# Best dog for kids?



## Bamhan (25 Nov 2005)

can anyone reccomend a good breed of dog to help turn two scared girls into animal lovers.
My two kids are scared witless of animals of all kinds but particularly dogs.
When we move we will have loads of space for a dog, or two and want to get the ideal pet that will be friendly for the kids so as to cure their phobia.
Anyone want to promote their canine buddy?


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## ClubMan (25 Nov 2005)

A prarie dog?


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## Bamhan (25 Nov 2005)

Nope I would be scared of that thing myself!
Real answers please!


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## Sarah (25 Nov 2005)

Golden Labradors are great as long as you have the Space for them and as always are willing to walk them. They are a very loyal dog and very playful even when they grow out of being pups. Although some peoples opnion is that they are not as intelligent as other breeds such as a collie, i disagree, with training,like any dog, will respond to any commands and are completly lovable and show their owners plenty of affection. And not to mention they are just adorable pups...think andrex adds...maybe your girls would feel better about a movie star dog...thats how my friend promoted her golden labrador to her terrified 5yr old son. "Look your doggie is on the tv!!! He's a famous dog!!"
If your looking for something smaller the breeds most families have are *Jack russles*, very playful and good guard dog
*Cocker Spaniel* again a good family dog a little quieter in temperment than a jack russell
The two dogs in my pinion to think twice on espically with young children are *Terriers* and *Chuawawas*..Scotish and yorkshire terriers are lovely dogs but do need alot of attention and get jealous easily and are more tempermantal and demanding than most breeds..from what ive seen and only in my opnion!! Same goes for the *Chuwawas..*very snappy dogs and time consuming both with their coats...regular treatment and brushing needed and with their affections.
Hope this helps , im not a vet nor do i take care of animals on a regulas basis but have been brought up with alot of dogs and other animals and have cared for many others. If in doubt you can always call the RCPCA or your local vet and ask their opinion.


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## DipsyChick (25 Nov 2005)

How about a labrador ? They are very loveable but do need lots of space and exercise.


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## Gordanus (25 Nov 2005)

I don't really know about breeds of dogs, but I did have a child who LONGED for a pet.  We got a kitten from the DSPCA.  Then I discovered the child who was about 6, was terrified at the same time as being totally fascinated.   She was frightened of being scratched so we took it very carefully, with the newspaper spread across her lap, and a cushion on top of that.  I put the kitten to sit there and daughter stroked the kitten.   2 days later she was completely fine.  Just to say, take it slowly and easily, and remember kittens and puppies are excitable, have fine teeth and claws, and move suddenly - all of which can deter a nervous child.  Hope this helps and good luck - I think every child should have a pet!  They learn a lot from them and get a lot of fun too.


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## Bamhan (25 Nov 2005)

My kids are absolutely terrified of all animals.
My sister has a golden retriever, a complete pet and they will not even go to her house and are wary when my sister calls in case the dog is with her.
Cats and kittens are a big no no.
We have loads of space, not that much time though hence the two dogs idea as we are out a lot of the day.....


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## demoivre (25 Nov 2005)

Sarah said:
			
		

> Golden Labradors are great as long as you have the Space for them and as always are willing to walk them. They are a very loyal dog and very playful even when they grow out of being pups. Although some peoples opnion is that they are not as intelligent as other breeds such as a collie, i disagree, with training,like any dog, will respond to any commands and are completly lovable and show their owners plenty of affection. And not to mention they are just adorable pups...think andrex adds...maybe your girls would feel better about a movie star dog...thats how my friend promoted her golden labrador to her terrified 5yr old son. "Look your doggie is on the tv!!! He's a famous dog!!"
> If your looking for something smaller the breeds most families have are *Jack russles*, very playful and good guard dog
> *Cocker Spaniel* again a good family dog a little quieter in temperment than a jack russell
> The two dogs in my pinion to think twice on espically with young children are *Terriers* and *Chuawawas*..Scotish and yorkshire terriers are lovely dogs but do need alot of attention and get jealous easily and are more tempermantal and demanding than most breeds..from what ive seen and only in my opnion!! Same goes for the *Chuwawas..*very snappy dogs and time consuming both with their coats...regular treatment and brushing needed and with their affections.
> Hope this helps , im not a vet nor do i take care of animals on a regulas basis but have been brought up with alot of dogs and other animals and have cared for many others. If in doubt you can always call the RCPCA or your local vet and ask their opinion.



A Jack Russell is a terrier  May be you could get your kids something like this


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## ribena (25 Nov 2005)

Friends of mine have 4 kids who were absolutely terrified of my parents dog.  A neighbour of their was giving away sheep dog pups so they decided to get one and the kids absolutely adore it.  We had a few labradors at home and they were always lovely dogs.  I would think they're a bit big for small kids as they like to jump up on you and that can really frighten a little child.  I'm not in to terriers myself as they always seem to strip their teeth at me and bark like mad!


