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Anonymous
Can someone with a wide knowledge of dog breeds give me a brief pros/cons list (health/temperament/personality etc) for the following dogs please!

- Labrador Retriever
- German Shepard
- Rottweiler
- Siberian Husky

I'm thinking of getting one of the above and im going round in circles.....

Pic related (i'm swaying towards a Lab)
>> Yiffdog !!gE/Npivj/5x
Labradors are pretty good family pets.
I've never known an aggressive one.

They're not very bright, though, and can be so hyper for the first two or so years.

You HAVE to get training in ASAP or you have a problem.

Nothing worse than seeing a lab running across roads to great the first person it sees and probably knocking them over by jumping.

And they can get hip problems later in life...
>> Anonymous
>>200566

Someone mentioned avoiding stairs while they're still growing (first 6 months?) because it can accelerate hip problems - think that's accurate?
>> Yiffdog !!gE/Npivj/5x
>>200568
I guess so.
Running up/down them would jolt the bones about.
>> Anonymous
Get a mongrel. Pedigrees have weakness bred into them.
>> Anonymous
most popular breeds get the cancers from overbreeding/poorish genes :(
>> Anonymous
>>200579

ITT retards jealous of purebreds.

Mutts can be nice, but here's the FACT: you only ever get to see the top 10% best mutts when you go to shelters. That's why most mutts "appear" healthy. The rest get euthanized.

With purebreds, as long as you avoid the irresponsible breeders, you should be a-ok as far as health goes. If you get a purebred from a backyard breeder, you're highly likely to get a unhealthy dog.

Case in point, we all know that most of the "designer dogs" come with a million health problems. Do you think that "any other mutt than a designer dog is healthy!!!!oneone11!!"? If so then you're retarded.

Anyway...

Siberian Huskies have incredible temperament. Wonderful with anything that's human. However, they are probably the highest energy dog on that list. But the others can be pretty high energy too.

They are most different from the other breeds you mentioned that if you included them with 3 other similar dogs, you don't appear to understand what you're getting with a Husky. They have almost nothing in the way of eagerness to please you like the other 3 dogs who will have their lives revolve around you.

They are often unanffectionate, can't ever be allowed off leash, will kill any prey like cats, squirrels, etc. Unless socialized with them.

TL:DR one of these things is not like the others. My rec. is Labrador, they are an awesome all-around dog unlike the Rott and German who need a good handler.

-owner of 2 mutts, 1 husky, 2 labradors.
>> Anonymous
>>200595

Lolwut, got any proof other than "he said, she said" and ancedotal data?
>> Anonymous
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Labrador Retrievers are prone to get cancer when they get older. I've had two, first one got stomach cancer and the second died from pancreatic cancer. Both at 13 years of age.

Also some eye problems, but those are hereditary.
>> le/x/bian
labs - best family dogs you could ask for. Extremely friendly with people and animals alike, and eager to please so they're usually pretty easy to train. They're really hyper for at LEAST the first two years of their life, so training is essential, and you have to be careful with their hips and they are prone to cancer.

GSDs - Incredibly loyal and easy to train, but have a ton of health problems and are extremely prone to bloat and hip displasia especially. They also have a tendancy to be destructive while young. You have to socialize them really well to make sure they don't become aggresive.

Rottweilers - They're great dogs and huge clowns, usually really good with children and also good guard dogs. Again, training and socialization is essential because they are a guarding dog. From my knowledge they don't have too many health problems, though.

Huskys - they have a high prey drive (like many alaskan breeds), so you'll always have to watch them with small animals and cats and things like that. They tend to be very independant and hard to train because they are stubborn, but if you keep it up from an early age it's definitely not impossible to get a well-trained Husky. Again, training and socialization.

As said above, though, mixed breeds are greatest as far as temperment and health usually goes - purebreds often have screwed up genes due to overbreeding or inbreeding. Lab-mixes and GSD-mixes are EXCELLENT dogs in my experience.
>> Anonymous
OP here, yeah i have friends that have Husky's - they're WAY too much for me to deal with lol

I think i'll be sticking with a Lab :D

Hmmmm black or chocolate :D
>> Anonymous
>>200622
I prefer black, but they're the same dog regardless of coat color, so pick whichever you like the look of best. There are a LOT of labs in shelters because they're such a common dog, so make sure you check there first. You could get an already housebroken, trained, fixed, up-to-date-on-shots, etc dog for cheap that way.
>> Anonymous
stupid question: Golden Retrievers.... are they 'different' to a 'normal' Labrador....?
>> Anonymous
>>200646
More grooming, basically.
>> Anonymous
Pretty much half of the labs I see are overweight. I think it's safe to say that it's a problem IF you don't take care of them properly. As far as hips are concerned, don't take them to the beach when they are still growing, it's not very good for them.

Personally I prefer a golden retriever, mine (who recently died tho) was a large male (english type), he had this very majestic look that I think you wouldn't find in a Labrador. We bought him from some rich woman who would occasionally get two prize-winning goldens together since she enjoyed seeing puppies being born, that might have been a reason for his impressive looks. I still miss him, full of energy until his last few days, probably similar to a Labrador.
>> Anonymous
Huskys are great dogs if you are the guy who likes to exersise outside for 3-4 hours every day - running, biking, hiking, all that shit. Husky is not a lap dog, it is a dog produced for hunting and is still widely used for this role. Hunting squerels and grouses with husky is fun, they have incredible sense of smell. If husky does not have a way to release energy (wich usualy involves running like crasy for couple hours straight) it will have health problems and shitty temperament.
Protip: socks knitted with husky hair are the best thing to wear in cold winters.
>> Anonymous
>>200650

As much as i'd love a Husky, i know i wouldn't be able to give him the freedom + excise he'd need :(

Can someone post some golden retriever / black lab comparison pics?

Yes i could google but that's no fun
>> Anonymous
got bored - so i did google it... and yeah Golden retrievers look...... not as nice as labs imo:
>> Anonymous
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>> Anonymous
>>200650

You must not be talking about the Siberian Husky (or any other Husky for that matter) but rather Spitz dogs.

Siberians were made for pulling, as were Alaskan Huskies and Alaskan Malamutes. They do have a strong prey drive but that's just because they were released during the summer to hunt on their own, not because they were trying to use them as hunting dogs.

Still, though, they do require a lot of exercise.
>> Anonymous
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>>200653
>>200654
Thats a usa type golden retriever, the english type is bulkier and larger.