So, what’s your favorite dog breed?

I love the herding dogs. I had a Catahoula who was with me for 14 years. I have also had a Border Collie/Australian Blue Heeler mix as well. He was with me for 11 years. I currently have an 8-year old Border Collie/Australian Shepherd mix named Abby.

My favorite dog breed is Dalmation.  I grew up with a dalmation and then had one when I got married.  They are the most loving dogs and they are beautiful.  They do require training and a lot of exercise.  My last dalmation was an 80 lb lap dog.  We loved him!

Hi Christine, Those are very beautiful dogs, so stately and pretty. Kids just seem to love them too. I love the fact that they always seem ready to play! However, you hear so much about their health though; did you ever run into any problems in terms of that?

Jacqueline - 07 August 2009 08:15 AM

Hi Christine, Those are very beautiful dogs, so stately and pretty. Kids just seem to love them too. I love the fact that they always seem ready to play! However, you hear so much about their health though; did you ever run into any problems in terms of that?

Hi Jackie,

According to my parents, one of the first Dalmatians we had was very aggressive and they had to give her away.  She bit my cousin’s ear.  We had two at that time.  The one we kept was a wonderful dog that was with us for many years.  We had no medical issues with her.  The Dalmatian I got when I was an adult was very healthy; however, he did have allergies.  We had to feed him a diet with an avocado mix and we could not wash him too often.  It would dry his skin out.  Those were the only challenges I encountered.

Christine

Hi Christine,

I wonder if that aggressive Dalmatian you once had might have had a hearing problem that went unnoticed. Deafness is prevalent in the breed, and a dog that can’t hear is easily startled when someone comes up on him out of his line of vision. I’ve heard about deaf Dalmatians behaving this way.

I actually have a deaf Jack Russell Terrier, and you would hardly notice she can’t hear unless you know about it before hand. She takes all her cues from our other dogs’ movements and reactions. If they hear someone, she will get up with them and run to bark as though she heard someone herself. We actually had her about three weeks before we realized she was stone deaf. And yes, she is easily startled if someone touches her when she can’t see them approach, but luckily she reacts submissively instead of aggressively. Anyway, just a thought.

Kelly Roper - 09 August 2009 05:34 AM

Hi Christine,

I wonder if that aggressive Dalmatian you once had might have had a hearing problem that went unnoticed. Deafness is prevalent in the breed, and a dog that can’t hear is easily startled when someone comes up on him out of his line of vision. I’ve heard about deaf Dalmatians behaving this way.

I actually have a deaf Jack Russell Terrier, and you would hardly notice she can’t hear unless you know about it before hand. She takes all her cues from our other dogs’ movements and reactions. If they hear someone, she will get up with them and run to bark as though she heard someone herself. We actually had her about three weeks before we realized she was stone deaf. And yes, she is easily startled if someone touches her when she can’t see them approach, but luckily she reacts submissively instead of aggressively. Anyway, just a thought.

Hi Kelly,

I checked with my Mom and she said that they got their Dalmatians from a breeder.  The first two pups they brought home from the litter were deaf so they took them back.  They got two more puppies and had them tested before they brought them home & they were not deaf. My Dad trained the girl, who was the one who was aggressive and my mom trained the Dalmatian that we kept.  They always thought that the girl had a mean streak because her trainer was to rough with her. She said that the inbreeding of all pure breeds, so called, does promote deafness.

Hi Christine,

I agree with you that training can make all the difference in a dog’s personality so we have to be very careful about the methods we use. It has been great to see the gradual change from corrective training to training by use of positive encouragement. I think a lot of dogs have benefitted from this method.

I do want to clarify the difference between “inbreeding” purebred dogs and “line breeding” purebred dogs so people aren’t confused about the statement that inbreeding of all pure breeds promotes deafness. Inbreeding involves breeding between closely related dogs such as littermates, mother/son, father/daughter. Line breeding involves breeding between less closely related dogs to secure the desired genetic traits of individuals that don’t display genetic faults. Inbreeding, especially repeated inbreeding one generation after another, tends to produce genetic faults such as deafness,etc., so I agree that “inbreeding” whether between purebred dogs or mixed breeds is likely to produce undesirable results such as deafness.

All breed are good with alot of love.  My little schauzer has been a good member of the family with her diabetes.  Wouldn’t trade her for the world.