Help with breed selection..

Here's a link to the information.

http://www.ukcdogs.com/Premier.htm

There will be lots of dog sports there. I'm going to do Novice Agility and Novice Obedience with Trudy.

Worth the trip just to see all the activities that dogs can get involved in.

Thanks so much!  I'll run it by the hubby.  I was going to go to a prestigious gymnastics meet in K-zoo in July but now I can't b/c our vacation dates changed, so maybe we can do this instead.

Hey, if you do, give me a holler!  I'm going to be there on Sunday for sure.  That is when the Trudster is going to be showing.  It might be fun to hook up and say "Hi".

Are you registered with UKC?

What are you looking for in a companion dog?

Do you want a highly active dog? A cuddly dog? One that goes camping with you? One that you can let off lead in certain situations? Do you want a dog that barks when someone knocks at the door and then is all tail wags when they come in? Or do you want a dog that pretty much ignores the door knocking as well?

 
A cuddly dog with a sweet temperment that will go places with us (camping, to relatives, boating).  That would really be cool to be able to let the dog off the lead at times...we have a neighbor whose dog isn't on a leash and they play ball, I was always jealous.  Lilly had fear aggression, she was affraid of everything...even leaves blowing.  Just the other morning I let her out and she rushed to go back in because there was a balloon on someone's mailbox.  We never let the kids (ages 10 & 13) take her out because if Lilly got affraid enough, we didn't want the kids to be responsible.  She was a wonderful dog to us but was affraid of everything, people, noises.  When someone knocked on the door, she barked fearcefully and her hair stood straight up.  We would like a dog that barks when someone's at the door but a dog that knows when to chill-out when told to...we couldn't let people inside without Lilly going scary crazy.  The dr said it could have been attributed to the pain from her hips.  I don't know though.  
 
 

It probably sounds cliche given how popular they already are, but I think a lab or Golden would be good.  There's a reason why they are both such popular companion dogs.  As long as they are properly trained and receive enough exercise, they are great all-around family dogs.  Since they are retrievers, they generally enjoy being around water, whereas other breeds aren't as natural near water and even may need to be coaxed.  However because they are so popular, it will be very important to find a good breeder.  Hip problems are common among these breeds and there's an insane about of bad breeding going on. 

If being able to eventually trust the dog off-leash is important to you, based on my experience I'd say avoid huskies, many of the hounds, and some of the Asian dogs like Akitas and Shiba Inus.  Of course there are always exceptions, but in general, these types of dogs are more "natural" in that they have high prey drives, are very independent, and can be escape artists.

Hey, if you do, give me a holler! I'm going to be there on Sunday for sure. That is when the Trudster is going to be showing. It might be fun to hook up and say "Hi".

Are you registered with UKC?

I suppose so, my doggy has a UKC championship, but she's not living with me yet *sniff* (not until we move to a house this summer....see ticker in my sig).  She can't show anymore b/c she got spayed last month, but she's also registered for the AKC for agility.  I e-mailed the breeder to ask if she's going to this event, but no response yet.  Does the UKC have a database where you can search for a dog's info and titles like w/ the AKC?

If we go it would be the Saturday and/or Sunday since I work during the week and used all my vacations.

I agree that lab or golden is a great idea. I have never had one, but I know a lot of people who own them and all the ones I've met have been great family dogs. Of course they have their downsides too.
Almost all the dogs I've owned have been chows or chow mixes, so I might be biased towards them. But they aren't a dog for everyone. All the ones we've ever had have been complete and total angels, but they can make your life difficult in some ways. Most apartments and grooms refuse to accept them from what I've discovered.
The GSD/chow chow mix I had was the best dog ever! Loved kids, loved adults, loved water, loved everything except rats. I still haven't gotten over his death and he died in 1991.
Is there is a breed of dog that your kids are particularly interested in? You could start by researching those.

You all have been truely helpful.  We got Lilly from adopt-a-pet and she was a mute, mixed with Australian Sheppard, Beagle, Pointer and more; so we're clueless as to what breed we want or which will be good for us.  The vet mentioned pure breed for our next pet...
 
