Interesting! I mostly only know border collies by reputation, which is probably unfair.
The pleasing temperament is why we went with a golden retriever; my girlfriend wants to train her as a therapy dog. But training has been difficult, due in no small part to how inconsistent we've been (and how rambunctious the dog is). We also can't get her to entirely stop play biting, which is frustrating. I love her to bits and would do anything for her, but I don't think I'll ever get a puppy again.
Puppies are soooo much work. And there's so many mature dogs that need rehoming, so why bother.
But having had dogs that we've raised from puppy and ones that we've adopted, I find that the puppy-raised ones were more emotionally attached.
Labs are notorious chewers, and they have a long adolescence (3 years!). And then the chewing usually stops. They're people lovers and snuggly and have lower energy, so I can see them being great therapy dogs, just might take a bit.
When we had a dog that chewed more we got her deer or elk antlers from the pet store and she chewed those to smithereens. Kept her busy and prevented her from going after our things.
> Puppies are soooo much work. And there's so many mature dogs that need rehoming, so why bother.
I definitely feel bad about that. Our last dog was a rescued golden retriever who passed away around the start of the year, and we had our hearts set on another golden. We felt uncomfortable enough with purchasing a dog that we donated the same amount spread out to a few animal rescues, but I still feel a bit guilty.
But we got our last dog when she would’ve been about 5 (she was a stray! How was the sweetest golden in the world a stray!), so we skipped all the puppy and adolescence. We underestimated the puppy stuff.
Antlers are a good idea. We were doing pressed rawhide but she started choking on them for some reason.
The puppy stuff is a challenge but worth it because they get so heavily bonded with you. They really integrate into the family so strongly when you have them from little. My experience anyways.
Our previous collie was a rescue, and she died young (like 6 years old, poor thing) and we were so heartbroken my wife went out and got a puppy about two weeks later.
We also had mixed experiences with rescues. They can be hard to deal with and in general most wouldn't even talk to use because we live on a farm without a "fenced backyard" (you try fencing 6 acres)... Except it's actually heaven here for a dog and we are good at taking care of them.
The pleasing temperament is why we went with a golden retriever; my girlfriend wants to train her as a therapy dog. But training has been difficult, due in no small part to how inconsistent we've been (and how rambunctious the dog is). We also can't get her to entirely stop play biting, which is frustrating. I love her to bits and would do anything for her, but I don't think I'll ever get a puppy again.