Can anyone offer advice on what is the best breed of dog for a family with small children ( 4, 5, 7 years ) . Everytime we decide on a specific breed the breeders insist that as we haven't any experience with this breed they're inappropiate for a family with small children. To date we've considered Welsh terriers ( which according to reviews we've read on the net are excellent for families ) , West Highland , beagle and Fox Terreirs . As our garden is of medium size and enclosed we have only considered small to medium sized dogs.

Any comments would be appreciated .

Cheers

you can't beat labradors with kids, even though they are a bigger dog they have much more stable temperaments than for eg fox terriers.

Hi miloos.
Thats a bit of a wild statement, considering at the Discover dogs exhibition, the Labrador stand stated they were not suitable for young children!!

There is nothing wrong with Fox Terriers, they have different temperaments and needs to dogs such as Labradors, let me say I was ATTACKED by a 17wk old Labrador puppy last week, aggression beyond comprehension, and my god did he mean it!!
Dawn.

Hi Dawn

A Lab is a fantastic dog if you have children. It really helps if you know what you are doing and I would say with anybody getting a dog with small children you need to be aware and be in control what ever the breed, and whether Labs or Fox terriers.

Not all Labs are aggressive and you obviuosly has come across a very boistrous young lad who perhaps needs some more control and training. Any dog who is left to rule the roost will behave in a similar fashion !!

Lucy

Hi Lucy.
Intelligent, keen and biddable, with a strong will to please, kindly nature with NO trace of aggression or undue shyness.
I need say no more.
Dawn.
p.s I understand what you mean about ruling the roost!

Hi Lisa
everyone will have different veiws on this subject but personally I would reccomend terriers as a pet when you have small children
We have three children aged 3,6 and 9 and we have Hungarian Vizslas and a labrador they are all excellent with children although they do require alot of excersise and the Vizslas demand alot of attention so they are not ideal if you go out to work all day!
kate

Its got to be the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. The MOST perfect family pet. Good size, are happy with lots of exercise, but just as happy on your lap. Perfect choice, no contest really. They just love children. Our girls are seven and four and we have had our CKCS for eight years. Every day with her is a pleasure, not one growl in eight years (including when they were toddlers and tugging on her ears!!!) :)

She was our first dog, EVERY breeder we checked on, stated how good they are with children, and we had no problems in sourcing one as a family pet.

Best of luck, you are going to get a lot of different opinions, so hold on tight :D :D :D

Whatever breed you choose please go to a reputable breeder and buy a pup from parents with the relevant health checks.
What I'm trying to get at is that any breed can be bad if bred or raised improperly.
Good luck with your search when you've decided which breed suits you best.
Archer.
P.S. ELKHOUNDS RULE (JMHO) LOL

LOL Archer Nice one ROFLOL

Pam

and mine, mum of two kids, who were 14 months and 4 years when first of now 4 Elkies arrived!

Hi,

I agree, Cavaliers are excellant for small children, they are such fun and very easy going. I would be a bit careful of the Ruby ones, they are a bit mad.....red hair and all that :D :D

I would stick to fairly small breeds so the children can join in and help, don't go for a working breed because most of them have instincts that you will find a pain in the neck.

Toy or Mini Poodles are fun too, so are Bichon Frise and both of these are very trainable and love having fun.

German Spitz (both types) are fun little dogs. Lowchen's are great little dogs if you can cope with the hair (or have them clipped off short), they are also very trainable. Finally if you don't mind squishy faces and snoring, how about the French Bulldog, they have great temperaments and are wonderful with children and very tolerant.

