Big dogs vs small dogs?

The smallest dog I have ever owned were the labs I grew up with. Shaq is the largest dog I have ever owned. I like the really big dogs best, because I am lazy, and they too are lazy. [] There are tons of small and toy breeds that I like, but I am not sure if I will ever own one.

Size isn't a major factor for me, either.  Before Max, all my dogs had been fairly small (cocker size - maybe 30/35 lbs.) I should have known Max was going to be a big'n [] when I adopted him as he was about 3 - 4 months old and 27 lbs. The first two months we had him, he packed on 10 lbs. a month and I thought he was going to be really huge.  Twenty pounds ago I thought he was enormous.  Now, at about 60+ lbs. he really doesn't seem all that big - he's just my puppers.  Aside from the fact that he takes up a little more than his share of the bed, his size isn't a problem at all.

Joyce

I have to say I don't really feel the same way as most people here. I like a smaller dog maybe around 20ish lbs is what I think of as the best...at least to me anyway. When I get a house of my own I might think of getting a golden ( even afer reading Marley and Me!) but, in general I think 20ish lb dog are just the right size. They are big enough to be seen but not too big ad they dont take up a ton of space! I just wondered what everyone here thought about dogs and what the "perfect" size is. I realize that what matters most is the personality so please do not think I am agains any kind of dog at all. I don't mind big dogs..I am sure they can make you feel safe and are just as nice as the little dogs. I have to admit though I love being able to have the dog curl up in my lap or fall asleep on my feet...I think you can "cuddle" more with a little lap dog. My limited experiance with big dogs only really has two stories that go along with it. The first big dog I ever knew wat my grandparents lab Abby, the shepard that used to live across the street Sampson and my good friend's dog Wolfgang. Unfortunately all of these are now on the other side of rainbow bridge. I guess my point is that a real dog lover loves all well behaved good dogs...but I guess what you see and have experiance with also plays a part in the size of the dog you like.

Oh! there is just one thing I want to ad. A lot of small dogs seem to have a big personality in a small body. I have a never in my 23 years met a dog who plays harder, has as much lung power and is as much of a tough cookie as Bailey! This includes the few big dogs I wrote about. Little dogs often hae a reputation of being sort of whimpy but I have to say some small dogs are tough cookies! Today I accidently rocked over Bailey when I was on the rocking chair. She let out a squeel and scrambled out. She is such a tough cookie..as soon as she got over trying to run off  (I think she thought I was playing with her and I had played a little too rough.) she just lay down and wanted a belly rub. She hardly cried at all! She almost never cries when she gets hurt...im telling oyu shes a toughie lol

Until I was in my 20's I always only had small dogs. My family prefered them and throughout my childhood and early adulthood I have had about 12 small dogs and they have been all different breeds.All were shelter or homeless dogs and they include several "mutts" or mixed breeds,  lhaso, shitzu, collie and poodles.

 I never had big breeds until about 10 years ago. I don't think I necessarily have a preference on the size of the dog but my preference comes from the activity level of the dog. I much prefer mellow dogs so I think that is why I have been more drawn to greyhound, danes more often then any other breed.

  

Size and breed is a big factor for me. I'm not going to say I love all dogs, because it's just not true. Sorry.[8|] I definitely like big dogs better. I never plan on owning a small dog,or a giant breed either. Labs, Shepherds, Golden Retrievers, Rottweilers, are the right size for me. Though I love the tails so I probably won't have a Rottweiler [] lol I like medium sized breeds as well, such as the Springer Spaniel, Australian Shepherd and Border Collie, too.  I love big dogs because they really are so snuggly, I love to snuggle with a big comfy soft dog! They're fun and active, and  can play rough games. I love the German Shepherd look, like a good guard dog [] I think that it is also much easier to train a big dog. When they're close to me, and not so far too the ground, I have a lot more control. I find they're easier to correct even, without worrying about hurting them like you would a tiny dog, and to praise, and to generally get to behave. Like you can actually tell when they're sitting and laying down! [] lol It's easier for me to not have to bend down a lot to do something with the dog. I'm not saying anything bad about smaller dogs, I don't mean it that way, but this is my opinion and why.
(ShepherdLuvr--I agree with you there and Oh my I LOVE your dog! [])

I prefer a dog that I can pet while standing up.  I like to be able to walk with my hand resting on their heads - it's very comforting to me.  I think little lap dogs are cute, but I prefer not to live with anything smaller than 50 lbs. (We have a Westie, but he's my fiance's dog - not my choice) .

I actually enjoy curling up around 60-90 lbs of shepherd.....you can't accidently roll over on THAT much dog!
 
Both litters that I've had, gsds, have loved to snuggle and be on laps....

