What I want for Christmas
Dec. 20th, 2009 07:56 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
hazliyaThe last few months have cemented it.
I want a Papillon.
They might not be very popular, but I don't care. It came as a surprise to me, as I'm very much a big dog person, but when I whittled my lifestyle needs down, these little guys have matched up in every way.
My three base requirements for a dog are as follows:
- Between 10 and 35 pounds so that I can easily carry/transport it in an emergency
- Have at least marginal grooming requirements that motivate me to be aware of its hygiene, low-allergen breeds preferred
- Be highly intelligent and receptive to training/obedience
Papillons are amazing dogs. I've always loved them, but the more of them I've met recently, the more in love with the breed I've fallen. They're toy spaniels, essentially, meaning they're about a foot at the shoulders and 12-15 pounds but have the work ethic/desire to please of their hunting relatives.
They're also in the top ten breeds of The Intelligence of Dogs, a study that measured both the ease of training and obedience level of the AKC recognized breeds.
So, easy to train, motivated, capable of entertaining themselves, human-oriented, cute as hell!, single-coated, and ridiculously loyal dogs. And it's extremely easy to train them to be near-silent, too. I want a dog whose brain I can really work and then reward them by letting them snuggle into my lap.
This is the breed for me.
I know I'm not ready for a dog yet. Not this year. But when I get a more stable situation, it's going to happen.
Until then, I can only wait and fidget.
I want a Papillon.
They might not be very popular, but I don't care. It came as a surprise to me, as I'm very much a big dog person, but when I whittled my lifestyle needs down, these little guys have matched up in every way.
My three base requirements for a dog are as follows:
- Between 10 and 35 pounds so that I can easily carry/transport it in an emergency
- Have at least marginal grooming requirements that motivate me to be aware of its hygiene, low-allergen breeds preferred
- Be highly intelligent and receptive to training/obedience
Papillons are amazing dogs. I've always loved them, but the more of them I've met recently, the more in love with the breed I've fallen. They're toy spaniels, essentially, meaning they're about a foot at the shoulders and 12-15 pounds but have the work ethic/desire to please of their hunting relatives.
They're also in the top ten breeds of The Intelligence of Dogs, a study that measured both the ease of training and obedience level of the AKC recognized breeds.
So, easy to train, motivated, capable of entertaining themselves, human-oriented, cute as hell!, single-coated, and ridiculously loyal dogs. And it's extremely easy to train them to be near-silent, too. I want a dog whose brain I can really work and then reward them by letting them snuggle into my lap.
This is the breed for me.
I know I'm not ready for a dog yet. Not this year. But when I get a more stable situation, it's going to happen.
Until then, I can only wait and fidget.
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no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 02:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 02:20 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 04:01 am (UTC)Also, the breed has nearly zero media exposure.
no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 05:21 am (UTC)They, and Australian Shepherds, are probably my favorite two... There was the most adorable little deaf Australian Shepherd in the Beginner's class at PetSmart...
Anyways, best wishes for finding a dog you can be with soon... I know Stacy and I probably weren't ready for a dog, but it's turned out very well, all things considered. It may be worth it to prepare yourself as much as possible and then just take the dive.
no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 02:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 05:34 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2009-12-21 07:25 pm (UTC)