Male dogs are bad

...This is what my mom thinks, for whatever reason.

Her reasoning:
Male dogs aren't as smart as females (based on the two we owned, a Dachshund and a Basset Hound X, very stubborn breeds). Male dogs mark everywhere (most I know don't since they were neutered young). They aren't as loving as females (we had this discussion, but in my experience males are more loving... and also more goofy which my parents LOVE because it's usually hilarious ;)).

Basically, when I get a Dane I want a male. Not only because I prefer males, because girls make wonderful, wonderful pets and I wouldn't trade mine for anything. But, because another female would be a nightmare in my situation. I can tell my mom this all I want, but, I'd really like for her to accept a male instead of just "well, okay, since it's your dog and he won't be here forever..." which I don't think she'll do. I think she'll go for the "nope, my house, and males mark everywhere." speech. :(

As for marking (I think this is her biggest peeve about males) I was just going to say that male puppies don't mark, and in Danes they mature slowly and won't start marking until well after he hits 18 mo - 2 years (most likely) and he will be neutered around 18 mo. Anything else I can add to the "marking" speech? heh.

I already have plenty of things to back up what I will say when I tell her I want a male (I know she'll freak :p), but I'd really like y'all's input. What would you say to someone like her to try to get her to like males?

And, in case anyone's interested: I decided on neither of the breeders I posted before, as I found things about each that I did not like and were extremely important. We're going to dog shows in late February to look for a breeder.

As for males and females, there is no difference in intelligence I'm pretty sure. male dogs do mark, but my Akita Zero only marks outside, never inside. In fact, he has only gone #1 in the house less than 5 times, and never has taken a deuce lol :) .

I know people like this and only ever have bitches (And have never had a problem aswell :eek: ), because "Boys smell" lol and supposedly bitches are more affectionate, not bagging these people because they are good friends ;).

I myself prefer dogs over bitches i dont know why i just do :confused:. Goodluck with your parents on convincing them that boys are great.

Marking I think is just a matter of training. Inside the house you need good housetraining and supervision of a dog that's ready to mark everyhing. Outside it doen't really matter, just not on people or items you don't want peed on. Autumn is a female and goes everywhere when we go to the park, she's dominant and not afraid to show it. My mom taught her male shetie mix to squat to pee instead of lifting its leg. This was before my time so I don't know how she did it. I think most bigger breeds will squat instead of lifting too. This alone might impress your mom a bit.

LOL! I've owned males all my life, Molly is my first female. I have NEVER had a male marking. EVER.

"Male dogs aren't as smart as females" - pshhh!! In my personal opinion, male dogs are easier to train because they are more laid back and easygoing. FEMALES are more stubborn.. just from my experiences, though. So I could be wrong.

Kia does more marking than most male dogs she hangs out with. :eek: :rolleyes: :D

There's is more likelihood of marking with males. And so far it's not been my experience that neutering before leg lifting stops it. All 3 of mine were neutered around 6 months old, before any marking behavior.

They all 3 mark now. Murph was by far the worst. Until old age, I didn't trust him 100% in the house. He could go 6 months and then out of nowhere decide to mark something inside. He's gone a couple of years now with no incidences. I guess it's too much work for his old bones now. Oz only marks outside and isn't quite obsessed about it as Murph. Gull only marks when he's alone somewhere with me. Guess he figures between Murph and Oz marking the backyard, they got it covered.

As to smartness, I don't see that. I have noticed with mine though that the males had a longer, more rambunctious puppyhood. But once mature and more focused, they catch up with the females.

I will say though, that my lil' female Cairn Terrier, Maddie, I viewed as exceptionally smart. Oh what an easy puppyhood. I use to say she came out of the box fully assembled. Oz though is neck and neck with her. I view their personality differences more due to breed differences then gender though.

Anywho, I think it's a matter of pack dynamic as to which is the better choice. I know with Maddie, as dominant as she was, it would have been a huge mistake to get another female dog. I've not had any real issues with having 3 males though.

Par...

Male dogs can mark, but so can females. Both my females will mark (only outside). Nikka even does a handstand pee so she can get higher than any male. With proper housebreaking and neutering their's no reason to say they'll mark in the house just because their male.

