"Choosing the right breed is not just about looks — it's about lifestyle, expectations, and understanding what a dog truly needs to thrive."— Julie Schwenzer, ER Vet Insights
Episode summary
This episode takes a broader view — not just what conditions affect which breeds, but whether a given breed is actually the right match for the owner's life. Dr. LoSasso brings his perspective as both an emergency vet and a pet owner, and the conversation is candid, funny at moments, and genuinely useful for anyone considering a new dog or cat.
One of the most interesting clinical observations in the episode is about doodle breeds. Poodles, as a rule, do not eat socks. Labrador Retrievers do, but within a normal range. Doodles, however — regardless of which other breed is in the mix — have become, in Dr. LoSasso's experience, "foreign body scavenging machines." He says his first question when a doodle walks through the ER door is "how many socks did it eat and how long ago?" And people stop being offended when he's right.
He also discusses the reality of pit bulls — his personal breed of choice, a rescue named Bubbles — and why he believes the challenge with pit bulls is more about pit bull owners than pit bulls themselves.
On the cat side, he covers the breeds most prone to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — Maine Coons, Norwegian Forest cats, and Sphinxes — and why sudden death is sometimes the first sign of this condition, making it particularly heartbreaking.
"My first question in the ER when I see a doodle come through the door: 'How many socks did it eat and how long ago?' Instead of being offended, people look at me and say, 'How did you know? It was just one sock, 20 minutes ago.' I say, 'Great — because we can induce vomiting and hopefully don't have to go to surgery.'"— Dr. Michael LoSasso, DVM
If you own a doodle or are getting one
Be aware that doodle breeds appear disproportionately in emergency cases for foreign body ingestion — swallowed socks, underwear, corn cobs, and toys. Keep laundry inaccessible, garbage secured, and anything chewable out of reach. Know your nearest emergency vet and save the number. If your doodle swallows something, time matters — early treatment is dramatically better than waiting for symptoms.
Questions answered in this episode
The following questions are answered by Dr. LoSasso in this episode, drawn directly from the conversation. These are real clinical answers from a practicing emergency veterinarian with 30+ years of experience.
Dr. LoSasso says the most unfortunate mismatches are people who get high-energy herding breeds — Border Collies, Belgian Malinois — without understanding how physically and mentally demanding these dogs are. These breeds need exercise and mental stimulation or they find their own activities, which is rarely what the owner wanted. He also sees owners of protection breeds like Cane Corsos who are physically afraid of their own dog. And he sees owners of giant breeds who cannot lift or transport the dog when it becomes ill — a 175-pound English Mastiff that won't get in the car is a genuine logistical crisis.
Dr. LoSasso says this is one of the phenomena he cannot fully explain, but it is real and consistent. Poodles, as a rule, do not eat socks. The golden retriever or Labrador parent does occasionally, but not to the degree seen in doodle mixes. Something about the cross creates what he calls 'foreign body scavenging machines.' He removes socks, corn cobs, underwear, and rolls of toilet paper from doodles at a disproportionate rate compared to their parent breeds. His first question when a doodle walks into the ER is always how many socks it ate and when.
Dr. LoSasso says pit bulls have a bad reputation that is less deserved than it is for some other breeds. He personally owns a rescue pit bull named Bubbles, whom he describes as the sweetest dog he has ever had. His view is that the challenge with pit bulls is more about owners than dogs — aggressive pit bulls are typically intact males whose behavior has been encouraged by owners seeking an aggressive-looking dog. He emphasizes that intact male status is part of a broader psychology, not a simple hormonal explanation. With appropriate training and socialization, he finds pit bulls to be loving family dogs.
Dr. LoSasso mentions Basset Hounds and Bloodhounds as naturally low-energy. Great Danes, despite their size, do not have the hyperactivity of breeds like the Belgian Malinois. Greyhounds — counterintuitively — are content to be couch potatoes almost 100% of the time, though they need space when they do want to run. He also recommends pit bulls from reputable rescues for owners who want a loyal, affectionate companion with manageable energy.