Have fun and let us know how you get on, don't forget to go and look at a few breeders of your chosen breed and research thoroughly into the breed you want. Not all breeds you like the look of will be any good for you situation, remember some cute fluffy puppies grow into strong willed and difficult dogs!! :)

manda
X

I agree that poodles would be suitakle but would recommend the mini rather than a toy with little children. I have 2 mini poodles and in my opinion are like having a terrier without the over excitability that a terrier can have (I have 5 of them as well!). You don't have to get the poodles clipped like they do for the ring so the man of the house wont need to worry about feeling silly taking it out!
Bec

manda
would you class gsds as working, cos they are super with kids and as with any breed you get some that are hard work and some that are not...sorry just very protective over my breed, please dont put people off gsds with kids, as many will tell you on here they are great companions for kids purchased from reputable breeders. :)
Tracey

I know you said that you have considered Labs but, have you thought about Golden Retrievers? My golden retriever has 8 human siblings (5 of which are under 12) and she is OUTSTANDING with them and other children and positively loves them! Such sweet temperment that can't be beat (and I'm not just saying this because I'm biased).

Only concern that I have found through experience with small breeds (though I've not had any experience with Terriers or Beagles) is that they tend to be more bossy (like bantam chickens) :( Anyone else found this to be true?

I also recommend rescueing a dog from a local shelter. Rescues are many times better with little children than purchasing a puppy.

hi the ckcs would be an ideal choice for you for all the reasons given above.....you will very rarely find one with a bad temprement and they are soo cute! a good groom at least once a day is a must with this breed tho and they are quite fussy eaters to,you need to take into account that a 10min walk will take at least half an hour becouse everyone just cant resist a cuddle!!:)

I had two ruby cavaliers when my children were 10 and 12, and they were delightful and dearly loved dogs.
However, they weren't keen on little children - particularly spooked by my friends' crawling child. Also, I found that visiting children tended to look on them as toys because they're small and sweet, and want to pick them up and carry them around, which they didn't always want. Little dogs are very vulnerable to boisterous children. Also Cavaliers can be very noisy - mine were! Having observed dogs in houses a lot in my work as a health visitor, I'd go for bigger dogs every time. Which is why we're hoping to have a lab pup later this year! The 10yr old mentioned above now has 1 and a half children of his own!
Cathy.

Golden Retrievers make excellent family pets I have 2 ,and 4 children
5 months,51/2 , 8 and 11yrs.
Be sure if you do decide that the dogs have had all the relevent health checks, namely hips,eyes and heart testing,

Good luck with whatever breed you do decide upon,

Regards Briony :-)

I would have to go with poodles. The standard might be a bit too active for you though. Mine is 11m. and still really active (bugging me with the ball right now). But a mini might be your best bet. Toys can be a little too fragile with small children, and they can tend to be a bit nippy. I have only ever had personal experence with standards though. My boy loves everyone, espically children. I am thinking of making him a therapy dog. I might be a bit blind when it comes to my breed, but i really do think a mini would be best. I agree though that whatever breed you choose you should get it from a reputible breeder.
Megan and Riley

I think too a lot depends on the children and family - if the children are well behaved and sensible then probably all the dogs mentioned would be fine.

I saw a family a few days ago with a medium size terrier cross, looked as if he had some Parson in him somewhere. The boy of maybe 7 or 8 was allowed to pull this dog around on a flexi, and also kept jumping on him and rolling him over in a sort of play fight.

The dog was tolerant of this, treating the child like an annoying fly - but if there comes a day when the dog is feeling a bit grouchy due to say, arthritis or similar, he will probably fly for that child's face and then the parents will be shocked and say "But he was always so good with the children, it came out of the blue" That dog is already giving signs but no-one is reading them :(

It is so important that children are brought up to understand and respect dogs for both their sakes.....I see too many dogs used as toys and who are supposed to put up with anything!

I too would recommend the CKCS amongst others for a family dog :).

Have to say a Staffordshire Bull Terrier makes a fantastic family pet. They are known as the "nanny dog".
I have children from age 5 to 14 and they are fantastic with my kids. My daughter (age 5) dresses ours up and they do not bat an eye.
If you did decide on a staffie you would need to get him/her well socialised from an early age with other dogs.
I would recommend a bitch as generally a bitch is less boistrous than a dog - however that is not always the case.
They are extremely loyal and very tolerant of children.
If you do consider a staffie please make sure it is KC reg as you would not want to risk a crossbreed with small children not knowing the traites of the dogs. Also please try to buy a puppy from a home where the pups are already used to children.
Staffies can be stubbern so pleny of basic training would be required - but that is the same with any breed.
edit: Agree with Lindsay children do need to be taught to respect the dogs. My daughter dresses ours up but she knows never to hurt or pull at them when doing so. Infact her favorite outfit is a feather boa and tiara. We are always with her when dressing up though :-)

