Most popular dog breeds in Ireland 🇮🇪

For many people, a dog is not just a pet, they are much more, a cherished member of the family. Choosing the right dog can be a big decision, and it’s important to consider not just appearance, but also temperament, energy level, and size. In this article, we’ll explore some of the most popular Irish dog breeds and the factors that may influence someone’s decision to go with a smaller or larger breed. Whether you’re a first-time dog owner or a seasoned pro, we hope this article will provide helpful insights as you navigate the process of choosing the perfect furry companion 🐶

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Every year approximately 90,000 – 110,000 dogs are microchipped & registered in Ireland [source], of these approximately 25 – 30,000 dogs are listed for sale on dogs.ie, other dogs come through charities and rescues.

We’ve broken our statistics down by 3 different perspectives.

• Most popular by views, based on pageviews on dogs.ie website
• Most popular by interest list, based on the number of subscribers to the new ad alerts system.
• Most popular by ads created, based on new ads created.

	By Views	By Interest	By Ad #
1	Dachshund	Cavapoo	Golden Retriever
2	Golden Retriever	Dachshund	Labrador
3	Labrador	Golden Retriever	Cockapoo
4	Cockapoo	Cockapoo	Dachshund
5	German Shepherd	Cavalier King Charles Spaniel	Jack Russell
6	Cocker Spaniel	Jack Russell	German Shepherd
7	Cavapoo	Labrador	Cocker Spaniel
8	Jack Russell	Cocker Spaniel	French Bulldog
9	Cavalier King Charles Spaniel	Yorkshire Terrier	Border Collie
10	Bernese Mountain Dog	Schnauzer	Cavapoo

2024 continued to be the year of the Dachshund, with strong interest continuing to climb in this breed. Since January 2024 there has been

• over 470,000 views on the Dachshund category page
• over 431,000 views on the Golden Retriever page
• over 370,000 views on the Labrador page
• There were visits from 3.5 million people looking at over 20 million pages.
• 92% of people were in Ireland, followed by 5% from the UK and Northern Ireland.

Overall there are more purebred breeds in the list than cross breeds, which may show a decline in so-called “designer breeds”. Approximated 20% of ads were for IKC Registered dogs in 2024

Previous Years

Most popular dogs in 2023 – This data is based on the number of ads posted from January 1st 2023 through December 31st 2023 on dogs.ie see below for details of what breeds most people are interested in.

Most popular dogs in 2022 – This data is based on the number of ads posted from January 1st 2022 through December 31st 2022 on dogs.ie see below for details of what breeds most people are interested in.

#1 Labrador

Labradors were the number one dogs listed for sale in Ireland in 2022. Labrador (Retrievers) are a popular breed known for their intelligence, friendly personality, and adaptability. They are a medium to large breed, typically weighing between 25-36 kg and standing 55-62 cm tall at the shoulder. They are intelligent and easy to train, making them a popular choice for a variety of roles including service dogs, therapy dogs, and search and rescue. Labradors are also known to be good with children and make great family pets.

Find Labradors for sale.

#2 Golden Retriever

Coming up a close #2, are Golden Retrievers (Goldens). Golden Retrievers are a large breed of dog known for their intelligence, friendly personality, and love of water. They are a medium to large breed, typically weighing between 27-34 kg and standing 56-61 cm tall at the shoulder.

Find Golden Retrievers for sale.

#3 Cockapoo

Our first popular mixed breed dog, Cockapoos are a popular designer breed created by crossing a Cocker Spaniel and a Poodle. They are known for their intelligence, playful personality, and low-shedding coat. Cockapoos come in a range of sizes depending on the size of the parent breeds.

• Toy Cockapoos typically weigh between 5-8 kg and stand 25-30 cm tall at the shoulder
• Miniature Cockapoos typically weigh between 8-10 kg and stand 30-35 cm tall at the shoulder.
• Standard Cockapoos typically weigh between 10-15 kg and stand 35-45 cm tall at the shoulder.

Find Cockapoo dogs for sale.

#4 Bichon Frise

Bichon Frises are known for their playful and affectionate nature, making them excellent companions for families and individuals alike. They have a distinctive fluffy white coat that requires regular grooming to maintain its characteristic poofy appearance.

Find Bichon Frise puppies for sale.

#5 French Bulldog

French Bulldogs (Frenchies) have always been a popular smaller dog in Ireland. French Bulldogs are a small to medium breed of dog known for their affectionate nature, playful personality, and bat-like ears. They typically weigh between 11-14 kg and stand 30-35 cm tall at the shoulder.

Find French Bulldog dogs for sale.

On dogs.ie it’s simple to search for dogs based on size, be it a small dog, a medium sized dog or a larger dog.

#6 Dachshund

A newly popular breed are the Dachshunds, they are a small breed of dog known for their long bodies and short legs. They come in three sizes: standard, miniature, and kaninchen (rabbit).

• Standard Dachshunds typically weigh between 9-12 kg and stand 20-22 cm tall at the shoulder.
• Miniature Dachshunds typically weigh between 5-7 kg and stand 20 cm or less at the shoulder.
• Kaninchen Dachshunds are the smallest size, typically weighing less than 5 kg and standing less than 20 cm at the shoulder. Kaninchen is the German word for rabbit, but they are a bit bigger than that!

Find Dachshund dogs for sale.

#7 German Shepherd

German Shepherds are a large breed of dog known for their intelligence, loyalty, and strong work ethic. An adult German Shepherd typically weighs between 22-40 kg and standing 60-65 cm tall at the shoulder.

Find German Shepherd dogs for sale.

#8 Cocker Spaniel

Cocker Spaniels have always been popular in Ireland. Prince William and Catherine, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have owned Cockers in the past.

Find Cocker Spaniel dogs for sale.

#9 Jack Russell

Always a popular breed, Jack Russells are the perfect smaller dog. Jack Russell Terriers are a small breed of dog known for their energy, intelligence, and playful personality. They are a small breed, typically weighing between 5-7 kg and standing 25-30 cm tall at the shoulder.

Find Jack Russell dogs for sale.

#10 Cavapoo

Cavapoos, a delightful mix of Cavalier King Charles Spaniel and Poodle, are prized for their friendly and affectionate temperament, making them wonderful family pets. They have a soft, wavy coat that can vary in colour and requires regular grooming, and they are often celebrated for their intelligence and trainability, inherited from their Poodle lineage.

Find Cavapoos for sale.

Reasons for picking a certain breed

There are many reasons someone might chose a small or a large dog, one of the key ones is lifestyle. We explore this topic more in our article “what size dog should I get” and the pro’s and con’s for large and small breeds.

Questions on Irish dogs statistics

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