Anyone who has ever had the privilege of owning a dog will know that dogs are individuals with their own personalities. Even pups from the similar litter will differ. But a dog's specific breed can have a big impact on their behaviour and personality, not just how they look. This means your dog will have some traits that simply come naturally to them, as they have been bred into them for centuries. For a dog to be truely happy it is important that these natural traits are met, and enrichment to encourage the use of these traits, or an outlet to express them, are provided. These traits are often similar in certain breeds and this is why breeds are categorised into particular groups.

The main dog group breeds are:

• Gun Dogs (also known as Sporting Dogs)
• Hounds
• Pastoral
• Terrier
• Toy
• Utility
• Working
• Mixed Breed

Gun Dogs

Originally bred to assist hunters in finding and retrieving live game. This group also divides into 4 sub-breed groups with each sub-breed specialising in a specific hunting technique:

1. Spaniels - used to 'flush' the game out
2. Pointers & Setters - used to find and 'point' the game out to the hunter by standing still and staring forward
3. Retrievers - used to fetch (retriever) the game back to hunter
4. Hunt, Point, Retrieve Dogs - skilled in all areas

The Gun dogs are a very active group that can require between 1 to 2 hours of exercise a day. They love nothing more than having a 'job' to do and pleasing their owners. It is easy to also see from the 4 sub-groups the different types of activities each will enjoy doing.

Hound Group

Hounds were bred for either scent or sight (hence sight hounds and scent hounds). They were used to help hunters by either sniffing the prey out or giving chase. This breed group has a high prey drive and a need for speed! Although, they do typically like short bursts of activity and then a long snuggle on the couch.

Specific hound breeds include greyhounds, Salukis, Dachshunds, Wolfhounds and beagles.

Pastoral

These breeds tend to be dogs that were bred to assist farmers, herding and working with livestock.

This is a hardy and intelligent breed who thrive off learning something new! They require a lot of mental and physical activity to prevent them becoming bored, destructive or exhibiting obsessive behaviours.

As they are a herding breed they can often try to herd animals and even humans!

Herding breeds include Border Collies, Samoyeds, the Australian Shepherd and the Welsh Corgi.

Terrier Group

Terriers were originally bred to help with pest control. They were used to hunt vermin above and below ground, such as rats, badgers and foxes. They are tough dogs with strong personalities, active and usually love to chase and dig!

This group includes the Jack Russel, Bedlington Terriers, Staffordshire Terrier and the Westhighland White.

Toy Group

Often referred to as 'lap dogs', these breeds were designed as companion dogs. Small in stature, perfect size for sitting in laps and keeping their owners company!

They are sociable and friendly. Typically they do not require a vast amount of exercise, although often enjoy taking in the sights from their owners arms!

Dogs in this group include the Pomeranian, Pug, Chihuahua and Shih Tzu.

Utility Group

Sometimes known as the group name for dogs that don't fit into any other group! These dogs weren't bred for sports but usually bred for a specific purpose (that doesn't fall into working or pastoral). When looking at dogs in this group it is hard to identify key traits and so it is best to look at the history of the individual breed to get an idea of your dogs activity level and specific areas of interest.

Dogs in this group include the Bulldog, Akita, Boston Terrier and the Poodle.

Working Group

Dogs in this breed group were bred with a purpose in mind, such as guarding or helping search and rescue.

These breeds are typically larger, very active and enjoy being given a task to complete. They require a lot of space and physical activity to keep them at their best.

Dogs in this group include the Rottweiler, St Bernard, Alaskan Malamute and Dobermann.

Mixed Breeds

Dogs in this group are born from different pure breeds mixed together. Growing in popularity with breeds such as the increasingly popular 'poo' or 'oodle' mixes, dogs in this group will hold a mixture of traits from both parents individual breeds, making them a little harder to predict. Owners will need to look at both breeds in their dog's genetic makeup to try and gain an idea of exercise and enrichment needs, and the type of personality and behaviour their dog may exhibit.

Dogs in this group include the Cockapoo (Cocker Spaniel cross Poodle), Sprocker (Springer Spaniel cross Cocker Spaniel) and Dalmador (Dalmatian cross Labrador).