Dogs for small children?

[Savoir Faire]

I'm curious as to what you think are the best dogs for small children? I have two kids, ages three and five. My daughter is one of those little girls who'd be happy to put a dog in a purse and carry it around the store. She seems to like dogs that will snuggle with her and be her best friend.

My son...he's a three year old boy. He can be a little crazy and we need something that can hold up to his playfulness but still be lovable.

I'm thinking we should probably go bigger as we had a little bad luck with a smaller adoptee earlier this year (a dachshund). Any ideas?

[MadiMamacita]

golden retriever! not exactly a purse dog, but IMO the BEST for kids!

Normally I'm a rescue/pound/mutt kind of girl, but i wouldn't trust a rescue with little kids. you just don't know the history. I wouldn't leave any dog alone with a small child, but especially one I didn't know the background of.

[Savoir Faire]

Do you think it is harder to get a puppy or an older dog?

[~Katie~]

I'd go with a golden also. My IL's have had three, two of which passed away this past year at ripe old ages. They just got their last dog from a sanctuary type of place for golden's. They were able to get a thorough history of him from the previous owners, his was a situation where the owner could no longer keep him because of relocation. Their last two dogs came from trust-worthy breeders. He is very well behaved, loves to play catch and is good with my kids when we visit. They have the added advantage of having an older dog who is already house trained as well. If I were to get a dog I would get an older one because I already have 2 kids to clean up after, I really don't want to have to clean up after a dog as well.

The only issue I would have against golden retrievers are the genetic ailments that tend to plague them.

[ssh]

Golden labs are really good with kids too.

[zacharysmom]

golden retriever gets my vote they are easy to train and are really great with kids

[somegirl99]

Definitely an older dog, and my vote would be for a bigger one as well.

[Savoir Faire]

I'm thinking bigger, like many of you suggested.I always remember friends having goldens growing up, and I know that the "therapy dog" at our local library (where kids read to the dogs) is a golden.

So not a puppy? Probably a good idea, as we are not renters...I just want to make sure what we get can handle my kids.

[Noelle C.]

Labs and goldens are definitely some of the best (which is why we have two goldens). Adult dogs may be better as there is less training needed. If you already have children this age, I'd suggest going to a rescue to find a young adult who already has some training and is known to be good with kids. Puppies are a lot of fun at first, but they take a lot of work, and I'd be hesitent to see a pup in a home with yong kids (when my girl had her litter almost two years ago, I directed families with young kids to a rescue, so I'm not some must-go-to-rescue person).

You also need to evaluate why your kids were unable to handle a doxie earlier this year and make sure they are ready. It's really not nice to a dog nor to kids to adopt a dog only to take it back a short time later. It's better to spend a bit more time than to rush. Animals are long-term commitments.

Katie mentioned the genetic ailment of a golden. Hip dysplasia, unfortunately, isn't confined to any one breed. Most larger breed, including labs, German shepherds, etc., are prone to this condition. Every breed has its genetically-predisposed ailments. All the parental screening in the world can't guarantee an ailment-free dog. Run far and fast from any breeder who says there's no way that a particular dog can come down with something because the parents were free of it. Less likely, but not guarantee it CAN'T happen.

[Alyantavid]

Well we have a Chesapeake. We got him as a puppy about 2 years before our oldest was born. Those two are inseperable. Our dog is his protector, his "best friend in the whole world", his shadow. My younger son adores him as well and we trained our dog very well, the kids can do anything with him.

He's been a fabulous dog, I seriously couldn't ask for a better dog for my kids.

[nd_deadhead]

We had a Lab when our twins were born - he was the best dog in the world, but huge, so when we were looking at a new dog, we went with something smaller.

But I was not prepared to even consider a puppy until our kids were 6 or 7 years old - and we could devote the time the puppy neded on HIS schedule - not ours or the boys'. For younger children I would definitely recommend an older (i.e. already housetrained) dog. Breeders often have older dogs available - they do not do as well as expected in the show ring, they are retired show dogs or retired breeding dogs - and if they come from a reliable breeder, they will be well-trained and well-socialized.

If you don't want such a big dog as a lab or golden, Corgis tend to be good with kids - once they learn that children are not to be herded.

[crl]

Our (non) dog story is rather long and convultuted at this point, but I wanted to share a link to a thread I started on here a couple of years ago:

http://www.mothering.com/discussions...d.php?t=623016

There are some very helpful thoughts on breeds for kids and people were really kind and spent a lot of time trying to help me so I thought it would be good if I passed it forward a bit.

I know that a lot of people have had very good experiences with rescues. We did not. You can search my user name and see a bunch of threads that pretty much tell the story, if you want to. My bottom line would be that if you want to go rescue you should choose the rescue organization very, very carefully and you should ask lots and lots of questions about any particular dog they suggest to you.

Catherine

[crl]

Originally Posted by Noelle C.

