Which breed of dog do you have? Which are best with kid's?

[Marne]

We are thinking of getting a puppy in the next few months. Dd has'nt had much to do with dogs and is a bit nervous of them, i was brought up around animals and would love a dog.

Which breeds are best around kids?

Any recomendations?

I dont like reals small dogs, would like a medium/large dog.

Sorry to hijack but ahundredtimes and hippytami we are thinking of getrting a cocker (i had one as a child) ca I ask how you found your breeder,I am a bit worried as they are so popular at the moment

By the way Marne congrats on the puppy will be good to see how you get on etc

Congratulations Marne, I hope your pup turns out to be all you want her to be

And the pooping on the floor will continue some time yet

Floaty - I contacted the Kennel Club and they have a list of registered breeders. I then contacted the ones in my area to find out when they were expecting a litter again, what their criteria were for homing a pup etc.
It was for us a long process. Some breeders would not consider us as dd was only 2.6 y old at the time. Others we would not consider as they were still docking the pup's tails and we wanted an un-docked pup.
Finally we found a lovely lady in Essex (we are in Surrey) who had an almost unhealthy love for her Cockers (as did 100x's breeder, must be a Cocker breeder thing ) and who was just starting out as a breeder and shower. Not shower as in washing, I mean taking part in dog shows

Good luck. Just be sure to find a reputable breeder who can trace his/her dog's lines back a long way. The last thing you want is an unreputable breeder who has no qualms about breeding from dogs with questionable temperaments. That's what happened in the 80's and badly bred Cockers had bad temperaments (especially the reds as that was the most popular colour so they were overbred) and the so called 'cocker rage' was born.

For more info contact www.cockersonline.co.uk. They will have all the info about finding a reputable breeder, what to look for in your pup, and they have a friendly forum too

take this with a pinch of salt - but it's interesting - throws up some breeds you might not have thought about and makes you think about your criteria. certainly worth a go: quiz here

Floaty - I did the same as Hipp and went through the KC. There was a lot of chat about working and show strain cockers. Someone did tell me not to get a one block colour puppy, but a breeder I spoke to said that problems with the over-breeding have been pretty much stamped out now.

Probably try and find a woman who is doing it because she loves the dogs, rather than someone who has a loads of kennels out the back and is doing it for the easy cash.

You could approach a cocker owner in the park and ask them. I don't know. I did it quickly and just took my bets. Worth thinking if you have a colour preference too perhaps - and finding a litter with the colour you want.

Awwwww Marne, she sounds adorable I expect a pic on your profile asap!!!

If possible get a crate, staffies do tend to be big chewers. My staff has been through several items of clothing, toys, hoover, dustpan and brush, dog bowl, door frame and more!!

Ask Sparklygothkat on here, hers went through a plug!!

Thanks a lot for that,funnily enough we are in suffolk and have just got the kennel club list and noted a couple in essex,was just looking at a website which seemed very doggy!but then you would want someone who loves the dogs and breed wouldn't you.

Ooo can I come on and sing the praises of cocker spaniels again then?
Hi 100x... How are you getting on?

Oh very well thank you, very well actually. He is charming Ingles, really.

And jolly and my god he's greedy, we are having a dispute over him thinking really very little to his biscuits and being put out that we eat food he'd like some of thank you very much. But he's so nice, he came out to friends for lunch today and lay down so all - including 2 y-o could tickle his tummy and did a lot of wagging and swaying at them- and away at half term too. Most adaptable and gregarious. He was a bit of a wuss about other dogs, but he seems to be getting over that now.

Not to mental, that's the nicest thing really. Just sort of sociable and easy. And has these big paws and floppy ears and falls over when he skids round corners.

Lots of mouthing though, and that can be annoying.

That is my report. I like these dog threads - most indulgent.

Oooh Floaty. How exciting. I thought the woman we got our puppy from was insane. We walked in and six cockers all jumped on us and it was a little overwhelming. She looked a bit like a spaniel actually. They are quite odd the breeders I think.

Tell you what too Floaty, I rang lots of the ones on the KC list and just asked them questions even if they didn't have any puppies left. They are very useful to get information from.

Working strain breeders say: You don't want a show strain cocker. They are difficult to train, bit dim and don't come back when called.

