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This summer I am moving to Monterey, CA and I was hoping to get a dog. I will be moving to a fairly large house with a fenced-in back yard. I have cats, so it has to be sociable with cats. My dad has suggested that I look for something with little to no health problems and I want a fairly large dog, nothing under 60 pounds. I will be going to school so it has to be okay with being alone, and it should be okay with people. I was looking at a Vizsla or maybe an Utonagan. Any suggestions? (I am willing to go to a Shelter, but I have to have something in mind so I know what to look for.) I have looked up many breeds on-line, and the two I mentioned above so far look like the best fit for me. I also want it to have a fairly long life expectancy.

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I'd imagine you'll have to look for some time to find a Vizsla that's over 60lbs. They're not large dogs.

What draws you to the Vizsla and the Utonagan?

What sort of personality are you looking for? What kind of activities are you going to do with the dog? How often? What kind of training are you looking to do? How often?

The cat thing is going to depend on the dog, and is going to be situational, as well. My dog, for example, loves cats... indoors. Outside, they're viewed as prey animals, and I have no doubt that if she caught one outside she'd kill it.

Have you tried going to shows/sporting events and meeting dogs there?

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Well I went through the Wikipedia list of dogs and found some that I thought would work. Trying to stay away from hounds, shepherds, and spaniels. (Hounds and shepherds usually require lots and lots of exercize, and I have heard spaniels have major temper problems. Small dogs wouldn't fare too well in my house cuz I'm moving with my dad and he can't really see his feet to watch for small dogs, besides the fact that he can't stand yappers.)

The Vizsla I have heard is a laid-back clean dog that is easy to train, and the Utonagan I read was good with cats and very social. I want something that would be okay with chilling on the couch with me, but also help motivate me to go outside more lol and I would defiantly walk it every day ;P and maybe take it to the park if I could find my way there and back.
(very bad with navigation)

I want to teach it the basic dog tricks and maybe some others if I can figure out how, and I would be able to be with it most of the time. I don't really know of any dog events near me, but I have been able to hang out with many pit bulls... I watch the AKC Dog show almost every year and Dogs 101 when I see it on tv.

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Plus I grew up with Golden Retriever/Lab mixes, but they were outside dogs, and they belonged to my older sisters. And in my family, "What's mine is mine, and you get the **** beat out of you if you touch it," so I didn't get much of a chance to do anything with those dogs... If I tried so much as to walk the dog and tell her to sit while I attached the leash, (very hyper pups, they were) I got accused of messing up the dog's training and never heard the end of it... Messed up home, I know >.>

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Honestly since you don't really have a particular breed that you really want I would go to a shelter with your list of traits.

You want a dog that's:
Good with cats
Low key
Big enough not to trip over
OK with daily walks
Has some basic leash manners

If you know what kind of personality you want, but don't have a breed you want then your best bet is to go to a good shelter and ask the staff to help you find a dog that fits with your criteria. And if they don't have one that fits them all, they may have one that fits the really important ones. Or you may just do what my husband did and fall head over heals for a dog that doesn't fit any of the above and then get your wife to do all the work training the dog to fit the wanted criteria.

That's an exaggeration Hubby does help with training when I'm not home. He does work with Will when the universe presents opportunities.

Dangerous Lunatic

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Do not get a vizsla. I'm sorry, but that breed sounds exactly wrong for what you want. They require a lot of exercise, far more than most of those breeds you're avoiding for the same reason. It's a breed I've suggested for my little brother, who wants a dog who can run 10+ miles with him, but otherwise be low maintenance. You're going to have the same problem with the Utonagan. I mean, the dog is a sledding/herding type mix, which means high energy and super smart.

Not all small dogs are yappy, in fact, the majority of the reason so many seem to be is their owners let them get away with anything. With proper training you shouldn't have an issue. Same with spaniels and their behavior issues. I've met many wonderful spaniels who think they're just lap dogs.

Honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about breed when going to a shelter, because at that point you'll be meeting individual animals more than breed ideas, and the people who work at the shelter will be able to help you figure out which dog will be a good match for you.
Kiko_Niwa
This summer I am moving to Monterey, CA and I was hoping to get a dog. I will be moving to a fairly large house with a fenced-in back yard. I have cats, so it has to be sociable with cats. My dad has suggested that I look for something with little to no health problems and I want a fairly large dog, nothing under 60 pounds. I will be going to school so it has to be okay with being alone, and it should be okay with people. I was looking at a Vizsla or maybe an Utonagan. Any suggestions? (I am willing to go to a Shelter, but I have to have something in mind so I know what to look for.) I have looked up many breeds on-line, and the two I mentioned above so far look like the best fit for me. I also want it to have a fairly long life expectancy.
Vizslas are such a great breed - my friend's two are very calm in the house, very sociable, and get along well with their cat. BUT they also need to be walked a lot, and they need time to run off leash. They are hunting dogs, you have to remember that they have a lot of energy. They walk their dogs AT LEAST three times a day, before work, right after getting home, and they have a dog walker that takes them for an hour long run/walk during the day while they are at work. I should add though, that whenever I've stayed over at their house, they usually take them out for 10-20 minutes before they go anywhere.

