trees and cut them into length.

Bodie is the alarm system. No noise gets by him.

Booker is my best friend, and assistant. He's as close to a service dog as i qualify for. He's one of those dogs you get once in a lifetime and should be the gold standard for desirable temperament in papillons.

Misty is the mother to my puppy Rain. She would be a show dog if she could just stop throwing up in the car. Otherwise she is a great dog model for my artwork projects. She has the stay down to the point where she is pose able.

Rain is my future with dogs and hopefully one day will grow up to meet my breeding standards. She's been in the show ring. I hope to eventually have her run agility and do rally.

We got our GSD when we moved to Gillette, WY. I didn't want to be alone in a strange place without some kind of menacing looking dog to bark at unwanted visitors. We considered doing SchH with her, but her nerves aren't great, so I'll be working with her towards CGC and tracking.
We got our Lab while we were still in WY, from a breeder in MN. My husband has a thing for labs, grew up with one and always wanted his own. He also wanted a hunting buddy. So he's the hunter, I'll also be working on getting him CGC as well.
Our Saint Bernard, oh boy. We had been thinking about getting another dog, a small one, like a Corgi or JRT. We had talked about getting a very high drive GSD from a breeder in MT, but I said no, this is not the time-I had just had our daughter about 2.5 months before we got Lily. We kept looking around for someone local and checking the shelters, but no small breed dogs that we were interested in. One day before my hubby left for work, I told him that I saw Saints in the paper for $300/pup. We knew that there'd be no papers and that the dog would grow up to be huge (how huge is still sinking in 8P lol). We jumped the gun and brought her home. Going to CGC her hopefully and train her to pull sleds and wagons-think it'd be pretty fun for our daughter. At least we won't have to worry about her asking for a pony in the next few years, lol.

I love all my dogs and have hopes of breeding Labs in the future as well as become a pro dog trainer.

Nico was my first truly adult responsibility and despite having gotten her at 18 she has been a wonderful and awesomely stable dog. I have never known a more confident, assertive yet totally un-agressive dog in my life. (unless its storming and then she is a mess) Nico did compete in dockdogs when she was younger and did pretty well considering her age and size. She one a couple of ribbons in the junior division in area competitions

Loki followed me from the time his eyes were open and is our muffin puppy. I had to keep the floppy eared, big footed puppy that was my little shadow.
He just exudes love, especially if you are under 10. He is a sleeping companion for my son, and his confidant, I will often hear him talking to loki in his room at night, and I think that is a pretty good thing for a kid to have.

Yote our husky mix was a balm for a broken heart.

He is now my favorite (dont tell) and the most difficult dog I have ever owned. His purpose is to shred paper, dribble tinkle whenever he gets excited, and general bring a little chaos to our lives.

I am considering Shutzhund with him because he is mouthy and high drive and needs a "job".

Mo Mo - 8 yo male Westie, bought him from the pet store when he was 8 weeks old. Learned my lesson, should never buy from a pet store. He's a very smart, but neurotic. Very people and dog friendly. Pet.

Kuma - 8 yo male Pekingese mix, got as a rescue when he was 8 weeks old. He is independent, more like a cat than a dog. We got him as a companion for Mo Mo (we thought dogs needed doggy friends, now we know we were wrong). Pet.

San San - 3.5 yo female GSD. Got her as a pet as well when she was 2 yo. Then realized active working-line dogs need a job. We are now training for PSA.

Wei Wei - 8(?) yo male GSD. Saw his info on a GSD rescue's website. Felt bad for him 'cuz he was old and big, hard to re-home. Got him as a pet. He's very laid back and easy to care for.

Rhasta is a Jack Russell Terrier I got when I was 16. I was allowed to get another dog, I think because I'd been rumbling about getting rabbits and walking them on leashes.. Well, I basically wanted the same thing as Michael: a dog that wanted to go, go, go! all the time! He was a sly pick on my part...my Mom specified that she wanted a dog that was small and did not shed much. I knew what I was getting into, but can you imagine her surprise when we get to the breeder's and the mother of the litter does a few consecutive flips of joy from a standstill? That being said, I think he's captivated her heart the way no other dog ever will. He's a great, high drive dog that makes a great buddy but can't really be trusted around strangers. He lives at home with the family for now.

Keiko is an Australian Shepherd out of old working lines. She's the first dog that is actually "all mine" and lives at school with me. When I decided I was getting another dog, I was first looking for something to get me into any sort of competition with dogs. I narrowed my search to the Aussie, met a few people in the breed, attended trials, and fell in love with the old-time lines. My purpose in getting her was to get introduced to the world of working dogs (stockdog style) and, since I don't have any stock of my own at the moment, start competing in stockdog trials.