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************************************************************* Best Dogs With Children I would like suggestions as to the best breed of dog for our family. My wife and I have only one child, a four year old. Anyone interested in providing their ideas? We live in a modest size house (1600 sq.ft) in suburban Souhern California with a medium sized fenced back yard. I am particularly interested in: 1. Basenjis 2. Dalmations 3. Terriers Thanks, Bill Banning. ,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, Best Breed My husband and I have 2 children (2 yrs. and 3 mos.), and a Sheltie (5 yrs.), aka miniture collie. She is very good with the kids and the breed is known as family type dogs. They tend to bark a lot, but are very obedient and affectionate. - Colonel Potter - I'm very partial to Beagles, they are loveable, and will defend your child to the death. I now have a Min. Schnauzer (Barney) They don't shed, and have the heart of a tiger. But they need a firm hand in training. With a med. sized yard, they can get all the exersise they need. I would also suggest a Labrador Retriever. They have the size to protect themselves against a four year old. And, they have a wonderful way with children. - Daniel J. McClain & Barney (Woof!) - ````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` Dogs and Kids I would agree with Dan - having had various breeds with children, the Beagle has been the best. They do tend to be a bit noisy and somewhat independent at times, but they will put up with almost anything from kids and are still small enough that the kids can still handle them on a lead. Labs and Golden Retrievers are great too, but tend to be a bit big for kids to handle - also their size and activity level as puppies is a little more than a 4 yr. old could manage. I don't know much about Basenjis other than that they tend to be very territorial and not get along too well with other dogs - Dalmations are great but are a bit difficult, probably not a good choice as a first dog, and, the terrier people will probably tar and feather me, but I've found that Terriers are probably not the best choice for people with young kids. Bassetts are great too. - Pgatts - We have a Basenji (barkless, odorless, short haired), she is great with kids and very loveable. But....very stubborn and difficult to train. She needs to run - so a fenced yard is helpful. She is more like a cat than a dog. She cleans herself like a cat and sits up on furniture like a cat. She is a mid sized breed - about 15 lbs. If you get one, make sure you go to a good breeder and find out the temperment of the parents. They are also subject to eye problems. - Carl A. - ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Best Breed For Children We recently invested in a Wire Haired Terrier who is absolutely the greatest with children. Captain Kidde is energetic and a whole lot of fun. This breed LOVES (cannot emphasize enough) people. We love Captain Kidde and he gets along with three children very well. The only thing one must remember about this breed is that they are very determined to do what they want to do. We self trained Captain to sit, etc., but he won't stay yet...he's only 6 months old...and we think he's responding well enough for our current needs. After puppy training maybe he will sit and stay! - "Tyboy" - Try a clipped-down Standard Poodle (the big ones). Playful all their lives, smart, easy to train, and with gentle, gentle retreiver mouths. Also, most kids aren't allergic to them. - Osgood Farm - We've had assorted hound breeds, a Coonhound, Shepherd, Doberman mix, and a Collie over the years and all have been great with kids--but we picked the puppies from good litters! Beagles are great with kids unless they've been grossly mistreated. Our Collie came from a kennel where all the dogs are equally loved and spoiled rotten from birth. Whoever you bring home, look for either a good happy poud puppy or a spoiled purebred from a good breeder--and meet the parents if you can. If both parents nearly wag themselves to death at the sight of your kid, you're probably onto a good match! Good luck! - Becky, Tom, Gabe, Raven and Mabel - Why not try your local Humane Society or animal shelter? They often have excellent dogs with wonderful dispositions! The staff is usually familiar with the dogs, and would be able to help you pick one out. Often you can find pure-breeds, and many of the dogs are very healthy and house-broken. Among the best of the breeds for children are the Labrador Retriever. - Heather - ```````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` Good Book I suggest you get a copy of Daniel Tortora's book, The Right Dog for You. This book has personality trait profiles for all of the AKC breeds. In addition the book asks you to answer a series of questions which establishes a profile for you and your family. This way you can have a chance to objectively learn about a great many breeds in terms of how they might fit in with your lifestyle and whether you are appropriately set up for a particular breed. Good reading, and it's available at most shopping mall bookstores such as Walden's or Dalton's. - Jim Ryan, Pet Care Staff - I have always been fond of shelties. They are very loyal as well as intelligent. Their natural herding instinct will keep the child from harms way, My two shelties are extremely protective of my two children and will not let and danger come to them. - Joe Santana - Dear Bill, My name is Archana Sridhar. Call me Archie. The dogs you have listed are good ones. I think you should pick Dalmations, because they are very obedient and fun to be with. they are very gentle dogs, too. I am a 12 year old dog lover, although I don't have any. Hope you write back! I also have a four year old - we have two beagles and a Basset. All are absolutely great with the kids (I also have an eight year old). The dogs are very sweet and even tempered AND the beagles ae small enough that the four year old can take them for a walk. Good luck!! - Barb - The breeds you have listed are all fine dogs, but all have a tendency to be stubborn or difficult to train. Given the age of your child, I think perhaps the easier breeds to train would be best. Bassett, Standard Poodle( clipped short, puppy cut ), Golden Retriever, Bearded Collie; just to name a few. The text mentioned would be very helpfull in determining where your wants and needs can both be met. Let me know how it turns out!! - Brian A. Scott, DVM - I would have to recommend that if you aquire a dog for home