Dogs for children?

[nootka]

Man oh, man, been there, done that "wanting a new dog/puppy" but we have to WAIT til we can devote the time it will need. I feel like a new puppy will need every bit as much attention as a newborn infant. To think less will be a disservice and asking for a failure of its training, at least this is what I feel.

My two youngest sons are four and 21 months, so I definitely DON'T need the extra work a puppy or new dog will entail, and I would not think it to be a pleasant experience for the new dog, either, since all the stress would likely make me kinda crabby.

We do have one small outdoor dog, and as it is, he has turned out to not like small children (we didn't have any when we got him ten years ago), so he has become a bit of a management issue since he has to be in his kennel when the little ones are out, etc., but we owe it to him to try and accomodate his needs.

Just seems a little bit much for people who already have a lot on their plate. Maybe they could adopt a dog anyway and visit him at your place from the start....?

I wish I knew what dogs were good with little kids, we were thinking of looking for a golden retriever in a few years, but then we may end up at the shelter and at the mercy of what's available at any time, but again this is a few years out.

This is an opinion from a perspective that is similar only difference is that I am home most of the time since my hubby works away.

Liz M.

 

[tigeresss]

I didn't read any of the replies which maybe I should've but from what I did read I do not think this family should be getting a dog let alone a puppy. It sounds totally rediculous to me.

 

[Robin1]

I agree with everybody else. Of course that doesn't help your situation. I have sadly been where you are and it is very wearing.

The only idea I have is, IF they absolutely HAVE to have a dog. They should go to the shelter and offer to foster dogs/puppies for them. They will be helping the shelter animals and they will find out quickly how much time it takes to own a dog.

Robin

 

[rabbitsfizz]

I am sorry but families like this should not be allowed to have dogs- they do not want a dog, they want the idea of a dog.

So....a dog kept outside from a pup will not be house trained. I have kept dogs in a kennel - that had tow armchairs and a sofa in it incidentally :bgrin - and I have kept dogs in the house. The dogs I kept outside came into the house every day yet were never fully housetrained to the "fully reliable" stage. The dogs I have at present have never been kept outside and are reliable to the "get you out of bed and scratch at the door" level.

A dog kept outside only will not bond with the children in the way a house dog does.

NOT going to happen.

If they have a limited amount of time they should get a cat as a house pet and a a couple of Ferrets for the kids to keep outside- they make excellent pets and you can walk them on leads.

They have this romantic picture in their heads of the kids running through the woods with the faithful hound at their heels.

Remind them please that Lassie never lived in a kennel- in the very first Lassie book/movie , living in a kennel was the reason she ran off int he first place- and went "home"!!!!!

:

 

[jdomep]

We received our Perfect Little Golden Ret. lst year for Christmas from that exact situation (lucky for us

: ) The mom had a 2 month old son and a 4 year old son and dear old daddy thought the older boy needed a puppy and bought her for $500

: Well by the time Aspen was 12 weeks old poor mom knew she couldn't handle it and she was given to us.

Now on the other hand we got puppy #2 when my boys were 6,5,2,1 and she is an outside dog and a really sweet girl but also has Jack as her best friend and she does great with the boys.

 

[sharon]

I'm afraid I have to agree with the others that this is just not a good idea. If it absolutely has to be, make sure YOU pick the dog out. It'll be yours before you know it. Just the fact that they have one day a week when nobody is home till bedtime, is just too much to ask of a dog.

Others have mentioned adopting a shelter dog or even fostering a shelter dog. I'm not sure if that would work out either. Maybe it's not the same where you live, but around here, a shelter or rescue WILL NOT let a family take a dog if it's going to have to live outside.

 

[Danielle_E.]

I totally agree with others that have said this is not the best scenario and perhaps they should postpone getting a dog till the kids are a bit older OR they need to ENSURE that the dog is not stuck in an outside kennel or worse tied with no interaction for long periods of time. From someone who just had to have her dog put to sleep a week ago today I am sorry but I was quite upset when I read the initial post. Dogs deserve the companioship of their owners, attention and love. I truthfully don't understand why they want a dog in the first place if they already know that they don't have the time or the intention to make it part of their family in every respect.

 

[Cronewolf]

:no: Maybe a foxhound. Thy are med. sized seem to take well to being outside, and are usually good with little ones. A basset is another possibility. Sorry but I don't ever like the idea of outside dogs. In my opinion that is never a good placement. Dogs do get lonely, and bored. But you can't stop them if they are determined. So a hound may make the best of a bad situation. :no: Just a sad way for a dog to live.

