Best dog for children?

Question

I have 6 kids that range in age from 1-9 years old. I think it is finally time to get our family a dog. I have been doing TONS of research but want real families to answer this question.
I also want this dog to be atleast easy crate trained because it will be an indoor dog. We have acreage so that may make a difference because this dog will have plenty of room to run. We have a fenced yard, however, it wouldn't take much for a dog to get out of it(we have a cattle gate and they don't tend to be close to the ground!) So, in other words, I want a dog that won't tend to run off that is very loyal to our family is great around kids. I would rather them not shed horribly.
I know this is alot of characteristics. We have looked at mini schnauzers, boxers, mini dauchsund. But just want real family experience.
Thanks sooo much. My little girls will love you for it.
BTW, I also have an indoor cat and a ferret so maybe a dog that wouldn't try to harm either of them.

Alot of people are suggesting staffordshire terriers. Those are pit bulls right? No problems at ALL from these dogs. Yes, they do scare me but I heard on one of the dog shows that they are GREAT pets. But the risk just seems so great. Is there anything that could completely ELIMINATE the risk of it being aggressive?? thanks

Answer 1

I have 2 small children, and we have a Boxer. They are awesome family dogs. They are extremely patient with children. Our boxer, Tyson, is our second. Our first one tragically passed away. We did not hesitate to get another one. Our kids love him, and he loves them. Our first boxer would allow my son to sit or lay on her and do pretty much anything he wanted to her. She always loved him, and never EVER tried to snap or anything. Tyson is still very young, but is proving to be very good with our kids as well. He also gets along very well with our cat.

Mini-dachshunds are not very well fitted for families with children who may handle them roughly. Because of their long backs they are very prone to spinal injuries. You have to be careful with them.

Answer 2

I have a yellow lab mutt and he is extremely gentle and loyal. My parents had a party and there were lots of smaller children (5 and under). They were playing with him, climbing all over him, and he just let them. One little girl even snuggled up to him with a blanket, and she fell asleep on him. He didn't move for nearly an hour.

Labs get big, but they're great guard dogs. They'll let you know if someone is prowling around where they're not wanted. I have two little sisters, the youngest is 11 and she can walk him alone. (We use a Halti on him, so he doesn't pull or anything.) Also, the 11 y/o has two rabbits, one of which gave birth. Carrick (our dog) treated the baby bunnies just like little puppies, he was very gentle with them. He still is even though they're all grown up. The 16 y/o has a parrot, and Carrick is afraid of the parrot, because he got pecked on the nose by it when he was a puppy.

All in all my suggestion would be to get a labrador mutt from the humane society (that's where we got Carrick). If you do though, make sure only 1 person is doing the main training, and make sure that everyone uses the same words and hand signals, or the dog will get confused and then behavioral problems will arise.

If you want something smaller though, Cocker Spaniels are great dogs. Not my favorite, but they are gentle and extremely loyal too.

Answer 3

No matter what breed you cannot 'eliminate' the possibility of aggression because these are animals! Always supervise kids with dogs of any breed and teach the kids how to appropriately act around dogs and teach the dogs to enjoy being around children (socialize, socialize, socialize).

If you understand dogs, you will understand that most of what you are asking for involves lots of time to work and train your dog (any breed) and socialize them to kids.

As a long time owner of Staffordshire Bullterriers (used to be known as the Nanny dog for their wonderful temperaments with kids), American Pitbull Terrier and American Staffordshires, I would wholeheartedly recommend them. Find an adult 3-5 years old from a shelter/rescue that does extensive temperament testing and fostering so that you know exactly what you are getting temperament-wise. You can find ones that are solid with cats and other dogs too. And often adult dogs have either had some previous training or the shelter has done some training already.

As tempting as it is to get a puppy, you will have your hands full... raising a puppy is like adding another child to the mix and will take much more time. You also do not know for sure what it's final temperament will be - it's part genetics and part the type of training and socialization you put in. At least with an adult the temperament is basically set.

