Hypoallergenic dog breeds - do you have a favorite?

[disykat]

I have lots of allergies and also asthma, so while I don't test highly allergic to dogs, I do have reactions to heavily shedding dogs, especially when my other allergies are peaking.

We wanted a rescue dog, but at the time our shelter had very few options. After two years of looking, we ended up going through a breeder and getting a Schnauzer puppy. I had no problems with her whatsoever and she was a great dog. I found that many terrier type rescues simply weren't suitable to mix into a family with young kids.

13 years later when it was time for dog number two our shelter was getting lots of mixed breed terriers from another state and we no longer had young children. I met and played with a lot of them, some gave me problems, some didn't. The dog we have now we thought was mixed wire fox terrier and jack russell. I had no symptoms with her. (Our shelter did not "hold" dogs for people, but they were really good about letting me play with dogs and wait overnight before committing to see if I reacted if I went right before closing and came back at opening. I worked nearby.) A DNA test showed miniature pinscher, poodle and cocker spaniel. I have had minimal problems with her - attributed to the poodle part obviously.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I have a Cairn Terrier.

They are great small family dogs, and considered hypoallergenic.

http://dogsbarn.com/are-cairn-terriers-hypoallergenic/

They do require grooming, as does the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier.

ETA picture, not mine

 

[5lilfish]

I have allergies and have had great luck with Westies (West-highland White Terriors). We have owned 3. They are small but sturdy dogs. They’re super smart and all of ours have trained easily. We find them to be fun, entertaining and great with the whole family.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

I have a Cairn Terrier. They are great small family dogs, and considered hypoallergenic.

http://dogsbarn.com/are-cairn-terriers-hypoallergenic/

They do require grooming, as does the Soft Coated Wheaten Terrier.

I have allergies and have had great luck with Westies (West-highland White Terriors). We have owned 3. They are small but sturdy dogs. They’re super smart and all of ours have trained easily. We find them to be fun, entertaining and great with the whole family.

Cairns and Westies share origins and are similar dogs, with a few differences.

I happen to like the shaggy look of the Cairn as well as the coloring, but Westies are adorable, too.

Both make great pets!

https://janedogs.com/cairn-and-west-highland-white-terrier/

 

[laughinplace199]

Thanks everyone! Looks like I have some homework to do looking at all these different suggestions.

 

[jaiminee krikit]

I used to not believe in hypoallergenic dogs. I had a boss that told me over and over again to get one and I told her "it's not the fur/hair, it's the dander". Well, a few years ago I started allergy treatments and we decided to get a couple dogs. We got a black lab mix first. I can stand to be around him and I can pet him, but if rubs up against me or scratches me, I get sneezy, itchy, and welts. That's okay, he's not a big cuddler anyway. I then decided I wanted a little dog. I got a shorkie (shihtzu yorkie) and she doesn't bother me at all. I rub up on her, and she rubs up on me, she's chewed on me, scratched me, given me kisses, and it never aggravates my allergies. She is little, though, about 10 pounds.

 

[quandrea]

We have two Barbets. French water dogs. They are smart, non shedding and wonderful family dogs.

 

[piglet too]

Portuguese Water Dogs are supposed to be good for people with allergies.

 

[powellrj]

My DS has always had allergies and loved having a dog. We had 3 yorkies and they were great. We now have a snorkie which is a yorkie/schnauzer mix. She was a rescue and we love her.

 

[Starwind]

I have a severe dog allergy and have yet to find a dog I am not allergic to. Some are worse (or much worse) than others, but all dogs are a problem.

OP, they key will be that the particular dog is not a problem, and that will require spending time with it before it joins the family.

Note: once the dog has been in the house, the house is contaminated. And the dog allergen will persist even with a thorough cleaning (although according to studies, it does not persist as long as cat allergen; either way, it persists for many many months). So before introducing it into the physical house, make sure it is going to be safe allergy-wise. Dog allergen is present in saliva, dander and urine, and can also therefore be transfered to other things.

SW

 

[ms.yt]

We have a cavachon--Cavalier King Charles crossed with a bichon frise. Ours weighs ~16 pounds--the size of a large cat. We absolutely adore her. This breed is very social--best friends with everyone--and easy to train. Seriously, it took my DH 27 years to find a dog breed he would own, and this is it.

Although she's small, she's kind of barrel-chested, so her bark sounds like a bigger dog, if that makes sense.

Most are apricot in color, but ours is black and white. She has a wavy coat and does require trips to the groomer. If we were so inclined, she'd make a good agility dog. She also senses when other pets are sick--we had an old cat who would seize occasionally, and Izzy the dog would be right there, looking after him. Not that the sick, old cat was appreciative at all, but we thought it was sweet.

We have a black and white cavachon, too. I've had lots of dogs in my life, but she is the sweetest, best tempered of all of them. She barely sheds, too.

 

[prouddaddycdn]

We have a Coton de Tulear, which is a hypoallergenic breed. She is a non shedder and doesn’t have fur—it’s hair. While that’s good for allergies, it requires daily maintenance. It’s a companion breed so they aren’t good being left alone a lot.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coton_de_Tulear

100% absolutely agree. We had our Coton for 15 years in a highly allergic household. Zero issues. I would definitely look into seeing if this breed is for you.

 

[FayeW]

But since golden retrievers are not hypo allergenic, golden doodles aren’t hypoallergenic.

The poodle coat seems to be dominate, that is the whole purpose of breeding them with these other breeds; you can have a dog mixed with your favourite breed with the hypo allergenic coat of a poodle. A few of my friends have gotten poodle-mix dogs because of allergies and none of them have had any issues. One has a sheepdog-poodle mix, and another couple had a golden-doodle and an Australian Shepard-Standard Poodle mix (Aussie-doodle?). None of the dogs have triggered allergies.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

My DS has always had allergies and loved having a dog. We had 3 yorkies and they were great. We now have a snorkie which is a yorkie/schnauzer mix. She was a rescue and we love her.

These (both Yorkie and Schnauzer - the mini, anyway) also have similar origins to the Cairn and the Westie. Cousins! (ETA I take that back about Mini Schnauzers. They are classified with Terriers because they hunt vermin, but they do not share genes with Cairns, Westies or Yorkies, my bad.)