 

[billiethekid40]

Do you live close enough to your brother that you could "share" this dog? Maybe you could keep him at your place and they could pick him up for weekends and hiking adventures, rather than have him full time sitting in a dog run in the yard waiting for them to have time. Are they going to allow the dog in the house at all? It could work out if they plan to allow him in the house during the day and sleep outside, and stay outside when nobody is home. I still say it would have to be an adult, not a pup and it also would not be fair to take an adult dog that was sued to living with the family and put him in a dog run. Its a tricky situation, but from what you described, i don't think they are ready for a dog unless they are willing to compromise.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

Please do not anyone get the idea we are having a downer on "outside dogs" that is not my intention at least. As I have said, I have kept my dogs, quite happily, outside, and I know others do, but I am more concerned with the amount of attention the dog would be getting.

I just do not think they need a dog, and it is all too easy to get one!!

:

 

[mininik]

Good grief, who suggested cats? I can see that being a big problem, too. We don't know how well these kids behave or how they are watched over. I've known many cats who were literally tortured by young children who probably knew better but weren't supervised. Although most cats may not care if they're coddled or played with, cats can turn nasty from mistreatment.

The more I think about this family the more I think they should just stick to stuffed animals. I don't think most rescues with an ounce of common sense would let them foster, and rightly so. The kids are too young or otherwise I'd suggest they volunteer to help at their local shelter. For now maybe they could consider getting a goldfish or a Betta, placed in a tank high up on a shelf where little hands connot possibly reach. I would just hope that after the new wears off they still remember to feed it every few days and change the water every week or so...

:

 

[Jenn]

This family sounds perfect for a cocker spaniel, actually. My cockers LOVE little kids and will play with them whenever the kids are around, but they're also perfectly happy if they're left alone. My cockers are all outdoor dogs (and I live in central Alberta, Canada - it gets cold here!). They don't shed much, if at all, and do great outdoors. They generally need one haircut in the spring to get rid of their winter coat, then they are good until the following year. My dogs don't get a ton of attention - maybe a couple of hours a day of time with people - and they do just fine. You certainly won't find happier dogs anywhere!

I would suggest, however, that if they don't have much time to spend with the dog, that they get two of them so they can keep each other company. Two is also good for sharing body heat, since they will be outdoor dogs. Also, that way, each child can have his "own" dog.

The dogs I kept outside came into the house every day yet were never fully housetrained to the "fully reliable" stage. The dogs I have at present have never been kept outside and are reliable to the "get you out of bed and scratch at the door" level.

A dog kept outside only will not bond with the children in the way a house dog does.

NOT going to happen.

I'm going to respectfully disagree with you here. Our outdoor dogs occasionally get to come inside for visits, and even after 3-4 hours indoors, have NEVER "messed" in the house. They go to the door if they need to go to the bathroom. A reasonably intelligent dog knows that indoors is not the place to be urinating - or worse.

Our 100% outdoor dogs are also the best dogs I've ever seen with children - and I grew up with indoor dogs. Our dogs don't have kids around all the time yet - just when our nieces & nephews come to visit - yet they LOVE the kids, look after them, protect them, and play with them gently.

 

[mininik]

"I'm going to respectfully disagree with you here. Our outdoor dogs occasionally get to come inside for visits, and even after 3-4 hours indoors, have NEVER "messed" in the house. They go to the door if they need to go to the bathroom. A reasonably intelligent dog knows that indoors is not the place to be urinating - or worse."

I'm going to say that what you're describing is definitely not the norm or it wouldn't be so hard to keep adopted outside dogs adopted if they are to become indoor dogs.

:

I'd also like to agree with Jane (rabbitsfizz) that an outdoor dog in this family's situation will NOT bond with the children as it would if it were kept indoors. There is a very big difference between excited to (FINALLY) have some company and truly being bonded.

 

[Danielle_E.]

I don't believe in having dogs living outside 24/7 in certain climates at certain times of year unless perhaps they have access to a "heated" dog house and at minimum one that is insulated or an insulated barn if that is where they are. When the mercury dips to -20 or -30 celcius. You will NEVER convince me of that unless it is a dog bred for those kind of conditions such as husky, malamute, Pyr, etc.

 

[rabbitsfizz]

People lets deal with the problem we have been given, shall we??

If these people are going to get a dog, they will do it. If the shelter refuses them, which it probably will not (I do not know how it happens, but they do say the Lord takes cares of fools!!) then they can go to any number of, by our standards disreputable, dog breeders and get a puppy; for every one breeder that turns them down there will be three ready to sell them a pup.