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## Vanilla (25 Nov 2005)

A couple of years ago my dad adopted an unwanted sheepdog ( mongrel) pup. It is a bitch and is one of those dogs that cower around the place - with no good reason I might add since she is a big pet. It must be in the breed. She has a lovely nature and slinks around the place waiting to be petted and licks your hand ( and face if allowed). She is very quiet and gentle. I have two nephews who had been frightened of the previous dog ( who died of old age ) and who absolutely love this one. Everytime they visit they want to bring her home with them. She is such a gentle dog that she can be trusted with the grandchildren big and small, although of course no dog can ever be trusted completely. I would love to have a dog, but as myself and Mr.V work outside the home, it would be unfair on any dog.


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## Sarah (25 Nov 2005)

DeMoirvre,I ment to specify yorkshire and scottish terriers but then again in my opinion i consider Jack Russells to be in a league of their own. 
The sheepdog option is a good idea as i have heard alot of people say they have a very timid nature as well as being lovable. But again, no matter what size dog you get it will need to be walked daily for exercise and a change of scenery!! 
But the bigger the dog the more exercise it will obviously need not to mention the more food it will eat..again its all personal preference..as long as you break the dog in and your children in gently introducing each other they should be fine. Many people say its benifical for the dog and young childen if you give the dog a blanket that smells of the kids to familirize it with who its new friends are going to be,therefore the dog should behave less frightened or agressive when they interact...just an idea though!


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## ClubMan (25 Nov 2005)

If your kids are so terrified of all animals then maybe they have a phobia which needs treatment and perhaps buying a pet for the family will simply do more harm (in terms of traumatising them) than good (in terms of familiarising them with animals to overcome their fears)?


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## Furze (25 Nov 2005)

My girls have grown up with a Cairn terrier bitch (Wizard of Oz mutt). Bought at 14 weeks and everyone still alive 11 years on. Does not include the budgies, hampsters or goldfish though.


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## Henny Penny (26 Nov 2005)

Hi Bamhan
We had a similar problem with our kids being afraid of animals ... we started with 2 goldfish last year and progressed to 2 kittens a couple of months back ... which are adored ... we will eventually get a dog when the kids are bigger ... my advice, start small with a relatively undemanding pet and let them get used to the idea of caring for another creature and then progress to a dog.


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## onekeano (26 Nov 2005)

Banham, when my kids were younger someone recomended one of these 

[broken link removed]


He's now 7 and have to say has a great temperment. Another big plus is that the don't moult so they are fine in the house.  Can't say they are the most intelligent but then again you can't have everything.........!

Might be hard enough to get one as the are very popular in Scandanavia and Germany and a lot are sold to those countries for breeding purposes.

Best of luck with your choice!
Roy


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## daithi (27 Nov 2005)

A bichon-frise (not sure of the spelling!)might be appropriate-they're supposed to be very patient and non-snappy-its the dog from Shrek2...! daithi


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## Grumpy (27 Nov 2005)

Some breed types have a reputation for gentleness.
Hoverever, all dogs have biting potential.
Two tips,
1) Small dog, small bite.
2) Robust, butty dogs will take child handling well.

Had a corgi-type mongrel once. Small, compact body, shortish legs.
Dealt in gradually escalating respone to heavy handed kids.Never broke skin.
Kids learnt fast...so did adults.


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## Bamhan (28 Nov 2005)

Thanks for the replies.
The kids were frightened by my brother in laws dog which was a terrier and very snappy and they were in the garden and of course he escaped and they ran and he gave chase and jumped and barked at them.
I had to carry them both indoors screaming.
The following day my sister's dog a golden retriever rushed out my mothers back door frightening them again.
Just an unfortunate chain of events which led them to be afraid of all dogs.
They were ok before that.
It has gotten out of hand now though as my oldest ran away from me, almost onto the road in a shopping centre car park when a dog came over to her.
She was hysterical.
I think the only way to cure them is to get them used to a dog.......
So thanks for all the opinions.
We want to do plenty of research to get this right so as not to cause any more trauma.


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## Bamhan (28 Nov 2005)

Roy that dog looks lovely what breed is he?


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## demoivre (28 Nov 2005)

Bamhan said:
			
		

> Roy that dog looks lovely what breed is he?



Looks like a Wheaten terrier. This website will give you a fairly good run down on breeds [broken link removed] and there is some more stuff in here http://www.irishdogs.ie/ that might interest you.


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## michaelm (28 Nov 2005)

What about i-cybie? lots available on ebay.  See what he looks like here http://www.jeffbots.com/icybie.html (and there's a 2005 model).


