This breed is a perfect companion for active, outdoor people. The Rottweiler has a short coat and is just as happy outdoors as he is indoors — as long as the temperatures are not extreme.

The Australian Cattle Dog is strong and agile. It is able to work extremely hard and, thanks to having an abundance of energy, it is widely used outdoors for herding on farms or as a running partner.

Caroline is a dog-breed expert and Dog Writers Association of America Hall of Fame inductee who has written 34 books about dogs, including the top-selling Barron's Encyclopedia of Dog Breeds.

As an owner and breeder of a rare hunting dog breed, the Deutsch Langhaar, I get plenty of questions from fellow bird hunters who have never heard of, nor seen, the gun dogs I follow behind each fall ...