What kind of dog?

Question

What kind of dog is best for a family of 6.
With 4 kids the oldest 14 , then 10, and then 6 and 5
It has to be a small easy to care for kind of dog

Answer 1

I highly recommend that you take this quick dog breed selector quiz. when your done check marking what your looking for in a dog, it will tell you what breed is best for you.
http://animal.discovery.com/breedselector/dogselector.do

Answer 2

Personally, I own a rat terrier. My rat terrier is 21 pounds, has short hair, is a great indoor dog (but is smart and loves to play), is great with kids and also enjoys cuddling up with people on the sofa.

But the truth is there is no one "best breed." It depends upon your circumstances, experience with dogs, and activity level. For instance, many beagles (or shelties or border collies) will bark--a problem in an apartment or a house close to neighbors. Other terriers will dig out under fences. A whippet or Basenji will take off if your backyard isn't fenced. A Jack Russell may have too much activity for many owners. Labs have great reps with kids but they can be really big and they'll shed. It's not that these (or any breed) is a bad breed. It's that each breed has it's own attributes: if it needs to be outside, how it deals with strangers, if it sheds, size, exercise needs, activity levels and so on.

Also keep in mind that regardless of the breed, each dog is an individual so temperaments vary within the same litter. So here are a couple of tips about picking a dog:
1. Do a temperament test (the Volhard test is widely accessible and it's easy to find people with expertise in it). If you're a new dog owner, you want a dog that scores all "3's".
2. Get your dog trained. No, taking a class or two at the petstore doesn't count. The smarter the dog, the more need there is for intellectual stimulation. And training provides that stimulation (or at least some of it). Assume on doing puppy kindergarten, obedience I & II and then some kind of activity after that. A bored dog becomes a destructive dog.
3. Under no circumstances should you buy your dog from a petstore or an informal or backyard breeder. Either deal with a reputable breeder (where a female isn't mated every time she goes into heat) where your dog is registered or go with a rescue. Any other approach ecourages irresponsible breeding that produces unwanted dogs and poor genetics.

Answer 3

It depends on the family. Will they be taking the dog out a lot and will it be constantly exercised? I like basenjis (I think thats how its spelled). They cannot bark and are great exercise companions. I wouldn't recommend a dachshund just because it will probably be mishandled by the younger children and eventually get back problems. I would just go to the pound though. Often times, you can rescue a great little dog that is already through the puppy stage of chewing everything up and could already be housebroken.

Answer 4

Usually super small dogs aren't great with kids, mostly because their bones break soooo easily. So you might want small-medium. You probably want something calm, but is active when you want it to be, and not too much grooming to deal with. I don't know whether you want it to be more or less of a guard type dog, but I am doing to assume less of one.

I think a great match for your family would be a pug, or a type of spaniel (especially a cocker spaniel). A Beagle would also be a great choice, although they can be difficult to train. I personally would avoid a terrier (not because they are bad, I have one and I LOVE HIM, but I have had dogs all my life and we are home all the time so we have the time for his constant need for attention and exercise lol), and herding dogs, although super super smart (also had one of these) aren't always great with kids.

I can personally put in a good word with the Beagles.... my sister had one for a few years. They got him as a pup when my sisters daughter was around 1, but he ran away when she was about 4 or 5. He was a super super lil dog, and totally put up with the ear pulling and all that that kids accidentally do sometimes.

Answer 5

OK. The best dog that LOVES kids and is VERY protective (will fight to the death to protect one of their own) is the Australian Cattle Dog also know as a Blue/Red Heeler! They are very hardy and fear nothing! Yet are very gentle and kind (especially towards children). They are quiet even tempered VERY intelligent. Only weigh between 15 (females) and 35 (males) pounds. They have short hair so no hairy mess. You will love this breed!

They have two different types of this breed. The older breed which is smaller and the newer breed that has more Dingo in them and are just slightly larger with a wider head. The older type can be registered whereas the newer type cannot.

http://www.australiancattledog.com/

http://rds.yahoo.com/_ylt=A0geu7dwRjpHmzcBao1XNyoA;_ylu=X3oDMTFibDk5dDYyBHNlYwNzcgRwb3MDMgRjb2xvA2FjMgR2dGlkA01BUDAyMF8xMTAEbANXUzE-/SIG=13566e0vr/EXP=1195087856/**http%3a//ezinearticles.com/%3fAll-About-the-Australian-Cattle-Dog-Breed%26id=647927


http://www.cattledog.com/

Answer 6

It doesn't have to be small.Get a Lab pup or adopt a 2 year old lab,make sure it hasn't been abused.It'll be house trained and over being a puppy.All you'll have to deal with is affection and loyalty.A good small dog would be a Bishon,never thought I'd like one...had Roscoe for 12 years,we miss him.Good Luck.Not to mention Bishons don't shed,or hunt.Better yet ,buy a pit bull and rub bacon grease on the klan.We never had a problem with any dog when I was growing up.We took care of it.What's the problem?You've got 4 kids...if they can't help---forget the dog.Buy a gold fish.Geees.

Answer 7

We have a Shetland sheep dog. Looks like a miniature Lassy.
Have you ever seen the dog from the original Peter Pan? He has the mothering temperament. He tells on the kids when they are up to something by coming to me and whining. He sleeps w/ my youngest cause that is one of his jobs. When I tell my child to go to bed he follows and jumps up at the foot of his bed and waits till my son is asleep to come back downstairs. He barks when people come to close to the house and was very easy to potty train. I say "make it snappy" and he goes to his special spot in the yard instead of going all over it as many dogs do. He plays outside w/ the kids and follows them everywhere and never strays. He looks like a medium sized dog, but when wet he looks much smaller. He is mostly beautiful sleek fur. He is super smart and protective not to the point of dangerous though. He is playful but not annoyingly so. When the boys were very small he took lots of abuse, as small children tend to dole out. He never once threatened to nip and never growled or barked. We had to have him stay w/ my parents till the kids were trained to be nice because we felt so sorry for him. They need to be bathed once a month and brushed on average about 3 times a month or they get knots in their fur. Whenever we take him somewhere he has many admirers as he is so beautiful.
Lisa B

Answer 8

a mutt. They live longer, get along with the entire family. Have less health issues. go to your local shelter and visit there on a weekly basis til you find what is right for you. The volunteers will help you as well. They preview the dog so that you know what you are getting.

Answer 9

Labrador, Sharpei, or Pomeranian. Pugs are good too. I live in a family of 6 also. but we have 2 big dogs, and 1 runt of a dalmation litter. you could do that. go check out some litters, and get the runt. the runt doesn't grow up i think. we've had our runt for 3 years, and he's still not as tall as a dalmation should be.

Answer 10

I have a small dog. He loves the necies and nephews and an babies that want to play and cuddle with him. Hes 1/4 beagle and 3/4 basset hound....
hes wicked cute and loves kids

Answer 11

i could be what i'm now, a sturdy ol' American blended breed. i could be extreme, have a sturdy artwork ethic, and prefer to stay in a sturdy working domicile. If I have been stored as in easy terms a puppy in a fenced backyard, i could be digging super holes and barking by way of shear boredom of all of it. i might prefer to be taken places, to learn new issues, and to work out human beings. i could be friendly yet reserved and not aggressive. i could be very unswerving to my loving proprietor and to the my family individuals. My look could be customary. No extremes, possibly a medium or double coat. very like a circulate between a spaniel and a shepherd. shade black possibly brown with somewhat white trim. i could be appealing to confirm and extreme high quality to touch. i might problaby weight 50-60#.