boxer/collie mix

aoife2k

Hi guys!

We've decided we might get a dog and now we're trying to think about which breed would be most suitable/managable. I would be in favour of a boxer, labrador, golden retriever something along those lines...However my mum saw a poster today for boxer/collie mix puppies free to a good home. I was reluctant about goin for them as I think a pure bred would be better or is that a snobby way of thinking about it?

What are your views? Pure bred over a mix?

LuckyStar

Why do you think a pure bred would be better? Whatever about collies, they are still bred as working dogs and are bred to be fit, clever and hard working. Boxers unfortunately are 10 a penny and are the dog of choice for lots of young "hard men" who only see them as status symbols and would have little interest in whether the dog comes from a good working strain etc. They are also seen by many of these lads as a chance to make money from breeding them, and not a lot of planning would go into such breeding. I used to work with a young lad, him and his friend bought 2 boxers from the same litter and bred them every year, they used the money to pimp their skanger bangers!!!

Plus, if you have a crossbreed, you have a dog that looks like nobody else's.
Try not to read into breed descriptions too much either, if you are getting a purebred. The owner of the dog and the way they treat it will give you a much better indication of a dog's personality than any breed description, ANY dog will be good/bad/friendly/vicious depending on how it was raised. Good training makes good dogs.

PS Snap! on the avatar!

kerrysgold

Personally I would pick a mongrel over a purebred any day, it all depends on the individual dog really, and plus, when you have a mongrel, you have a pretty unique dog! boxer/collie sounds like a cute mix but will probably be very energetic since both types of dogs are very energetic and playful and require plenty of exercise. Have you considered adopting from a rescue instead of a private home?

aoife2k

LuckyStar wrote: »

Why do you think a pure bred would be better? PS Snap! on the avatar!

I'm not sure why I think pure bred would be better? Maybe it's because of the association of 'expense = quality' (in some cases anyway). Also if the breeder is reputable, they would know the temperment of the bitch and the dog?

oh and the avatar is tres cute!

kerrysgold wrote: »

Have you considered adopting from a rescue instead of a private home?

I've always stated to the head of the household that I'd rather adopt as I feel all those dogs need 2nd chances. I suppose we'll have to discuss and debate all our options.

LuckyStar

aoife2k wrote: »

I'm not sure why I think pure bred would be better? Maybe it's because of the association of 'expense = quality' (in some cases anyway).

Believe me, with pedigree dogs, especially in Ireland (puppy farm capital of Europe), more often than not this is not the case.

jameshayes

90% of the time crosses live longer and healthy'r than pedigress

aoife2k

jameshayes wrote: »

90% of the time crosses live longer and healthy'r than pedigress

Really?! Jeez, I'm glad I asked the question now! Thanks guys (",)

Whispered

Aoife, please look at dogsindistress.org there are beauties there that will be put down today or tomorrow if not homed. Why not offer to foster one of these dogs and decide then if the breed is right for you?

+1 on the person who said mongrels are usually healthier, also they tend to have less personality "problems"

aoife2k

cheers helena.ryan...i'll do that surly.

There are so many options which I'm glad that I know about now

Ruby Soho

Ah come on now, I don't think that's fair saying 90% of mongrels are healthier than pedigrees, its a bit of a sweeping generalisation!! Sure, they can suffer less from hereditary illnesses than overbred pedigrees, but I'm a vet nurse, and let me tell you, I have seen horrendous problems (both physical and temperamental) in cross bred dogs that you would normally only associate with pedigrees, hip dysplasia, severe entropian, Legge-perthes disease, for instance. My own dogs are greyhounds (yes, pedigree with lines going back to at least 1792 on both sides!!!) they are 5 and 6 years old, and have never had to visit the vet for anything more than broken dew claws!! A good breeder should always test the sire and dam for associated problems but we all know that doesn't always happen......

jameshayes

Ruby Soho wrote: »

A good breeder should always test the sire and dam for associated problems but we all know that doesn't always happen......

