Golden retriever puppy with kids

[Bluegot]

What is it like with a golden retriever puppy with kids (9 and 11)? I keep reading they are quite difficult as puppies and are “land sharks”. I have wanted a golden since as long as I can remember but am now doubting if it is a good idea

I have one (my 4th) and I waited until my dc were 10 and 7 before I got this one as all the others were pre DC.
Yes they are little land sharks and the oldest could just about cope, despite being a huge animal fan but DS didn’t much like him and really wanted to send him back - so did I some days!
I think your DC would be ok but lots of training for everyone will be needed. My Ddog didn’t really like DS at first and there were some resource guarding but with help from a professional we sorted it out and they are good friends now.

Not sure if they’re similar, but our lab puppy was incredibly bitey for months. I still separate her from the youngest kids with a stair gate, so she lives in the kitchen and garden, otherwise I’m sure it would not have worked out for us. She still jumps up and occasionally ‘bites’ (not aggressively) but has improved a lot at 6months.

So i would consider where you’ll keep the puppy in the early days and how you’ll separate when needed.

I’m going to be honest, I found mine hard work and nearly gave him back. There was no malice in him, he was just totally bonkers. And relentless. Shark doesn’t cover it.

And the adolescent stage where they think it’s really hilarious to charge at you and clench their teeth round your wrist or something even more painful. Nobody ever told me about that!

Mine is 2.5 years now though - and wonderful.

Puppies are hard, hard work! I have a Cocker Spaniel and she's 10 months now. In the early days I was just so exhausted and felt trapped because I couldn't leave her at home alone.

The waking up in the night, toilet accidents, biting and general neediness is a lot to cope with! My mental health took quite a hit if I'm honest (reminded me of how I felt in early motherhood) and some days I wondered what I had done.

However it doesn't last forever and she's great now! You just have to except that having a puppy is shit, yet rewarding and keep ploughing on.

My SIL has a 2 year old GR, he was difficult as a pup (bitey and quite wired to be around) but since about 9 months ago he is very lovely to be around and the children (6 and 10) adore him, even though one of them is quite wary of dogs. They're a large breed, so need quite a lot of training to ensure they have good recall and don't jump at people. But he's a complete sweetheart and a lovely dog and he gets lots of complements from other walkers.

Thanks. One of my children is wary of some more bouncy dogs so it’s a concern for me. Not sure if his waryness will get better once he gets used to pup. Or if it will just be stressful for him

They are kind of the definition of bouncy, at least until they are 18 months to 2.
After that they are mostly quite calm

Most young dogs are pretty bonkers at first - the problem you have with goldens is that they're retrievers so very mouthy by nature, plus they're pretty big so if they do jump up, they have more strength behind them than, say, a westie.

All puppies will bite, mouth and jump - my beagle is three and still tries jumping at people if he thinks they have food

Bouncy and get bigger fast - with a wary child I’d get something smaller now or leave until child bigger.

My DC are 11 and 9, and our puppy is 11 weeks. He is bitey in the evening, but not so bad during the day, so my DC miss the worst of it. But he isn't so bad, if you play with him, and keep his toys moving (in the evening), he is fine. He jumps up a lot, and he does have sharp nails, so my DC have to come down in the morning in protective clothing, to survive the excited love. My DS isn't always totally sure, but part of the issue is that my DS isn't so good at deflecting the biting, and so sometimes (in his onsie), is essentially a walking talking dog toy (as far as pupster is concerned). But I do not at all think that our puppy is difficult (maybe that will come). He does require a lot of supervision though, which is incredibly time consuming. But he is a really lovely puppy, and if we can get him well trained (fingers crossed), I'm sure he will be a lovely dog.

We got our golden retriever when my kids were 6 and 8 and yes, she was a bit bitey with my youngest in particular but that was partially because he was much more lively and playful with her so I think she saw him as a playmate! It was hard for a while but by 7 months it had stopped and she has been amazing ever since! We all adore her and she is amazing with the kids.

oncacation we found our was relatively easy to “fight off” at that age
It’s when you’ve got a 5/6 month old puppy who is larger than a lot of fully grown dogs trying to use you as a chew toy that it is especially bad. My 7 year old really did want to send him back and would have nothing to do with him, which led to them having no relationship other than mutual dislike for a while (they are fine now). Even my DD who is somewhat of an animal whisperer and has never met a dog she didn’t like had 2nd thought about Ddog
He’s 5 now and we love him but the first 12-18 months was really really hard

Sorry Onvacation I meant

Ours (half golden half lab) is 7 months and very rarely mouths now, and if he does it's very gentle, so we didn't personally find that stage too long. However adolescence is proving hard work! he currently can't be walked off lead as his recall is just gone, and he's still a pest for jumping up at new people. He also can't really be walked with our kids yet as they get him too excited if all 3 of them are there, so we have to do a lot of management at the moment. He's quite bonkers outside basically, and I've no idea how long this stage will last (lots of local walkers saying to me of their own retrievers "he calmed down around 2" but we met a very bouncy 4 year old recently!)

I think you have to be prepared to spend a fair amount of time training and managing undesirable behaviour if you want a nicely behaved GR but ours is already the soppiest thing and loves a good cuddle, and is very well behaved with the kids inside the house! (our youngest is 4)

@Hoppinggreen that is useful to know! My DS does find it harder to deflect, and our puppy is a big puppy, and is going to be a big dog, so I can imagine that the force of a 5 month old would be really hard to deal with (even for an adult, let alone a child). They both did have a wonderful time today, playing in the rain and jumping in the flooded area of our garden. I will keep an eye on it, and keep working on it.

I know it’s a bit controversial but getting his nuts off at 18 months made a big difference

We have a 21 week old retriever and yes he’s bitey and I’ve spoken to a few people with pups of similar ages with bitey pups.

It can be really hard to manage but you have to put in the work with them. Our boy is very intelligent so loves to work for his treats via play etc he is our second golden it’s all worth it in the end if you put in the time and love. But landshark is a perfect name for them

I have 4 kids 2 younger (9/10) 2 older teens
Have safe spots for pup crate/pen if it’s getting too much my boy takes himself away to his bed now.

Our retriever is 10 months now so we are through some of the worst of the sharky stuff, as their baby teeth are the worst part of it, but he will still grab your arm if he wants to - we are working on it, but it takes time. The thing to really remember as well is that they are big dogs and though they are cute and cuddly generally, they are big hefty animals as well and very determined sometimes. For example, my pup went in the garden this morning in the rain and started to dig a hole right in the middle of the lawn. I told him to stop but he didn't and he wouldn't come in. I knew that if I went out to him, he would think it was brilliant fun and would run round like a loon and probably grab my arm at some point, so I had to get him to come into the house and calm down, which he eventually did when he heard me rustling treat packages and calling him.