Researching dogs, should we get a Beagle or a Labrador or something else?

pink-lint_2

i have 3 children and i would recomend a bichon frise , thats what i have .
they are a small dog with non molting hair , very easy to train and very placid , my alfie is very laid back . i take him to be groomed ever 8-10 weeks which cost £20

with 2 small children i personally would buy a pup as it would grow with your kids . and you will never know the full history of a rescue dog.

pink-lint_2

i'll also add he was very easy to toilet train with the use of puppy pads, and he has never nipped or anything ever . he has been very good with the kids .

hethmar

Ideally, Id wait til both the kids are at school to be honest as you will then have more time to train and be with the dog and the kids will be less likely to be rough with him.

foreign_correspondent

The rescue I got Badger from are excellent - interestingly enough, they will not rehome puppies with under fives - they feel an older, trained, child friendly and well assessed dog is a much safer bet and more realistic for parents of toddlers!

Spentit_3

I have two show type springers, so I'm a bit biased but they are wonderful with my young children and their friends. However they do need a lot of exercise and with small children it's not always easy to find enough time each day to walk them. Mine ALWAYS need to have a short walk on lead in the morning and an hours run off lead in the afternoon. It's a big commitment to make as they will drive you mad if they don't have enough exercise. Btw show type Springers aren't quite as energetic as the working type ones.
I'm not sure how much exercise cocker spaniels need but I think they're lovely dogs too. Oh, another thing about springers is they aren't that great on the lead and much prefer to be off lead for a run, but they do love to play, so you're children might enjoy that.

suki1964

Spentit wrote: »

I'm not sure how much exercise cocker spaniels need but I think they're lovely dogs too. Oh, another thing about springers is they aren't that great on the lead and much prefer to be off lead for a run, but they do love to play, so you're children might enjoy that.

How much does a show type cocker need? Erm how many hours are there in the day? )=))=))

Everyone I know here just cant get over the fact that I spend around 4 hours a day on my dog alone - thats two lots of good quality exercise plus his grooming and playing and training in the home. He also has a HUGE garden to play in which he loves to run around guarding the fences from the animals on the other side - goat, horses, sheeps, cows etc )

He never stops - and hes coming five

Today with the dog and GS was a nightmare. The day started off pouring down with icy rain. So first off get the childs nappy done - let dog out in yard. Then grab a quick coffee whilst dressing myself. Get the child wrapped in a zillion layers. Get the buggy out and struggle with raincover - dog going ballistic as he thinks we are away without him. Get the child in the buggy, leash the dog and away we go - with the dog doing his best to pull ahead and me struggling with the buggy. Hour later and back home with drenched dog and soaking wet me and cold child. Warm up child and dry dog (me still in wet clothes) feed child and dog. Grab a bit of cold toast whilst keeping the child from dropping food off high chair to waiting dog )

I finally got out of my wet clothes about two hours after I got home time I had both dog and child sorted


Honest to dog I dont know how anyone with a child not at school manages with a dog in the house as well. Something obviously has to give as theres just not enough hours in the day to be meeting everyones and everythings needs. I know the weekends I look after the child - my needs are just wiped off the face of the earth. Fine for a couple of days but for years? Would kill me

lesley1960

Beagles are a nightmare!!,we used to have one ,we took it on when the previous owners threw in the towel lol . Very lovable ,impossible to train they need a huge amount of work .

Labs are great with children ,however they take up a lot of space and are always under your feet lol

tattoed_bum

we have a samoyed husky and they are amazing dogs ,they are great with kids although they do need a great deal of exercise ,they are gentle and they tend to herd the kids if they wonder of lol , there are also a few specialist rescue centre for a specific type of dog , you may be able to find a lab rescue centre .
if you google labrador rescue a few will come up

Milford_Cubicle

lesley1960 wrote: »

Labs are great with children ,however they take up a lot of space and are always under your feet lol

No, they're always on your feet! Washing up, cooking, curled up on the sofa - she's on my feet...

GracieP

Spentit wrote: »

I have two show type springers, so I'm a bit biased but they are wonderful with my young children and their friends. However they do need a lot of exercise and with small children it's not always easy to find enough time each day to walk them. Mine ALWAYS need to have a short walk on lead in the morning and an hours run off lead in the afternoon. It's a big commitment to make as they will drive you mad if they don't have enough exercise. Btw show type Springers aren't quite as energetic as the working type ones.
I'm not sure how much exercise cocker spaniels need but I think they're lovely dogs too. Oh, another thing about springers is they aren't that great on the lead and much prefer to be off lead for a run, but they do love to play, so you're children might enjoy that.

I have two working springers and they are a special kind of manically energetic. On the plus side, they save me a fortune on gym membership. Luckily our local park is perfect for springers as it's a meadow park on a riverbank. So there are loads of bushes for them to explore, trees for them to climb (seriously) stinky ponds to wallow in and the river to swim themselves clean in. Though when they are in full running mode they are impervious to pain, so as soon as we get home I have to de-thorn them before I towel them off.:rolleyes:

They do hate lead walking, they just want to be at the park and running around. We do take them further down river at the weekends and we go to the market about 2 miles away at the old mills where they have to go back on the lead. So they are starting to get used to walking on the lead without any destination in mind. I'll definitely be doing a lot more of that in the summer, at the different markets/festivals locally. Where we used to live had nothing similar and my husband never wanted to bring them on the tube just to wander aimlessly otherwise I'd have been doing it more as puppies.

I also think that they are a dog which does best with a second similarilly paced dog. As they are bred to work as a pack and they can suffer terrible seperation anxiety. But it does make them harder to train as their hyperactivity multiplies when they are a pair. I'm sure that's true of all dogs though.

They are extremely bright, and somewhat stubborn. They need not only a lot of exercise but mental stimulation of some kind, especially the workers. But if they get that they are a fantastically laid back dog.