What breed for our first family pup?

[tishpish]

Hello basically as the title says we are wanting to add a furry addition to the family now our youngest child is almost 5 we are pretty clueless about what breed suits us best so hoping someone could help me here , abit about us we our quite active an enjoy walks but not hobby walkers or anything but we like being outdoors, we could offer 2 good walks a day. I'm a stay at home mum currently with no plans to return to work for at least a year so I have all the time in the world to train we don't want anything to bouncy that could knock our youngest child down. Can anyone with experience give me some directions to go for a nice family dog breed please , thanks in advance

Ours was a springer spaniel. Complete bundle of crazy energy and she liked to destroy things but she was perfect.

I have a show cocker spaniel and they're named cockerdiles for a good reason. No socks or toes were safe when she was a puppy. She was hard work, more so for me as I'd never had a dog before and was trying to train her myself. If I had a 5 year old I don't think I would have got one.
Another breed, which I don't know that much about but have had good experiences when out and about with my dog, is Italian Greyhounds. I would love one when ours is no longer with us, but I think we will probably get a working cocker next time

www.thekennelclub.org.uk/search/breeds-a-to-z/breeds/toy/italian-greyhound/

Sorry but there is a lot of misinformation on this thread and some of the recommendations are mad!

Labs WILL knock down a child especially in the hands of an inexperienced dog owner like the op. They could also chew every toy the children leave lying around.

Rough collie really!

Sprocker can be mad and really high energy so the early years with a young child and again inexperienced owner with not a lot of support by the sound of family advice being given. (there is little difference between dogs and bitches in any breed apart from size and the obvious! the rest is down to temperament not sex hormones)

OP dont visit any puppies yet. First step is to buy and read Meet your dog a clear but detailed book telling you the traits of most breeds and what they are like to live with. I can not push this book enough to new owners.

Then get out and about walking in dog areas with your dc, speak to dog owners see how your children and the dogs act and look at the reality of being a first time dog owner with young children. It will be hard.

Do not go for a gun dog or spaniel, collie or staffie (unless you are experienced at looking at breeders).

Look at smaller dogs but not terriers.
Research a lot and I mean a lot, look at health issues and the tests that the breed should have and do not touch them if they have not had the tests. Kennel Club website will tell you what each breed should need.

Contact the breed club of the breed you decide on and quiz them and speak to them.

Your research could take a good year to do probably and source the puppy so be looking at how things will be in a years time in your household.

Polly gives some great advice. I would say a lab is a bit big and bouncy.
Start with what you can offer. How much space you have. How much time you can spend on walking or training. Are you going to run or do agility with the dog? How much grooming can you commit to? Could you afford regular grooming bills??
Think about what dogs were bred to do and consider what breed traits you can deal with and which would be a deal breaker. Prone to resource guarding or separation anxiety?

Get a show cocker, less bouncy than their working counterparts, you don’t need to have them groomed in a show style, bright, easy to train, stupidly loyal, not too big yet big enough for feel like a proper dog. Ticks all the boxes.

Ours is nearly 6 and is just the right mix of stupid and intelligent. We love him dearly and he has grown up alongside my youngest.

Terriers are generally obstinate, and often not recommended fir first time owners.

The exceptions are Borders, Norfolks and Norwiches, all of which usually make excellent family dogs - friendly and energetic (can go all day, but happy with 2x 45 mins) low maintenance, low shed coats, no drool. Tend towards separation anxiety, but with careful build up to being left alone they shouid be fine.

Might also be worth looking at Maltese and Havanese (also small and usually friendly)

My friend, who had never had a dog before, got a Llasa Apso - not my kind of dog (to small and fluffy!) but she makes a great family dog! She slotted in without much fuss, the family take her everywhere. She is a happy little thing - might be worth thinking about if you want a smaller dog that doesn't need miles of running.
I have had spaniels and labs - both are great, and both have lovely natures - but both need a lot of exercise - not necessarily a problem if you are an active family.

Working cockers are very different from the show strain - the show ones I've met have more coat and are much less manic. Same goes for working vs. show labs.

Border terriers can be lovely, but do check out the temperament of the parents - I've known a couple with a degree of dog aggression, or just not very pleasant with children - and others who have been brilliant.

Get out to the local dog walking areas, meet some dogs, chat to some owners. A lot of owners are very up front. I own a gundog breed and would always say that they're high maintenance - fine for a first time owner with time, dedication, family members or friends with dog experience who are prepared to assist and advise, and access to a gundog trainer once a week, but not fine for someone who wants an easy pet.

I have a sprocker and I wouldn't call him manic. Yes he has plenty of energy and needs decent walks (including fetch/sniffy opportunities/usually a swim!) but he is super chill around the house and was a doddle to train. He is very friendly and loving, great with kids (although admittedly did go through the sprockerdile phase!) and just generally has the sweetest sunniest nature. Biased I know but spaniels just steal your heart.

Have you considered a whippet? They are a perfect size and adore children.

Some of them are a bit bonkers as puppies but they settle into a brilliant family dog. They have the added bonus of not smelling doggy, don’t track mud in like lots of dogs and don’t bark without a good reason.

Border terriers can be lovely, but do check out the temperament of the parents - I've known a couple with a degree of dog aggression, or just not very pleasant with children - and others who have been brilliant

This is true for any and every breed and cross! And if going to a rescue, where such info is unavailable, try to find ones which foster in homes, as they will find out much more about a dog's temperament than ones who need to use kennels

We have just got our first family dog .
She's a Border Terrier. She's been easy to train and she's a brilliant with the kids . Fitted in perfectly with our family.