Show strain breeders say: Show strain dogs do come back when called. You only want a working strain if you have lots of land and are in the countryside. They are working dogs and need jobs to do.

Who knows? Show strain have longer coats.

See Ingles? You thought I was oh so impulsive, but I did amazing research in just three days. See.

I have a cavalier king charles spaniel.

I got him specifically for him temperament after being bitten on the face by a kennel dog that was advertised as good with children.

I was bitten in the pound before we even took the dog home. My nose skin was half hanging off. But I am just thankful i am not blind or that it wasnt one of the kids.

I love dogs and didnt want the kids to be frightened of them. So I did some research and it seems that cavaliers have excellent behaviour...which i can happily testify to.

He is so lovely (and now 5 years old) and he spurred friends on to get a dog of their own. However, they both got different breeds and were surprised when they didnt behave as lovely as my dog. One actually gave her scottie away.

I was tempted to get a lab but I think they are a bit big and someone told me but i dont think its true that they have quite a high "bite count" [hmm}.

I think you have to consider the space in your house, how many times a day you can walk it (springers need a lot of walking - but I love them). Grooming etc etc.

Oops - that'll teach me to read the full post!

Congrats on your new arrival Marne!!

LOL 100x am very impressed, you sound like a proper CS owner!
my advice is get a show strain, much easier as pets and pretty lazy, working spaniels,..like...working!
bit of advice for you 100x, when you take pup to groomer don't ever let them use clippers, they must hand trim with scissors or their coat goes all weird and fuzzy. and start grooming under the armpits/ ears early they get really matted.

morespam - i had a cavalier in my teenage years at home. i adored him, so good natured and dopey yet thought he could take on the world until it came over and then he would hide behind me!! he slpet on my pillow and was a good size that people did not mind me taking him to their house. not the same about my two boxers who i think have similar personalities!!

Yes, I got show strain for exactly that reason too Ingles.

Do you do grooming yourself? I'm not sure what to do. We did one trial run with a brush, though his coat is still short. Also at some point he is going to need a bath isn't he? However do I do that? Perhaps a poncy grooming parlour is the answer? Thank you for cutting tip.

I groom her most of the time but send her to poncey groomer twice a year. Start with baths early, pippa doesn't mind them at all now. Be careful what products you use, they are very susceptible to dermatitis. I think I've just put a pic of her on my profile. Have a look.

Oh my, isn't she pretty? She looks lovely, and everything looks clean and groomed. I mean everything, even the wall and the floor and things. And the basket. And the the cushion with her initials on. You are in a different league to us.

Johnny Jet is rather messy looking, in a nice way. He's all patchy and sweet, and has a white tail and a huge black spot over his bottom. He looks rascally. He'd better have a bath soon - he went to the beach and dug holes in the sand this week.

Talk me through the bath. I just literally run him a bath upstairs and put him in it? And then I get shampoo, and rinse. Yes? It sounds exhausting. Warm water? How often? He is smelly, in a nice way, but smelly all the same.

I don't think P would give him the time of day actually.

What product do you use?

I want show strain partly because the one I had as a child was show strain(lemon roan /i think it was called) and partly because the only working strain one we have known was a right handful,more like a springer I should say,only sane if you walk the legs off them.

The cocker I grew up with was a complete softy,apparently I used to feed him stones and he would pretend to have eaten them and then spit them out when I looked away!Hasten to add I would have been about 18 months !

Oh floaty. It's going to be great. What colour are you going to get? Have you seen Ingles's dog on her profile? She's very pretty.

LOL.. ssshhh 100x we're not that clean, she's going to be in a book!
Anyway, I've got one of those big metal buckets in the garden I fill it up with warm water, stick her in, cover her in shampoo (put cotton wool in ears) and then rinse her off with the hose. I can't remember the name of the shampoo but it's from the vet (costs a fortune!) we tried bob martin, she was covered in flaky sore skin poor thing.

what about dalmations? what are they like with kids?

You rinse her with cold water then? In February? Okay, so this is better than putting him in the bath upstairs yes?

just looked at ingles' dd (dear dog) - she's gorgeous. We had a cocker when I was younger - a real beauty - black and white - mainly white in fact with a black bum. he was the most characterful dog I've ever known. he never grew up. people used to ask us if he was a puppy when he was about 8.