Labs and goldens are definitely some of the best (which is why we have two goldens). Adult dogs may be better as there is less training needed. If you already have children this age, I'd suggest going to a rescue to find a young adult who already has some training and is known to be good with kids. Puppies are a lot of fun at first, but they take a lot of work, and I'd be hesitent to see a pup in a home with yong kids (when my girl had her litter almost two years ago, I directed families with young kids to a rescue, so I'm not some must-go-to-rescue person).

You also need to evaluate why your kids were unable to handle a doxie earlier this year and make sure they are ready. It's really not nice to a dog nor to kids to adopt a dog only to take it back a short time later. It's better to spend a bit more time than to rush. Animals are long-term commitments.

Katie mentioned the genetic ailment of a golden. Hip dysplasia, unfortunately, isn't confined to any one breed. Most larger breed, including labs, German shepherds, etc., are prone to this condition. Every breed has its genetically-predisposed ailments. All the parental screening in the world can't guarantee an ailment-free dog. Run far and fast from any breeder who says there's no way that a particular dog can come down with something because the parents were free of it. Less likely, but not guarantee it CAN'T happen.

In additiono to hip dysplasia it is my understanding that Goldens are very prone to cancers and the average lifespan of a Golden is now down to something like 8 years? I've also read a few places that the popularity of the breed has led to less careful breeding and the lovely, sweet Golden temperment is not a sure thing anymore. Have you seen this?

Catherine

[Savoir Faire]

Originally Posted by nd_deadhead

If you don't want such a big dog as a lab or golden, Corgis tend to be good with kids - once they learn that children are not to be herded.

I would find it a plus if the dog could herd my children, especially when we're trying to leave the house on time!!!

As for the bad luck with the dog-- it was just really timing. We got him and then, bam, a few days later my husband was laid off. We spent the next month frantically getting our house ready to sell. The dog was okay in that house but by the time we actually moved, things went south.

He started destroying our rental (which wasn't a problem in our house we owned) and constantly ran away. Eventually a dog-loving neighbor who had a lot of time said she'd keep him for us-- he's in a house with other dogs and no kids and from what I hear, does very well.

When we got him, things were going well but once we had the move, and we were all out of our elements, it was just too much, ya know?

From what I understand, he was a dog that was found wandering...so he probably had a history of doing things like this. Without knowing his background, we couldn't know if he was a chronic runner. So we're definitely NOT getting a dog that was found wandering...

[nd_deadhead]

Corgis herd by nipping at your heels - definitely NOT something you want them to do to your children!

Good luck with your research.

[Kirsten]

Originally Posted by Noelle C.

If you already have children this age, I'd suggest going to a rescue to find a young adult who already has some training and is known to be good with kids. Puppies are a lot of fun at first, but they take a lot of work, and I'd be hesitent to see a pup in a home with yong kids

The no-kill rescue where we've adopted all our pets over the last 17 years won't adopt dogs out to a family with kids younger than (can't remember if it is 6 or 8...) so depending on your local rescue's rules, that may not be an option.

And I very much agree that a puppy is too much work for a family with young kids. Young adult dog is the way to go - in a mid to large size.

Originally Posted by Alyantavid

Well we have a Chesapeake. He's been a fabulous dog, I seriously couldn't ask for a better dog for my kids.

We had a CBR when I was a teen. AMAZING dog. LOVE that breed. So smart and so good with kids. If we had a bigger yard, I would get one.

[crl]

Originally Posted by Alyantavid

Well we have a Chesapeake. We got him as a puppy about 2 years before our oldest was born. Those two are inseperable. Our dog is his protector, his "best friend in the whole world", his shadow. My younger son adores him as well and we trained our dog very well, the kids can do anything with him.

He's been a fabulous dog, I seriously couldn't ask for a better dog for my kids.

Can I ask how much exercise your Chesapeake needs? I'm curious because we're pondering dogs ourselves.

Thanks!
Catherine

[JamieCatheryn]

We're looking at Beagle or Labrador mixes ages 1-4 years for us, we have a 3 year old son (will be almost 4 when we get a dog) and we want a pet from a shelter. Originally thought golden retriever but can't really find any.

[sunny*pa*mom]

We recently adopted a basset/shepherd/lab mix from a shelter. He's 4 months old. He's medium size and fairly easy going. We also have 4 and 5 year old boys. From our recent experience I'd say it's vital to find a good trainer that is willing to work through any "rescue" issues the dog might have. Our pup was house and crate trained when we adopted him but has a little bit of fear our trainer is helping us work through. We actually went to the shelter to meet a lab but we didn't click with him and then our new little boy charmed us. Good luck, our new pup has added a lot of joy to our lives.

[greenmagick]

A lot is going to depend on individual personality. How much time to you want to spend exercising and working the dog. Breeds like retrievers are fairly high energy, though if you are looking at older dogs, they do mellow. They are not as high energy as a border collie, but can still be fairly rambunctious.

Personally, I dont like labs and goldens. Just not the personality for me.

Other great family dogs are boxers (high energy too), standard poodles....really, depending on how much you put in, I think most middle size to giant breed dogs that arent from working lines can be great in a family. I have a lab mix and a great dane. The dane, while only 9 months, is wonderful with the kids, very tolerant.