Getting a bit ahead of myself here, but suffice it to say, I have an upcoming interview with a company that sounds really intent on hiring me. I'm very intrigued with the company and will almost certainly be taking a job offer (if one comes). As Chan Gailey would say, I don't hope to get the job, I expect to get the job. (Doesn't hurt that they want to pay me 10-30% more than my previous employer.) The point is with an offer will come a move to my own place, and shortly thereafter getting a dog.

So I figured I'd start this thread to discuss breeds. I've looked around a bit and without giving any thought whatsoever to cost and availability my favorite breeds are in no particular order:

Border Collie
Labrador Retriever
Australian Cattle Dog
Pembroke Welsh Corgi
English Springer SPaniel
Bernese Mountain Dog
Vizsla
Pharoah Hound
Dalmatian
Irish Wolfhound
Saluki (far and away my favorite)
Pointer
Siberian Husky
Foxhound
Whippet
Rhodesian Ridgeback
Great Pyrenees
Basenji

As you can see I tend to like medium to large dogs with a fondness for a few "this dog will kill you and eat you" breeds. Not sure where I'll be living if I get the job, a house isn't out of the question, but more than likely an apartment which will narrow choices somewhat.

My general likes in a dog:
30-80 pounds
Preferred short fur, but I can let this go
Energetic, but not off the wall
Relatively easy to train (which probably rules out a few)
Likes water
Good with other animals
Awesome looking

I've done pretty well training my family's black lab (smart breed) - Italian greyhound? (stupid breed) mix so I'm not completely turned off by a dog that needs a bit more attention.


The smartest my dog will ever act.

Just curious what other people think.

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My friend has 2 english springer spaniels, and I think they're the most fun, intelligent, and loving dogs I've ever been around.

That is definitely my breed of choice when the time comes.

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Wheelhouse

greyhound. loyal, pretty, and very laid back.

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OMG my boyfriend's neighbor at home just rescued a Bernese Mountain dog and he's the cutest! Poor little guy has had three owners (now four) and he is still pretty young. They already have a Bernese Mountain dog and the two of them get along so well. Both were incredibly sweet to each other the first day Benny came home.

This

I hear Border Collies are the smartest breed of dog out there - but since they are bred to round up sheep, might be too energetic for apartment living. I don't really see how anyone can go wrong with a Lab.

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My favorite breed are rescue dogs. I currently have two of the brown variety.

The older one, Zuzu, was still in the womb (a few days before birth) when the mother's owner pushed her out of the back of a SUV at a vet clinic. The younger one, Newt, was one of ten puppies who were abandoned by the side of the road, without their mom, when they were less than a week old.

Both girls are named for very minor characters in two different classic films.

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th' only knower of th' cosmic mysteries alive at this time

I did some research the other night. Basenji's are complete dumbasses and one of the most difficult dogs to train so they're probably out. Pharoah hounds tend to be aggressive with other, smaller animals so they're out too. My GF has a corgi so even though I like them, I don't think I'd get one.

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My favorites:

Australian Cattle Dog
Pro - smart, energetic, look awesome
Cons - perhaps too energetic, can be aggressive with other animals

Vizsla
Pro - very affectionate, loyal, energetic, good with other animals
Cons - might be too dependent, not good alone

Dalmatian
Pro - Friendly, playful, good size, is a fucking dalmation
Cons - can be temperamental, probably expensive

Saluki
Pro - Gentle, sensitive, LOOK AWESOME
Cons - Not good unattended, since they were bred to be desert hunters, they might not like water so much

Pointer
Pro - Indoor prone, very calm, good with other animals
Cons - ?

Irish Wolfhound
Pro - Enormous, awesome looking, very calm and gentle, good with other animals, capable of killing you and your family
Cons - Short lifespan, longer fur, probably eats a shit ton of food when not being fed small children

Whippet
Pro - Friendly, somehow energetic and yet also lazy, big dog look, small dog weight
Cons - Kind of stupid.

Rhodesian Ridgeback
Pro - Athletic, good with gentler training, have the name of a dragon, ridged back
Cons - Medium to low intelligence

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If you are looking for a dog, try Petfinder.

http://www.petfinder.com/pet-search?ani ... rch=Search

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th' only knower of th' cosmic mysteries alive at this time

Some of the breeds you're talking about are large, quite large.
Large dogs eat large meals, have large vet bills and require large amounts of exercise, space and time.

