which hypoallergenic dog is best for me quiz

Dog Breed Selector

Dog Breed Selector

Let's find the right dog breed for you!

So youre thinking of adding a furry friend to your family? Well, thats great news and we want to help! Weve built this dog breed match tool that will help you understand which dog breed is best suited for your life. This breed selector tool is used by pet parents both experienced and first timers. All you have to do is answer a few questions and well suggest 3 most relevant dog breeds that are compatible with your lifestyle. So what are you waiting for!

What Breed of Dog Should You Get?

After watching countless movies, seeing tons of friends with their furry pals, and endlessly begging your parents and family, you hear the words youve been waiting for, Okay, lets get a dog. But after your initial excitement subsides, you must tackle the decision of which dog to get. We bet youve already got a few favorites in mind, whether its the bushy Golden Retrievers or the tiny Pugs. But theres a lot of thinking to do before you finalize which breed of dog youll be bringing home.

Bringing a dog home to be a part of your family goes way beyond simply choosing a breed you find appealing. You need to look at your current lifestyle and consider how many adjustments and changes youre willing to make. Some of the many factors to consider are whether you need a hypoallergenic dog (less likely to cause allergies), how big or small the dog can be, and how much attention it may need.

A quick way to narrow down on a few breeds that are suited for you and your life is to use our Dog Breed Selector. But before you do, read on about why these factors are important, and why answering these questions will ensure that you and your dog are happy.

Size

Tiny toy dogs are loved the world over for their miniature cuteness, but these breeds require a certain level of special care. Several breeds of smaller dogs can make up for their size with their large, loud personalities. They also can be sensitive to the cold, so make sure you can keep them warm if you face low temperatures where you live. Your house should ideally not have too many things lying around or many small, tight places - tiny dogs can easily crawl into small corners or get injured when stepped on or mishandled.

If you have your eyes set on a big dog, make sure you have the space for it. Dogs that are big need wagging space to avoid injuring their tails or damaging household objects when they get happy. Also consider the costs, since the bigger dogs can often be more expensive to look after.

See also: Dog Size Calculator

Coat

Short coat dogs spare you from the hassle of having to constantly comb your dogs fur, but they shed heavily, sometimes twice a year. Long coat dogs require regular brushing or their fur can mat and become tangled, so make sure you have the time to dedicate. Certain breeds like German Shepherds have double coats, one long coat inside and a shorter outercoat. Poodles have curly hair, and such coats need haircuts and professional grooming around every 4 to 6 weeks.

Another important aspect to look into is hypoallergenic dogs for people who are allergic to fur. Hypoallergenic dogs dont shed fur, or shed very little fur as compared to other dogs. This prevents the dander that sticks to their fur from getting released into the air, sparing you the headache of allergic reactions.

Personality

If you think dogs dont have a personality just like humans do, youre not ready for one just yet! Dogs can have a range of personalities, and while these differ from dog to dog, certain breeds have common personality traits. German Shepherds can be aloof and take some time to make friends but are extremely loyal once they warm up to you. They arent necessarily aggressive, unlike the smaller yet more feisty bull terriers.

Certain breeds are also very needy and crave being around their owners all the time. If youre getting a Shih Tzu or a Bichon Frise, this is something you need to keep in mind. You have to be at home as much as possible or they can even develop severe separation anxiety. Additionally, if you have kids or are planning on them, make sure you get a breed that is known to be gentle and child-friendly like a Golden Retriever, Dachshund, or Beagle.

Activity Levels

All dogs require a certain level of exercise and daily activity, some much more than others. The amount of activity they need is often determined by their breed, but this can also vary depending on the individual dog. If your schedule only allows you enough time for one to two walks each day, look into getting a low energy dog like a bulldog or a basset hound. If you like going on jogs or runs every day, get a border collie or a labrador retriever, since theyll be more than happy to accompany you.

Dogs that require a lot of exercise are often fond of running around and being active, and they can get restless if they arent given the space or freedom to do so. This restlessness can exhibit itself in the form of constant barking, destroying things in the house, digging holes in the yard, being unusually aggressive or acting out. Lack of exercise can further develop into health complications, so make sure your lifestyle allows for you to give your dog the attention it needs.

Trainability

All dogs will need a certain amount of training, and youll have to devote time and energy to making sure your dog responds to commands. But typically, some breeds are easier to train than others. These include Labrador Retrievers, Poodles, German Shepherds, and Collies. These breeds are more capable of forming associations between commands (the word sit), the related action and a consequence (getting a treat). This makes them much easier to train.

Other breeds like beagles, dalmatians and rottweilers are much harder to train. These dogs have the type of personalities that make them want to do their own thing, and some may not even care much about forming associations. It isnt impossible to train these dogs, but it certainly requires a lot more time, effort and patience.

See also: Find Best Dog Trainers Near Me

Health

Theres a lot more that goes into a dogs physical maintenance than just its coat, and health issues are a big part of that. Every dog breed has certain health conditions that prevail, and you should know about these before you decide on which one to choose. Labrador retrievers, for instance, are relatively healthy as long as they get enough exercise. They can be prone to obesity, which makes the exercise even more essential.