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## tomthumb (28 Nov 2005)

Hi my advise is not to get a puppy at all but an older dog, already trained maybe from a rescue.  That way you avoid the chewin/bitin puppy and adolescent dog that can scare kids and of course jump up and generally cause bedlem.  Screaming frightened children will only trigger this off even worse.   Good rescues can advise because they have observed the dogs, know why obviously they are there and also the dogs are fully grown and their personalities developed.  Pure breds can be dicey because of bad breeding and you can get Cavliers with bad hearts, cocker spaniels with awful temperment, etc. if you don't know the breeder well.   A solid settled labrador/retriever type or cross would be my first instinct but again, at a rescue, you can walk the dogs, get to know them first before final choice is made.  Been there, done that as they say and we have a gem of a pet now!


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## onekeano (28 Nov 2005)

Bamhan said:
			
		

> Roy that dog looks lovely what breed is he?




Yep he's a Wheaten alright - lovely nature!

Roy


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## triona (29 Nov 2005)

Hi,

I have a West Highland terrier. We got her when she was three - her previous family moved to Spain. She was a little girl's pet. She has a lovely nature - very quiet and placid but good fun. The neighbourhood kids all stop and give her a scratch and a pat. She just stands there and loves the attention!
Since we got her we've met lots of other Westie owners and they all say that they are great with kids. A lot of a dog's behaviour is down to how they are treated and their training. 

Best of luck!!


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## Carpenter (29 Nov 2005)

My parents have a Westie and she cannot be trusted with young kids, ufortunately.  When my parents got her there were no young children around so the dog was never exposed to children.  Now as the grandchildren are arriving the dog has to go outside when we visit with junior.  Not the Westies fault of course, but something we didn't realise at the time.


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## tomthumb (29 Nov 2005)

Our neighbours Westie would bit an adult never mind a kid!  She just can't tolerate anyone calling to the house and coming in who is not part of the family.  They even got a dog behaviourist in but she couldn't do a thing with her and suggested putting down the dog which it may come to yet, especially if she goes for me again!


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## hmmm (29 Nov 2005)

If you don't mind a big (with emphasis on _big_) dog, then a very placid breed of dog we once had are Newfoundlands. Very intelligent breed also. Our guy had multiple kids hanging out of him at times and just put on a mournful look. Because of their bulk they look intimidating to a potential burglar, but they're more likely to lick them to death if they get close.


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## Cabbage (29 Nov 2005)

If space is limited, then I reckon a small dog is a better bet than a larger dog. One common breed that is generally reckoned to be suitable for small children is the Cavalier King Charles Spaniel. If you are looking for something a little more unusual try a Pug. Extremely affectionate and very good with small children. Also, less problems with territoriality if new kids arrive on after the dog gets settled in. Either way, I wouldn't take on a rescue dog as my first dog. Better off to get used to a *relatively* easy dog as a puppy from a reputable breeder on your first dog and look at taking on a more challanging dog down the line. Just my 2c worth.


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## Bamhan (30 Nov 2005)

Space isn't a problem at all as we will be able to have plenty of room outside for a dog to roam.
My main concern is getting a breed that can be trusted with kids......I prefer relatively big dogs myself as we had lovely big dogs as pets growing up.
Not sure I could cope with a Newfoundland though.....


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## demoivre (30 Nov 2005)

It's more about the up bringing of the pup and the personalities of its parents than the breed of dog imo  - socialization directly affects a dog's aggression level. With the proper training, even dogs that have a bad reputation can be wonderful pets. I have seen aggressive labradors and quiet dobermans. Dogs are pack animals and look on their  family as a pack - if they are trained properly and socialised early  you shouldn't have a problem. We have a jack russell and a boxer and never had a problem but I don't think you can generalise and say all jack russells and all boxers are dream dogs, anymore than you can say that about any breed. Ours were trained and socialised early which is the crucial factor imo.


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## Grumpy (30 Nov 2005)

Anyone know a good dog trainer who doesn`t charge the earth?


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## legend99 (30 Nov 2005)

I'd never recommend a cocker...we had a golden cocker when we were young and they are a very snappy dog despite us spoiling our guy. He used have masehed spuds and chicken like the rest of the family for dinner. I have since come accross at least 3 other people andf have seen it on the internet that golden cockers are a bad dog with kids. 
Our neighbours have a Cav. King Charles who gets on great with their kids. We have a 5 year old girl who worhips, i mean worships dogs and she plays with him a bit and hes great with her.


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## tomthumb (30 Nov 2005)

We had a Cavalier who was a darling but heart defects are common with them and she only lived for 6 years.  But they are gentle and kind and loving, more like a child at times than a dog!


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