which dog?

Lentilsforteaagain

Battersea dogs home have a (limited) online guide to different breeds at http://www.battersea.org.uk/dogs/breeds/index.html which gives some good sensible info and isn't just all rose-tinted about it.

Usually when I give an animal a home I prefer to use a rescue centre but we decided that with a dog we would buy a puppy rather than have a rescue dog - simply because we have five children (who are very sensible but still children) and we wanted to know the dog's history.

As for breeds, I suspect we'll all be very loyal to the breeds we all have at home (and why not! ) so I'll put my tuppence worth in and vote for the lurcher. They're generally good with children, very loyal and extremely eager to please which certainly helps out with training.

foreign_correspondent

I second that a little crossbreed could be fab - I have one and she is pretty bomb-proof - I would be wary of westies though - in general they do have a tendency to be a little snappy, but are often bought for children because they look fluffy and cute - but they have the charqacter of a working terrier!
http://www.madaboutwesties.com/westie_dogs.html

Lentilsforteaagain

Oh, I forgot to say that if/when you do get a dog, it's well worth investing in some puppy training lessons (or the equivalent if you do get an older/rescue dog). We're paying £40 for 4 sessions for the basics but it's well worth the money I think

foreign_correspondent

Lentilsforteaagain wrote: »

.
Usually when I give an animal a home I prefer to use a rescue centre but we decided that with a dog we would buy a puppy rather than have a rescue dog - simply because we have five children (who are very sensible but still children) and we wanted to know the dog's history.

You could have met both aims and got a pup from a rescue centre! - lots of puppies are born in rescue. The small local rescue I got my dog from currently have a litter of collie pups and some terrier x's and last year they had a litter of lovely lurcher pups, one of whom I have bumped into since, and he is growing into a beautiful dog.

Lentilsforteaagain

foreign_correspondent wrote: »

You could have met both aims and got a pup from a rescue centre! - lots of puppies are born in rescue.

Very true actually ... you're quite right

spidystrider

It a year since our dog died at the ripe old age of 16 and we're just getting ready to bring another into our home. I will be looking for a rescue dog. Have had a wee look and can't believe the amount of staffies that are waiting to be rehomed.

Good luck in finding your ideal dog, I am sure he/she will bring you a lot of joy.

hethmar

What area do you live in? Personally I feel you should wait until the children are older and know a dog is not a cuddly toy. Any dog can have enough with being pulled and prodded and will snap. We had a young dog in the rescue which had been blinded by the child in the family poking a stick into his eyes. Some children dont understand how to treat animals until they are 10 or more.

mariauk

I would also definately recommend a loving, loyal staffie. Children of dog owners are normally brought up with the same respect for a dog as the adults. At no point were my children allowed to pull any of our dogs or cats about or grab tails/ears etc, it`s really not fair on any animal and I if any dog/cat owner allow their children to do it, then they don`t deserve to have an animal in their care

Rosie75

hethmar wrote: »

What area do you live in? Personally I feel you should wait until the children are older and know a dog is not a cuddly toy. Any dog can have enough with being pulled and prodded and will snap. We had a young dog in the rescue which had been blinded by the child in the family poking a stick into his eyes. Some children dont understand how to treat animals until they are 10 or more.

Absolutely agree with this. A few people have said on this thread that their dog will allow children to poke and prod them. A dog shouldn't have to put up with this, and a lot of rescues and breeders won't send a dog or puppy to a home with very young children. I also heard of a horrible case when a dog was put down after biting a small child. On examining the dog afterwards, it was discovered that the child had pushed a pencil right into its ear canal.

Kerriebaby

Rosie75 wrote: »

Absolutely agree with this. A few people have said on this thread that their dog will allow children to poke and prod them. A dog shouldn't have to put up with this, and a lot of rescues and breeders won't send a dog or puppy to a home with very young children. I also heard of a horrible case when a dog was put down after biting a small child. On examining the dog afterwards, it was discovered that the child had pushed a pencil right into its ear canal.

couldnt agree more.