I would have to say that in the past I have always been drawn to larger dogs, although I can appreciate all dogs regardless of size.  The little guys are great b/c they are great to cuddle with and are a perfect fit for my lap. [] The big guys are equally cuddly plus there is that much more of them to love! [] 
 
Dasher is my first small dog and I just love him to pieces.  He is a great companion and he is easy to transport [] It is such a huge difference going to agility trials with Dasher, I can make one trip from the car with all his gear.  I couldn't do that with my larger dog. []  I will say there there was a transition period where I was constantly tripping and running into him.  [8D] 

I like small dogs as my own but I like bigger dogs too.  I think in general I am more attracted to short hair dogs but I think Golden Retrievers are beautiful and when my bf is ready for another dog, we'll end up rescuing a golden.  However, my BF was against small dogs prior to me getting Zoe.  Now, he is a big mushball around her and absolutely adores her.  So, I think personality and actually spending time with dogs matters.  Zoe can hike and stuff as much as I care to, so having a bigger dog to do that is not necessary for me and everything is less expensive about a little dog.

I prefer reactive, intelligent and active dogs. I like dogs that are athletic and able to work.

Me, too. That's why I've fallen head over heels for JRTs. They're active, super intelligent, highly trainable (when properly motivated), a fantastic challenge, and small enough to lift out of harm's way.

I just love all dogs. I'd love to have a Doberman, and a Standard Poodle, at some point. Right now, the small dogs fit my lifestyle, better. They're active enough (with the breeds I have) to keep up with a very active person's lifestyle, and small enough to pack into my Honda Accord for a road trip.

I prefer large dogs, actually I really like giant dogs (Wolfhounds and Deerhounds) but I just don't have the space for them yet.  I consider Xerxes to be a medium dog (55lbs) and he's more than enough dog for me.  I think my first purchase after the new gets here will be a king-sized bed. []

Small dogs like Pekes, or Toy Foxes or Cresteds or Chis or Chins are really neat and I'd love to own them all, but they do come with their own set of problems: getting lost underfoot being the main one.

I'm not attracted to size so much as group, I guess. When given the choice, I'd go for a large member of a group, though. I grew up with a lab/gordon setter cross that was the most amazing dog. I remember her being chest height. She'd knock me over sometimes, but I knew she didn't mean to. Since then I've always liked a dog big enough for me to get my arms around and give a good old squeeze. When it came to choosing a dog for myself, I wanted a large dog to run around with and go bush with, but our family already had a large dog and so I was restricted to getting a smaller breed. I ended up with a corgi, and I've really loved having her. She's a big dog in her mind. She's always been out-going and being a working breed, she could keep up with the long hikes I took. But I've found over the years that having a small dog can be very frightening. She's pretty plucky and considers herself merely short rather than small, but when a great big mean dog has her by the scuff of the neck and is shaking the bejesus out of her, she seems very small and vulnerable to me. I worry about her a lot because she has only a limited ability to look after herself. It's very stressful worrying about a dog that is hard to see on the road and a good deal smaller than most of the dogs in my neighbourhood. I'm looking forward to getting a big dog that I don't have to be so fretful over. 

I like 'em big!  I love dogs, so that includes every breed and size, however, personally I go for the giants.  I love Saints and Mastiffs and their personalities fit our lifestyle perfectly.  My father has a Newfoundland that is just wonderful as well.
 
Mastiffs really don't take up that much space because they are an inactive breed.  They aren't running all over the house, they are generally sleeping most of the time on a bed.  The big dogs are beneficial to us in that they are intimidating to strangers, while not having a mean bone in their body.  They don't need to be mean, nor should they be!  Mastiffs rarely bark.  Ours' doesn't even bark when people come to the door or a stranger is at the fence.  He doesn't seem to care, or sleeps right through it. 
 
Our insurance man came to take pictures of a fallen tree in our back yard.  We had Kato and at the time a Saint Bernard outside roaming around.  I wasn't home and he went into the fenced area to get his ictures.  Most people would never go into the yard of 2 large dogs not knowing them, but he did.  He told me after the fact that "the Mastiff came up to him and clearly wanted to be petted" and "the St. Bernard ignored him and walked away".  I thought he was crazy for doing that, but they are sweet dogs that love people, including strangers.
 
OEM's are very quiet, lazy dogs.  If that's what you like than it's the breed for you!      

For me, I like them big. I would cosider Conrad "large" at 95 lbs. and Marlowe "medium" at 55. At the dog park, I absolutely love it when there are dogs there that make Conrad look like a lapdog. There was an Irish Wolfhound there once that I just totally swooned over.
 
Having said that, one of my favorite individual dogs is a Chihuahua that used to live at our temple. He was just a fantastically socialized and trained dog and a really great example of the breed. Since I've always had big dogs (before Conrad and Marlowe we had an Akita mix), a little Chihuahua is quite a novelty for me!
 
My favorite thing about having big dogs though is that they are fantastic to spoon with. I love just snuggling up to a big warm dog and napping.
 
I always try to advocate for larger dogs. Any more, the trend seems to be towards small dogs and there are a lot of medium-to-large dogs languishing in shelters because many eople have just as many misconceptions about them as other people do about small dogs. A large dog, for instance, does not necissarily need to live in a large house. Many large breeds are couch potatoes in the extreme and really don't need that much room as long as they get their daily walks. We lived in a 400 square foot cottage with Conrad for 3 years and it was never a problem. When inside, he mainly just chills out and as long as he's got his bed to sleep on, he pretty much stays out of the way. The command "back up" is important when you have a large breed!

But none of that is to say that if a small dog showed up that needed me that I wouldn't take it in and love it and care for it. Of course I would. But given a choice, I like 'em big.