Wondering about a Staffie

Good evening everyone, from a sunny West Wales.
Nice to see such a helpful and supportive forum!

We lost our beloved 11 year old Cavalier x collie a couple of months back and are now starting to think about another dog. We are only at the early consideration stage yet.

Being supportive of a local rescue centre has made us aware of just how many poor staffies are ending up in them - and I'm sure often needlessly, however, this led us to consider getting a rescue one in the near future.

Most staffies I've come across are lovely dogs - it's some of the "masculine" owners I often have issue with ;-)

We need to ensure which ever dog we get it both the right one for us, and we give the right home to the dog, so-

We both work (slightly different hours so the dog isnt alone for 8 hours!) , but one or other of us usually pops in for a while during the day or can sometimes take the dog with us in the car or van for a while whilst we travel about, and thus also give it an additional run. The dog will get its usual walks anyway each day.

We have two established cats, so obviously care will be required (as with any breed) to ensure they get on.

We love to walk in a local nature reserve and on the local (stunning and dog friendly) beaches, but we often meet other dogs there. We are used to letting the dog off the lead the majority of time and most be honest and say would ideally like to continue doing this if possible.

We do not have young kids, though my granddaughter (8 months old currently) does visit us occasionally.

The dog has constant access to our reasonable sized back garden via a dog flap.

I now it's hard to answer based on the above, but do you think a Staffie could be the dog for us? or are alarm bells ringing? I do appreciate we would have to work with the rescue centre as well to try and find a suitable match.

Any help or advice or comments would be very gratefully received

Kind regards
Woody (user name should be ukwoody but some how I missed off the K, lol.)

Hello and welcome to the forum

No alarm bells ringing here.

To be honest, I think a staff would be well suited to you. You say it would be able to go to work with you as well as additional walks which is fab as they crave attention and need plenty of exercise. Sounds like you have some fantastic open places to walk so there should be no reason not to let your pooch of the lead after plenty of training. About the cats, you may be lucky and find one that has lived with them or simply doenst bother with them, theres a few pooches on here that love their cat companions! Having your grandaughter visit occasionally benefits them both, the pooch gets used to little people and your granddaughter will grow up with a 'nanny' dog that will have so much love to give

Nikita & Shéara

If i was a rescue and i was reading this i would be falling over myself to give you a staffy

They can have a prey drive and can be hyper, but if they are well trained and treated consistently there is no better dog in the world!

If you dont already though, i would invest in a baby gate so the cats can always have an escape when you are out.

Many rescues won't really know how a dog reacts to cats in a home, so to save heartbreak i would definitely ask that you can see the dog you are looking at interact with a cat in close confinement before you take them home.

Sounds good to me daily walks, not being left alone for a long time, etc. is perfect for them. You'd have to get a cat-friendly rescue obviously, but there are a lot of those, just a case of finding them, and some Staffs don't like other dogs, so letting them off the lead would depend on the individual dog. Many of them get on brilliantly with other dogs, so you could certainly find a Staff that fits your lifestyle

Welcome Woody! I am sorry to hear that you lost your beloved dog recently, it does leave a massive dog-shaped hole in your life.

I do congratulate you on considering taking on a rescue dog. A Staffy is a good choice as generally they are the most loving of dogs to their family.

I would just caution however that they are very strong physically, and boisterous and excitable, so may not be suitable for everyone.

Balanced against that, however, you will undoubtedly have a huge choice of Staffies available in rescue centres near to you. The rescue centre will have evaluated every dog that comes into their care, so give them the fullest possible information of what you are looking for in a dog, and especially what characteristics you would not, for whatever reason, be able to cope with, and they will do their utmost to match you with a dog that they feel will suit you, and make sure that you and the dog are likely to be happy with each other.

Wishing you all good luck with finding your next companion >< do let us know how you get on with your search.

I think a rescue Stafford, would be an excellent choice, they are very loving and giving, challenging & frustrating definitely do your research to get the best boy/girl for you, I wish you all the luck in the world

I didn't know I wanted a staffy until a few months ago, now I adore them!
My view:
Staffies are very people-focused so spending time in a work van would be wonderful.
They love children so supervised play will be great.
They are very bouncy so you would have to train it well. (Maddie tries to knock over medium-sized children).
They love the garden and the sunshine so a dog-flap would be enjoyed.
Staffies are loving and loyal with huge personalities and an inbuilt desire to please. They are intelligent and just the best company.
I'm sure you could find a rescue staffy that would suit you and your family. Rescues are bursting at the seams with bull breeds so you would be saving two dogs - the one you take on and the one that gets their rescue space.
If you can't find a suitable dog near you please consider popping over the bridge to South Gloucestershire as FOSS have a couple of staffies that have been looking for homes for several months.
Good luck

Hello and welcome to the forum from me and Daisy

Thank you for considering at staffy as many people don't and the rescues are bursting with them
My Daisy is a rescue, I don't have cats but she has spent time at my friends who has one is and fine with little penny cat She loves people so much and other dogs especially big ones she can have a play with with
I' m not saying all staff are the same, like every breed each dog is different but from what you've said you can definitely find a rescue staff that is perfect for you, I wish you well, please keep us updated

Hi & welcome to the forum.

I think you'd be well suited to a stafford or stafford cross. If you're getting a rescue dog then the centre will usually be able to tell you if the dog is friendly with other dogs, and if you introduce them properly they'll usually be able to live with cats.