Sorry but them's the facts

:

Not to mention the puppies being given away by people desperate to find homes for an unplanned litter!!

I know some people disagree with keeping dogs outside, I am not one of them, and, I have to say, I never intended to keep the dogs outside- this happened after I had bred a litter and had the "posh" kennel!!

And I'm sorry Jenn, but if that is the experience you have had, then I too think that you have been lucky.

With the possible exception of LGD I cannot personally see the point to owning a dog and keeping it outside 24 hours a day, especially when the weather precludes real interaction- I say this with two big fierce Dobergirls lying in front of the fire, flat out!!! This for me is the nicest part of the day, when we get to snuggle up and I get my reward for feeding and generally being their slave.

If they were still kennelled they would not actually go out until I went to bed.

NOW if this were what these people had in mind, I might think differently.

SO...to get back on topic- I think we need more information about exactly what these people want from their dog, and what they intend to give in return??

 

[tuffsmom]

Hmm...well, our dog lives outside 24/7, year round. He has no doghouse (he did for several months & never ever went in it...not once), and he has no fenced yard. We live in the middle of no where, and he wouldn't set foot off this property if you paid him. He would also not come in the house if you begged him......because he lives outside like a dog.

He has a wonderful life, he has barn kitty friends, big horse friends, a mini-horse friend, and human friends. He sleeps in the barn (and no, he has no heat lamp). Maybe we mistreat him, who knows, but I doubt it. He's neutered, has good food to eat, has a selection of water troughs to drink from, and gets to eat lots of horse poop treats

: Gets TONS of attention, loves people, & loves other animals.

He is a very happy, sociable, great guy. He rides to town in the bed of the pickup, and we can go in the store, go eat, etc...and when we come out, he will still be in the bed of the pickup. He has never offered to bite anyone, he has not one mean bone in his body (he is in NO WAY guard dog, he'd lick someone to death first)

IMO, animals were designed to live outside. Yes, they need shelter. Yes, small toy/mini dogs should be indoors. But no, I do not think that the fact that a dog lives outside constantly is wrong.

 

[Jenn]

I'm with you, tuffsmom. I actually think it's cruel to keep dogs indoors and/or in small yards. Our dogs are also unconfined, but they don't wander. They stay with us because they want to. They guard our property from predators and thieves. They can eat when they want, drink when they want, run around when they want, and sleep when they want. They have several options for shelter, including a dog house that fits all of them quite nicely, as well as several barns. Most of the time, however, they sleep on our step or under a tree nearby. The only time they pile into the dog house is when it's very cold - below -20.

The only thing we ask from our dogs is that the one who is a cattle dog performs his duties - about an hour of work a day in the winter, nothing in the summer - and that the one who is half cattle dog is there for backup. The others are just expected to bark at coyotes and strangers. Our cattle dog earned his keep for the rest of his life last year by treeing a bear and keeping it there until my husband came home. He protected our young calves and ME by treeing that bear (I often check the calving cows at night), and he certainly couldn't have done that if he was a spoiled indoor dog.

Not to mention, as outdoor dogs, they benefit from all our leftovers ... no way would I be feeding an indoor dog what our outdoor dogs get to sample! We slaughtered a calf on the weekend and our dogs are still enjoying the feast that was left behind for them. Some people might say that gives a dog the thirst for blood/fresh meat, but that's definitely not the case with our dogs. They're not motivated enough to go hunting for anything other than the dog food that's in the barn for them.

 

[mininik]

"I actually think it's cruel to keep dogs indoors and/or in small yards."

Well... not all breeds are able to live outdoors comfortably. Chihuahuas, for one, and Papillons, Chinese Cresteds, Pekingese, etc. Most Toy breeds were bred specifically to be indoor companions and what would be cruel is for them to live outdoors as they are so inequiped.

 

[Jenn]

Sheesh, didn't know I had to specify breeds. Obviously, small dogs need to be indoors - a fact I know well, since my parents breed chihuahuas.

However, even then, the Chihuahuas go in and out all spring, summer and fall long and on milder days in the winter. They have a doggy door and are encouraged to spend time outdoors.

 

[Happy Valley]

I appreciate all of you wonderful straightforward honest people. God bless you all, both positive and negative. I asked the question with the intent of being able to gather a sampling of opinions, and I achieved the desired objective.

Thank you all so much for taking the time to respond.

Stacye