To be honest I have 2 males and 2 females currently and had a male terrier for 16 years before he passed. My 2 females are the ones who can have some issues with eachother. My males have always had a laid back who cares attitude. If I had a choice again I'd get either 2 males or a male/female combo. I don't think I'd go for 2 females again.

i have 3 males and none of them have ever marked. they were neutered at 8 months

My mom was also unsure about males because she had never had one. But we got Sammy and she found out male dogs are just as great. And sometimes have a better mood then females. Out of all 6 dogs I've ever had, the two male dogs learned to be potty trained the fastest.

Tell your mom to read this page... http://www.isompets.com/male_vs__female.htm

I have two males...my mom absolutely did not want a male dog...at all, much for the same reasons as your mom. The biggest thing of course was the marking, she was really skeptical but finally gave in and let me get Micki. The first day he was home my mom was sitting on the couch, Micki came running down, went right to her and lifted his leg :eek: Not good, lol. But, he has never done it since, he was neutered around 6 months and Jack still doesn't even lift his leg outside yet, he was neutered at about 2 months (the shelter did it). I will say that when we are out on walks and things, my girls mark much much more than my boys.

Good luck!

We've always had male dogs, Sydney is the first female dog that has lived at our house. Reggie and Nebo are males.

I think Nebo is the most intelligent of them and the best behaved...he's the only one I took through obedience classes too though. He was neutered at 4 months, it wasn't until he was over a year old that he started lifting his leg. Though he's had accidents in the house, I wouldn't consider any of them because of marking (just because he couldn't hold it!) he's never lifted his leg in the house. Even still he doesn't go out of his way to leg lift, he still squats he just lifts his leg if there happens to be something nearby to lift it on. ;) Though not overly affectionate, he's a very laid back dog, I've heard female huskies tend to be more high strung. The term "bitch" didn't become the slang it is today for no reason. :p

Sydney is very affectionate, she's a sweetie for sure but we call her a dumb blonde sometimes...she just wants to be petted and loved, she's not really interested in learning tricks much.

And Reggie...well, when he was younger he was affectionate...now he's just old and crabby. ;) The only time I remember him ever specifically marking in the house was after we watched my aunts female dachshund. I don't think he was neutered at the time though. Smokey (RB poodle) did mark in the house, but, once again, we were stupid and didn't neuter him until he was old.

None of my 3 girls mark, they go out pee once and that's it. Buster doesn't mark either, he doesn't even lift his leg. Charlie on the other hand is a major marker. He pees everywhere the other dogs do. He's good in our house, but I don't trust taking him to anyone else's house. When we got him he did mark in the house, I had to keep him tied to me with a short leash, or crated when I couldn't have him tied to me. I don't remember how long I did that, but I now do trust him in the house, I can't remember the last time he marked inside.

Of our three, Sadie is our biggest marker. Not only outside, but if we go to someone elses house who has dogs, I have to watch Sadie the closest, although Spot has been known to mark if there are other male dogs in the house.

Wow, thanks everyone. I never thought of the female-marking thing. Mandy does do that a bit, I'll have to point that out to my mom ;) I see that a lot at work, especially with Jack Russells and other terrier breeds. I have noticed that most males at work don't mark if they're neutered. Most just slightly squat, and sometimes hit their front legs. That can be a pain to wipe off, but still, a female just isn't going to work in our house. If we didn't have Mandy it'd be fine, Nova and Luka like any dog. Mandy generally is okay with most dogs, but I think 4 females would be a nightmare. I don't know if I'll ever have this many females again.

I have two male labs, both are neutered. Malone was neutered as a very young puppy(15 weeks or something), and Emerson was neutered at around 10 months.

I'm not really sure why, but I have had no problems with them "marking" their territories at all, maybe I'm just lucky. In general, they don't even lift their leg when they pee outside either, they both squat, or lift their leg just a little bit.

I wonder if it is because they were both neutered before they had developed an interest in that kind of thing, and now they don't care? But I do consider myself lucky because I do know of other dogs that lift their leg constantly, especially outside -- on the porch, on the mailbox, on the car door, on every bush. And I do agree, that is very yuckky!