What I want to avoid is a dog with potential fear aggression or bad temperment and hip problems. 
 
I really want to avoid this too  these types of dogs are more "natural" in that they have high prey drives, are very independent, and can be escape artists.

I appreciate all your help and kindness! 

All dogs are going to have some level of prey drive, but that is something that can be deconditioned.
 
Bad hips:  If you are researching breeds, concentrate more fully on those that are on the smaller side of 40lbs.  There are lots of dogs out there in that size range.  You'll also need to interview a few breeders, or perhaps even attend a few dog shows and ask lots of questions.
 
Just a few quick suggestions:  Maybe a corgi?  Maybe a beagle mix from the shelter?  (though beagles tend to be a bit more houndy than most.)  What about a Portuguese Water Dog?  Or a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever?  Those are good places to start.  Clumber Spaniels are pretty cool too. 
 
If you're looking for smaller than those, there's Papillons, Japanese Chins, Chinese Cresteds, American Eskimos (they have a bit higher prey drive than others though.) 
 
I almost forgot...have you thought about terriers?  Bull Terriers are great family dogs.  (Think Spuds McKenzie) They can be a bit stubborn though, like all terriers.

It sounds like you kind of want a "bomb proof" dog, in which case a toy breed probably isn't the best bet. A lot of them can be easily frightened, as they are so small that everything seems enormous to them.

Are you dead-set on getting a puppy? If you get an older dog (say, 1-2 years? not necessarily an "old" dog), especially a rescue that's been in a foster home, you'll already have a good idea for the dog's hips/health/conformation, as well as temperament. You wouldn't necessarily have to go for a purebred, though you could go through a purebred rescue. That way there wouldn't be nearly as much risk or "what ifs" - you'd already know what the dog would be like more or less for the rest of its life.

I'm sorry to hear about your last dog... it's wonderful that you gave her a good life with you, even if only for a brief while.

I can't remember how old your kids are, if you have said already. Sorry if you said before and I missed it. But papillions and other toys aren't that great for families with kids. I think most breeders and rescues won't even let families with young kids have them. I am guessing you want a medium-sized dog that your kids can play with without risk of injuring it. A man at my office owns both a Portuguese water dog and a German short haired pointer. He and his kids love both of them. They take the pointer just about everywhere with them.
I think the corgi might be a good dog to look into. They're adorable and smallish, plus I have heard they like water. Good for your boating...
Of course the more exotic breeds are going to be just that much harder to find and so you'll have to wait to get one from a good breeder. And getting one from the best possible breeder is what's important. That is the best way to help yourself avoid the health and temperament problems you've experienced in the past. I think a lot of times the breeders of rarer dogs will probably have a waiting list.

I'm so bad at telling where to get dogs, but helping people choose breeds is a hobby of mine!!!
 
[linkhttp://dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm]http://dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm[/link]

ORIGINAL: FeathersEverywhere

I do find it interesting that the vet recommended a pure breed dog and then went on to recommend a labradoodle []. Best of luck with your search.

 
That's ridiculous, but then again, people are practically begging the AKC to recognize Labradoodles and Cockapoos as purebreeds.

Ha. Cockapoos. [&:] I guess I have owned a lot of designer dogs in my day and just never knew it! To think all this time I have been mistaking them for mutts.
Maybe for fun I should start demanding that the AKC recognize my cockatoo. Only one letter difference...

I love Riley's picture in the car mirror!
 
It makes it hard to not want to adopt again, look what I have seen in our local petfinder.com:
 

Hi! I am Johnie, a 4-5 month old retriever mix puppy. I have a soft yellow coat and floppy ears. I am definantly the loving, cuddly time but I like my play time too, I am a puppy after all! If you can help me grow up to be the best dog I can be come see me real soon!
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Shepherd Mix
[blockquote]
Size: Large
Age: Baby
Gender: Male
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[font="comic sans ms"][size=2]Hogan is a neutered male who is 4 months old.[/size][/font]
 
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~I'm just really nervous to get involved with a dog of not knowing it's genetics.

Aww. What a cute puppy. Are you going to go check him out?