Dr. LoSasso identifies Maine Coons, Norwegian Forest cats, and Sphinx cats as breeds prone to hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — thickening of the heart muscle. Sphinx cats are actually more prone to HCM than Maine Coons. Bengal and Ocicat breeds tend to have excitable temperaments and often do not handle veterinary visits well. He notes that in cats, sudden death is sometimes the first sign of HCM, making it especially difficult — owners may have no warning that their seemingly healthy two-year-old cat had a serious cardiac condition.
Dr. LoSasso is emphatic on this. Obedience training for high-energy breeds is not optional — it is essential. Importantly, he recommends owners do the training themselves rather than sending the dog to a trainer, because the process is really about teaching the owner how to think like a dog. It builds the relationship, establishes appropriate hierarchy in the household, and gives the dog the mental stimulation it needs. A Border Collie or Belgian Malinois without obedience work is not a behavior problem — it is an unfulfilled animal doing what it was bred to do.
JulieWhat are some of the most common mismatches you've seen between a person's lifestyle and the breed they chose?
Dr. LoSassoOne of the more unfortunate mismatches is people who don't understand when they get a high-energy herding breed. They think Border Collies are beautiful dogs — and they are — or the Belgian Malinois. These dogs are extremely active. And not only are they physically active, they're mentally active. They are extremely smart. If you don't give them something to do, they will find something to do, and that is not always what people are looking for when they're leaving a dog home in an apartment for the day. You don't need a dog that is trying to figure out how a doorknob works. When they don't get enough exercise, they can be real behavior challenges. Going through obedience courses yourself — not sending the dog off to somebody else — gets you closer to your dog and helps you understand how they think. In a lot of ways, it's actually training pet owners how to think more like a dog.
Dr. LoSassoThe other unfortunate thing is people who want a protection dog and walk in with an intact male Cane Corso they are afraid of. They kind of laugh when he tries to bite me. If he jumps on the couch, they move over because they don't want him to hurt them. That's not the kind of family member you want. And size matters — I've seen lovely 90-pound women who own English Mastiffs. When you're talking about a 175-pound dog that outweighs you by 75 pounds, what happens when something goes wrong and he's sick? I get calls saying 'I need you to come get my dog because I can't get him in the car.'
JulieWhat about doodle breeds? We see a lot of them around here.
Dr. LoSassoWe see a ton of doodle breeds. Most of them are actually lovely dogs. But there's an interesting thing that has happened that we can't explain: you mix a Standard Poodle with a Bernese Mountain Dog, Old English Sheepdog, Golden Retriever, Labrador — poodles don't eat socks. As a general rule I don't see a lot of poodles that get into things. But there's something about poodle crosses that turns them into foreign body scavenging machines. I have done more surgery, taken socks and corn cobs and underwear and rolls of toilet paper out of doodles than I take out of other breeds. My first question in the ER when a doodle comes through the door is 'how many socks did it eat and how long ago?' Instead of being offended, people look at me and say, 'How did you know? It was just one sock, 20 minutes ago.' I say, 'Great — because we can induce vomiting and hopefully don't have to go to surgery.'
JulieWhat are some calmer breeds for someone looking for a lower-energy companion?
Dr. LoSassoFor my money it's the pit bull. I've got a rescue pity. Pit Bulls have a really bad rap, a little less deserved than something like the Cane Corso. As long as these dogs have got some kind of training, the bad ones are typically bad because they either lack training or have actually been encouraged to not be great dogs. To a great extent, I think the challenge with pit bulls is more a challenge with pit bull owners than with the dogs themselves. This dog I rescued — we think two or three years old, looked like she'd been a bait dog. She is the sweetest dog I've ever had. We brought her home with small girls in the house and they laid on top of her and she just takes it.
JulieWhat about cats — are there breed-specific health concerns owners should know?
Dr. LoSassoThere are some breeds of cat that people don't realize what they're getting into. Maine Coon cats, Norwegian Forest cats — these great big cats that can weigh 20 pounds as a healthy weight, because they're basically a lynx. They'll say 'What do you mean he has a heart murmur at three?' And I say, because hypertrophic cardiomyopathy is a known problem in the breed. Sphinx cats are actually more prone to HCM than Maine Coons are. Sometimes, unfortunately, in cats, sudden death is the first sign of hypertrophic cardiomyopathy. That's a really difficult thing to deal with — dealing with a sudden death in a two-year-old cat because nobody knew he had it.