Our faithful dog, a male chow/lab/border collie mix has passed. Pound puppy we lucked out on. He was getting up there in years plus had a heart condition which finally got him. Thinking what next dog to get after a suitable mourning period.
What did we like with this dog? Gentle, cared about the boss, faithful, easy around the kids/grandkids. But impressively fierce with strangers and very protective of our clan. He glommed on to one of our 24CF members here in GA, within seconds of his arrival though!
The one drawback? He shed a LOT of hair. Hair everywhere you'd vacuum it all up and 10 minutes later it was just as bad as before.
Anyway, don't want to sit on this too long, especially given today's climate. Plus wife and I are soon to be empty nesters, so the nighttime awareness factor is increasingly important..
What breeds should we be looking at? Key attributes will be: security, protective, obedience (with training) warm personality with the fam, and not a lot of hair shedding.
Your thoughts?
Sorry to hear about the passing of your family friend. Been there too many times. Never is easy.
From your description and compared to the size AND looks of yours, I would strongly consider an African Lion Hound aka, Rhodesian Ridgeback. Minimal shedding, short hair. Family guard that is stable, Unlike some of the chows, terriors, etc. They have been bred to hunt lions and survive, protect children, and not known to Yap at every passing sound. If they bark, it's for good reason I'm told. Go for a female is what breeders tell me. Get a puppy. I know someone who has one trained better than most people s kids. I want one, but too much on the plate. They do need a good large yard for exercise, unless you take daily hikes. That is a requirement.
Here's a video. Check out about 10 more to get an idea. You mentioned poodles. Standards are big, but I can't comment on them. Mine have been calm stable miniatures and a tea cup. Mine weren't yappy but many are.