They are very sociable dogs too and love to be with their people, hence the nick-name "velcro vizsla", so if you are planning on not being home that much, busy with work or school etc. they may not be the dogs for you. If they don't get the exercise they need they will go INSANE.

As for health, they got both of their dogs from a very good breeder, and Mia their eldest dog is now 9 years old and still in perfect health, though that is also because they are fed good food and given tons of exercise.

Mia + Jacks, they are so cute smile They are both very laid back in the house as long as they get enough exercise, but outside is a different story.
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Kiko_Niwa
Well I went through the Wikipedia list of dogs and found some that I thought would work. Trying to stay away from hounds, shepherds, and spaniels. (Hounds and shepherds usually require lots and lots of exercize, and I have heard spaniels have major temper problems. Small dogs wouldn't fare too well in my house cuz I'm moving with my dad and he can't really see his feet to watch for small dogs, besides the fact that he can't stand yappers.)

The Vizsla I have heard is a laid-back clean dog that is easy to train, and the Utonagan I read was good with cats and very social. I want something that would be okay with chilling on the couch with me, but also help motivate me to go outside more lol and I would defiantly walk it every day ;P and maybe take it to the park if I could find my way there and back.
(very bad with navigation)

I want to teach it the basic dog tricks and maybe some others if I can figure out how, and I would be able to be with it most of the time. I don't really know of any dog events near me, but I have been able to hang out with many pit bulls... I watch the AKC Dog show almost every year and Dogs 101 when I see it on tv.


Vizsla are HUGELY energetic. The ones I've met have been BONKERS with energy, and need a TON of exercise. Neither of those dogs really seem like a chill on the sofa kind of breed to me.

Spaniels don't all have major temper problems. ;] If you don't want one, that's fine.

A lot of hounds are actually pretty laid back.

You could look into rescue groups for laid back, relaxed dogs. Or, have you looked at greyhounds? They're large, healthy dogs, for the most part, and they're very relaxed indoors. They, surprisingly, don't require a huge amount of exercise, just the ability to run every once in a while. Plus, they're gorgeous. There's a lot of greyhound rescues, even in CA where there isn't racing.

You could also look at some of the giant breeds, like the mastiffs. They're going to be a lot calmer than a zippy little gun dog.

There's going to be TONS of dog events in/around Monterey.

This is the website I use, but I'm in SoCal, so a lot of the shows are going to be too far away. You could try googling your area + dog club, and look for NorCal breed clubs with the dogs you're interested in.

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Biggest problem about going to a shelter and "just falling in love with one" is, I get very attached to every animal I see, especially shelter animals. If I had the choice, I would adopt every animal I saw and become over run with pets...

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Kiko_Niwa
Biggest problem about going to a shelter and "just falling in love with one" is, I get very attached to every animal I see, especially shelter animals. If I had the choice, I would adopt every animal I saw and become over run with pets...


You just have to show restraint and pick the dog that seems best for you in the shelter?

I mean, what are you going to do if you go to a breeder? You see the litter of puppies, are you going to say, "I want every single one" ?

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Kiko_Niwa
Biggest problem about going to a shelter and "just falling in love with one" is, I get very attached to every animal I see, especially shelter animals. If I had the choice, I would adopt every animal I saw and become over run with pets...


You just have to show restraint and pick the dog that seems best for you in the shelter?

I mean, what are you going to do if you go to a breeder? You see the litter of puppies, are you going to say, "I want every single one" ?


Most show/sport breeders say 'this is your puppy if you want it,' though. That would solve the choosing problem, right? wink

I agree with you though.

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Haha maybe. I'll try going to a shelter and telling them what I want in a dog and see if they have any that match my wants. I have taken "which dog is best for you" tests online, and usually a mastiff comes up as a good dog for me. Thanks for all ur help guys!

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Perhaps this will help you, its a Dog breed selector from Animal planet.
Dog breed

It also has a guide to let you know more about the dog. Good luck finding the breed that’s right for you
www.petfinder.com

But I recommend Pit-Bulls, awesome dogs.

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x-kazzy
www.petfinder.com

But I recommend Pit-Bulls, awesome dogs.


How hard is it to find a couch potato pit? Zobby's half pit-type dog (as far as we know), and he's totally chill, but then again, he's half peke.

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