Help with breed selection..

I would first check rescue orgs once you settle on some breed possibilities.  You can sometimes get purebred dogs with known health histories for very cheap from a rescue group.  I'm adopting a German Shepherd that has a UKC championship title and is from well-bred parents who are also titled and OFA certified (I don't think my dog is yet but we'll get it done.  My understanding is that the dog has to be 2 yo to be certified and she is 3 so we'll get it done if the breeder is not already in the process).  You'd be surprised at the quality of dogs you can find through rescues.

As for breeds, tell us a bit more about what you're looking for and we'd love to offere suggestions.  Do you have preferences as far as color, coat, size, energy level, prey drive, temperament.....?

Labs and Goldens are great all-around family pets, there's good reasons why they are so popular, but there's also good reasons why they are some of the most popular breeds in shelters.  Some of them do have high energy levels and can become destructive and aggressive if they are treated more like a house cat and not formally trained and properly exercised.

Our dog Lilly had fear aggression; so I would like a social dog that is nice and lovable.  Lilly loved us but feared anyone who came over, so our company was limited to her liking.  I don't want a dog that is prone to illness (if that is possible), Lilly had hip dysplasia that developed when she was only 6 months old.  A medium size dog would be good; Lilly was 55lbs.  Not comparing a new dog to Lilly but this is what we are use to...there is some of Lilly that I want in a new dog and some of Lilly that I don't want.  My kids like the type of dog that will sleep with them.  We like going for walks and will take a dog for car & boat rides/visit relatives/go camping.   We do work during the day but I come home at lunch...
I'm clueless on what will be good for us.  The vet said pick a dog with your head, not your heart.  So, I'm just starting to do my homework.  Thanks for offering to help.

Liesje,  I'm in Michigan too.

I'm really sorry about what happened with Lilly. I have been very lucky with my almost 14 year old mixed breed dog (part border collie, rottweiler + possibly lab mix). 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.

I think it depends on the breeder if you are going for a purebred dog.  You are going to have to pay more, but you'll get peice of mind knowing that the puppy was given health checks and a grood breeder will have the parent/s on site and can tell you the health history of the lineage. 
 
I know someone who has a labradoodle and she has had so many health problems.  Constant UTIs and digestive peoblems.  Honestly I wouldn't trust a "breeder" of labradoodles with the designer dogs craze right now. 
 
Here is a breed selector quiz.  This site has good information on pretty much any breed you can think of. 
[linkhttp://www.dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm]http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm[/link]

Liesje, I'm in Michigan too.

Ooooo, where abouts?

Based on your past experience, I think it's perfectly reasonable to be more interested in a purebred.  Some people will give you crap for not always choosing a shelter dog (not people here per se, but in general) and others will give you crap for NOT chosing a purebred.  In the end, only you know what's best for you.  And when children are involved, the stakes are a lot higher.

Once you've decided on a purebred, the hardest thing is finding an ethical breeder that has or will have the right dog for you.  It's really hard to say just one or two breeds will be the "best" for your situation because dogs can be so different.  The one thing you'll most definitely need to look for is a dog whose parents both have their hips certified by OFA or PennHIP.  If you find a breeder, ask them about this, and they give you a blank stare....BIG red flag!  Like others have pointed out, it is interesting the vet told you to look for a purebred labradoodle....labradoodles are mixes of labs and poodles and therefore are not purebreds, they are basically a mutt that has turned into a designer breed.  There's nothing wrong with a mutt and I know a lot of labradoodles and owners who are very happy with that choice, but a labradoodle is not a purebred dog.  When you are very concerned with the quality of the dog's hips and bone structure, looking for a labradoodle is going to make it more difficult because you are mixing two breeds.

I would search around the 'net and take some of the breed selector quizzes.  Go to akc.org and doogbreedinfo.com and scroll through the choices just to see which ones stand out and then you can narrow it down based on that breed's general temperament and energy level.  There's so many people here with such great info on every breed, we'd love to help you pick a breeder that will be ethical and give you the right dog.

  It's a hard call, giving advice to people about breed selection. I think that the web site that you were given earlier in the thread is a good place to start. Find a dog show in your area so that you can get idea about personality, appearant etc., and to meet breeders.  

As it was mentioned earlier, getting a pure bred dog isn't alwasy a guarantee that there won't be problems down the line.  You can look for a breed that isn't prone to many health probems for starters, and then find a breeder who is concientious and will work with you re: temperment and health certifications. 

Good Luck!

