Boys and Girls...

[Jenny & Henry]

I thank you all for helping me with my questions lately.  We will probably choose our pup in the next week or two and we will get to choose between a boy or a girl.  I honestly have no preference so figured I'd go by what the breeder says and their look (right now they all look identical)   So, I am just curious as to what many of you have to say about the boy versus girl for a first family dog.  I read some people say the girls are laid back and lots say that there really is no difference.  

 

Thanks!

[Pat and Traveler]

Yeah, Traveler squats to pee also, and has never marked territory.  He was neutered at 8 weeks, and I wondered if that had anything to do with how he pees and why he doesn't mark.

[shelly]

I agree Caitlin!  Swayze - my male golden and first 'baby' was very affectionate and he too squatted to pee and I never saw his -"RR" at all after he was neutered.  But wouldn't trade my 'little girl' for anything!!!

[Taylor & Huff]

Huff has never marked his territory either. He has never even marked his territory at our shop where female dogs come in all the time and that boy dogs mark their territory a lot there too. He squats most every time. I wonder if it has to do with what age they were neutered at. Huff was neutered at 6 months. I know that most female dogs are more....how do I put it? Moody. haha:) Kind of like people.

[Camilla and Darwin]

Darwin still squats and never marks... it just depends on the male I guess.

[Melissa & Porter]

Porter marks the backyard and town.  He's never marked in the house.  In fact, a neighbor's female dog once came over and marked Porter's bone in my living room.

I think the key is to make it clear when housetraining that the house is "ACK!" if you catch them in the act, and reward with enthusiasm and high-value treats when they pee outside. 

Porter's my first dog though, so I don't know all that much :-)

[Nancy, Ned, Clancy, and Charlie]

The only males in our family of dogs who have marked are the whippet who was not neutered until he was 6 (he has since quit) and Clancy our rescue (when we first got him).  When all of our dogs get together there are two females and we often find one peed on area that we think is one of the females - marking.

[Adina P]

My two female doodles have been 'busy-bodies' and really LOVED people but not really 'cuddler's.
My one male is lazy and is more of a cuddler. He only squats to pee in the yard, unless Boca has JUST peed and then he might lift over her spot. HE WILL mark outdoors though outside of our yard.

SMALL sample size, though so not real hepful =)

[Laurie, Fudge, and Vern]

In my case, Vern (male) is far more laid back than my Fudge (female). I have only had female dogs in the past, but I am really liking having a male dog.

[Carole (*Koda*Monty*Bindi)]

In the 22 years we've shared our home with dogs (or I should say, the dogs have shared their home with us! LOL) we've never chosen a dog/puppy based on their sex.  Honestly, the sex of the dog was an afterthought for us each and every time.  For whatever reason, each dog that joined our family joined our family due to who they were not what they were.  As they grew there was never a difference, for us, because of their sex.  We now have Rosie, Gaston-Cramer and Bindi (two doodles and a wannabe!)  Two girls and a boy.  They are each equally cuddly, loving and smart.  The only way you would be able to tell the sex of any of them would be because we tend to have the girls wear pink! LOL  Gaston-Cramer is JUST like Albus....has no earthly idea what his "parts" are for and could care less! LOL

 

Can't wait to see pictures of your new family member! :)

[Smita, Ollie and Juno]

We chose a boy puppy 4 months ago. We heard many opinions. We heard that boys are cuddlers but harder to housebreak. We heard that girls are more independent but can be moody. We heard that boy dogs hump...then we heard girls sometimes do too. We heard that boys mark...then people told us that girls mark too.

Finally we chose a boy based on the fact that there are 3 females (me and my 2 girls) and only 1 male (dh) in the house...;-D

We don't regret our decision and are happy we picked him.

[Karen and Bridget]

We have had both males and females and I can honestly say we do not have a preference.  The personality of the dog has been much more important to us.  When working with the breeders, we stressed personality was key for us rather than color or sex.  Both of our current dogs (1 male & 1 female) are therapy dogs and absolutely love everyone and have great dispositions.  Our male doesn't lift his leg or mark anything and our female is the humper!  I think you should try to match the dog's personality with what your family is looking for and don't worry about the male/female issue.  Good luck and keep us posted!

 

[Barbara B., Sasha & Oliver]

I have a female goldendoodle sasha and a male labradoodle Oliver.....i always had female dogs in the past but wanted a male.  Both dogs are cuddley in their own way... Oliver is my shadow (9 months old) and Sasha (15 months old) is a bit more independent but still loves her mommy :)   Each of my dood are individuals and love being loved and must have the human contact.