Westie x Shihtzu puppy.

kazmc

Hi all
I am going to have a look at a westie x shihtzu puppy tomorrow with a view to taking her home!
Does anyone have any experience of these dogs??
She is SO cute in the photos but I dont want to be swayed by her cuteness so wondered if anyone had any tips? I am viewing her with her mum.
I'm looking for a small low maintenance (ie not too much clipping etc) puppy.
Many thanks
Karen

geri1965_2

My dad has a shih tzu and he is absolutely adorable - very placid and loving, not sure how the westie would affect that though.

oystercatcher

I have a shih tzu X bichon and bichon X terriercross
The shih tzucross is like a living teddy bear, very cuddly but also a bit snappy especially with large dogs.
The terrier cross has a terrier personality, very intelligent but quite naughty and loves chasing anything small and furry and completely forgets to come back.
Both need grooming every six weeks costs almost £20 each!
Not quite the same breed but I would imagine westie X shih tzu would need regular grooming and could well have a terrier type personality. It's very hard to tell with cross breeds.
I love my two dearly , they are part of the family and with us for life but I would think very carefully about getting a terrier again as she is hard work.

breezerockz

we had a westie (rip) nd shihtsu x yorkie,
westie very loving but stubborn, shihtzu x brilliant. we clip/cut our dogs hair ourselves, they would also be ok just well brushed, althouhg in hot weather clipping maybe needed.
i guess you would have to see how puppy grows his hair,lol.
if you put the correct training in etc im sure you will end up with a fab dog, good luck.

foreign_correspondent

If you are at home all the time, with the time and energy and are prepared to train up a puppy and deal with the inevitable mess and destruction, then please do research the breeds and the breeder carefully. (please be aware that no pup is in any way, shape or form, low maintainance!)

Westies can be hard work - they are terriers, and have a tendancy to not be very tolerant, and can be snappy - they are often not recommended around small children for this reason. They have a tendancy to develop skin conditions too, which can require an expensive diet and vets bills. I dont have much experience of Shihtzu's though. The pup could take after either parent, or both. Please do research both breeds carefully before getting this pup.

this is a useful resource with information on what to look for when choosing a pup:
http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/information/atozofdogs/p/puppies/buyinganewpuppy/

You are right not to want to be swayed by her being cute! (although I do understand that can be difficult!) But - Please do not buy the pup because you feel sorry for it - if you have any welfare concerns do not financialy support the breeder to keep breeding, but call the rspca.

Also, remember, this is a crossbreed and should command a lower price than a pedigree, (rescue shelters are full of crossbred dogs and pups) - but many breeders are churning out what they like to call 'designer dogs' which is just a way of charging pedigree prices for a non-pedigree dog. I love crossbreeds myself, but prefer to go down the rescue route than support more unnecessary breeding.

there is also a bit of info here from the dogs trust on puppy farms and unscrupulous breeding- http://www.dogstrust.org.uk/information/poppysopinions/puppyfarming/

supersaver66

If you are looking for x-breeds why not rescue one? They really deserve a loving home.

ellawood

Hi I have a pek cross with shihtzu (well that was what I was told but I do not agree mum is full Pek I saw her and was told it could only have been a shihtzu dad but mmmmmmm) she is great lovely temp good with kids as she was brough up with my dd1 and her friends loved her and was great with dd2 coming along and she if 10 now I asked the vet how long I could expect her to live and he said if she was a just a pek she would allmost certain having breathing problems as that is there promblem but she is fine as has a pointed nose her coat is like a pek which does need brushing shihtzu do need clipping or brushing so will need you to learn to do it you self or paying someone and it can be expensive to do

my other dog is a yorkie cross with a lasa but to look you would say she is full yorkie the vet could tell when I took her but I think he is well into the dog from what he said the ears give it away too big her coat is now clipped and I wish I had done it from when she was a pup beacause we both hated brushing her she did not like it and when she was done I though there were trying to give me the wrong dog she looked great she looks her age 3 every one though she was the old dog but her grey fur aged her now she is black with grey tips and that is so much better and cleaner she is a terrier and that makes me carefull of dd2 with her she
is good but I do not trust any dog 100 percent any way

shihtzu are great dogs I love them the rest of the family have them five in total and they are all lovely dogs but all clipped the time it takes

westie mmmmm now that would put me off Not keen on them to be honset they can be snappy and would need time to look after there coat

kazmc

An update....
We did get her, I went with my mum to have a look at her and then we went back with my DD7 a week later to collect her.
She has been with us a week now and is absolutely adorable!
As good as gold in her great big cage at nights, has never barked at nights which was a relief!! Only problem is the fact she is not house trained yet and thankgod I have wood floors all downstairs!!
Thanks to everyone who replied before and just wanted you to know that it was 'puppy sold' as soon as I clapped eyes on her and I'm SO pleased we got her.
Karen x

catlou

Congratulations & Enjoy they grow so quickly too!! My pup Max is nearly 7 months and it's hard to believe now he was ever that small and angelic!!

I would recommend going to puppy training classes if you have never had a puppy before we found it really useful and I can now see how easy it would be to get them into bad habits which would then be hard to fix! or I'm sure someone on here would be able to suggest a good puppy training book?

Can we have a photo PLEASE!?

kazmc

kazmc

She is gorgeous isn't she?!!!!