A dog that does not shed

[HowieDawn]

My last reply was directed to and only to Sophies Daddy.

[Pam]

Sophies Dad.....I think that your latest post may have resulted in the first "argument" on this site and I was sorry to see it happen. I don't feel that saying mean-spirited things about any particular breed serves anyone. The thing that makes this site so delightful is that so many different types of dogs and cats are represented here. The feedback between animal lovers of all kinds is refreshing and is what makes this site a pleasure to visit. No, I do not own a schnauzer but I respect the love that their "people" have for this breed. We are all different.

[Karen]

Hey, folks, let's still play nice. HowieDawn, maybe Sophie's Dad is just one of those people who isn't into shopping around as much as some people are. It is also difficult when people have had bad experiences with rescue pups, and I think we can all agree we would never want to put any dog in a bad situation. It sounds like your grandma is going about things the right way, and thinking about everything carefully enough so that she and the right dog will be happy together, which is, after all, what everyone wants, right? Happy humans, happy dogs, and all being happy together!

And folks, remember, you can always email an individual person if their address is listed, if you have comments you don't need to share with the whole group! We are all here because we love animals, even if our human emotions sometimes cause misunderstandings.

[HowieDawn]

yes ma'am

[ktreva52]

Well, I'm with Karen -- let's all play nicely. One breed I haven't seen mentioned is the Maltese. It is a lovely small dog with quite a bit of coat, BUT, it sounds as though Grandma wouldn't necessarily have a problem with that and sometimes grooming a dog can be very relaxing for the dog and the groomer. They are very small, not much larger than the Chihuahua and very bright doggies. They are great lap dogs and not as prissy as they appear at the shows.

P.S. My mother, who breeds and shows Border Terriers is 72 and it keeps her quite active and going strong. She has a few health problems (arthritis and such), but working with the dogs (she has 4) and doing the grooming and showing makes her seem much younger. She even does flyball and agility with the terriers! By the way, she didn't even get into showing dogs until she was in her 50's and started with Vizslas. When she decided they were too big to handle easily, she opted for the Borders.

The key to any breed being a good companion is training and socialization and consistency. I hope your grandmother finds what she wants, HowieDawn. Let us know.

[This message has been edited by ktreva52 (edited December 11, 2000).]

[SchnauzerLady]

I wonder if Sophies Daddy has ever owned loving schnauzers? I cannot believe so, or he would not be so deprecating. I have had three minis and now have a black standard, who lives very happily with his companion Patterdale terrier. A mini or standard would make a superb companion for Grandma; they love people and other dogs and can happily co-exist with cats, if introduced early enough. My first mini came from the US and served quarantine in the UK in order to share the following 13 years with us here in England. Do let Grandma go meet some of these real canine characters, she won't be disappointed. Incidentally, they are not difficult to train, but do benefit from a happy and relaxed atmosphere - perhaps that could be why Sophies Daddy has had problems with them..

[RachelJ]

Sometimes things are said with wry wit and unless we pick up on this, we can take them too personally. Sophie's Daddy has also had a lot of experience with dog owners who really don't have what it takes to be a dog owner. Maybe he has met one too many of them. He was making a point about all the things that need to be considered. Again, sometimes the written word (no intonations or facial expressions to assist) does not convey the spirit in which things were intended. I am sorry that feelings were hurt by his comments but I really do believe his heart is in the right place.

Sophie's Daddy, As far as this thread having gone on for so long, you are dealing with a lot of Mommies here...you know, Men are from Mars and Women from Venus.

[JackChihuahua]

Sophie's Dad said nothing wrong. We all have a right to an opinion. People let's not get too sensitive here. ALL dogs are great! ;-)

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Best Regards ~

[lhg0962]

Whew! I was only gone three days.....
But, my 66 year old mother is getting her 6 week old male Boston Terrier on Sunday and she couldn't be more excited! It is a compact breed, expected to be no more than 18 pounds. She is not elderly either!
Anyway, that might be a good suggestion for your grandmother too!

