A guide to picking the right dog for you

Wondering how to choose a dog? It can be overwhelming. After all, there are quite a few things to consider, from breed and age to finding a reputable breeder or rescue. Here are just some of the things to think about before making the big decision to welcome a canine into your home. (If you’re not sure whether you’re ready for a dog, find out here.)

1. Decide whether you want to adopt or buy a dog

Is buying a puppy or adopting a dog the best way forward for you? While you can adopt younger dogs from rescue organisations (there are often plenty of teenagers!), it’s often harder to find young puppies in these settings. So if a puppy is a must-have for you, buying from a breeder may be your best option. However, puppies are not clean slates and can be hard work, so you’ll need to think about whether you’re ready for a biting, chewing baby tearing round the house!

If you’re less concerned about age or just want to give a rescue dog a loving home, then going down the adoption route may be best. Rescues will have strict criteria for each of the dogs that are available to rehome. And that’s just to make sure that both the dog and the people rehoming them are likely to be happy in the long term. So finding the right dog for you may not be a quick process. Then again, if you’re looking for a reputable breeder to buy a puppy from, you may be on a waiting list for a while too. 

Of course, cost comes into it as well. It’s generally cheaper to adopt a dog than buy from a breeder. But all dogs are a significant financial commitment so you’ll need to make sure you can afford to care for them (including paying for training and behavioural help where needed) for the rest of their lives before starting to look for one.

2. Think about your ideal dog

Now you know whether you’d like to adopt or shop, have a think about your ideal dog. While you may have always loved a particular breed, try not to focus on looks. Instead, think about your lifestyle and the traits a dog will ideally have to fit into that. 

Let’s start with size. If you have limited space indoors, live in a busy city, don’t have a garden or may struggle to handle a bigger dog, a smaller breed that’s not so energetic may be best. But if you have more room both inside and outside, can physically handle a stronger dog (all dogs may pull on lead at some point!) and like spending time in nature, a bigger breed with higher activity levels could be an option.

Then narrow down some breeds that typically have traits you like the sound of. We have been selectively breeding dogs for hundreds of years to do particular things or behave in particular ways. So while you can’t guarantee a dog will be stereotypical of their breed, if you don’t like the traits you’re reading about, it’s best to look elsewhere. Here’s a great book for learning more about various breed traits.

(Good with children isn’t a trait, I’m sorry to say – that requires a suitable temperament and genetics, adequate early socialisation, and good supervision and training from you. Even then, there are no guarantees.)

As well as traits, look at any health issues your selected breeds may be prone to, the level of grooming they’ll need and their general exercise requirements. If anything that crops up makes you run a mile, forget how cute the dog looks. That breed is not for you.

A personal example to help you understand the reality of living with a particular breed. Winston, my Shar Pei, is a primitive breed and he is very typical of his breed. He’s independent, which generally makes training more difficult as he historically hasn’t been bred to work with humans. He generally doesn’t want physical contact – he has never snuggled up for a cuddle and likely never will, but does love licking us for ages every morning. He’s also aloof with other people and can be suspicious of strangers.

Oh, and other dogs can find him hard to read due to the small ears, upright tails and wrinkly skin, which can mean they don’t like him very much. (Something I think contributed to his own reactivity over time.) Sounds like a lot of negatives but I wouldn’t change him for the world. However, he’s not an easy dog and not a breed I would recommend for a lot of people.

Side note: If you’re looking to choose a dog from a rescue centre, breed may be less of a factor. After all, some rescue dogs’ breeds are unknown. But you can still think about the traits you’d like in a dog and anything that you wouldn’t be able to deal with. While you’re likely to have some training or behavioural hiccups with any dog throughout their life, it’s okay to admit you wouldn’t be able to live with a dog who has separation anxiety or who doesn’t like visitors coming into the home. Living with a dog with behavioural issues is difficult and some problems can take a while to work through. So you don’t need to take on that dog unless you really want to.

The same goes for foreign rescue dogs. While some dogs eventually settle in well after coming from abroad, some take a considerable amount of time or may never truly feel comfortable living in a home. Do your research beforehand to make sure you understand and are ready to deal with all the possible outcomes and have a list of professionals ready to contact if you need help.

3. Find a reputable breeder or rescue 

A dog’s early life experiences can influence their future behaviour, so that means researching where you adopt or buy them from.

If you opt for a breeder, you’ll need to ask questions about both parents, including asking about their health and temperament. Make sure you see (at least) the mother of the litter when you visit and note that a mother who experiences stress while the puppies are in the womb can pass that stress onto the litter. So check that she’s been kept in a comfortable, low-stress environment and that the puppies are living in a suitable place and being properly cared for, too.

Also think about the environment they were born into and where you live. For example, is the puppy from working lines and born on a farm and you’re thinking of taking them to a busy town or city? That’s where problems can arise.

It’s also a good idea to ask the breeder about how they start the socialisation process with puppies. (If they don’t know what you mean, it’s best to look elsewhere.) This is time-sensitive so breeders should be exposing puppies to the likes of different textures, sounds and objects (as well as some people) before the puppy comes to you. Then you carry on that process at home and in the big wide world to help your puppy get used to the things they’ll see throughout their life. If this process is missed or not done properly, then a dog is at risk of behavioural issues later on.

Finally, a good breeder will want to know as much about you as you do about them. After all, they should care about where their puppies are going to and offer support if you need any. 

While rescues may not know much about some of the dogs up for adoption, they should spend some time getting to know each dog so that they have an idea of temperament and things that the dog may struggle with in a home. Of course, behaviour can change in different environments so what you see in a kennel may not be the same in a home and vice-versa. Rescues should also have had dogs checked over by a vet and be aware of any current health issues or potential future problems. 

You should research rescues thoroughly to make sure that they are reputable and that they offer support in case you do need guidance with training and behaviour later on. Expect for a rescue representative to come and look at your home and ask you a series of questions and then for you to meet the dog (likely a few times) before signing on the dotted line. (The last part may obviously differ if you’re adopting a foreign rescue who is not yet in the UK, but the aforementioned checks should still take place.) If the process feels rushed, look elsewhere.

It’s time to choose a dog

Carefully consider all of the above to be in with the best chance of a problem-free life with your dog. Still feeling a bit overwhelmed? I can guide you through the process so you can spend less time researching and more time enjoying things. Read more about how I can help you choose the right dog.