Nooooooooooo....not miniature American Eskimo!!
They are all the evil of a Samoyed, distilled down into an small packet of dripping evil and death..
Beware!!

I'm only *half* kidding here, my wife went through *three* of these fear biting, child chasing, spawns of Satan before she wised up and went to Corgi's...

Well, it is true that our dog is not too fond of young children, but he is not a fear biter. He guards my kids with a ferocity that belies his size. I also had a Samoyed as a kid, and adored him, so I guess I am partial to Spitz lines.

Thanks for all of the replies everyone, lots of great links and info! I think I will start another thread to discuss some breed traits I am looking for in general and see what I can find out.

Thanks!

 Quote:

Dana,my dear - you earn another star in my book, nice work! <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

Phew, I was worried I was on your bad side because I am a fan of that silly whip <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

 Quote:

Any experience with Bichons?

Like the toy poodle, they are very easy for the regular joe to acquire and pump puppies out of. They are so overbred and are high up there amongst puppymills because they make cute puppies. I've met more good Bichons than I have toy poodles. Come to think of it...I haven't met a good Toy Poodle. But at the groom shop I worked at we had one or two nice Bichons and if it came down to me choosing a Toy Poodle or Bichon I'd go with a Bichon. Slightly less health problems and they may be a notch above toys in the intelligence scale. By that same token though we also have had some really nice Yorkies and I am NOT a advocate of that breed as well. But occassionally, you can find a good one. It comes down to really choosing your breeder carefully and meet the parents, you might find a good one. Show breeders are the way to go when it comes to companion breeds. They are at least striving for SOMETHING.I am not sure why but all these newbies that get into breeding pets often say "oh well we are breeding for temperament" and yet they seem to lack it the most!

Papillons are a great breed. Extremely intelligent, happy-go-lucky dogs. Another one that came to mind is a Cavalier King Charles Spanial. Their like little Golden Retrievers .... great temperament and good with kids.

Also, someone mentioned that Border Colles and Poodles were the highest ranked in intelligence. By those studies they are ranking the STANDARD poodle. As I said, Standard Poodles are absolutely brilliant dogs. Toy poodles, not so much.

Now all we need is a thread where I can bash Cocker Spanials....... <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

"Also, someone mentioned that Border Colles and Poodles were the highest ranked in intelligence. By those studies they are ranking the STANDARD poodle. As I said, Standard Poodles are absolutely brilliant dogs. Toy poodles, not so much. "

Yes, that was me, and yes, I agree........and so did every site I looked at (unless it was selling toy and teacup Poodles <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />.

Dachshunds are nice. My boyfriend's is a little sharp but very agreeable. Not afraid to roughhouse, but quick to obey. And very good ball drive. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> The only thing is he hates the rain and needs to wear little sweaters when outside.

I read that Dachsies are big barkers, have you experienced that?

Might I suggest a whippet? They are very quiet, well behaved in the house, virtually odor free low maintenance coat, good with respectful children, and very graceful. Not high on the trainability (smart and independent as sight hounds tend to be), but they are usually only around 20 lbs. They tend to get along with other dogs well. You can teach them not to chase cats and if you get one from a racing whippet rescue, they'll be able to tell you right off.

Here's what I would not suggest getting: a Yorkie (now the third most popular breed), a toy poodle, or a Chihuahua. Waaaaaay too overbred and most have abyssmal temperaments.

Hmm, since he's young, I'll say not yet. He does bark when anything strange happens...people get too close to the house, or they gawk at him (but he'll turn ultra nice in a snap once they bend over and make friends with him). But it's not an annoying yappy bark, more of a "Grrrrr...awf!" type, that would be creepy if he was 5x bigger. No needless barking whatsoever.

One thing about the little sucker is he'll lick your face for hours if you let him. (He'll french-kiss you too if you're not careful). And he likes to sleep under blankets/inside your shirt if he can. Kind of annoying when you add both together.