What is your favorite small breed, and why?

I love the Coton De Tulear. They are like big dogs in a little dog's body. And very cute!  

Frenchies! I love those clowns! 

Chihuahuas - without a doubt.  I have never loved anything like I love my two Chihuahuas!  They fill my life with love and joy.  Despite some problems associated with having such tiny dogs (they are seen as prey by some larger dogs and even birds of prey) I can't even imagine my life without them.  I never thought I liked Chihuahuas until I fostered mine - and then true love hit me that was it!  They are so loving, devoted, loyal, sweet, gentle, clean and are incredibly cute when they play. Yet they also like to go hiking and swimming (well the bigger one likes swimming anyway).  They are small enough to be taken virtually anywhere too!

I'm definitely a big dog person.  However, I'd really like to have a Chinses Crested (PP) some day.  Every one I've met has had the sweetest personality.  In fact, I was offered one a couple of years ago.  i just couldn't convince my husband. 

Pwca

DumDog, what you like isn't a Pom- check out the German Spitz Klein (up to 12";) and Mittel (up to 15";)- they've got different head proportions and the foxy/coyote/untoy canid look.

 

I like German Spitz, Poms (totally different personality, but fun), papillons, poodles, and corgis. :P CKCS are fun but I wuoldn't want to own one. I wouldn'tmind a Tibeten Spaniel someday.  

no its a pom lol or thats what the breeder SAID   my sister's grandmother had bought a male pom named Wylie (as in Coyote) he was smallish like a pom but wasnt nearly as fluffy.. not like you see in the dog show anyway. i have a 1989 Dog World magazine with a pom in the breed section that looks like him.

.. sorry best i could do with no scanner.. even Wylie wasnt half as frizzy as this guy. and it seemed like his ears were bigger.

however after looking at the German Spitz, yes you're right they do look a lot like Wylie... which is what i look for and imagine when i day dream about owning a Pomeranian.

... and yet after some more online looking.. THIS looks like Wylie but with the above markings.. and he was red.. only he wasnt shaved..

Oops- I'm sorry, I wasn't clear. :P I didn't mean the dog wasn't himself a Pom- a lot of badly bred Poms revert towards the more 'natural' GS type since it's much less extreme- but that if that was the type of dog you liked, you should DEFINATELY look into the GS. (That's what got me interested in them in the first place. I love the foxier, bigger  Poms but I didn't want a badly bred dog, didn't want to support a bad breeder, and local pom rescue won't adopt to people with intact dogs (even if they're being shown) or large dogs (even if they're gentle). So I went for the nearest larger relative. :) Lizzie comes home either this coming weekend or the one after.  

 I love the Pembroke Welsh Corgi! But I'm biased.

 yeah i tried to get on with the pom rescue since they were desperate enough to post in craigslist begging for foster homes.... i have big dogs and kids, live in the country and my front porch is about seven feet off the ground.... oh and i'm under the age of 40....

so much for doing a good deed!!

and yeah i agree with you, i am now most certainly going to look more towards the german spitz! they look like a much more sturdy dog than today's Pomeranian. some friends from when i was a kid was breeding and raising "Tea Cup Poms" and they were cute as little buttons, and sweet to boot, but what i remember the most was the constant trouble they had with their health... one lost his eye when someone shut a door on him, they were both always getting stepped on or sat on... the female went into labour once and was taken to a crack pot vet that insisted that she had been bred to a larger dog... and he did NOTHING to help her.... so naturally when i see the usual variety of pomeranian all i think of is the two little ones my friends had... nah... would rather have the more primitive looking variety!

 Well, join the GermanSpitzUSA list and check out Lizzie's puppy blog

http://GermanSpitz.Wordpress.com <- fixed URL. :P

Will be updating tomorrow. :P  

i think i might do that :D thanks! 

I'm a little bit biased, but papillons definitely.  You can't find a better personality on a dog.  They're fun and smart and athletic.  So not a lap dog!  It's a pity a lot of people have an aversion to small dogs, they're missing out on some of the most amazing breeds! 

 I think these describe why I love the breed so much.  They make great competitors, are widely used as service dogs, are one of the top agility breeds (first MACH 10 papillon was in 2006, and in 2005 a papillon made the world agility team), excell in obedience and are even good in less common sports such as tracking.  But most importantly they're amazing companion dogs. 

 (pics belong to Papillon Club of America)

Beautiful.

Always ready to go!

Plus they're cute.

And they don't mind sharing!

And did I ever mention that they're silly?

corgis (even though they aren't really small...) jack russels, high energy, 'big dog' attitude. I'm not big on litte fluffy dogs... cute to look at, but not for me! I don't deal well with yappy little dogs either...

erica1989

I don't deal well with yappy little dogs either...

i'm about 90% convinced the yap factor comes from the owner... my grandmother had two Chihuahuas(one died recently) and they were both silent as could be... ok they barked when people came to visit, but they settled down quickly and were content to warm your lap or make you laugh... the one that died would chase his tail.. the more you laughed the more he would chase it.... but Mattie is a terror... she trembles in all out fear when strangers come over.. she barks constantly and she WILL bite if you turn your back on her.... but her little attitude was ignored.. if no one wanted to hear her yapping they would put her in the crate which was kept in the kid's bedroom... where she would howl and try to dig out...

Buddy and Gizmo(my grandmother's chihuahuas) have NEVER been crated.. they have never tried to bite a stranger, and they dont wait until you're not looking to poop in your house...

i like Mattie but i am anxiously awaiting the day she goes back home... i think for the time being i'll stick with Amber as my little lap dog... maybe years down the road when the boys are older and more self reliant. only then will i feel comfortable with getting another toy breed... but it'll have to be special circumstances... prefer a puppy or at LEAST an adult dog that hasnt been ruined by a nutty owner..

Miniature Schnauzers, for their "big dog" attitude, affectionate tendencies and the way their beards and eyebrows make them look like little grumpy old men.

Pugs, for their adorable faces, cute little snorts and general air of being up for anything.

Frenchies, for their clownish behavior, "frog dog" look and sweet disposition.