Mothering Forum banner

Why are certain dog breeds given up more then others?

1K views 11 replies 8 participants last post by  SquishyKitty 
#1 ·
I've been looking over the dog adoption sites and notice that there are many of the same breeds that have been abandoned more then others. I notice many boxers or pit bulls and also beagles. Is there a reason for this?
 
#2 ·
I know that pit bulls and beagles can be difficult to train. I don't know about boxers.

Our pit bull came from the shelter. She had been dumped by a backyard breeder. Some people like to breed trendy dogs and then have difficulty unloading them.

Speaking as an owner of 3 dogs, our little pit bull has been the hardest to train. She is absolutely adorable but frustrating. Her favorite activities are digging up the sprinkler system, pooping in inappropriate places, and sitting on my lap. She weighs 50 pounds. She just loves sitting on my lap or laying on my lap with her head on my shoulder like a baby.
 
#3 ·
i think its because people go with the 'cute' factor and not a breed that will fit them.

i also have a pit and man is he bull headed. he is soooo sweet, but has taken lots of work. we still have lots of work to go. Pits are GREAT dogs if you have time to walk them, train them and if you have the long hall in mind.

Boxers are the same way.

beagles are very hard to potty train!!!! they have strong noses and sometimes will also dig. they can be loud too. their origins are hunting dogs. so their nose and bard/howl are what they use to be bread for. this makes them hard dogs to train.

so for me people dont do their research. while i think the dog has to pick you, you also have to know what you are getting into with breeds too!
 
#4 ·
Beagles and boxers are among the top 10 most popular dog breeds, so one reason you see so many of them is that are simply ARE a lot of them out there. Beagles also tend to be not especially smart (which adds to the difficulty in training them). I grew up with a beagle, and they are delightful dogs - if you know what you're getting into.

Labs, golden retrievers, and poodles are very popular as well, but because they are a lot higher on the intelligence scale, they are either not given up as much, people are able to find homes for them, or they get snatched up quickly.
 
#6 ·
Boxers, Beagles and Pit Bulls are some of the most common breeds in America. you might see them more often in shelters simply because there are more of them out there in general.

The other thing is that with popular breeds, people tend to get the dog because it is popular, or cute, without seeing how it fits into their family. boxers and Pits are both high energy dogs. They can also be very destructive if their energy isn't properly channeled. Beagles can be very hard to train- its part of their hound nature. Unfortunately far too many people buy them without knowing any of that. They just know that a beagle is a dog, and they want a dog.

The other thing is that the more popular a dog gets, the more poorly bred specimens are available. Labs, for instance, have a reputation for being great family dogs. Most labs are. However, when a breed gets very popular like Labs, you see people breeding just for money, without any concern as to the integrity of the breed. People who don't know any better then buy these dogs, and have a whole host of issues. They may have expensive health issues, they might be stubborn,they might have insatiable energy, or the size of a horse etc. None of which are supposed to be Lab traits, but which you see all too often from indiscriminate breeding. People get them after reading labs are easy to train, gentle, mild mannered and fairly healthy, but the dog they got is NOTHING like what the breed is supposed to be like. Someone who may have done well with a well bred lab, may not be equipped to deal with a stubborn, high energy, 110 pound monster.

The final issue is adoptability. Pitbulls are hard to adopt out. Meaning that they sit in shelters longer. A shelter might get in 20 labs in the same time it took to get those 10 pits, but the labs are easily adopted. So you see a few labs in the shelter because none stay for long, and 10 pit bulls. In my area, for instance, small dogs get adopted almost immediately. Its not that they never get surrendered, just that they get adopted very quickly. Often the day one becomes available, there will be a line of people waiting for it before the shelter even opens. Pitbulls are hard to adopt out because they have a negative reputation. They are also not allowed in many apartments, you can lose your homeowners insurance for owning one on some plans etc. So even people who DO want them may not be able to have them. many people cannot distinguish a pitbull from a Boxer, which can also make Boxers harder to adopt out. Actually my local shelter intentionally labels Pit Bulls as "boxer mixes" to try to move them out the door (not a move I agree with, and I love pit bulls). However, people see a boxer, think its a pit, and then don't want it. This isn't just a pit bull issue- in my area Rottweilers, Dobermans, and Chows also have bad reputations, making them harder to rehome.
 
#7 ·
I really can't tell the difference between boxers and pits. To me they look like pretty scary dogs who will attack. I know that isn't always true though. I think it's mainly the owners and how they were first trained that gives them the bad rep. For me neither of these dogs would be a good choice since I'm not experienced and I don't have the yard I feel they'd need. I like the way beagles look and saw a free one on craigslist that I could have gotten,but I read that howl when left alone and they love to dig and they may run off if the get a scent of something they like. It's sad that to many people don't learn about breeds before they buy or adopt.
 
#9 ·
It has to do with what area of the country your located as well. I just read an article about a charity that is flying chihuahuas from California to the east coast because there are a huge amount of chihuahuas in CA, and hardly any small dogs in rescues on the east coast.

In fact they have so many chihuahuas that the guy running the operation was begging for anyone interested in one to contact the organization.
 
#11 ·
There are lots of chihuahuas at our local shelter. The animal control officer called them 'mini-pits'. A lot of the chihuahuas I have seen have either been spoiled or just difficult to train. I'm in California and the majority of dogs at our shelter are pitbulls, chihuahuas, and Siberian huskies - all strong willed dogs.
 
#12 ·
I know pits can be very bullheaded and hard to train if you don't have a dominant personality. Our rottweiler is similar, and although she's a total sweetheart, she's stubborn as an ox when she wants to be.

I know boxers tend to have a lot of health problems, too, so people probably dump them at the first sign of having to spend money on vet bills.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top