Definitely agree - Staffies are just fantastic with children :) Mine pins my kids to the floor and licks them like mad :D

Thanks everyone , you're advice and comments have given us much to think about and other breeds to consider. We'll post up later on what we've decided and when we're got a dog for the family . Once again thanks for taking the time and effort to respond .

kind regards
Lisa

Hi
I know alot of you are not going to agree with me but ever since i was 3 years old i have lived with a boxer, at one stage we had 4 in the house! All though my childhood years i lived with boxers and not once was i growled at! I also use to dress mine up in hats and socks and they never batted an eyelid!
An important point to make is children need to understand to respect a dog, because no matter what dog you get be it a small one or a giant size one they need there own space.
Also i believe that any dog that you get, the way it gets treated as puppy paves the way for what sort of adult it will become!

Hi Jannine,
I don't know why anyone would disagree with you,Boxers are great with kids and that seems to be a commonly held belief.We are on boxer number 2 (11 weeks) and have a 5 year old with lots of noisy ,bouncy friends and cousins so being known to be good with children was always a priority in our choice of breed.
Hazel

I've got a lab and while I absolutely adore her I'm not convinced she'd be the best breed around small children.

She would certainly NEVER intentionally hurt anyone but she can be boisterous and because they are a large dog could easily push over a small child!!!

Saying that though mine is spoilt rotten and could definitely be better trained.

I agree with the posters who have sugested CKCS. Lovely dogs but just that bit smaller than the labrador so maybe better suited

the best breed sutible for children would have to be the:
cocker spaniel
ADVANTAGES
the cocker is a beautiful creature and has many advantages.
with children they are fabualous as they are not to big and not to small to be steped on.
the cocker is an inteligent type of dog.
some breeders say that if you want fun
particolours= are the clowns
and if you want quite dogs and interlectual dogs.
solids=the serous type of the breed
they do have lots of coat so if you diecide to get a cocker you can give your children the responcability of taking care of it coat.
cocker need to be walked.
a good point is if you take it out in the morning for a short walk and the evening for a short walk it dosent matter as cockers work on the thought that counts not the lengh.
the cocker spaniel was breed to be a gundog.
and what a gundog they are!! hehehe
they have also been bred for showing.
it is a truly fabuolous dog.
DISADVANTAGES
the disadvantages of a cocker is its ears
they are long and bushy but if you trim them once in a while they are not so bad.
water and cockers.
water+cockers=a perfect equation
cocker abousolutly love water and are great swimmers
i have told you some stuff so make your own mind up.
i had great times with my cocker.
cocker are faboulous swimmers and

iv got to agree with lily that cockers are the best! they have such a wonderful temperament and will put up with anything from the children. our cocker is a bit of a guard for a children for instance if they take her for a walk she won't move on until she can see all the children and they catch up with her- we didn't even have to train her to do this! in my experience theyre quite easy to train to. would definately recommend havig cockers have never had any problem with ours and wouldn't change her for the world!

Hiya
Im also going to agree with the good old 'nanny dog'
Ive had 'charlie' for 9 years, i had him when my daughter was just 3. He has been her best friend, her playmate and id go as far as to say her soul mate. He's always known when to cheer her up. Last year due to certain reasons i looked after my nephew a fair bit and charlie never moved from the baby.
Again, i agree that as long as the dog is bought from a reputable breeder (family home) you probably wont go far wrong.
Enjoy your new puppy!
Donna, charliex n murphy x

It sounds like you have been considering Terriers.....have you thought about a Border Terrier. They need a firm hand with training (as do all Terriers) but generally they are happy little dogs who love to play. Mine likes nothing more than being in the middle of everything and joining in the fun. They are tough little things as well and can cope with a bit of rough play that is par for the course when children are about.