Several large breeds are at an increased risk of hip and elbow dysplasia (a problem with the joints), including labrador retrievers, golden retrievers, and German shepherds. Pugs, bulldogs, and bloodhounds all have flappy skin, which if left uncleaned for too long can result in infections. Breeds with short noses like pugs and Shih Tzus are at increased risk of excessive tearing of the eyes due to shallow eye sockets or hair growing in the skin around the eyes. Kidney problems are present in certain breeds like German shepherds and English cocker spaniels.

No dog is completely immune from health problems, and all dogs need to be well looked after to live as healthy a life as possible. Healthcare for dogs isnt cheap, and neither is their maintenance, so make sure you have the budget to support your new family member.

Conclusion

The Fdration Cynologique Internationale (FCI) or the World Canine Organization is the largest registry of dog breeds, and is internationally accepted. Currently, the FCI recognizes 353 different breeds of dogs, so you know just what a wide choice you have. But try to narrow down on a few breeds that will be happiest with you before you take the leap. Getting a dog is a big commitment, so make sure you can make it as happy as it will make you.

Find Your Ideal Pooch with a Hypoallergenic Dog Breed Selector

You might be searching for the right hypoallergenic dog for you, but you dont know just what breed is right for you. That is where you can take one of the many hypoallergenic dog breed selectors available to you online! I found two and tried them out for myself. I used www.dogtime.com which asked more of personality type questions and then I tried www.selectsmart.com which was more of dog selector based on my answers. Keep reading to see what they came up for me!

Using Hypoallergenic Dog Breed Selector

Dogtime breed quiz

Dogtime has a dog breed selector quiz which asks a bunch of qualifying questions. Some seem so far out there that you are wondering why they are asking them and how are they related to me owning a certain kind of dog?

Some sample questions are:

• How do you react when someone cuts you off on the highway?
• What is your ideal way to spend an hour with your dog?
• What kind of home do you have?
• What kind of amusement park ride best describes the energy in your home?
• How old are the children in your home?
• How would you rate your health?

There are 21 questions in all (sort of like the game 21 questions) At the end, it gives you a list of the top 5 matches based on personality (see, that was a personality test they were giving you!)

Related:Small Hypoallergenic Dogs That Are Easy To Housebreak

After taking the test myself, my top 5 results are:

• Sussex Spaniel: A medium sized dog who will outsmart me, test my patience and embarrass me (What?! I am not sure I am down with a dog who might embarrass me).
• Pharaoh Hound: He is gentle and loving (and apparently gets embarrassed rather than embarrassing me!) He blushes, yes I said he actually blushes.
• Petit Basset Griffon Vendeen: He is cute and a sturdy hunter (well I dont hunt, but he might be fun to be around).
• Golden Retriever: Everyone loves a Golden Retriever! Eager to please and a great family dog, hes a great working dog too (good, maybe I can get him to do some of the laundry that has piled up!)
• Labrador Retriever: I think this guy shows up on everyones list! After all he is Americas Favorite dog! Pick your color, black, yellow or chocolate, whatever the color he is a great family dog, or a wonderful companion for a single person or couple.

I believe my matches were not necessarily hypoallergenic as I was choosing for me, and when it asked if anyone was allergic, I answered no. Going through it with some different answers and saying yes to the allergy question, I got different options:

At the bottom it also gives a healthy list of some other matches for you to choose from if you do not like the top 5 selected for you.

Related:Hypoallergenic Dogs that Dont Shed

SelectSmart Hypoallergenic Dog Breed Selector

Another site to check out is www.selectsmart.com. With each question you have a slide bar at the bottom of it wanting to know what priority you place on your selection above. You can slide the bar from left to right (low to high). It is preset in the middle however.

Some of the questions are centered around compatibility with other pets, kid appropriate, intelligence, swimming, activity level, quiet versus watchdog, lifespan, popularity versus rarity in breed.

At the end of the selector quiz, it gives a list of over 100 breeds that work for you in order of best. For me, it chose a Poodle, a Toy Poodle to be exact. With Standard Poodle coming in second and Bichon Frise coming in third. And in case you were wondering, the Miniature Poodle was holding down the fourth spot. Maybe I chose wrong in my dogs, I have a Pitbull and a Chiweenie (that is a Chihuahua mixed with a Dachshund in case you were wondering).

These are actually pretty great tools to use as they give you a variety of hypoallergenic dog breeds you may not find if you search otherwise. I know myself I had never heard of Pharaoh Hound (a dog that blushes!) Take the dog breed selectors and see what they come up with for your matches! Post your results below and let us know what you think of their selections for you.

Have you tried either of these dog breed selectors? What were your results?

• Tabatha started her freelance content writing career well over a decade ago, years before joining the DogVills team. She loves writing about dogs (currently a beautiful Shepherd and a newly rescued pit bull) and sharing her experience with new owners. Tabatha also owns her own boudoir photography business and works as a school nurse. In her downtime, she loves hanging out with her children and husband in their Florida home.

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