Big dogs vs small dogs?

i dont have much preference size wise, i do breedwise though, and my preferences there are mostly medium i guess you'd say.
 
i have to say i love, LOVE all dogs, cute ugly big clean dirty, i dont care.
but honestly, i would never personally own what i call "foo-foo dogs". that is your poms, shitzhus, pekingese, poodles, you get the idea. they really seem to be one person dogs, and not to generalize, but are often snippy.
 
i like the doggy dogs, ones that could care less who walks through the door as long as they have hands to pet with. any hounds, setters, spanials, labs, etc. hunting and sporting class. they dont seem to be as aggressive as the real large breeds, and arent high maintenance and yippy like smaller and toy breeds.
 
i think my dog is prime example of my preference, he weighs about 30-35 lbs, and he's brittany,beagle and gordon setter. he's either crazy or he's sleeping. and he doesnt care who comes in our yard or in our house, he just wants them to pet him, and if they dont, he at least wants to sleep on their feet.

Hmm....as for sizes, I never really thought of it in weight. I think you can't really judge a dog by the weight alone, but by what it looks like, how tall, etc. Like Jeano's Sofia. I always thought of her as a big dog because she looks so tall in her pictures....taller at 45 lbs than my dog is at 72 lbs!  Generally though, 30-45 range is medium. Small is maybe under 20 or 25 lbs, then there are tiny dogs 10 lbs or less. Large dogs start at 50 lbs, though it depends on their size again. Over 100 are the X -large breeds. Cassidy is, I think 21 or 22 inches tall, so she's not really that big, but most people when they see her, say "Look at that big dog!". Though she usually doesn't seem all that big to me, I like dogs her size or somewhat bigger. I wonder if this has made any sense at all.....I had better go now [8|]

im going on and on but im bored...
 
just curious what anyone thinks of this idea. my husband like tiny dogs and huge dogs, he's weird. when we had his goliath rotty i couldnt open the door for anyone in uniform or anyone that wasnt obviously white, even just tan was iffy. she was a great dog but too protective of her house and her people. now i mention this because my husband thinks that someday when my dog has passed and our daughter is old enough that we will get her a large breed dog. the thing im afraid of is that it will be so protective that it will protect her from us. not that we would be doing anything it would need to protect her from, but i would like to be able to go in her room, maybe argue with her, etc, without worrying about a dog getting into it too. anyone have any experience or insight on this?

Working dogs like Rotties need very good socialization throughout life, as well as maintaining a NILIF program.  This works well for more dominant breeds in particular.  They do need to know their position in the pack and that every human in the household is ahead of the dog on the hierarchy scale.  That would include a baby, small child or adult. 
 
Working breeds that were bred for guarding can be wonderful family pets, but they need to have a consistantly, strong leader to work with them on obedience training and setting limits.  We own a guarding breed and he does his job well, but gently and with respect to all of us including our 8 yr old twins. 

I have all three.  I adore my pom, couldn't find a better dog than my sheltie, and need the protective feeling my large shepherd mix gives me.  So I think it all depends on what you are looking for in a dog. 
 
I think a lot of times the little dog are less well behaved because people in general don't treat them like dogs but babies and so aren't trained.  This is purely my speculation as so many little breeds have a bad rep, including poms. 
 
For poms, who have a rep for biting, I own three, it became very clear that they usually need to have the knee surgery to alleviate pain and pain will cause any dog to bite or snap, etc...  We only have one pom who didn't need the knee surgery and technically his knees are the worst they just fused so they don't hurt him.
 
Big dogs tend to have their own set of problems with hip dysplasia, etc... so just research it out, including personalities and activity levels.

ORIGINAL: gaylemarie

i have to say i love, LOVE all dogs, cute ugly big clean dirty, i dont care.
but honestly, i would never personally own what i call "foo-foo dogs". that is your poms, shitzhus, pekingese, poodles, you get the idea. they really seem to be one person dogs, and not to generalize, but are often snippy.

