What types of breeds of dogs do you own? Did you get them as a puppy or adopt them at an older age?

Yesterday my husband brought up dogs. The type of dog I want costs about $2,000 a dog and he knows I want a pair of them. Due to this cost and the extra time associated with two, I am aware this is not a short term goal, so I told him I would be willing to rescue like a German Shepherd or something.

Spend some time researching this re the ferrets and found that many GSD owners said not to risk getting an older dog with small animals because you haven't had the chance to train them from puppy-stage that ferrets and other small animals are to be respected.

Since Toki and Bear, our ferrets, are getting along with our kitties now we don't want to jeoprodize this situation or make it so the ferrets don't get enough outside time of their cage. Currently they get about 14-17 hours out a day, I know this is more than required, but I would like to have a chance at getting a possible new dog to be entered harmoniously into the situation (with work, of course.)

Have any of you had particular success with certain larger breeds (I am not a small dog kind of girl), or do you all think it is individually based? 

One of the GSD rescue groups near me will ask their fosters to test certain situations if necessary, so that one seems promising. 

Any input appreciated. As much as my husband would like a dog, he would never forgive himself if we got one and something happened to one of our ferrets - he has become quite attached against his initial feelings for them. Mr Bear and him and quite the buddies. :)

I have two dogs, an Australian Kelpie and an Australian Shepherd, both working breeds. Neither of them were raised with my ferrets, and neither of them have regular or unsupervised contact with my ferrets. I would never trust my dogs with my ferrets. 
My Kelpie would hunt the ferrets if i gave her the opportunity, she regularly hunts and kills wild rabbits on my farm. My Aussie isn't so bad, he's actually very sweet with small animals, however he can get over-excited sometimes, so he could very easily hurt them by just being too rough.

If my dogs were raised with the ferrets since 8 weeks old i believe that they could very easily have been fine with them :)

I wouldn't say that particular breeds will get along with ferrets and others won't (In saying that though, i'd be wary of putting a hunting breed with a ferret). I think its more a matter of the dogs individual personality, how they were raised, and how much training the owner puts in.

I know many people who have ferrets and German Shepherds who get along really well. So its definitely achievable with a German Shepherd, but I think most dogs would have to be raised with the ferrets to be good with them. Rottweilers also seem to be a common breed to have with ferrets i've noticed.

Do they ever get puppies at the rescue you're talking about? If not, then perhaps if they get a dog that seems really chilled out with other animals then maybe you could bring your ferrets to meet the dog and see how it goes?

Hi.  I had a 120 lb lab mix for a couple years before I brought ferrets into the house.  He was such a good dog I never even had second thoughts about them being together.   Have you ever had a 120 lb lap dog?  My biggest worry was that he could step on a fuzz, but he never did.

Our last dog was a yorkie.  We got him at 3 months old.  By the time he was 9 months he was starting to worry us that he was playing too rough with the ferts.  Plus he refused to be house broken, or even to shut the H up at night, so he got re-homed.

THE DOOKS OF HAZARD

y the time he was 9 months he was starting to worry us that he was playing too rough with the ferts.  Plus he refused to be house broken, or even to shut the H up at night, so he got re-homed.

Never so large, the biggest dog I had was a lab/shepherd mix and he died before I had the ferrets. I took them to my moms with me, she has a pitbull/lab mix and that dog is elderly. She still has some pep but we didn't let her do anything other than sniff (the ferrets were only 2 months old at the time). She has two other dogs but they're ridiculously hyper and untrained so I wouldn't trust them.


I would not let them be unsupervised, but I know how quickly things can go wrong and I don't want any guilt, or any situations where any animals aren't getting enough time because of another. 


I guess it would all come down to training in the end. I'm sure an older dog can be taught not to attack, if it's alright with cats and has a lower prey drive. Thankfully this is all up in the air as discussion currently and not urgent! :) I appreciate the input from everyone. 