To BJW and Liesje:  I'm in Michigan, too!  We are down here on the very SW corner of the state.  Liesje, Are going to Premier in Kalamazoo in June?  BJW, that would be a good dog show for you to go to. 

To BJW and Liesje: I'm in Michigan, too! We are down here on the very SW corner of the state. Liesje, Are going to Premier in Kalamazoo in June? BJW, that would be a good dog show for you to go to.

I don't know, do you have a link w/ info?  I've never been to a dog show before, just agility!

Like others said a purebred is not a guarantee that you won't have health problems. I think that maybe you should start by thinking of dogs that you like the look of. Greyhounds, cocker spaniels, labs, westies, whatever kind of dogs you see walking around that you like the look of and then check out those breeds' club sites.
If you go to petfinder.com and click on "pet search" somewhere near the top of the page you can put in exactly what breed you're looking for. There are lots of rescues dedicated to purebred dogs and then you could go to their website and email them about the personalities of their available dogs. I think most rescue people don't want to put their dogs in a position to be bounced back, so if you tell them what you need and want in a dog they will probably be very honest about their dogs and whether they're right for you or not.
This was what I did when I start looking for a new dog to adopt. I liked the way dachshunds, Italian greyhounds, westies, papillions and corgis looked and I talked to some people at rescues and looked at club websites and ruled out the ones that sounded like they wouldn't be right for me.

Thank you for the replies.  I appreciate your suggestions. 
 
I guess the vet was confusing when mentioning a pure breed but then suggesting a Labadoodle.  I questioned pure breeds with him because of ossible hip dysplasia known in pure breeds so he mentioned that breed, saying that the poodle side would be safe (with no hip problems) and a good breeder will test the lab side before breeding.   I think it was just an alternative. 
 
MiddleEye, of all the choices you liked which breed did you adopt?

We are adopting a 4 year old pembroke welsh corgi. But it came down to either him or a cairn terrier. Our last dog was a chow/husky mix and before that we had a chow/german shepherd and a german shepherd.
I would never have considered a corgi before I met this one. His personality is perfect and he's adorable.
Good luck with finding your dog and keep us posted!!

I've heard of plenty of lab/poodle crosses (I refuse to use the doodle term!) with joint problems, including hip dysplasia. I'm somewhat shocked that a vet wouldn't realize that recessive genes can create problems where none were previously documented, when two unrelated lines are crossed. In other words, there can be more of a risk of something like CHD in crossbreeds, since the inheritance pattern of the condition is not really understood at this time. You can't really "test" for it - you can only say whether parents and other relatives did or didn't have the condition themselves.

Anyway, I understand after what you went through, that you'd be reluctant to go down that road again. Something you might consider is choosing a breed that suits your lifestyle, and also has a good track record for health. For instance, one of the best kept secrets of the companion dog world is the Finnish spitz. I have a Finkie mix that takes strongly after her Finkie side of the family. She's fantastic with the kids, super loyal, a great little watchdog, very easy to care for, clean, odorless, active but not crazy, intelligent but without any need for constant stimulation. Only two down sides. LOTS of hair during shedding season, but that's only a couple weeks out of the year. But still, I mean TONS of hair. Like, your vacuum will die if you forget to change it after every use. The other thing is they are all quite vocal. They don't bark for no reason, but when they do bark, it's kind of strange sounding and could be annoying. It's an aquired taste. And they are bred for the bark, so there's no getting out of it. []

Other neat companion-type dogs with good health records - well bred Chows, well-bred beagles (check out rescue, for sure!), rescue greyhounds, keeshunds, Skipperke, Shiba Inu, a lot of the pointers, many of the coonhounds (check rescue, again!), basenji if you don't a bit of attitude, and two neat herding dogs currently off the AKC radar - the Pyranean Shepherd and the Picardy Shepherd (I WILL own one of these someday . . .). There's other cool rare or international breeds listed at the UKC and the FCI websites - many of these breeds have only recently been "standardized" and still retain the hardiness of performance-based gene pools. English shepherd is another breed that's been kind of a well-kept secret up to now - you'll have to make a commitment to offering a good bit of physical activity for such a dog, however.

Here you go - if you want to spend a WHOLE lot of money for a really neat, healthy breed - import one of these! http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/hovawart.htm These look very cool - the black and tans are gorgeous. The blondes are like goldern retrievers, but without the myriad health problems of that breed.

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?
 
As far as a purebred dog goes, there are breed specific rescues for every breed.  These dogs spend time in foster homes where they are evaluated for things such as: temperment towards kids, cats, other dogs, strangers, noises. 
 
Do you have a preference as to any particular breed? 

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.