Just to let you know, the breed name Shih Tzu is pronounced Sheed-zoo. It's a chinese name so isn't pronounced the way it looks. []
 
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i actually googled the way i had spelled it before i posted, and it didnt try to correct it so i assumed it was right, lol. i knew how to pronounce i just didnt know there was an h between the i and t. thanks for clearing that up, the little stars weirded me out, but made me laugh.

ORIGINAL: gaylemarie

i actually googled the way i had spelled it before i posted, and it didnt try to correct it so i assumed it was right, lol. i knew how to pronounce i just didnt know there was an h between the i and t. thanks for clearing that up, the little stars weirded me out, but made me laugh.

 
Lol, that's the 2nd time that happened this week. I keep correcting people that already know how to say it. I give up! lol []

..i have to say i love, LOVE all dogs, cute ugly big clean dirty, i dont care.
but honestly, i would never personally own what i call "foo-foo dogs". that is your poms, ****zhus, pekingese, poodles, you get the idea. they really seem to be one person dogs, and not to generalize, but are often snippy..
 
 
Shih Tzu's are not nippy or one person dogs. They are friendly, funny, sweet dogs. If they are not, there is a breeding or training problem. Precious is the word for Shih Tzu's.. Yes, that is right, that is pronounced Sheed-zoo. Many people say it incorrectly. 

ORIGINAL: sallya

Shih Tzu's are not nippy or one person dogs. They are friendly, funny, sweet dogs. If they are not, there is a breeding or training problem. Precious is the word for Shih Tzu's..

 
I agree. Shih Tzus are definitely not a high strung, nippy, one person type of dog. That's why I like them! They're very laid back, with a "big dog" personality. Gingerbread has converted so many people that thought they hated little dogs! They've left here literally amazed that their mind could be changed by one dog. He has such a gentle spirit and after snuggling with our guests, they're usually ready to take him home. Not happening! lol []

I LOVE my golden/gorden mix.  He is so furry and huggable and sweet.  He is about 60 pounds,,guess a large dog
 
And I adore my english bulldogs who are mid-sized.

Statistically speaking, the higher incidence of dog bites-especially to faces is with smaller breed dogs....it is not that they are mean or bad tempered, but they have no real other defense and people will just pick them up and squeeze them as if they were some kind of stuffed animal toy.  Imagine trying to do that with a berner, a GSD, or a wolfhound.  Most people think twice about how they approach a larger animal, but they don't give the same consideration to the smaller ones.  I prefer the larger dogs, but I know that the miniatures and toys are extremely popular among the elderly as companions-they don't require as much exercise, and really like to sit on the old lap and snooze.  I guess until I am too old to hike with them, I will stick with my big dogs.....The smallest dog that I have had in the past twenty years was 55lbs and the largest is still growing at 150lbs. 

I'd like to see those statistics, do you have a link?
I have been looking for dog bite statistics for recent years and can only seem to find outdated ones.

I used to work in an animal shelter. It was always the little dogs that bit you, usually without apparent reason (we certanly weren't picking them up, and tried our best to not scare them). If the dog was 40+ pounds you knew you were safe from getting your nose or fingers removed. Not sure why that is. But I don't trust little dogs at all anymore.

I used to work in an animal shelter. It was always the little dogs that bit you, usually without apparent reason (we certanly weren't picking them up, and tried our best to not scare them). If the dog was 40+ pounds you knew you were safe from getting your nose or fingers removed. Not sure why that is. But I don't trust little dogs at all anymore.

 
I am sorry you have had a some bad experiances mudpuppy but, I think personality depends on personality. I have had small dogs all my life and yes, I have been bitten when I deserved it but, I like small dogs. I am a little more weary of big ones actually because they look strong and powerfull to me but, I do love all dogs. Pincess (a little moody when she got older) our lahasa who passed away a few years back, Beau a springer  ( had to be given away), Lady a cocker (died in july) and my Bailey were all small dogs and I would never regreat having them in my life