That's what I usually see with the males at work. I'm hoping that since Danes are generally a submissive breed, that this won't be a problem if he's neutered young enough.

I have two females and one male. Molly and Astra are sweet, and very mother-daughterly towards each other. They don't mark at all. Only a few times when they are let outside, but when we take them for walks, they pee only about once or twice. Prince on the other hand just wants to be left alone. He isn't too playful but he likes to be rubbed. He marks ALOT! When we take him on a walk he pees on everything in sight. But that is probably b/c he isn't neutered. (Don't worry, we're getting him neutered next month) If I had a choice of getting another dog, it would definetaly(sp?) be female. I love males and all but I like females better. Just my personal opinion.

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Originally Posted by dogzr#1

I have two females and one male. Molly and Astra are sweet, and very mother-daughterly towards each other. They don't mark at all. Only a few times when they are let outside, but when we take them for walks, they pee only about once or twice. Prince on the other hand just wants to be left alone. He isn't too playful but he likes to be rubbed. He marks ALOT! When we take him on a walk he pees on everything in sight. But that is probably b/c he isn't neutered. (Don't worry, we're getting him neutered next month) If I had a choice of getting another dog, it would definetaly(sp?) be female. I love males and all but I like females better. Just my personal opinion.

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Not to be rude, but I think that is partially because he is a Chi and because he isn't neutered. If I were basing my opinion on males from mine (both at the RB), I don't think I'd want another either. But mine were also stubborn breeds and were neutered late (actually, one was never neutered) but now that I work at a vet I recognize that it was their breed, because they weren't neutered, and lack of training. So don't be biased against males :) More females = more trouble ;)

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Originally Posted by .sarah

Not to be rude, but I think that is partially because he is a Chi and because he isn't neutered. If I were basing my opinion on males from mine (both at the RB), I don't think I'd want another either. But mine were also stubborn breeds and were neutered late (actually, one was never neutered) but now that I work at a vet I recognize that it was their breed, because they weren't neutered, and lack of training. So don't be biased against males :) More females = more trouble ;)

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Oh, I didn't know that different breeds would mark more and stuff. Sorry for being rude. i shouldn't have based my statement on only my unneutered chi. I guess we just thought getting another female that molly and Astra would take her as part of the family. Also if by the time we get a new dog (it should be late September-ish) Prince will most likely be neutered.

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Originally Posted by dogzr#1

Oh, I didn't know that different breeds would mark more and stuff. Sorry for being rude. i shouldn't have based my statement on only my unneutered chi. I guess we just thought getting another female that molly and Astra would take her as part of the family. Also if by the time we get a new dog (it should be late September-ish) Prince will most likely be neutered.

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You didn't come across as rude, you were just basing your opinion on what you knew. I don't know what breed Astra is, so I can't say anything about what her personality should be. But if Molly fits the typical Golden personality, she'll probably accept a female with no problems. My Labs have the typical Lab personality, and they don't give a flip about what gender comes into the house! Mandy is GSD/Pit and she has the GSD personality down to a tee, and she would not do good with another female! So, it really depends on your situation moreso than the breed, because some dogs don't live up to their breed standard. So if your girls are good with any dog, then a female should be okay. But you should know that more fights are between two females than between male/female or two males.

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Originally Posted by .sarah

You didn't come across as rude, you were just basing your opinion on what you knew. I don't know what breed Astra is, so I can't say anything about what her personality should be. But if Molly fits the typical Golden personality, she'll probably accept a female with no problems. My Labs have the typical Lab personality, and they don't give a flip about what gender comes into the house! Mandy is GSD/Pit and she has the GSD personality down to a tee, and she would not do good with another female! So, it really depends on your situation moreso than the breed, because some dogs don't live up to their breed standard. So if your girls are good with any dog, then a female should be okay. But you should know that more fights are between two females than between male/female or two males.