No matter what breed of dog, do your research on breed tendencies, but then realize that is all that they are... tendencies... dog behavior is always changing and be willing to put in the time and energy for the whole family to work together to train.

Also... always make sure EVERYONE in the family is comfortable with the dog... including your smallest/youngest one. It can be very difficult and cause problems if someone in the family is afraid of the dog for whatever reason. EVERYONE should be in agreement on the dog.

Answer 4

As a child i grew up with great danes, springer spaniels, mini pinschers, neopolitan, bull and english mastiffs and the occasional mutt for good measure. As an adult and parent (because i wouldnt own a dog till i settled down) i have owned 3 dobermans, 2 min pins, 2 springer spaniels, a bull arab and a staffordshire bull terrier (most of them at once). I have noticed that the small-medium dogs were most likely to wander. The danes, dobes and min pins were the best inside dogs. The danes, dobes,staffys and bull arab are the best with kids. the easiest to train were the danes, spaniels, dobes and min pins. Personally between those three choices you gave i would probably go the mini schnauzer based on the kids because boxers tend to be a bit excitable and mini dashund not much patience and a bit snappy. But i am basing this on other peoples dogs that i have known of those breeds, i have not actually owned any myself. Of the breeds i have owned i would suggest a doberman for the characteristics you describe. The 2 i have now love to be around kids, dont wander, were easy to train, exceedingly loyal and dont shed much at all. Suprisingly they also get along best with my 3 cats and parrot? Good luck and i hope you get a wonderful family pet

Answer 5

NO SMALL DOGS!! Small dogs and small children do NOT mix, someone will get hurt.

Dogs that meet all your requirements:
Labrador
Boxer
Belgian Malinois (extremely trainable)
Mastiff (big, but very sweet and loyal)
Great Dane (same as above)
Chesapeake Bay Retriever
Curly Coated Retriever
Doberman
Rottweiler
Pit Bull (ignore the stigma, these are great family pets! my coworker breeds them and her 3 year old son can play with them as rough as he wants, they don't react at all)
Greater Swiss Mountain Dog
German Shepherd (can shed a bit, but great dogs)


I would avoid toy breeds, again, because they can nip if handled roughly, and they are very delicate and should not be around small children, and are also very hard to housebreak.
Hounds have a tendency to wander off while trailing scents, and may feel the need to chase your small animals.
Terriers dig and tend to nip, and are also not always trainable. Also, they tend to chase small furry animals- your ferret wouldn't be safe.
Sled-type dogs tend to be high-strung and may not do well with rough play.

In general, hunting/gun dogs (retrievers) and working/guarding dogs (shepherds, rottweilers, dobermans) are the best dogs for small children, are the most loyal, are the most trainable, and the ones listed are short haired and shed minimally (except the German Shepherd, but they are still great dogs).

I almost forgot: No pug nosed breeds with small children! Pug nosed breeds (Pugs, boston terriers, bulldogs) have trouble breathing, and can very quickly and easily overheat or collapse their tracheas if being run around by children. They are not very sturdy in hot or cold weather, they are not good with lots of exercise, and they just wouldn't be suited to your lifestyle.

if you go to www.akc.org, it will let you sort through the breeds by group, and you can look at specifically the different working / sporting dogs. If you're not sure if the dog you picked is in a certain class, you can look it up by name too and it will tell you the class it's in.

Good luck in your search!

PS Amercian Staffies are not actually Pits, but very similar. And there's a very easy way to eliminate aggression: get a pup, and raise it with love. There is a common myth that these dogs are genetically flawed and will 'snap' and become aggressive- it's a total lie. If you treat it with respect, it will be a loving pet, no matter what it's reputation.

Answer 6

First, there is no 1 breed that would be right for you - it's such an individual choice. One thing - don't count on getting a dog that you can ever have loose around the ferret. Most breeds will learn to live with cats, though.