that you examine the parents of the dog you are interested in...especially the mother. I have no problem w/ animal shelters but I got my dog from a kennel where I was able to see my dog's parents and determined that I would be getting a relatively mild mannered dog. I have an Alaskan Malamute and even though she is a large dog, she is beautiful around others, especially children. - "DannyBoy2" - The best dog is not necessarily a certain breed, although some breeds have been genetically selected to be more compatible with the needs of a young family. (i.e. Standard poodles, Goldens, Labs, Flat Coat Retrievers, etc.) As a owner of a Smooth Collie (8 months old and my first dog ever) I have learned that there are many factors involved with chosing a breed and a puppy. The first thing I have learned is the dog must be for the family not your child. Even though it is a faily pet you must decide that you will be responsible for socializing this new family member. My dog is constantly testing his dominance and independence. He is not allowed to bite, lean, push, pull, or any other dominate behavoir. We have been working with a dog trainer who has been great at helping us work our puppy into our family.(By the way puppy training is great parent training. I have found that my weaknesses as a dog trainer are the same as a parent.) Dog and people training is constant work. Our training sessions include having my 5 and 7 year old daughters working on commands while I control the leash behind them when he doesn't follow through. The second thing I have learned is that dogs are a lot of work. We already had a cat, rabbit, and fish but the dog added tons more work. His routine requires a more rigid schedule. You realize this when you have someone else care for your dog and you write the instructions. (We don't allow the dog to run free in the backyard unsupervised. We don't want him to learn bad habits that we cannot correct immediately!) The best thing that I learned in this process is that you want your dog to make mistakes. It gives you an opportunity to teach him what you expect of him. In our puppy selection I shy away from puppies that jumped or barked excessively. I chose what I thought was a timid puppy (but instead he turned out to be a independent puppy, which is the least kind of puppy I wanted.) You can work with those kinds of behaviors but it is hard to make an independent puppy want to please you. Thereby making a training based on rewards less effective. I recommend the puppy book written by the Monks of New Skete for identifying temperments in puppies. Every litter has a range of traits that each puppy acquires in the litter. I misread my puppy. (Lack of experience.) I good trainer could help identify a good family puppy based on temperment. Good Luck!! - MD Bruce - Most of the suggestions thus far have been good ones, I can only add my aggreement with the Golden Retriever as it is the one that I was fortunate to have when my son was growing up. Jason was an adoptee, he had either wandered off or had been dropped off, although I could never figure out why. He was the most faithful, happy-go-lucky and loving friend I have ever had. He found us when my son was 3 years old. We already had a beautifully dispositioned Cocker Spaniel that my son loved, but Jason was a dog that he could play a little harder with and Jason loved it! I have pictures of him letting my son ride on his back, sleeping on him, etc. Most things that even our dream of a Cocker would not allow. As far as a 4 year old not being able to control or walk a Golden, I also have pictures of my son showing his big dog at the 4-H dog shows. Granted, I had worked with him in obedience, not extensively though, and he loved to please so it was to please us in any fashion that seemed to be his goal in life. And he met that goal with ease. So, obviously, I say to you that you could NEVER go wrong with a Golden Retriever! I must also add, though, the importance of obedience training for ANY breed that you choose. As the one writer above stated, obedience training taught them how to teach, react and respond to their new dog. Most of the reasons dogs get dumped are because the owners were never effective in their training, because they were never trained on how to train their pet. (Much the same reason, I suspect, that children get abused every day.) So, whatever you decide to get, enroll both of you in a local obedience course run by your local breeder's club and you will have a well-rounded puppy and less stressful household. Good Luck! - "Wordworks1" - A question that's just as important as "Which breeds are best with children?" is: "How are my children with dogs?" A child's personality, age, upbringing and the amount of parental supervision the child gets is very important when itcomes to choosing a dog for the family. Children need to be taught that the dog isn't just another toy, that it needs respect, privacy at times and will bite if mistreated. The child's age is important, too, because most children under age six, especially toddlers, don't understand that dogs will bite or that they shouldn't tug on ears and tails. Parental supervision with small children is essential to a safe, happy relationship. The personality of the individual dog is important, too. No matter what breed, the confidence and dominance level of a dog will affect how it interacts with children. Obedience training is essential and children need to be taught how to make the dog obey commands just like adults do. An untrained, dominant dog often considers himself superior to children and has to be taught his position in the family "pack". A reputable breeder who temperament tests his/her puppies will be a great help when choosing a dog for a family with children. It's wise to let a good breeder choose a puppy for you rather than to choose the puppy yourself. A good breeder knows the personalities and potential of the individual puppies and can suggest which ones best meet your needs. - "Thunderhil" - The best dog I ever had was a Golden Retriever - loyal, enthusiastic, gentle. With a yard your size, I have reservations, however. They need a lot of room to work out and run. They are truly great retrievers, and need the space to be able to do it it. They are wonderful dogs. All considered, you couldn't ask for a better breed! - "PSquared" - Thank you America Online Pet Care Forum staff for contributing this valuable and entertaining file! Please note: See "Resources" for AOL contact information. ............................................................. Chapter End