Of course everyone is going to champion their own favourite breeds and the Border is without a doubt mine, but if you are looking for a little dog with a big dogs personality then the BT is a great bet.

we have a mini schnauzer and he is excellent with the kids (1+1/2,3+1/2 &5) the youngest uses him as a pillow,we have just got a kerry blue and even though he is in the nipping stage he is good with the kids.
best of luck
mel :)

Hi Lisa
I did quite a bit of research whilst deciding which dog to get, I have 3 small grandchildren & decided on a Bichon Frise, we get our puppy in 3 weeks infact we are going to see her tomorrow morning, really looking forward to seeing her (Molly).
Good luck choosing
Regards Pauline.

May not be a lot of help but I would say the best dog for a family with small children is "your own" if you choose a good breeder who shows as much care in choosing the owners of his/her pups as you are obviously going to do in finding them; then whatever you choose will be a good choice, for a dog is really what you make them.

I have a Staff and have had for almost 25 years now:) (God where has the time gone) I was at school when we had the first. But whatever dog you choose is going to be good with your children as long as the children have ground rules like the dog.

Have fun choosing.

Karen

Hi, My view is that many breeds make suitable pets with families that have children. THE most important factor when buying a puppy when there are small children in the house is that the CHILDREN ARE WELL BEHAVED,with a caring attitude and old enough and sensible enough to be taught how to handle, pick up and play with a puppy in an appropriate way and can be trusted without constant supervision not to torment/tease ,handle roughly, accidentally or on purpose.

I'd go for a labrador or retriever with children. I would personally avoid terriers because I find them to be more snappy and they have the instinct that if they bite, they shake their victim, but that's just a personal opinion and I know it's generalised, just wouldn't go for one myself with kids.

Reason I like labradors as a family pet is because they (generalising again) actually like children, enjoy playing with them, will chase the balls that kids want to throw for them and bring them back, will splash around in the sea with them, let them cuddle up etc.

I have a 5 month old Minitiature Schnauzer bitcha and a 5 years old daughter (who has many visiting friends between the ages of about 3 and 10!). The pup is fantastic with them all. Her favourite walk is to school so that she can see all the children who absolutely adore her. She's a nice small size (17 lbs), but big enought for a good walk, she doesnt shed and doesnt need masses of walking.

We love her and believe we chosen and excellent breed.

Happy hunting

We have had three types of dogs with our young children, a tri-colored sheltie, an American Eskimo, and a couple of cavaliers. Now, my two younger kids have not been the ideal sweethearts to the dogs, but I can tell you that each one of our dogs took everything exceptionally well. Now, the downside to the sheltie was that military life was not for her. She just went weird over moves (she would hold her bowels and then relieve herself in multiple piles in the children's room). But, she was a very loving, patient dog. The Eskie was extremely patient and just loved to be loved, but man, he was a chewer! He also loved attention and would sometimes squeeze himself in between if you were trying to hug the kids goodnight or something. He was also very easy to train to do fun tricks, like dance on his hind legs, leap into your arms from the ground, jump off of things. The cavaliers we have are just excellent with the children (I have four of my own) and the neighborhood children, and anyone in town...they just love people. We had hoped for a lap dog, but one of our boys has already grown bigger than our Eskie was.
I would say, though, of all the families we have been in contact with around the world, the golden has been the most common among families. Their calm disposition, and enjoyment of laying around make them something that is very desirable. Their size makes them something children just seem to love to cuddle up against.
The process that we have gone through in deciding was the size of dog (we needed something that would fit in the mini-van with four children), and temperament. I have been surprised to see people with "attack" type dogs (dobermen, rottweilers, etc) that are absolute sweethearts. Someone once told me the temperament of the sire and dam made a big difference in how your pup will behave. Also, I would check into costs before you fall in love with a breed. We fell in love with the cavaliers while doing the research. They ranked something like second or third in the toy category for their interaction with young children (the toy poodle came first). They seemed absolutely perfect, when we went to buy we were a little caught off guard by the price. But, I still love these little guys!