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Well Astra is a siberian husky mix. I have no idea what she is mixed with though. she may just be a poorly bred husky. Well Molly did accept Astra with opened arms (or should i say with lots of licks) but Prince wasn't too excited about having another female dog. I think once we get him neutered that wont be a problem. Yea, I've heard that some female dogs aren't too happy to share their territory with another female.

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Originally Posted by dogzr#1

Well Astra is a siberian husky mix. I have no idea what she is mixed with though. she may just be a poorly bred husky. Well Molly did accept Astra with opened arms (or should i say with lots of licks) but Prince wasn't too excited about having another female dog. I think once we get him neutered that wont be a problem. Yea, I've heard that some female dogs aren't too happy to share their territory with another female.

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I don't have much experience with Huskies, but I will tell you the male Huskies have been horrible with other dogs whereas the females were very dog friendly. I think it's the breeding they came from, though. I know Huskies are supposed to be very outgoing, friendly dogs. You may want to just take your dogs with you to meet the prospective puppy/dog or have a "trial run" at your house. It also will depend on the new puppy's breed and personality. A dominant puppy might not be a smart choice (especially a female) but rather a friendly, outgoing puppy.

Anyway, September is far away but ... I can't wait 'til you get him/her! I love this board because in some ways it can be like you own a bunch of dogs at once ;)

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Originally Posted by .sarah

I don't have much experience with Huskies, but I will tell you the male Huskies have been horrible with other dogs whereas the females were very dog friendly. I think it's the breeding they came from, though. I know Huskies are supposed to be very outgoing, friendly dogs. You may want to just take your dogs with you to meet the prospective puppy/dog or have a "trial run" at your house. It also will depend on the new puppy's breed and personality. A dominant puppy might not be a smart choice (especially a female) but rather a friendly, outgoing puppy.

Anyway, September is far away but ... I can't wait 'til you get him/her! I love this board because in some ways it can be like you own a bunch of dogs at once ;)

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yea, we are doing a lot of research before we even get a puppy. it will also give us time to get prince neutered and for astra to mature a little bit more. we might get a cocker spaniel or a golden retriever. still choosing

Hmm. my mom always wanted a male dog. I think she was raised with them and found them more protective or smarter- I have no idea. it wouldn't have made a diference to me on way or the other, but I chose Cody out of the litter. He was nuetered at 6months, but never ever marked in the house. In fact it took him a while to lift his leg, and not very high at that. But he did love to mark while walking, seemed like every other step. Since I got him so young, he was affectionate and cuddly and loved to get and give kisses. He was a fast learner too.
When I chose Logan at the SPCA, my mother cringed because she was female. I still never understood what went through her mind. Anyway, although their personalities are so different, Logan is as smart as a whip too, easy to train and a fast learner. She never ever wakes me in the middle of the night to pee. She may only go 2-3 times a day. She never ever gives kisses but loves getting them. Both dogs are (were) protective. My problem with Cody was unsocialization, (my fault), but now I take Logan everywhere. She's still a bit scared at first but warms up nicely.
So, sorry to ramble, but except for the 3am pee outings, I have no preference. I just never met a dog I didn't love. When I ever get another, it'll be by personality. not gender. But since I'm outnumbered by male humans in the house, I may just get a female to even things out! :p :D

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Originally Posted by K9karen

So, sorry to ramble, but except for the 3am pee outings, I have no preference. I just never met a dog I didn't love. When I ever get another, it'll be by personality. not gender. But since I'm outnumbered by male humans in the house, I may just get a female to even things out! :p :D

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I understand where you're coming from. If I didn't have any dogs I wouldn't care what gender I got either. I do prefer males but personality differs more from dog to dog so I would go by that before their gender. But, with three females already, a male is definetly all I would get. Actually, Luka and Nova aren't my worry, it's Mandy.

Thanks for your input though. I'll definetly direct my mom to this thread when we decide on getting a pup. Everyone's said exactly what I need her to hear ;) I think it means more when it comes from more than one or two people, you know? She's just stuck on the bad experiences she's had with males :(

My observations are that females are less likely to mark, but more independent, and prone to agression. So males are more likely to mark (but that may just be unneutered males), but are also more loving and laid back.

A lot has to do with the individual dog though.