Why Toy Breeds? Discussions

Just wondering really what swung the decision in favour of having a toy breed? What advantages/disadvantages do you find? I'm just curious as they've never been 'my type of dog', but I am curious as to what makes them yours...

For me the advantages/disadvantages are:

Advantages:

*Cheaper to feed
*Accessories are cheaper
*Require less living space
*Longer lives generally
*Easier to travel with as public generally more accepting
*Could afford to have a larger pack for same money

Disadvantages:

*High-pitched bark (not saying they're yappy, but when they do bark it's higher pitched)
*I wouldn't feel safe walking one as would fear attacks by bigger dogs or rough play could be more easily fatal than with a larger dog
*Not many of them appeal to my visual tastes


Over to you...do you agree with the above lists or have anything to add?

My Toy breed wasn't technically my choice. They wouldn't be my first type of dog still but I do love having her. They are VERY easy and I like to think of her as kind of like having a cat (in terms of easiness) that is much more friendly than a cat, much more loyal than a cat and much more fun then a cat. Although she needs walking, unlike a cat.

Other plus points include:

You don't have to worry about people being afraid of them. Larger dogs can be intimidating, tiny ones are not!

Old ladies and young girls seem to love them

They do tiny poos (makes a change from volcano sized Labrador sized turds).

Ultimate lap warmers and cuddlers.

They LOVE company and really do make brilliant companions that want to be with you all the time (which could also translate as them being rather needy, depending on your view point!).

Got to agree with the above!

My reaons for chosing a toy breed were because having been ill, and my OH is disabled, there is no way we could care for a large breed again - I don't have the energy/stamina to walk one - especially if they pulled etc.

The Chis are fantastic. I looked into a LOT of smaller breeds, and it was a hard decision, but in the end decided on Chis.
They really aren't the frail little things people think they are!
They love walking/running/getting muddy/playing with each other and other dogs!
They don't NEED a coat on (contrary to popular belief).
When they 'shiver'/shake it does not always mean they are cold - it's a common 'Chihuahua' thing for them to shake for all emotions!!

Mine have a coat for the worst weather, but they are absolutely boiling when we're walking, so don't need one on at all!

To be honest, Toy breeds were never my thing either, untill my daughter was given her Miniature Pinscher Bugzy to show, and then I got given Meeka, and Meeka has well and truely won me over...

I agree with most of your advantages and disadvantages list.

Advantages:

They are a lot cheaper to feed than say my dobermann Erik or Boxer Aura.

Accessories are the same for me with the big and small dogs, because I cant buy for 1 dog without buying for them all.

They dont take up much space, and they are a lot less heavy when they decide to use me as their sleeping cushion
We worked it out once that we could have 25 meeka's to one erik ( thats based on how much Meeka weighs compared to how much Erik weighs) - but I really could NOT cope with 25 Meeka's!

Disadvantages:

That high pitched yap, its ear hurting at times, and as their hearing is so good, they could hear a mouse fart 20 miles away and bark at it!

I am far more wary walking the min pins than the dobe or boxer, you have to constantly be watching for anything, even the ducks and cat's on the estate I live on are bigger than the min pins!
I know of a lady who had her 2 min pins killed on a walk when a large guarding breed came out of nowhere and attacked both in seconds. Those poor min pins never stood a chance, where-as a Boxer or Dobe would have maybe been injured but probally not fatally.

Injurys, because the min pins are so fine boned, they can easily break bones when jumping up/down

But the biggest disadvantage I've found of owning toy breeds is - they've made my Boxer and Dobermann think they are Min pins too, and I get squashed by Erik or Aura when they decide they want cuddles on mummys knee like the min pins do!

Like the others for me it's not an either or situation as I have dogs ranging from 6kgs to 46kgs. The 6 kg dog obviously costs a lot less to feed but cost a hell of a lot more to buy in the first place, so it evens out in the long run. The likes of vaccinations etc are not governed by weight so no differences there. I can't say that i've noticed accessories being cheaper either tbh although mine only really have collars. leads and harnessses so none of them cost a fortune. I tend not to use public transport or take my dogs into pubs etc so wouldn't notice the difference in whether they were more readily accepted but I guess it would be true. Although an awful lot of people do seem to think it's ok to insult your small dog by referring to it as a rat or pug ugly so it doesn't pay to be sensitive or easily offended. My Pug doesn't yap she has quite a gravelly bark, my terrier however has a high pitched proper bark that could burst your ear drums and yes it's far more aggravating to me than my Dobermanns very deep bark but he's not classed as Toy.

now.. i didnt initially want a toy breed, but i was extremely limited in what i could have, as nana was a definite no big dogs. i went to a show while she was showing her papillon, and i saw the cresteds and fell in love

i wouldnt say there are any disadvantages as such, but then ive never owned a large dog so cant really compare.

one advantage is they are easier to control. if a little dog freaks out, you have more chance of holding on to the lead than you would with a large dog i suppose.

i love my little dogs because:

they are great lapwarmers and hot water bottles

i can take them lots of places with me, they come to the pub quite often

they are big dogs in little bodies, asbo certainly is, he doesnt think he's small at all, and hes full of character.

i can have two small ones for the price of one large one

all the reasons everyone else has said i suppose. i want a big dog though and i will have one when i move out. im not a fan of many of the toy breeds either, the only ones i would own would be the chinese crested and the pug.

