Calling all dog owners....please help me decide!

[HonorMatopoeia]

Hi there, to cut a hugely long story short, DH and I are just beginning to think about getting a dog. We're by no means certain but just assessing the situation at the moment.

Our situation is this:
I work 3 days a week, FIL could pop in on the three days i work or even possibly the dog could go to him.
We have Dd - 20 months
We have 2 house cats
I would like another baby within the next two years as well.

So, are we kidding ourselves? Is a dog not for us at all. I don't want to offer a dog a home and then realise we can't cope / offer them a good home.
If a dog is for us which breed would you recommend? Rehomed or bought from new (iyswim)?

Any advice would be appreciated. As I said, we've not set our hearts on a dog yet and I'd rather not get to that stage then find out it's just not possible! TIA x

Iwould not have a lab with small kids. My fil has one and it has spent te weekend knocking my 3 year old son over. We have 2 king charles cavaliers and they are amazing. Really good with the kids. We got our second dog when i was 5 months pregnant and although everyone thought it was a stupid thing to do it worked out really well for us. they do not need as much exercise as a larger breed, but they can walk for miles if you want them too. We crate trained ours and it definatly made the puppy time easier. The pup was clean in the house in a couple of weeks.

We got a pup at the end of June, we have two boys 4 and 7, I'm home all day (in and out of course). Having had dogs as a child from when I was 4 til I left home I can't believe I didn't realise how much work they are! She is fantastic (Labradoodle) and in the middle of training but is now, above the boys, the major consideration in everything we do. We have had two 'interesting' breaks at Centerparcs and the seaside and have been restricted in activities because of her. Having said that I think its my duty to provide pets for my children and they adore her (as I do). We are complete. How sad am I?!! P.S. Our 14 yr old cat hates her and now lives upstairs on the other side of the dog gate - a sad situation. I would say think about it hard, there are a lot of dogs at rescue centres that seemed a good idea at the time!

Hi! I have 2 kids ages 4 and 6. We got our first dog (a greyhound/lurcher) 2 years ago, we have just gotten a "mystery mutt" puppy. Rehoming centres like dogs trust will let you have a dog if you have under 5's, but they are more considerate to the dog's needs than to your wants IYSWIM. If they don't think the dog is ok with children, then they won't consider it. We got our first dog as a pup and it isthe hardest thing i have ever done!! Very frustrating, but worth it in the end. She definately gives more to us than she takes, and she has added to our lives immeasurably!!The kids adore both of our beasties, and they have learned about responsibility. Our greyhound-y beast sleeps alot and does not need that much excercise (she does the school run and that exhausts her until its time to go again in the afternoon!!) She is fabulous with the kids and i attribute this to getting her as a pup and socialising her accordingly. However she is not that affectionate (which is a reason we got the second dog, who spends alot of time gazing at us lovingly and wagging his tail!!) Its like having kids, its not all sunshine, but you end up loving them so much that you don't really mind, and the bad bits just become part of your life. good luck! Let us know what you decide!!

Personally, I would wait until your kids are a bit older.

Puppies are extremely hard work and - depending on the breed - don't really settle down to being calm/just pootling about for about 2-3 years, which I think might be quite a pain when you've got very little ones.

We have a cocker spaniel, who's lots of fun but a bit mad and gets far too excited around little children, who sometimes find him a bit too scary. He's also a bit of a barker.

Not sure whether that's any help .