dog for a one year old girl??

Question

I have a one year old daughter that loves dogdogs that is what she says. We are moving to our new home. we would like a new puppy. what kind should we get?? big/small? new puppy or 1yr old. or should we wait untill our daughter is older?? please help!!

Answer 1

id say your daughter is too young to truly appreciate the dog at this point in time. although, i will say, this is a great time to get a puppy. this is because the puppy will grow up around a young child so it will get used to the hair pulling and running around and screaming and rough petting. this will DEFINITELY come in handy if you decide to have more kids later on. the dog wont be nervous around a new baby, and it will expect to be treated as it was before, its just natural as far as it knows. and the child might learn early on to appreciate animals in a couple of years. id say a big to medium dog would be best. big dogs are generally lethargic and calm (my boss has an english mastiff and a two yr old son, and NO problems). smaller dogs are more skittish and react to fast movements and high pitched noises in a harsh manner (my moms mini schnauzer and my gfs silky terrier both snap at kids).

Answer 2

There are several breeds that are very good with children. The Labrador, the Golden Retriever and the Beagle are all great family dogs who are very friendly. You might want to stay away from the more unpredictable breeds like Dalmatians - my family had one when I was a child, very friendly dog but also very rough - and the more possessive ones like Chows. These are also great dogs but possibly inappropriate for your situation.

However, looking after a puppy is a LOT of work. You will need to be bringing it out every hour on the hour to housebreak it effectively, you will have to bring it for its puppy shots, bring it for obedience classes, clean up after it all the time before it is fully housebroken and an entire host of other things. It might be a bit of a hassle juggling a puppy and a 1 year old at the same time.

But growing up with a puppy is probably one of the best childhood experiences that your daughter will enjoy for many, many years to come. I can speak from experience - I got my first puppy when I was 9 years old and having watched her grow and mature (I'll be 19 in a few months), I would never have given up the experience of having a puppy. That is really why I am asking you to wait till your daughter is a little older.

I'm not saying you need to wait until she is 9 - the only reason my parents waited that long is because they wanted me to bear the full responsibility of the dog (not financially, at least) and wasn't sure if I'd be responsible enough before them. With that I must also issue a word of caution - if you aren't prepared to be the one cleaning up after, training and walking the dog, don't get one for your daughter until she is at least 9 or 10. (This is really common sense, as you wouldn't expect a 4 year-old to take on the responsibility of a puppy.)

If you are prepared to be primarily responsible for the dog, then go ahead and get one whenever you feel ready. I don't know you personally so I don't know how busy you are. Maybe when your daughter is settled in school, maybe even before that. It's entirely up to you. In the meantime, you can definitely start your planning and your research. This means budgeting for your dog (shots, spaying/neutering, obedience classes, years' worth of dog food and water, extra water bills for the dog's baths, any grooming fees, annual checkups) and researching an appropriate breed. If you Google "dog breed selectors" you will find a bunch of sites that offer questionnaires on your wants and needs for your dog (how much space you have, guard dog abilities, etc) that you fill in for a list of appropriate breeds.

Good luck and feel free to email me if you have any further questions.

Answer 3

It's generally best to wait until your daughter is older. But, on the other hand my nephews and niece were all raised with an Old English Sheepdog.

If you decide to get a dog, it would be best to get awell-trained adult dog that is used to small children. You would have to supervise all interactions between the dog and your daughter. Toddlers will do things like pull hair and dogs, even the best of them, can accidently injure a small child.

Any dog you get should come from a responsible breeder or rescue group. A few possible breeds (from the right source only) would be Collies, Old English Sheepdogs, Newfoundlands, and Bassett Hounds.

But, as I said, it would really be better to wait a couple years at least. You could spend the time researching breeds, reading books, and going to local dog shows and talking to breeders/owners.

Answer 4

She's one. She's learning to walk and talk. She's still doing cute things. A dog is a LOT of work - like having another baby. Wouldn't it be best to concentrate on your daughter and play with your daughter as opposed to dealing and training a dog?

Right now she doesn't know the difference between loving a real dog and loving a stuffed animal. Get her a dogdogs stuffed animal.

The dog isn't going to be her - she can't feed it, walk it, play with it. And dogs and children should never be left together unsupervised.

I'm not really sure why all the people telling you not to get a dog at this time are the ones getting thumbs downed. Check out the questions on YA over the past week = how many of them are from parents who own a dog they can't control, that takes up too much of their time, that htey haven't bothered to train.

Focus on your child - get a real live dogdogs when she is older.

Answer 5

Be forewarned: many shelters will refuse to adopt to a family with a child so young. Young children often do things (running, yelling, pulling ears, etc) that can cause a nip in even the most docile of dogs and off said dog goes to the pound. I'm not saying not to do it but the two should ALWAYS be CLOSELY MONITORED when together. Besides, that's really the only way to train both of them how to act appropriately towards each other.

Answer 6

I wouldn't get a dog just yet. It would be like having another child. You would be the one who would need to take care of it. And children always change their mind about everything. The dog might bark at her later, and your daughter wont like it anymore. Then what? Give up the dog? That's not really fair on the pet. Maybe you should get her something like a moving dog-toy or something similar. She probably just wants something furry and cute and that makes sounds. lol

Answer 7

I would wait until the child is at least three years old. In the mean time you can get her a stuffed dog that she will love. It is to easy for a young child to hurt a pup and for the puppy to hurt the child. In the meantime; teach her to be real gentle with all the animals she sees.

Answer 8

Take your daughter to a shelter and see which dog seems to be calm around her. You don't want a dog that's too small - young children are not as cautious around dogs and you don't want a dog that's big, possibly clumsy.

If you decide to get a dog now, you must supervise at ALL times. You never want to leave your child and the dog alone, no matter how gentle and loving the dog is.

Too young? Ultimately the dog is your responsibility, so it boils down to how much time you can spend searching and then training the new pup.

G'luck

Answer 9

NONE! OMG she really is too young for a dog. Your daughter, as well as any child that age, can not understand the consequences of their actions. There are soooo many things that can and do go wrong when children are this young when it comes to animals.

Personally I would wait until she is closer to 5 years old.

Answer 10

a million Australian livestock canines 2 Australian Shepherd 3. Sheltie i might stay with herding type breeds. Australian livestock canines are splendidly clever and a stable adventure for a 13 365 days old woman. I have been given one while i grow to be 13 and he or she grow to be the perfect canines in the worldwide.