If you're just getting out on your own, I wouldn't recommend getting a dog right away, for many and varied reasons.
That's just from my own experience, take it or leave it.

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Hold my beer and watch this...

And that's the truth, truth.

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If you're working a lot, it may be very difficult to train a new dog, and it would be pretty unfair to him or her to be locked up all day while you're gone. It's just something to think about, but it would probably be best to start out with a cat, if possible.

Where is this job located? I know you've been looking in a few places, so I'm just curious.

Yeah, my girlfriend did bring that up about a puppy and it's a valid point. Though like I said, a lot is up in the air, so I'm not particularly intent on any one course of action. I'll have to see the specifics of the work if I get an offer.

When my family got it's current dog, I was the one spending 90% of the time with her because my parents were working and my sisters were at school so I'm not completely clueless on what it takes to train a puppy. That our dog was a rescue dog and thus a little skittish, she needed extra attention and a gentler rebuke in training which I think is common in a few of the breeds I like.





Well that's the fun innit? Like I said, I like bigger dogs, probably because that's what I've grown up with. Deerhounds and Wolfhounds in particular are awesome because they tend to be terrifying looking, but really laid back. If this company offers what I've been told they're looking to pay this position, I won't necessarily be locked into something that would disqualify owning a larger dog, i.e. a small apartment. But yeah food and vet bills, ouch.

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It's in Seneca Falls, NY, more or less halfway between Syracuse and Rochester and pretty close to Geneva and the Waterloo outlet mall.

I don't want to get too ahead of myself, but they're like yeah we want you to talk with HR about our company and company benefits, then meet with the hiring managers, then meet with the engineering team, then tour the shop/office.

Two of the three times I've had that type of interview, I've gotten an offer, and the third they ended up deciding they didn't have the workload to add an engineer and ended up hiring no one. Considering myself 2-0-1 in that regard. This is the first position I've interviewed for where I'm legit excited about the job instead of "meh at least I can pay the bills," so I'm hoping that'll show.

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Proud LGBTQQ Individual

Well you also have to consider the future...short and long term
Just because you may have the situation that can afford having a large dog now doesn't mean it'll be that way for the next 15 years.
Generally folks your age go through many jobs and living arrangements in a relatively short period of time.

I had an awesome Great Dane/Pit Bull (~185lb) dog in college and even though I loved him to death we had to part ways after 3 or so years. Wasn't my original intention, that's just the way things go at that age.
The dog is still living out a great life, just not with me.

I see a lot of your reasoning and justifications in my younger head...that's the only reason I'm bringing a cautionary tone.

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Hold my beer and watch this...

Site of the first women's rights conference in American history.

All things I have considered. That's why I'm not homed in on one particular age, type, or breed of dog, I know there are a lot of factors at play. Scottish Deerhounds and Irish Wolfhounds are FUCKING AWESOME, so I'm going to consider them. Will they be a good fit? Well that's unclear at this point. My "reasoning and justifications," are really just me saying that there are no circumstances at this time that rule anything out and make them not worth considering.

I feel people think I'm going to run out and adopt a puppy the second I get a job offer...so not the case. After watching my girlfriend go through the process of adopting a corgi puppy, I know that things take time...and that was with her knowing exactly what she wanted. I don't. When I do get to that point where I can start tracking down breeders or going to shelters, I want to be heading in having done a fair amount of research. I posted a thread like this before on adopting a puppy for my family and didn't end up actually getting a dog for almost five months.

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Proud LGBTQQ Individual

I didn't mean to imply you are rushing to judgement or not putting enough thought into it, just that folks of your age range tend to have living situations change relatively often and sometimes radically. A dog is a decades long commitment...again, I'm not implying you can't make that commitment, just that in general, college age people have less control over their long term situation.

/not trying to step on toes

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Hold my beer and watch this...

I have a Border Collie mix. They are pretty damn smart, and boy oh boy are they ever energetic. I got Bobbi as a puppy and for years she required a daily regimen of about a half hour of balls to the wall ball retrieving, a 2-hour walk, and staying outdoors while I was at work. Even then she was basically bouncing off the walls the whole time she was awake, but she was never very destructive. She's 14 now, but we still play ball almost every day, and do a half hour walk every night.

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This time, like all times, is a very good one, if we but know what to do with it.
--Emerson