Help me to chose a dog for my daughter.

[complexo]

I am thinking about buying a puppy for my daughter as a 6th birthday present and I would like some opinions on it please as last time I had pets I was a child myself.

*I am thinking Yorkshire Terrier or Chihuawa (I know it does not spell this way...) but I am open to suggestions.
*I am thinking a female dog because my daughter already have the dog's name in mind
*We live in a small 2 bedroom flat and ideally the dog would poo and pee inside the flat on a tray or something (yes like a cat) if possible (I don't know if it is possible or not because I had a garden when I had a dog 100 years ago so sorry if it is a silly suggestion)

• We are a family of 3

I think this is it, if I remember more, I will post.
TIA

What Korma said..that is no life for a dog whatever the size !

Definitely think that you need to think a bit more - there is more in it than just buying a puppy and everyone is happy. You need to think about vets bills, booster jabs, who will walk it, toilet training it, who looks after it when you're away etc etc etc, there is so much to think about.

FWIW, we have a little Daschund - she has a brilliant temperament and is quite small so would be okay to keep in a flat. She does still need walking, but obviously not as much as a Great Dane!

Have you thought about a smaller animal like a Guinea pig/hamster? Hamsters don't need walking or anything, and you only need a small-ish cage. They are super cute too! Maybe a house rabbit?

oh sorry I didn't realise that only people who can afford a house with a garden are entitled to have a dog. I am sorry to ask this ridiculoues question here I might now talk to people who live in flats and do have dogs.
And....
I have never said that the 6 year old would be sole responsible for the dog
And...
I have never said the dog would never live the house ever, did I?
And I am sorry my daughter names all her toy pets the same female name and always say if she had a dog she woud call #blablalba# she must be as stupid as I am of course.

But to keep a dog in a flat is stupid imo ! Why not a cat you can keep in or a rabbit?? Dogs need freedom, no matter how snall they are.

*small

OP I've never chipped in to a dog thread before, but one thing I have noticed is that if anyone ever has the temerity to suggest that they are thinking about getting a dog who is not a member of the Crufts judging panel, they are instantly shot down as someone who is about to commit dog-icide.

I can't for the life in me work out why this should be so, but it happens every time.

Good luck with your new pet.

It would be possible - not ideal, but possible, to keep a dog in a flat, as long as you are happy to take on the following commitments.

-Taking the dog outside to pee/poo every twenty minutes (practically day and night) until it is house trained.

-Once house trained, committing to a lot of walks/training/mental stimulation every day.

• Crate training from day one

-enrolling in a puppy training class, and arranging child care for this as you would be the one responsible for the dog and children are not allowed generally.

-Not presenting the puppy as a 'present'

• Making sure you can budget for decent quality food (to cut down on poo) innoculations, spaying/neutering, insurance, yearly boosters, flea and worming treatment, plus the above training - this adds up to a LOT and if you 'can't afford a house with a garden' may be too much of a financial committment.

But honestly it would be such a lot of work and the dog still may end up unhappy.

complexo - as long as you take the dog our regularly then it wont need to go to toilet in the flat. it will let you know if it needs to get out. you we live in a flat and are getting a dog. i too beleive my sons not going to be penalised for living in a flat, he misses out on so much because of it already.
we will walk our dog more than any of our friends do as we haven't got a back door to just open and let it go out and poo.

i hope you find the right dog for your family. we are just starting to look now.

I'm pretty sure millions of people manage to keep dogs perfectly well in flats! Flipping ridiculous to say you can only have a dog if you have a house and garden.

I am sorry but I feel quite insulted with the suggestion that if I can't afford a house with a garden I can't afford to give the dog good quality food and treatments. OMG
I live in a nice area of London, I have been living here since single and will not move out for the world. I would rather save to buy a property than pay rent on a house with a garden atm. If i have to pay rent atm, I would rather pay rent on a small 2 bedroom flat and save my money for a deposit. It doesn't mean I can't afford to do other things.
Also why would I have to take the dog out every 20 minutes. Is it because living in a small 2 bedroom flat I must be poor and also so dirty that I can't clean the dog's poo and pee?
I never travel anyway (NOTHING TO DO WITH MONEY) but if I decided to do I have people I can leave the dog with.
And my husband is allergic a cats.
Hamster or Rabbit is not my cup of tea but I will have a think.

And I am curious to why not to present the dog as a present? This is a genuine (but I know again stupid) question.
Thanks

Not ridiculous to keep a dog in a flat
Ridiculous to buy a puppy as a 6th birthday present.

But why?? I really don't understand.

