What is a good child friendly breed of dog?

catlou

jackieglasgow wrote: »

Exactly...................doggy !!!!!! - FC does it deliberately, you know, she's an enabler!

Ha ha!! :T Shame on you FC!! :rotfl: :rotfl:

foxy-roxy

OP if you want to get a dog then you should get one, people will always disagree.
The debate about you going to work and it will be cruel to leave the dog on it's own all day is rubbish, I have 2 dogs (both staffies) and me and my OH both work full time, (OH does work shifts though) and our dogs are absolutley fine, much better then them being locked in kennels all day without a home and a family to look forward to seeing.
My 1st staffie was rescue and was 'damaged' very hard work, very loyal to me and agressive to strangers to the point I had to muzzle him when I took him out, took along time to 'fix' him.
The second one (my pic) we got from 8 weeks old and she is just so sweet and adorable, literally wouldn't hurt a fly, so it is hard to say one set breed is the best as it does depend on there breeding and how they have been treated before.
By all means get a rescue but make sure the dog is of good temperament with others.

hethmar

Oh bless little Kizzie, sad little face. Prodogs always have lots of lovely little dogs, same as Enfield, they seem to get the hard core stuff in too

jackieglasgow

:rotfl::rotfl::rotfl::T:T:T:T;)

Very good Hethmar!

Charlie1986

Hi, alot of people on here have mentioned that pugs are great dogs to get, which they are ( I have one who was rescued from a family member who was mistreating him). You should be aware though that while some do not have any problems others have alot of problems and can cost an awful lot. Without insurance mine would have cost £400 last month alone . Mine does suffer with epilepsy which is controlled by tablets and he has regular blood tests, he also gets infections above his nose in the fold as it is quite deep so we have to bathe this in salt water daily and apply cream, he has also just started getting gunky eyes which the vet is aware of.
With all his problems he is the most happy, loving dog I know. He loves going on walks, sunbathing in the garden and loves having cuddles. He also snores very loudly, which he is doing right now As someone else has mentioned pugs are stubborn dogs, mine has selective hearing and likes to see what he can try and get away with. I wouldn't part with him for the world though, illnesses and all

hethmar

jackie:

http://www.enfielddogrescue.co.uk/dogs_28.html

Bubby

Oh dear I have tried to sit on my hands but I have to post:o

OP- If you want to get a dog just make sure you are well prepared then decide on whether you want an older dog or a puppy then make the choice between rescue/breeder (NEVER a puppy farmer)
The way to avoid puppy farms if you want a particular breed is to contact the secretary of the breed club who will give you details of breeders who are members, they have to adhere to a strict code of ethics (usually much better than just the kc ethics).

With regards to rescue dogs with children, yes you can get a wonderful dog from rescue (I have worked in enough to see some lovely dogs) however a rescue dog sometimes doesn't come into rescue with a "full background" we have to go on what the owners tell us and also the behaviour we see whilst they are in our care. This does mean that there is always a slight unpredictability surrounding them (unless they are puppies and we have seen the parents) and when it comes to children you do have to be extra cautious. I have worked in rescue for c.10 years and have seen "child" friendly dogs returned because they displayed worrying behaviour in a particular scenario that they wouldn't have been exposed to in kennels/foster care. I have children and whilst i would have loved to home many many of the dogs we looked after i made the decision to contact a reputable breeder and get my dogs from puppies, this meant I knew their background, health testing and temperement (of parents, grandparents etc) and had a lifetime of support from the breeder.
I am not saying you shouldn't get a rescue dog or should get a pedigree, that decision should be entirely yours based on what is right for your family, NOT because you are made to feel guilty for buying a pedigree when there are so many dogs in rescue - after all that is not the fault of responsible dog owners who don't rehome their dogs on a whim.

jackieglasgow

hethmar wrote: »

jackie:

http://www.enfielddogrescue.co.uk/dogs_28.html

Naughty! But too far away from me anyway! Although now I am a Staffie fan, Poppy and Daisy were calling to me!

propinquitas

Strange I should come across this thread as I am considering adopting 2 SBT's which is totally out of character for me as I have always thought they looked (and indeed were) very scary and probaly ate babies for breakfast (and would therefore eat my cats). However, today I spoke to a lady at a rescue centre who started to change my mind and this thread has definitely made my mind up that they do not deserve their reputation (I was shocked when I saw a picture of a staffie relaxing next to a cat on her website).

The reason staffies came up in conversation was my total ignorance of why so many are in rescue centres and on death row in pounds. I now feel that to try and redress the balance I should seriously consider rescuing two as they sound so lovely.

I feel guilty for thinking so badly of them - having said that, I was only wary of them, I was still very hurt to see them in such a predicament.

I am only dithering because of my two cats. I know they will need careful introduction, and they will have their own space where they can get away from the dogs. I want to give a home to older, overlooked dogs (the ones I saw are 8 & 10 and are quite devoted alothough the rescue did not list them togehter for fear of putting people off). Luckily we have plenty of room so I think there is room for all. I am just very anxious that I don't upset my boys, particularly as 1 is deaf.

Sorry to ramble....

foreign_correspondent

propinquitas - a poster on here rehomed a little five year old staffy girl over a year ago now, to live with her and her cat - after a couple of initial (half hearted) attempts to chase the cat, and being told 'no' the cat and dog have lived happily ever after!

Do choose carefully though - some SBTs in rescue are known to be cat friendly, or to have lived with cats before.