Whether you want an active dog, a doggie couch potato, or a dog that fits somewhere in between really depends on you.
Are you the type of person or family that spends a lot of time walking and hiking? If so, an active dog might be a great choice, rather than a dog couch potato. Popular breeds like Border Collies, Dalmatians, Jack Russells, and many Retrievers are well known to be high energy.
Other highly active dog breeds are:
- Beagle
- Beauceron
- Bouvier des Flandres
- Catalonian Sheepdog
- Chihuahua
- De Brie Shepherd
- Drahthaar
- Doberman
- English Setter
- English Springer Spaniel
- Epagneul Breton
- Fox Terrier
- German Braco
- German Shepherd
- Groenendael Belgium Shepherd
- Irish Setter
- Miniature Schnauzer
- Pekinese
- Pinscher
- Poodle
- Pointer
- Pomeranian
- Scottish Terrier
- West Highland White Terrier
- Yorkshire Terrier
An active dog may not be a great choice if you want a dog to just hang out on the couch with you for a couple of days at a time and watch movies, with the occasional toilet break and run around the back yard. Elderly people may also do best with less active dogs, because a dog couch potato can be easier to manage physically.
Breeds like the following tend to have lower levels of activity, and may adapt well to a less active lifestyle:
- Alaskan Malamute
- Basset Hound
- Bourdeaux Dogo
- Bullmastiff
- Bulldog
- Chow Chow
- German Dogo
- Giant Schnauzer
- Golden Retriever
- Great Pyrenees
- Labrador
- Lhassa Apso
- Pyrenees Mastiff
- Rottweiler
- Spanish Hound
- Spanish Mastiff
- Saint Bernard
- Shar Pei
- Terranova
Dogs with a medium level of activity may do well if you’re the kind of person who gets off the couch for walks and errands, but doesn’t necessarily go on week-long hiking trips or plan on extensive agility training. These are part dog couch potato, part active dog breed.
Medium activity dog breeds include:
- American Cocker Spaniel
- Bobtail
- Boxer
- Burgos Retriever
- Bull Terrier
- Dachshund
- Dalmatian
- English Cocker Spaniel
- Maltese
- Podenco Ibicenco
- Samoyed
- Scottish Shepherd
- Siberian Husky
- Standard Schnauzer
- Spanish Greyhound
All dogs need some exercise, including daily walks and a back yard. Some dogs are just more adaptable to living in a house, and don’t require excessive exercise. A true doggie couch potato is rare.
I commend you for putting the Chihuahua on the high energy dog breed list as this is rarely done. These dogs need and I mean need a long walk of an hour !…. but do best with 2 walks a day (one hour and then a shorter walk of 20 to 30 minutes …the order doesn’t matter) in addition to needing play time. Failure to cater to this dogs high energy needs leads to neurotic and anti social behaviour including snapping and biting.In order to diffuse their high energy needs I find keeping 2 is better so they can play with each other ! Chew treats like pig trotters that take a long time to gnaw threw are also essential to keeping this dogs energy levels at a manageable level as they like to keep occupied. A bored Chihuahua is a deeply unhappy dog. I get very upset with the way people expect this breed to be a “toy” rather than a dog. I agree they are suited to apartment living because they like to be close to people and left in the yard become prey for hawks/eagles etc and are vulnerable to weather conditions BUT they need outside exercise everyday and toys to keep busy with .