You'll need to keep the dog on lead on walks until you're both comfortable with each other (it can take a while for a rescue dog to settle fully into a new home) and you can practice a recall at home in the meantime.

Careful introductions to your grandaughter would be in order (maybe give the dog something with her scent on it a week or so before she visits so that the scent is familiar) and maybe keep the dog on lead until you're certain of its reaction. The vast majority of staffords are excellent with young children although they can get a little over excited and you'll obviously have to watch them carefully - no leaving them in the same room alone, for example!

Other than that............go for it!

We have 4 cats and 2 Staffies. As said above, Staffies can be very 'bouncy' and they do try to play with the cats who generally jump onto the kitchen worktops when this happens. But most of the time the cats sleep on the sofa and ignore the dogs. Lola often takes her toys and puts them gently in front of a sleeping cat in the hope they'll play with her Lola and Chloe are my first Staffies and I truly wouldn't consider getting a different breed now. It's been a complete eye opener how gorgeous they are in every respect.

Tiger loves my cats but is also afraid of them, she tries to play with them and they hiss and she comes running back to me as if to say "they're being mean again "

All I can say if they can underestimate their size so training to sit and behave around children would be a must, dog's try to initiate play by pawing at another dog and if they want a baby to play she could accidentally get a claw to the face until you've trained the dog not to, of course if you're rescuing an already adult dog they may very well be trained already, dogs get given up for stupid reasons like they got "too big" not all rescues are going to have behavior or health problems, they just got left behind for stupid reasons.

Good luck finding a dog to suit your lifestyle though, the bully breed smile is one of the greatest things I've ever seen.

Sound like the perfect prospect for a rescue owner

Dog walks - be 100% sure on the recall before you let off lead , any other breed bouncing around uninvited no problem but still poor dog etiquette , people tend to look upon our kids in a different light for this , at least a lot of people do
Cats - as Hayley says just make sure there is 1 part of the house that the cats can access but the dog can't for a safe haven , via a safety gate etc
Kids - generally great but never unsupervised like all dogs

Now go out and find yourself a staff , all we expect in return for the advice is regular updates and photos

uwoody wrote:


The dog has constant access to our reasonable sized back garden via a dog flap.

lol.)

This was only thing about your post that conserned me and has not already been picked up on. When you say the dog would have access to the dog flap, am I correctly assuming you would be at home while it has this access ?

There have been numerous occasions of dogs being stolen from peoples back gardens while the owner is not visible/present in the garden. Please consider this when leaving your pet alone at home.

Everything else sounds very positive though, good luck in your search for a new friend.

Sar H wrote:I didn't know I wanted a staffy until a few months ago, now I adore them!

Same with me. I think it is very cool that you are doing so much research and informing yourself. Lucky dog that ends up with you! I think the breed is generally amazing and everyone above has described lots of things Staffies have in common but each dog will have its own individual personality - mine hates cats, other Staffs love or don't mind them; mine is indifferent to birds, others chase them; mine is pretty submissive, others prefer to be top dog; mine was untrained and pooped in the house at first .. and so on.

I got my Staff accidentally as I was supposed to be fostering him for a week. I had no idea that a dog could be so wonderful and I knew I had to seize my chance and hold on to him for dear life! You could think about fostering (i.e. volunteer at your local shelter) and eventually you will definitely find your new best friend.

People always tell me how lucky Rupert is to have been rescued by me but I quite honestly feel that it is the other way around. I am so very lucky to have accidentally come across him. I love everything about him, and he still surprises me every day. Ok, I will shut up now!

Whoa, what a welcome, thank you one and all!

Some very good thoughts and suggestions there - based on experience, which is always really good.

Kathy:- fortunately we live semi rurally in an extremely low crime area, that doesn't seem to have the same problems as some other places. In addition, our back garden would certainly not be the easiest one to get into and they would have to go through at least one other garden first, but that said, it still is a valid point, thank you for bringing it up, as it's something we can at least now be aware of and safeguard against. The dog would have access the flap pretty much 24/7 as the cats also use it. However we are hoping to move so that will certainly become an issue I will need to consider then.

Hayley, Nice to know about the cats, and the stairgate idea is another really good one -irrespective of what dog we finally end up with.

One question, I read somewhere that Staffies aren't particularly worried if you move house - unlike some breeds and will generally just settle right back in. Is this so? I ask because our house is currently on the market, and we were probably going to leave getting another dog until after the move (which might yet be months away, you know what the market is like) in order not to unsettle any new dog. But I'm now wondering if this would be a major issue after all?

Thank you all so much!

Woody

Rupert is chilled wherever he is/sleeps. As long as he has company he is happy.

I wouldn't have thought that moving house would unsettle your dog unduly - so long as he/she has the people she loves around her. It's cats who tend to be fixated on a place rather than a person - butter on their paws when you move may be an old wives tale, but often works! (Plus not letting them out for a few days after the move).

Great news you would like a Staff. Many in rescues have been cat tested so just ask. We have 2 Staffs and 4 cats

We have 3 staffords and they have all been fine when I have moved in the past. Even if I stay at a friends or even if we go on holiday they will settle straight in as though they have always been there I have never had any anxiety relating to their surroundings. Some great advice already and I can't really think of any more to add. You sound responsible and caring something any rescue dog would crave. Good on you for doing your research first

I agree with the above comments. Staffys are awesome. more like a small person rather than a dog. i would never be without Frankie now.. Hope you go ahead as i think you will never regret 1 second of it.. Good luck..