[*Ker*]

I don't think my son's little dog is going to last too much longer. I don't want another toy breed. DD met a Samoyed a couple of years ago and fell in love. She has since said she wants a "big white fwuffy dog". I'm a Spitz fan, but thought maybe a Japanese Spitz would be better due to the size. She's not keen on the Jap Spitz, cause "it's not a big one!" But since I am the one who does most of the dog caring in this place, I get last say. I also thought of perhaps showing.

Grooming doesn't scare me, Spitz dogs behaviour doesn't scare me. I've worked them out pretty well having Snik and other Spitz fosters.

SO because I am a research nerd, and will want to research any dog for about 2 years before committing myself to a breed, what's the major differences between the two in personality and care? Which would you go for and why?

[spitzmum]

A friend who has a JS and Samoyed swears that her JS is smarter and more cunning, faster to learn tricks and therefore more stubborn I'm not sure whether this comes from their companion dog roots vs the Samoyeds as working dogs (where you get the more "eager to please" mentality, though still spitzy)

I do like the fact that I should be able to pop 2 car seats/capsules in the back of my car and still have room for my JS in her harness - whereas a Sammy would need to go in the boot (station wagon).

It's also the practicality of things - if Ziva is being naughty, it is super easy to pick her up and put her in time out. I'm not sure I could drag a fully grown Sammy to time out!

As for showing - with only one smaller dog, I like that I can turn up an hour before judging, have her groomed and ready without being in a huge rush. At the last NSW Samoyed Club speciality show, a friend turned up super early to make sure she had 1.5-2 hrs to groom and present each dog. Once I got lost on the way to a show and turned up with only 25 minutes before our turn and I still managed to get Ziva done!

Downsides - with OB and dances with dogs work we do, to treat her at the level of her head, I need to bend down a lot. Not usually a problem until I got pregnant - was just hard on my back.

Also, I think JS tend to be bigger yappers than Sammys, though I have known one or two Sams who are all-day-talkers.

If you're thinking of a JS, drop me a PM and we can chat about breeders - I'm the secretary for the JS Club of NSW - though we're really a national club with more members from interstate than NSW!

[Guest_~Songbird~_*]

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This post has been edited by *SnowFlower*: 20/02/2013, 07:48 PM

[Oriental lily]

Samoyed aren't that big. Their fluff and chunky legs make them appear bigger.

I would go the Sammy, mainly because I nothing about the Japanese spitz and their appearance remind me of an overgrown white Pom.

And I am not really a pom fan.

You also cannot pass up having a dog with a Sammy smile!

A samoyed broke my heart once. When I was about 10 this stray adopted us. She was gorgeous. my parents said I could keep her if we could not find their owners.

Sadly her owners were found.
I begged the owners to give me her lol.
I think they were just as fond of her lol.

For a nearly a year after she would escape her house and turn up at our door. Big naughty grin on her face.

Then the visits stopped.

I still think of that girl often. I would never get a Samoyed myself, I am not really a spitz fan.

But boy oh boy I get their appeal. They have a real presence and sunny attitude about them.

[spitzmum]

Samoyeds are beautiful natured dogs and very caring and sensitive towards their owners (and others). Japanese Spitz are some what stand offish and can snap at strangers. I would not get a Japanese Spitz for a child. Samoyeds are brilliant with kids and are one of the highly recommended breeds for kids.

Youtube is a great place to get an idea of these dogs different temperaments. Here is a video of a Samoyed and Japanese Spitz - this is the stand offishness that breeders and Japanese Spitz societies warn of. I have never heard of a bad Samoyed, neither has Dr Harry

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wZnVVCZcB2w

Yes - let's rely on the opinion of a vet who invests in cross-breed farms

I have met Samoyeds who are poorly socialised and wary of other dogs. The same goes for any breed.

Ziva has done the rounds at country ag shows all around NSW - where joe public comes up for a pat and a chat. Never has she snapped at a stranger, whether on top of her trolley or on the ground walking. She's always approached by children inside Pet Barn and has plenty of kisses and cuddles from them.

While the breed standard says "wary of strangers" - I think the better description is that they are great at reading people. Where children have no ill intent - she is all kisses and cuddles. Occassionally she's met a child that just wants to pull her tail (some think she is a weird cat and perhaps exhibit the same behaviour with their own feline friend!) and rather than approach such a child, she'll sit in heel beside me and ignore.

Did I do a lot while she was a puppy to train her behaviour around children? Yes - but it's the same behaviour that makes her great in nursing homes (handling loud shouty noises and clumsy handling)

Yes, I will admit that there are some lines in Australia that seem exhibit poor temperament - but these are few and far between (and by registered breeders, rarely bred). I suspect this would be the case in any breed.

As for not allowing a JS around children - there are a number of them in NSW and VIC registered as assistance dogs for children with autism and also doing dog education in schools. We're expecting our first child in the new year and we had a behaviourist assess our dog so that we could prepare in every way possible to welcome another member of the pack without causing any difficulties. There is nothing in her temperament (we have been training clients for a few years) that would cause him any concern.

However - every dog is individual. Would I temperament test the litter I was looking at before choosing a pup that would interact with children - heck yes, regardless of whether I was looking at Samoyed, Jap Spitz or even the reputed "super child friendly" Labrador.

[FiveAus]

I really like the large, square presence of the Samoyed as well as their perpetually smiling faces. I go to dog shows, city and country, most weekends and the Samoyeds all seem to be friendly, happy and easy to manage.

Japanese Spitz, on the other hand remind me of white foxes and I don't like the way they look. They don't look like small Samoyeds, they look like pointy faced, brush tailed white creatures. I do know one, he's a nice enough fellow, friendly and intelligent.

If you want a "small" Samoyed, get a female. They are considerably smaller than the boys.

[*Ker*]

I think I'm pretty set on a Sammy. Everything I have read about them, I love - much like the lappie when I first started researching them. I've met quite a few and they have all been wonderful examples of the breed and true to their temperament write up. The first one that DD met had NEVER seen a kid and she was down "speaking" to the dog (in some bizarre language) and the dog was answering her in a whiny language. It was really cute. His owner was quite intrigued at how much he seemed to love her. Both my kids have dog appeal though.

I've only met a couple of Jap Spitzes. Polar opposites of each other! One was friendly as, couldn't get enough of me. The other was very standoffish and pretty much ignored me. Pretty devastating for a dog nerd!

From what I have read, they seem to be a little more stubborn than the lappie. My lappie is pretty easy actually. She's well trained, because she just loves to please me.

The Sammy size doesn't bother me. I can control my sisters 50kg Newf easily. I'm not fussed what sex the dog is. When I was researching lappies, a breeder asked me whether I would want a male or female. I said I didn't care, I just wanted a lappie. And the same goes for my next dog - I just want a dog of the breed I go with - boy or girl doesn't matter. My dogs get along with both sexes, so I didn't have to worry about what sex I brought in.

I still have a bit of time anyhow, I think. I don't want to leave Snik as an only dog for too long if Indi goes first (and I'm pretty sure she will) - I think she'd be devastated. She's never been alone and she's very social. She loves Indi to pieces too.

[la di dah]

I only have one question.

Who uses "looks like white foxes" as a negative?

[FiveAus]

I only have one question.

Who uses "looks like white foxes" as a negative?

Last week foxes killed my 16 beautiful, friendly, purebred chooks, so right now, anything that looks like a fox, walks like a fox, smells like a fox is right in my line of fire. I hate the little ***ers.

This post has been edited by FiveAus: 17/11/2012, 04:34 AM

[la di dah]

I'm sorry about your chooks. I've only ever seen foxes in a zoo.