Completly and utterly agree with Bitter

The reason why people are saying flats and dogs don't mix is because:

1. Your neighbours below you won't appreciate the extra noise. My dog howled the house down for the first three nights

1. Dogs don't just use the garden for eliminating waste.

1. Dogs love going out

Take tonight for example. My dog has been in and out like a bloody yo yo all night. Now I'm lucky because my living room backs onto my garden.
Now my house isn't big and nor is my garden, but unless you have a ground floor flat with its own patio onto the garden then it's going to be a right PITA when the dog wants to go out all of the time.

I know people are being strong in here, but it's because some people don't consider the commitment a dog is and ultimately it's the dog who ends up homeless.

Perhaps an older rescue dog who isn't too bothered about going out lots would be better?

Would be than ok if I buy for my 36th birthday?

Puppies are like babies - they pee and poo constantly. That's why you would need to keep taking them out

You honestly can't expect that you can just clean up it's poo/pee off the floor and therefore you won't need to take it out. That would be vile. Otherwise it is possible, not ideal, but perfectly possible, to keep a dog in a flat.

OK, I misread your earlier post and apologise - I got the wrong end of the stick when you said you couldn't afford a house - I don't live in London and so didn't account for that. Where I live, a 2 bed house is not much more than a flat!

The taking out every 20 mins is nothing to do with you being 'poor' and dirty - I am pretty poor myself! The Puppy will need to be taken out that often so it learns to go outside. You can't have a litter tray for a dog, you just can't.

You CAN'T give the dog as a present. You may be the most responsible person in the world but presenting the dog as a 'present' just tells your 6yo that you have given her a toy or possession.

By all means present it as a 'Birthday Surprise' - 'look, as well as your birthday presents, I have decided we should get a dog, this is what we need to do to make her a happy well behaved dog.

I am not trying to insult you, just let you know what you are potentially letting yourself in for.

The last thing I want is for 6 months down the line a healthy puppy has to be put to sleep and your 6yo is physically and mentally scarred for life because you didn't think it through. Yes, that's an extreme scenario, but also sadly possible.

I meant cleaning poo and pee in the flat until I managed to toilet train the dog to use a tray or something like that. But not sure if dogs so use trays?
And I forgot to mention I have a balcony if that helps.

It's perfectly possible to have a dog if you live in a flat, but tbh it would be easier with an adult dog rather than a puppy (because of the need to toilet-train puppies, which in the very early days might mean going outside every half an hour or so for puppy to eliminate). A puppy is still possible, but you'd need to know what you were letting yourself in for, especially if you have a lot of stairs to go up and down. You really don't want a dog to get in the habit of going inside - and the quickest way to toilet train them is to make sure that they never get the chance to toilet inside because you are always taking them outside. That's why you'd have to go outside every 30 minutes to begin with.

I don't think it's realistic (or hygienic) to expect a dog to toilet inside in a litter tray, like a cat. If you want a creature that will you do that, you should get a cat, or possibly a rabbit (depends on the rabbit ime).

Some little dogs can be quite yappy, and depending on the thickness of your walls that might drive your neighbours barmy.

Friends of my father had a child substitute yorkshire terrier which was trained to relieve itself on the Financial Times and the waste was then immediately removed and taken to the outside bin. It's not a smell you'd want lingering inside the house. How large is the flat is and can the dog be let out into outside space frequently during the day?

Ok Ok, now I understand the giving as a present issue.
I am pretty active myself and can't be indoors too much.
I am surrounded by parks, common, and there is a dog area right outside my block.
Thanks for all the answers, the B'day is next April so I have plenty of time to think it through.

Actually scrap that, they were nuts and the pooch took on all their worst habits.

OP - anyone who gets a new puppy, regardless of where they live, needs to toilet train the pup and that means endless trips outside, standing around waiting for little pup to do his/her business. If you crate train, you will find that for the first little while, you might need to take the pup out during the night but as pup gets older bladder control improves and it will soon be able to go from 11pm to around 7am. We have crate trained two pups this way with no problems. One tip we were given was to cover the crate with a blanket or a dark cover at night - it makes it into a real wee den and also means that on summer mornings the pup won't be waking the house at 4am!! When your pup is fully trained, she will tell you when she needs to go.

If you do decide to go ahead, do lots of research into the most suitable breed, go to visit breeders, don't go near a puppy farmer or someone who produces litters on too regular a basis and have the patience to wait for the right dog for you.

Good luck with whatever decision you make. My only real advice is make sure YOU choose the breed and pup, not your 6 year old !!

I have never seen a dog use a litter tray. TBH if my dog left some her 'delights' in a tray in the house we wouldn't be able to enter without full-on bio-hazard gear, and it's not something I would want too close to my DD either. I used to live in a flat, and whilst I really wanted a dog I just didn't think it would be fair to have one, so I got a guinea pig instead, and she was fabulous! Small children love them as a rule, they have their own distinct personalities (so better than hamsters!), and it could be a good first pet for your DD as they are less work than dogs. If she does get bored of looking after it then it's not as much work for you either.