new family dog

[Fentonite]

I had a bloodhound, back in my cop days. He was a trained man-trailer, and very good at it. Contrary to previous posts, hounds aren't dumb, as much as they are hard-headed. During a training exercise, 6 "suspects" each put on the same hat, then left it on the ground, and ran off in different directions. 5 of them came back. A couple hours later, Cletis (the hound) came in, examined the hat, as well as each of the 5 guys who had returned. Sniffed the hat again, figured out who was missing, and trailed the 6th man a couple of miles and successfully identified him among another group of 6 men. That's not so dumb.

The bad: They are hard-headed, and are only interested in doing what they find fun. They only want to follow commands (sit, stay, etc) if there's food in it for them. Slobber, as mentioned, was a serious issue. If long, thick ropes of sticky slime on the floor, walls, your pants, car windows, etc would bother you, don't get a hound. They have a huge bark, and like to howl along with sirens or other dogs. Also, they tend to have fairly short lifespans, so they might not be the best choice for your daughter, if you want her to have a dog throughout her youth. They are very sweet and loyal dogs though.

[SA Friday]

I've had multiple retrievers, both long hair and labs. Get a lab. Haven't found a stupid one yet, they are pack oriented, they can learn to do about anything within the spectrum of training a dog, and rarely do they have a temperment that ranges into the hyper category. The Chese's can be stubborn, thick headed, and frustrating though. I tend to shy away from that lineage.

[Irving]

I've had multiple retrievers,

I think you mean Golden retrievers.

[SA Friday]

I think you mean Golden retrievers.

Uh, no.

http://www.akc.org/breeds/sporting_group.cfm

[Irving]

Haha.

[rondog]

I vote for Beagles! Ours are the perfect dogs, IMO. But we just wanted pets/lap dogs, not hunters. Very sweet and loving. Coco, on the left, is a barker, but she only barks/bays at other dogs because she wants them to come and play. Neither of them will just bark at nothing for the hell of it. But they're total house dogs, we won't keep them outside. Dogs that are lonely or unhappy will be barkers. Our girls are full-fledged family members.

And there's nothing cuter than a Beagle puppy!

[hip55]

Labs and standard poodles are great dogs - (I'd never cut a std poodle in that poodle fashion)