04/22/2025
Let's talk about picking the right breed for your lifestyle.
Something I see frequently in training and rescue is people who pick a dog based on how they look or because a breed is trendy. This means a high number of people get dogs that are wrong for them and end up difficult to manage and returned or surrendered.
For instance, if you don't understand a dog's genetics and breed needs, you may end up with a herding dog who nips at people or a shepherd who takes protecting as seriously as his breed is meant to. You might think that walk a day or game of fetch is going to be enough for a dog whose DNA screams at them to work every day. It won't be and you'll likely have some behavioral challenges.
Even Labs and Goldens, notoriously know as being happy go lucky, can start to have behavioral issues when their needs aren't met.
Research the needs of the breed you are considering adding to your family or the pup you already have. Can you or are you providing for those needs? You don't have to take a retriever hunting to fill its needs. There are a ton of enrichment activities you can do as an alternative to alleviate boredom and add much needed stimulation.
Come up with a plan for how you're going to meet those needs. Will you do dog sports? Will you do training?Will you do mental stimulation? Will you try treadmilling or daycare when your pup is wound up and needs more activity?
If you're a Netflix and chill human, no problem, there's breeds who love that! If you're a high activity human than maybe a higher activity dog is something you can take on and easily provide for.
When you add a pup to your life take all this into consideration along with how busy your life and your families life is. We are often very excited in the initial stages and do all kinds of things with our dogs and then as time goes on and life gets busier, etc. we can forget to provide for those needs, and our dogs behavior can sometimes change because of it.