Dog Breeds for First-Timers

Three things, and cleverness is not one of them. A forgiving first dog is trainable enough that ordinary effort works, adaptable enough to cope when the routine slips, and low enough on exercise that a bad week does not produce a destroyed sofa. Nothing on that list is about size, and none of it is about how smart the breed is said to be.

Clever is the trap. The Border Collie and the German Shepherd score full marks for trainability and are among the hardest first dogs there are, because a dog who learns that fast learns the wrong lessons just as quickly and needs a job you do not yet know how to give. A slightly duller dog who shrugs things off is far kinder to learn on.

What catches first owners out is rarely the puppy. It is the adolescent at ten months who has stopped listening, the grooming bill nobody costed, and the energy level that reads as charming in a photograph and relentless on a wet Tuesday. Those are the months that end placements, so plan for them rather than for the eight-week-old.

The best thing you can do before deciding costs an afternoon: spend it with an adult of the breed, not a puppy. Puppies of every breed are appealing and tell you almost nothing. The adult in front of you is what you are actually signing up for, for the next decade or more.