Ohh thats true!
People come out with all sorts, and it's not fair really, but I just say something back to the, tbh lol

I get ugly comments and whys your dog, rats eyc mainly because he has no hair.

yep i have been chased down the street before now with people shouting about rats and walking rats on leads!!
also people dont seem to think toy breeds can walk very far and i have been called cruel before now, they have been up and down snowden and still jumped all over each other playing!!
i was a total small dog snob i was never going to have a little "rat" i was going to have a rottie x gsd puppy i helped to hand rear but circumstances changed and our dog trainer on finding out about my disappointment suggested a rescue dog she had( she runs rescue for her breed, the papillon, and is a canine behaviourist).
so she brought down "jasper" a 4 yr old and one of her own dogs "dennis"who was looking for a home having just recovered from parvo so she brought him as well and it was just love at first sight with dennis i didnt think i would ever feel this way about a dog never mind a tiny dog!!! we now also have a dobe too and when walking him we tend to just let him off the lead and not worry about other dogs. it is interesting walking the small ones because you have a totally different head in looking at dogs approaching, some large dogs, just jump on them and they have been hurt in the past because of this.
we are definitely having both larger dogs and small dogs in the future!!!!! although we have found the dobermann does copy the paps and we have both been squished from jumping on the sofa and bed!!!!!!!!!!!

I had the two poms and they were both lovely, so bright, so charming. I miss them dreadfully, sadly I said goodbye to them both far too early and due to the fact that this group of dog are often bred purely for supply and demand purpose of this day and age and they were from a "good breeder". None the less one who wasn't interested in anything that wasn't correct enough to show, despite insisting on breeding from brood bitches that were very spitz like. But we won't go into that one.
Have quite a few friends with pugs too, all lovely. Wouldn't have a toy breed again though, purely down to influenced choice.

Coco maybe toy sized but pure terrier in nature...
Seeing her in the woods running with the boxers is a joy to watch...

Hmm, I've never had any rat comments about mine - quite the opposite actually! I'd be pretty furious if anyone was that rude TBH.

No rat comments either , well not to my face ,anyway..

I've had rat, squirrel, guinea pig, cat, fox and husky (to name a few)

I never think of my min pin as a 'toy' dog! They are famed for being BIG dogs in a little body. A lot of dog!

Smart, healthy, playful, she's the smallest dog I've ever owned. Fits my living conditions and lifestyle PERFECTLY.

And yes, although the cost of feeding and the benefit of not having to pick up land mine sized dog poo didn't occur to me when I got her - I am not complaining on either of those scores. She is regular as clockwork - produces a mini hot dog sized poo at the same time every day lol!

I am at the mo perched on the very front edge of a very big, cushy recliner armchair. The 10inch tall Ayatollah has the rest of it, they don't call them the TYRANTS of the miniature dog world for nothing!

Everyone who sees them loves them too. A big plus - makes a change from walking GSDs and having approaching folk saying 'does it bite?' or 'is it friendly?' or just crossing the road to avoid it!

Who could resist that high stepping gait, those almond brown eyes and that tiny furrowed brow?

i get alot of rude comments about asbo. when he was a puppy, i walked him down to my brother's school, and a woman walked past. she said "that has got to be the ugliest thing i have ever seen" i replied with "well your child isnt the prettiest thing but you dont hear me shouting my mouth off"

really riles me when people insult him, hes not ugly, hes gorgeous

how can anyone say this is ugly?

So sorry to hear about all the rude comments you've had. People are cruel. The worse I get is people saying Axel is 'disgusting' because he's so skinny!

You guys certainly know how to make a point! I'm a little more persuaded that toy dogs are indeed brilliant The advantages seem to outweigh the disadvantages

Tbh....I never saw the point of small dogs, I always had big dogs, a Rottie, then two Boxers.
Then about 14yrs ago I decided I had to have a Boston Terrier, I got the runt of the litter and she was tiny...I loved everything about her, she was my little shadow, best friend, constant companion and the furry keeper of my heart....2 yrs ago I lost her, a light went out in my life and I swore I would never have another small dog. It was just too much when she passed.
I have lost other dogs over the years, and have grieved for them, but nothing could have prepared me for the loss of my darling Ruby.
Then....I saw an advert for 2 little Chi's a dog and a bitch......I originally went to look at the bitch, but the little dog caught my eye and I fell in love on the spot. I waited a week, couldn't get him out of my mind.....and went and got him!!!!
I introduced him to my other dog, a rescue Staffie named Star, and they got on like long lost old pals it was like a match made in heaven.
We named him Cheeky and he has slotted right into our family.
I think that for me, the best advantage of toy breeds is that I have space for at least 6, even with my Staff, I haven't actually told hubby yet.......but I am already looking for Chi number 2 lol!!!

Sweep was bought for me by my dad when i was 6, so the most even of even temperaments was needed, as well as nothing that would be able to do damage if it got boisterous. Chose a CKC for those reasons.

Also they are cheap to feed, i found him easy to train (and i was 6! and taught him the basics) which helped because i wasn't overwhelmed by his size. I also think cavvies are very very easy on the eye.

Little dogs do smaller poos too, you don't need a massive car to transport them.

Sweeps not that playful with other dogs, he tolerates them but prefers people, so i'm not sure he could get into a big playing session that could result in him getting hurt tbh.