Because most very small breeds are not good with small children because young kids often make them nervous and they tend to get snappy, I'd stay away from anything really small. You might also want to reconsider a boxer, too - they can be difficult for someone who's not dog experienced and may be too much for young kids.

You might want to check out some breeds like shelties or collies, bearded collies love kids and are outgoing, playful dogs, newfoundlands are the best dogs ever with kids but may be larger than you'd like, English cocker spaniels (but not American)are easy going, perhaps a springer spaniel (being careful not to get one from a hunting line as they can be pretty hyper), some labs or goldens are great with kids.

You need to find a breed you like the looks of and then research it very well - find a reputable breeder and talk to them. They'll tell you if their breed is suitable for you, talk about health problems, because they want their puppies in good homes so they want you to get the right dog for you. Good luck in your search.

Answer 7

http://www.dogbreedinfo.com/search.htm

http://www.safekidssafedogs.com/html/best_dogs_.html

Try looking at these two links above. Also, I find mixed breeds - the kind where you can't tell what they are, to be the best! But, when considering a breed, research that breed extensively! No hunting dogs would be good for you - they might hunt the cat or ferret! I have a Siberian Husky - they have a small animal prey instinct, as do many other breeds. If you check out a rescue, they usually have enough experience with the dogs up for adoption that they can tell you that this dog or that dog is good with kids, not good with other pets, calm, very active, ect. Rescues usually have their adoptive pets long enough to evaluate them so the potential new owner can see his or her characteristics, something the humane society or breeder can't tell you, as the dog has not been evaluated in a home or has grown to achieve these characteristics yet.

Search area rescues. I think they are your best source of information, whichever breed you choose!!

Good luck!

Answer 8

Here is my thoughts and I have had a lot of dogs over the years. If you want no shedding, great personality, funny, extremely loving, great with kids, relatively small but very sturdy, very teachable and wants nothing more than to be with the family then I think you should do some research on Bichon Frises. I have two and they are by far the best dogs I have ever owned. I dearly love them and they dearly worship all of us.
There coat does take some combing and brushing and trimming but with such a large family, you could all take turns. I take mine to the groomer every 6-8 weeks but they are worth every penny. My two are always curled up beside us or in our laps and they seem to love us all and don't show much favor to a single person.
My parents got one and this dog has literally changed their lives.

Answer 9

We have a dog that has just recently adopted us about 2 months ago. He showed up when my female was in heat and never left. He is a blue heeler! I never would have guessed! But he is wonderful with the children , other dogs and stays put in the yard. He ate our chickens though and chases our cat. We also have an australlian Shepherd she is great with kids, cats, and other dogs with exception of feeding time. She also stays put in our yard. We live on 5 acres and no fence. She knows her boundaries and has even taught our 6 mos. old pup where to go and where not to go. Oh, the blue heeler teases the horse too.

Answer 10

I relatively dont consider its reasonable to count on a apprehensive puppy to spend multiplied intervals of time round babies (who have a tendency to be noisy and hard by means of nature, even if moderately good behaved). When my youngsters had been that age, I made definite we had a giant, mellow puppy, who might with ease tolerate the pinching, poking and hair pulling that may occur with young children, albeit accidentally. Not to mention that I didn't instruct my youngsters how to act (delicate is an primary command for youngsters to gain knowledge of), however young children should not have the coordination, attention and manipulate necssary to be dependable round a apprehensive puppy. Plus your youngster is headed into an age while youngsters on the whole pass even though a segment of uprising in opposition to guideline. I might maintain the 2 separate till the youngster is round 3 or so, and is in a position of extra manipulate and information. An occasional deal with from the youngster is something, spending plenty of time within the equal room in combination is an additional.

Answer 11

Any type of retriever makes a great family pet. Golden's are one of the best for children. Remeber though that how you raise the pup will make a difference too... I had a black lab with 4 other chihuahuas, a cat and ferret - and a grandchild... the lab was always the best tempered.