[carrie]

RachelJ how diplomatic are you? If aliens ever contact us I want you on the reception party! In fact I want you to answer all questions I am ever asked!!!
I do truly think that Rachel has hit the nub of the whole thing. I'm sure no disrespect was meant. It has been an interesting and involving topic and I love the way everyone has their favourites. There are certain breeds and types that I wouldn't choose to own (oh really!?) but I have my reasons.
It goes to show how much we really use body language without noticing - we all need to get used to a written language again.
The only minature schnauzer I have known was a brilliant character. He knew his own mind but was more than willing to give way to someone he considered competent to lead.

[Sophies Daddy]

I want to post a formal apology. I did not intend to offend anyone with my remarks.
I did not intend to create a tiff. I have simply seen this situation several times and always look for the welfare of the dog. When I read the whole thread, I became very concerned for the potential dog and my reaction was very emotional. So often I have seen great effort taken by people to find a dog for someone because they feel that the person really wants a dog only to find out later that the dog and the person do not match or the belief was misguided. Because I have close ties to a very large community of dog people, I have been involved in trying to place three dogs in the last six months that resulted from similar situations (eight total in the last year and a half). The happy thing that I can say is that the dogs now have wonderful homes. One such placement involved a woman that felt that she could not get "attached" to the dog because she was 78 years old and could not imagine the possibility of what would happen to the poor dog should she pass on before the dog did. Unfortunately, the lack of attention and bonding created a three year old dog with several behavior problems. She had had dogs before, in fact several. I'm not saying that the grandmother involved is such a person, just that this thread set off an alarm.

My comments on the miniature schnauzer should have been written with a smiley face at the end. While I have personally met only one of the breed that passed the CD (and did so only by attending miniature schnauzer specialty shows), I understand that there are many gems in the breed. They are also known as loving and protective family members. My observation regarding the hunchbacked owners still holds true, however. It is an odd phenomenon and one that intrigues me greatly. I even had a chance to see the dog above pass her third leg for her CD at the specialty and I have to say that, out of about 20 owners, at least eight were hunched over. Very, very strange

[This message has been edited by Sophies Daddy (edited December 11, 2000).]

[HowieDawn]

We have "hopefully" found the right dog. it is a mini. Schnauzer. The puppy's father is either a Cairn Terrier or a Salt and Pepper Mini. Schnauzer. (yes i know, she said that she does not want a terrior, but she loves schnauzers.) She before said that she did not want a dog until spring, but she got so excited when I told her that I found one. My husband and I will be traveling to Danville, Virginia the first week of January to pick it up for her if it works out. The owners of te puppy and I still need to sort some things out before we decide. Thank you everyone for your help. Any suggestions are still accepted as long as your feelings are expressed "nicely" with smiley faces (pun intended)

[Margrete]

Thanks for the apology - especially about the rotten schnauzers. Our first one, Sam, got a CD and not in a specialized trial. He also did it in only 3 legs. We never entered the other dogs because it really wasn't that important to us and also our job hours involved working so many weekends that we couldn't attend shows. Now that we are both retired we are considering entering our new baby Molly - she is a 6 month old miniature schnauzer who comes when called, sits, downs, waits and is working hard at heel and stay. She already stays for a couple of minutes but obviously that isn't long enough. She also can retrieve either a frisbee or ball and drop it so we can throw it again. Thank goodness - we're getting too old to chase her!! Maybe the reason Schnauzer owners are stooped over when training is the dogs are so little - I've told many trainers the next dog I got would be at least waist high!! It is really hard to train when stooped over. I have had to take time out to sit down sometimes because I was getting dizzy!! Once they get it down, 'tho, they are great little dogs!!

[Margrete]

What wonderful news - please keep us posted about the outcome!!

[HowieDawn]

I will keep everyone posted