Very true and 100% right, if the breed is quality then there will be less problems but we have the problem in ireland where there are very few good breeders and hereditary problems are not their concern. As long as they get 500quid for each pup they do not care.

LuckyStar

Ruby Soho wrote: »

Ah come on now, I don't think that's fair saying 90% of mongrels are healthier than pedigrees, its a bit of a sweeping generalisation!! Sure, they can suffer less from hereditary illnesses than overbred pedigrees, but I'm a vet nurse, and let me tell you, I have seen horrendous problems (both physical and temperamental) in cross bred dogs that you would normally only associate with pedigrees, hip dysplasia, severe entropian, Legge-perthes disease, for instance. My own dogs are greyhounds (yes, pedigree with lines going back to at least 1792 on both sides!!!) they are 5 and 6 years old, and have never had to visit the vet for anything more than broken dew claws!! A good breeder should always test the sire and dam for associated problems but we all know that doesn't always happen......

Greyhounds are one of the few breeds to not suffer significantly from hereditary illnesses, as they are one of the few breeds that is still bred for their purpose. You rarely see them in classifieds because people only buy them to race them, so they are bred to be fit. Sick dogs don't win races.

Dogs like Labradors, Golden Retreievers etc- bred to be gundogs but the majority of people simply buy them as pets so fitness doesn't come into the equation as much as looks, temperment.

Whispered

I have nothing against pedigrees at all. In fact one of the sweetest dogs I know is a rottweiler bred by someone in Ireland, and he has just reached his 12th birthday, which is almost unheard of in rotties! So an exception to every rule (and a big congrats to the oldest rottweiler in the whole world ) But from experience I found that purebred dogs are sometimes more highly strung. Now in fairness, this could be something to do with the owners who go out and spend €500 on a puppy. Greyhounds funnily are one of the dogs i've never had trouble with, then again any greyhound we had were ones that were dumped after bad races so maybe their lack of running ability was made up for by their fantastic personalities. :rolleyes:

Also I agree with Ruby, but a lot of the time they are overbred, sometimes interbred to keep or accentuate certain traits. And you can never really tell when getting a dog, so I really think that if you are getting a dog as a pet and not to show, then there is very little reason to get a purebred, or to buy even! So many puppies need homes! (besides personal preference of course, and i'm all for free will so just ignore my rant, I'm just feeling abit cr@ppy lately over the amount of dogs in the pound and nowhere for them to go, they're going to get PTS and it's really upsetting me )

Ruby Soho

I suppose the sweeping generalisation could include a couple of breeds I can think of, the most problematic dogs that I come across (health-wise, although several are over-represented) are, in no particular order: boxers, labs, westies, cavaliers, bulldogs, GSD's, unfortunately, these are the very breeds that every eejit is running out to buy for 500 quid from other eejits without doing their research first, then they're surprised when poor little GSD has hips so bad he has to be put on NSAIDS at 4 months old because walking is painful... What I'm saying is though, lots of crossbreeds and mongrels are also presenting with similar problems, a mongrel doesn't always guarantee you a healthy dog.

dudara

That's an interesting mix. I'd love to see what such a cross would look like.

My parents used to farm and we had numerous border collies over the years for herding cattle. They are smart, clever and hard-working dogs who who are loyal. I've no experience with boxers, but I'm a life-long fan of mixed-breeds/mongrels.

spongbob

Ruby I see from a previous post you say you are a vet nurse, can you please advise my friend what to do regarding a sick bunny

http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055205229

thanks a mill...

Ruby Soho

Someone I know has a boxer / collie mix, gorgeous dog, really bouncy, friendly and happy go lucky. I cant really liken its appearance to any one side in particular, it looks as much like a collie as it does a boxer, its a perfect 50:50! I'll tell you this though, you better get some good walking shoes!!! That dog could go all day!