How To Choose A Dog Breed

Hi. I'm Jamie Crittall from Beech House Veterinary Centre in Surrey and I'm here to talk to you about dog breeding. Hi.

I'd like to talk to you about choosing the right dog breed for you because there are huge numbers of specific breeds. In fact, there are over two hundred recognized by the Kennel Club alone. Then, of course, there are cross breeds and real sort of Hines 57s.

You need to find out what's the right one for you because they come in different sizes, different shapes, different lengths of hair, the amount of exercise that they need and more than that, how much they're going to cost you. So, the first thing before you sort of approach it is do lots of reading, speak to lots of friends, go and see the local vet, find out from them, visit dog shows or something like 'Discover Dogs' can be really, really useful for you to actually get a better idea of what suits you. Okay, when choosing a dog breed, don't rush in, make sure you get the right one that suits you and suits your lifestyle.

One thing you need to sort of ascertain, you go to work, how much time are they going to be left on their own. How big is your house? How big is your garden? Do you have a young family? How much can you actually afford? From a variation in size, it may be weigh up to a hundred kilos, whereas a tiny Chihuahua or Yorkie maybe only a kilo. So, the feeding cost will be very different between them but also the requirements that they need.

Surber probably won't need a huge amount of exercise whereas a Springer Spaniel or a Labrador will need a huge amount of exercise, veterinary fees, big consideration. I think we're a wonderful profession but it's one of the things that you do need to be able to work out whether you could afford the preventive health care issues, vaccinations, wormings, flee treatment, having your pet insured. All of these are big considerations that will end up hopefully, you, to decide which one is the right one for you.

Once you've done that, you need to then decide do you want a bitch or a male dog because they each have different personalities and different traits. Hi. One of the real considerations when choosing a dog breed is they like the coat.

Some have absolutely no hair like the Mexican hairless or the Chinese crested dog compared to an Afghan with one of the longest coats. Some hair doesn't actually fall out so Westies or other Terriers or Spaniels, sometimes you will need to have them go to the groomers to be shown and this does not surprisingly have some expense that goes with it. So, from the time point of view, big consideration, so tying all of those up together, hopefully you will be able to come up with a sort of a short list and then go and meet dogs in the park and go and find out.

But the most important thing when choosing a dog breed is do lots of research, make sure you get the right breed for you. .