Considering a Schipperke - want to make sure they're a good fit for us
My partner and I are planning to get our first dog together once we finish renovating our house. He’s had dogs before, but this would be my first; due to family allergies I only had an outdoor cat growing up (plus fish and a hamster).
I’ve really fallen in love with the Schipperke's personality and intelligence, and their size is perfect for our small flat and the fact that I may occasionally travel with them.
When I have a pet I go all out (my hamster basically lived in a palace…), so I want to make sure that if we choose a higher-maintenance breed, we’re fully prepared to meet their needs.
Our situation:
*I work from home full-time; my partner works from home about half the time
*We live in a small flat with a small backyard, right on the high street of a quiet seaside village
*We’re a 3-minute walk from the beach, and there are lots of dogs around for socialising, everyone in this town seems to have one
*I enjoy travelling, but almost all of the time one of us would be home
*There may be one trip per year around Christmas where I’d need to fly with the dog
In terms of exercise needs, how often does a Schipperke need to get out for a walk/play or properly “let loose”? I can step away from work for breaks if I schedule properly if it's best to take them out throughout the day.
My big concern is the barking. I’ve seen a lot of comments about how the barking is endless. I know this sounds extreme but better I'm honest up front- I don't think I could mentally handle endless barking if that's true. I think I'd get overstimulated and stressed, especially because I'd be home trying to work and take meetings all day. Our area can get busy with tourists and there are seabirds visible from the windows, so plenty of potential triggers. How manageable is their barking if we train early and well, and if we did train them what is a reasonable expectation for the barking? Would appreciate honest feedback on this. I'm also open to learning from a professional, but if constant barking is a certainty, we need to consider that in our decision.