We went through a Kennel club assured breeder , who has done all the health checks etc , and we weren't charged a ridiculous price for her less than £900.

Yup. This is our Labrador “ bins on legs with no concept of their size”. We often muse that ours doesn’t realise his back end is attached to him. A big lively dog that gets walked 3-4 hours a day. Our last dog died 5 years ago - we knew we wanted another and a medium/large dog and so waited until other half retired. He’s very powerful and has nearly knocked us over a couple of times. I wouldn’t have one if I had small children.

I'm going to say basset hound.
Ours is completely chilled, very trust worthy ,loves to snuggle with the children more than anything else and she is completely child proof.
No aggression ever shown with food,toys or taking things from her ,absolutely would never have another breed now .

@PollyRoulson

Sorry but there is a lot of misinformation on this thread and some of the recommendations are mad!

Labs WILL knock down a child especially in the hands of an inexperienced dog owner like the op. They could also chew every toy the children leave lying around.

Rough collie really!

Sprocker can be mad and really high energy so the early years with a young child and again inexperienced owner with not a lot of support by the sound of family advice being given. (there is little difference between dogs and bitches in any breed apart from size and the obvious! the rest is down to temperament not sex hormones)

OP dont visit any puppies yet. First step is to buy and read ]] a clear but detailed book telling you the traits of most breeds and what they are like to live with. I can not push this book enough to new owners.

Then get out and about walking in dog areas with your dc, speak to dog owners see how your children and the dogs act and look at the reality of being a first time dog owner with young children. It will be hard.

Do not go for a gun dog or spaniel, collie or staffie (unless you are experienced at looking at breeders).

Look at smaller dogs but not terriers.
Research a lot and I mean a lot, look at health issues and the tests that the breed should have and do not touch them if they have not had the tests. Kennel Club website will tell you what each breed should need.

Contact the breed club of the breed you decide on and quiz them and speak to them.

Your research could take a good year to do probably and source the puppy so be looking at how things will be in a years time in your household.

This with bells on!

@tishpish

Really helpful messages thank you , we are going to view a litter of cocker spaniels this weekend they aren't ready until august but few questions if anyone can help is there much difference in temperament between boys an girls? Mil is telling me bitches are awful and to avoid at all costs I would like a girl to even things up in the house although we have no real preference.

Sorry to be rude but your MIL is nuts. I have 1 bitch and 1 male. Both labs. The male is everything others have described, friend,y, bouncy, was mouthy, unaware of his size and strength. The bitch is just lovely - gentle, sweet natured, not at all stubborn and more spatially aware. She was easier to train, likes a job, never lazy and generally smells sweet.

Depends on how much time you really have? Most dogs need people time as well as walking. They live for 12-15 years typically so can you have enough time at home or pay a dog walker?

That said I'm a collie fan, but not really beginners dogs, need effective training (easy to train good things but also pick up bad habits too easily!) My boy is older now and is a dream, prefers his own company though, think he was glad when wfh ended for us in April

We have a frug, she’s a cross of french bulldog and pug. She has an amazing temperament, couldn’t have hoped for a better dog with our kids. A little bitey at first but learned quickly. Easy to train, doesn’t need much grooming. Enjoys a 5k walk but then is super lazy too. Can’t recommend a frug enough based on our experience

We have two chihuahuas. One is brilliant with our children and strangers children but one isn’t.

The one who loves kids can be found laid on her back, belly up surrounded by children fussing her to bits. She loves every second of it.

The downside is, because she’s so small, there’s a chance a young child could hurt her. That is one of the main reasons chihuahuas aren’t suitable as family dogs

I second whippets, they seem very chill and cuddly! Only downside is they can dash off when offlead and it's difficult to get them back.

I have a mad & tiny poodle cross and definitely wouldn't recommend with kids 🤣 Too damn smart for their own good.

A larger cavalier may be a decent family dog, also very calm, but they have a bunch of health issues so don't skimp out on health testing breeders with these ones.

We have four children ranging from 11 years down to 10 months and we have a 7 year old Bichon and a Labrador puppy. I know that lots of people will have thought we were crazy getting a puppy with two children so young, but we gave up caring about what other people thought a long time ago 😂 We made sure we got our pup from a reputable breeder and she was brought up in a busy house with children, so she was used to a busy environment when she came to us. We've put things in place from day one so that the dog and the children knew their own boundaries, obviously we wouldn't leave the children alone with either of the dogs but we have baby gates to separate them when needed and we've made the crate a really positive place for our puppy so she is happy to go in there when needed. She's really keen to learn, we taught her sit, stay and drop first and she will drop things if we ask her to. I do think that it's helped that we have another dog as when she has he 'zoomies' she's doing them outside with our other dog so then she is calm with us - she hasn't done any mouthing or scratching at any of us. Like you, I'm a SAHM for the foreseeable so I have the time at home to train and walk her, and we live in the countryside and have an outdoor lifestyle like you. As long as you have the time to do the training and walking, and to make sure the children know their boundaries with the dog, I would recommend a Labrador from a personal point of view, but I do feel lucky that ours isn't as crazy as some have described!

Miniature poodle. Very intelligent, playful, non-shedding, can walk for hours but equally happy with short walks on days you are busy.

The rescues are full of Staffies, so I question the advice to get one. My vote goes to a bitch Golden Retriever.

The rescues are full of Staffies, so I question the advice to get one
I’m looking through the website of my local rescue now.
There are two staffies. Two.
It’s mostly small terriers, a lot of them look to be jack russells and JRT crosses.
Then collies and collie crosses.
A few larger bull breeds like boxers and bulldogs.

I’ve just looked at our local rescue centre. Out of 12, five are Staffies.