I own a GSD and a pomeranian.  GSD's just because of the jobs they have been bred to do can be very intense, prey driven dogs which can make them challenging to introduce fast moving ferrets to, especially as an older dog.  That said, most GSD's because of the jobs humans have expected them to do, are also highly trainable.  If you take your time introducing them and don't rush it and make SURE your dog has solid basic obedience skills first, you shouldn't have a problem.  They key here is take the time it takes and don't over face your dog or your ferret.  
My GSD's name is Gator and she has an extremely high prey drive.  I got Gator at 7 weeks old.  I got my ferret when Gator was three years old.  By this point Gator was pretty firmly established as a prey driven dog and she has an unfortunate aptitude for squirrel hunting.  I have had my new ferret Emmet for a couple weeks now and I have just gotten to the point now where I feel comfortable letting Gator sniff Emmet while I hold him.  I don't think we will ever get to the point where I can have them loose in the same room together, Gator is just too intense.  
A lot of more relaxed older dogs will take to a ferret just fine under most circumstances.  But just like if you introduce a puppy to an older dog, the older dog will eventually reach a point when they have had enough of the puppy (or ferrets) antics and show their displeasure.  This usually won't harm a puppy at all, but could cause serious injuries to a little ferret.  Learn your dog and learn how to read their body language.  A tense dog is either over excited or grumpy.  Watch for the dog getting a "whale eye" (whites of the eyes showing) which shows the dog is unsure, if not corrected or reassured this can quickly escalate into the dog protecting itself.  Watch if the dog freezes, a sign of tension not relaxation!  A tight, tense mouth is never a good sign in a dog.   If the dog is practicing avoidance by turning its head or walking away from the ferret, you need to allow the dog time away from the ferret.  If the dog feels like he can't get away from the ferret, the dog will go into fight mode.  
Take it slow, lots of positive reinforcement is your friend when introducing ferret and dog to each other.  If both the ferret and the dog associate each other with good things happening (treats, or play) then they will learn to quickly tolerate, if not enjoy each others company.  Don't force friendship on the dog or the ferret.  If all you're able to accomplish is a "truce" between the two (which is as far as I'm ever going to get) then I would consider that a success. I would never, never, never leave a ferret and ANY dog alone with each other even for a moment.  You should be directly supervising ALL interactions between the two and recognizing when either the dog or the ferret has had enough.  Even the most trustworthy dog can have a bad day or react unexpectedly to a new or different situation.

When I first got my ferrets, I had a shepherd. He was fantastic with them, didn't bat an eye. He passed and we got another shepherd. This dog I think could chill out enough to be around them eventually, however, we adopted a female who passed the "cat test"...BUT...she is NOT a small animal dog. She would kill them in a heart beat. We now have gates all over the house for the cat's safety...but as a result my ferrets dont get to come out often. I feel like a crap owner...so just put the dog on hold so no one has to find a new home. We are struggling with the idea of rehoming the ferrets...but it's a hard choice. 

I have a 4 or 5 year old Beagle (20+ lb female) with my 6 ferrets.  I got the Beagle from the local pound 18 months ago, and they thought she was about 4 years old at the time.  Admittedly, she is a very timid/skittish Beagle, but in the right situation she can bark and act tough like when kids come near the yard or she smells something in the air.  There's even a neighborhood rabbit that used to make it into my fenced in backyard and my Beagle would chase it barking the whole time.
 
I got my ferrets over a period of about 6-8 months and got the first one about 6 months after getting the Beagle.  So, my dog started out on her own and has seen more and more of these "strange fuzzy things" show up in her house.  She would rather be in another room than have anything to do with them.  I don't think she's afraid of them, but she just rather not be around them.  In fact, as soon as the cage door opens to let them out or even refill their food/water, she usually hops off the couch and runs up/down the stairs to get away.
 
Funny thing is one of the male ferrets (Wolfy) has a "crush" on the Beagle (Jersey).  Every time Wolfy gets near her, he goes in slow motion, sniffs her, then lays down next to her.  As soon as Jersey realizes he's nearby, she gets up and leaves.
 
Initially I was worried that my Beagle would have a bit of a prey-drive with them, because of how she chased the rabbit in my backyard.  But, overall she does scare easily and I think that's more of her mentality than a "hunter".
 
Occasionally I would dog-sit a friend's Golden Retriever (80+ lb female), and she seemed to get along with the ferrets and actually wanted to play with them.  But, since the GR was so large, I wouldn't let them be in the same part of house for fear of they being hurt on accident while playing.  I was never afraid that the GR would "attack" a ferret, but she can get a little excited... and an 80+lb "excited" dog can do a lot of damage.
 
Anyway, that's my experience with dogs and ferrets.  I do think that certain breeds can be more prone to certain behaviors, but it all depends on the mentality of the individual dog.  The only thing you can count on is that a LARGER dog has more potential to hurt a small ferret even if unintentionally.  We all know ferrets don't always back down from a "challenge"! :)